PNG bid for NRL

[bender]

I've been there countless times with my work right through the bigger places like Moresby, Mt Hagen, Madang, and smaller villages based on the side of aircraft strips and the majority of the country is extremely poverty ridden and highly isolated.

There may be 6 million people living in PNG, half to 3/4 of those couldn't afford one game ticket and the majority of people are stuck in the middle of woop woop with no access other than by foot or aircraft to Moresby.

Whilst the romance of having a team based there is all well and good, I really think some of you people need to get your head out of the clouds and be realistic. It is a 3rd world nation FFS.

What do you work as?

 

[Perth Red]

There would be some great spin offs. It would strengthen the Int game which would benefit RL enormously to have a competitive PNG. The decent salaries the players earnt would often go back to their villages and families to improve quality of life in PNG ( I know some of the SL PNG players send a fair bit back home which has allowed for significant infrastructure upgrades in their villages) and it would also add a very exciting element to the NRL. Who wouldn't be tuned in every week when PNG were at home? It would be great to watch! Finally it would see the development of a decent , safe stadium, which would be a big plus for full Internationals to be held in PNG.

Of course the obstacles are huge BUT if the PNG and Australian Govt's are willing to financially get behind it then we would be stupid not to have a long term plan to make it happen. Lets get the stadium upgrade with the promise of Internationals v Oz, NZ and England playerd there as the sweetner. Lets get some funding behind them and get them back in the Q'land cup. Lets get them in the SG Ball comp, lets lobby the Govt to make it easier for young players to come over and get development spots at NRL clubs etc. There is alot we COULD be doing now to make it a reality in 10-20 years time.

 

[Goddo]

A QLD Cup feeder club would achieve all of that Red... they don't need an NRL side. Perth does. Would you be willing to give up the Reds for the PNG whatevers?

And, it is an Australian competition, and with the exception of NZ, the comp should be entirely focused on developing the game here. We haven't finished expanding in Australia yet!

Forget the third world for now.

 

[joshreading]

This rubbish about it being 'an australian comp' and it should stay that way is pathetic and redundant. Such views have been expressed every step of the way in the growth of the game and competition.

Originally 'Its a Sydney comp' (when looking at Canberra/Illawarra)
'Its a NSW Comp (when Brisbane applies - leave them with the QRL)
'Its an Australian comp' (when Auckland is applies)
'Its still an Australian PLUS NZ comp (when PNG etc could come in)

The reality is we live in a globalised world where whilst local and national affiliation is important people want and expect to see their teams taking of teams from other areas not just their immediate geographic or demographic area. If an area is good enough and can be financially and strategically beneficial then WHO CARES WHERE THEY COME FROM!!!

If a South African team applied and they filled positive financial and strategic potential then go there (ps this is an example not a suggestion - ps the ARL actually looked at SA as an expansion option

 

[Perth Red]

A QLD Cup feeder club would achieve all of that Red... they don't need an NRL side. Perth does. Would you be willing to give up the Reds for the PNG whatevers?

And, it is an Australian competition, and with the exception of NZ, the comp should be entirely focused on developing the game here. We haven't finished expanding in Australia yet!

Forget the third world for now.

Although it pains me to say it, a PNG team in the NRL could actually have more long term benefits. I believe Int RL is a massive untapped resource for the game and getting France and PNG up to a competitive level should be number one priority. The poms are doing there bit to get France improved, it's up to us to do the same with PNG. I do agree though that a Q'land cup side and more Int's are the first steps and an eventual NRL team should be a long term goal, if and when they are ready and capable of financially being sustainable.

 

[Jankuloski]

Well, then the only thing that remains is relocation of Sydney teams.

If you take into account all the places RL should expand in order to grow the international game - NZ2, PNG, Perth or SA... well that's allready 20 teams. Either some teams dissapear (raise your hand, anyone who wants their team gone!) or you have to split the NRL into conferences. I am not a big fan of conferences - for example, I've seen that Bulldogs V Storm had the top crowd on TV this year - the Dogs would probably be in a different conference than Storm and would rarely meet. Bottom line, interstate rivalries would suffer under conference system.

 

[Big Time]

I really don't see the connection between Darwin and PNG. Distance wise its about as sensible as having a Hobart team based in Brisbane. If you were going to base it anywhere outside PNG, Cairns would make most sense.

The whole point was to have the team based in Darwin and play only a few games a year in PNG. This would be enough for the PNG people to support the team, plus will put us a step ahead of AFL in NT. Plus you would draw on the combined talent pool of NT and PNG.

There is no doubt that PNG is probably a bit too unstable to base a full time side up there. To play in the QLD Cup may sound like a great idea, but realistically is not going to provide them with the corporate dollars needed to pay players and fly them every second week, down as far as Tweed HEads.

NT on the other hand is crying out for a sporting team.

 

[Perth Red]

The whole point was to have the team based in Darwin and play only a few games a year in PNG. This would be enough for the PNG people to support the team, plus will put us a step ahead of AFL in NT. Plus you would draw on the combined talent pool of NT and PNG.

There is no doubt that PNG is probably a bit too unstable to base a full time side up there. To play in the QLD Cup may sound like a great idea, but realistically is not going to provide them with the corporate dollars needed to pay players and fly them every second week, down as far as Tweed HEads.

NT on the other hand is crying out for a sporting team.

Too late, as per usual the AFL got in well ahead of anything the NRL was even considering!

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/10/19/2717845.htm

The Northern Territory Government has done a deal to bring 10 AFL games to Darwin at a cost of about $500,000 a game.

 

[Goddo]

Although it pains me to say it, a PNG team in the NRL could actually have more long term benefits. I believe Int RL is a massive untapped resource for the game and getting France and PNG up to a competitive level should be number one priority. The poms are doing there bit to get France improved, it's up to us to do the same with PNG. I do agree though that a Q'land cup side and more Int's are the first steps and an eventual NRL team should be a long term goal, if and when they are ready and capable of financially being sustainable.

Yes, but getting PNG to that level is about the players being trained and playing at the highest level... a qld cup side would allow the best PNG players to be picked up by NRL clubs. They don't need an NRL side to achieve this. PNG nationalism in RL can be expressed in 4 Nations, Pacific Cup, Qld cup side, World cup, own domestic league.

An NRL side would be a bit redundant. That and there is no money in PNG (government handouts are not a viable long term financial stratergy) and PNG adds no value to the existing clubs. Thats why we keep the storm going, yes they are a loss, but the net value of the club is far greater, being Australias second biggest city with a huge GDP. PNG offers nothing in this regard. Why bother if its going to be a financial drain? Wellington, QLD 4 and Perth are far better financial prospects for the NRL.

 

[Goddo]

Well, then the only thing that remains is relocation of Sydney teams.

If you take into account all the places RL should expand in order to grow the international game - NZ2, PNG, Perth or SA... well that's allready 20 teams. Either some teams dissapear (raise your hand, anyone who wants their team gone!) or you have to split the NRL into conferences. I am not a big fan of conferences - for example, I've seen that Bulldogs V Storm had the top crowd on TV this year - the Dogs would probably be in a different conference than Storm and would rarely meet. Bottom line, interstate rivalries would suffer under conference system.

Exactly. Expand to 18 with very careful concideration as to which 2 you pick (For growth, Wellington and Perth, for stability, Central Coast and QLD). Any where else that wants a team after this will just have to wait for a relocation, or buy an existing club the way the Yanks do, or have some sort of Relegation system (possibly the Super league UK method). That would see weaker Sydney clubs relocate.

 

[Scarves]

I am no expert but it does not seem unrealistic to me.

An NRL team will need to raise a good 10 million dollars just to survive. PNG residents are third world, but they do still have some major industry.

Firstly, the indications are that the PNG and Aust govts would be supporting that side let us guess taht this say 1 million dollars each per year, that gets us to 2 millions dollars added to the competition.

An NRL major sponser is probably 1 million per year. I would have thought, at the very least that you would see a coke/pepsi war over sponsoring the team and 1 million would be quite reasonable to expect. Then i would say 1 million from lesser sponsors. Just a thought, but would the cigarette companies in PNG shelve out for advertising at the local home ground.

Anyway, i think that this takes us to about 4 million (although dont forget that there is no reason why an Australian company would not sponsor a PNG side, since the games will be largely televised in Australia, so i would have thought another million or so might be a chance) on a conservative guess. Then dont forget gate receipts if we average say 10 games at 15000 a game and 10 a ticket we get about 1.5 million. I am not sure what sort of money TV companies in PNG currently pay (if anything) but i would have thought theyd get on board for at least an extra 500,000. This takes us to about $6million (alhtough it is not allowing for the $10 million government pledge for the stadium).

Merchandising is another issue. PNG would be a trendy side and while their jerseys would need to be cheap, they would still sell like hotcakes in PNG and be decent sellers as collectors items, even in Australia. Let us guess at 1 million per year which i think may be even quite conservative. This takes us to $7 million dollars and is probalby about the limit of the revenue value.

But, the thing which is forgotten is the goodwill stories in the press and the massive marketing value of such stories. This would be big news, not only here, but also right throughout the Pacific Islands. It would be front page news and positive front page news, again both here and in the pacific. As an advertising tool, to purchase the space that this would buy would be in the millions and millions of dollars to the game, probably more. To say that this advertising would be worth three million would be a fairly conservative estimation, but this is the way you can get to 10 million with some coservative figures.

Dont get me wrong, more than any other bid, this one needs to be scrutinised, worked out and carefully implemented, but the benefits are clear to be seen, and there are advantages that this bid brings that that the others dont. Ofcourse there are also pitfalls and difficulties that the others dont have.

As for your point of Channel 9 not sending cameras to PNG, well they would be stupid if they did. Anyone with any common sense would employ and train a local camera crew in png, much like seems to be usually done with the Warriors. While a not a big deal, this is just a further carrot for the PNG govt to support rugby league and the bid.

I think you under estimate the cost of tear gas, that will cut your $7 million dreaming dollars to around $2 million.

Seriously people are taking the p!ss and laughing while sinking Crownies in big city hotel piano bars - a club from Port Moresby in the NRL, next Mount Hagen will launch a bid. If they are looking for an early front runner as a nickname, call them the PNG Tooth Fairies.

 

[beave]

^ what he said.

 

[Goddo]

Yep. PNG in the NRL is stupid.

 

[flamin]

http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/...plan-to-satisfy-the-masses-20100409-ryot.html




The big picture: PNG's grand plan to satisfy the masses
ROY MASTERS
April 10, 2010

Screen time...league fans in Port Moresby get their fix. Photo: PNG Courier Post
Papua New Guinea's bid to join the NRL is well advanced, with a novel solution to the problem of convincing the 16 clubs it can deliver increases in broadcasting revenue, despite the young nation having limited TV sets.

A bid team met NRL chief executive David Gallop recently and explained it would fill a new stadium in Port Moresby with paying customers, all watching away games on big screens set around the arena.

The fans might not count as TV viewers in the OzTam definition but would send a powerful message to sponsors if they regularly filled a stadium.

Already, leading PNG companies have supported the bid, with Coca-Cola contributing 500,000 kina ($209,000) a year for three years and total sponsorships already exceeding five million kina. The PNG Government has committed 20.5m kina to the bid, with most reserved for the construction of a 30,000-seat stadium in Port Moresby.

The stadium will be used during the South Pacific Games in 2015, the same year as the bid committee hopes to field a team in the NRL.

The PNG minister for sport, Philemon Embel, told the Herald, ''Our government wants to build a stadium in Port Moresby. In view of the successful bid for the 2015 South Pacific Games and the PNG bid for an NRL licence, it is possible that the government could fund the stadium but there are also other options open. Given time constraints, it is most likely that the government will undertake funding itself. Whatever the cost, the government is ready to build the stadium. The PNG Government is 100 per cent behind this NRL bid.''

A park in Port Moresby's National Capital District already displays NRL and State of Origin matches on big screens, with the city Governor, Powes Parkop, enthusiastic for the role rugby league plays in bonding the nation's 800 disparate tribes and reducing crime.

''Here in Port Moresby, we have been able to translate the passion our people have for NRL games and State of Origin into positive community initiatives,'' Governor Parkop said. ''We have, since 2008, been showing the game on big screens throughout the city. On game night, 14,000 to 15,000 people are turning up and they reckon it is better than watching it at home. The atmosphere is electric but peaceful and harmonious. We have created a family friendly environment and I am very pleased to say that we have had very few incidents. We endeavour to create an alcohol free environment during the 'show' to enable families to come out, especially mothers and children. This initiative is helping us to transform the culture of this city which used to be known for crime and violence and other negative things. In the last two years, we have reduced opportunity crime by up to 50 per cent. This is what I want David Gallop and other NRL executives to know, appreciate and experience that the game is more than a game here in PNG. It has the ability to impact positively on all walks of life in PNG.''

An indication of the hold rugby league has on the nation's population was a recent government edict making the sport a mandatory part of the curriculum in all schools.

Even in ice hockey obsessed Canada, or the Nordic countries passionate about cross country skiing, it is unlikely a specific sport has been made a compulsory subject, along with spelling and arithmetic.

Minister Embel and Governor Parkop led the delegation to meet Gallop late last month, with the NRL boss insisting problems the bid team have experienced in dealing with the rugby league establishment in PNG must be resolved before the country's candidature can be taken seriously.

In the same way there were strained relationships between the QRL and the Broncos when the Brisbane team entered the NRL in 1988, the PNGRL fears its status as host of visiting national teams could be undermined.

However, Gallop used the PNG bid to extol the NRL's no draft policy, saying in a press release distributed to PNG media, ''One of the things we often get criticised for is not having an external draft like other sports. But in fact one of our greatest strengths is that local kids can grow up to become local heroes. Wouldn't it be great if one day local kids can grow up to be local heroes in PNG and play in the NRL?''

Given that the next NRL broadcasting contract will begin in 2013, only two years before PNG hopes to have a team in the NRL, it seems the next media deal will be short term, or the bid's time frame must be reviewed … or an existing NRL team must fall over.

The PNG bid team has rejected the suggestion it should invest in a vulnerable Sydney NRL club, opting to support the Central Coast's bid in order to bring the number of NRL teams to 18, meaning nine games a week.

The general manager of the PNG bid is Bev Broughton, a very capable sports marketing consultant who is married to Paul Broughton, chairman of the Titans.

Minister Embel recently toured Skilled Park on the Gold Coast and considered it a model for Port Moresby's planned arena.

 

[nqcowboy87]

meh, the png government/bid team have delusions of granduer, they need to priooritise by fixing their country up first

 

[Timbo]

It's a bad idea and would fail. Perth, Central Coast, Wellington, Sunshine Coast...

These are good ideas. Adelaide, Cairns or Darwin would have more chance of success than a PNG team.

 

[Eels Dude]

Having a 30,000 seat capacity stadium guareented to be built regardless if this bid is successful or not is a big selling point. Still a lot of stumbling blocks to overcome though. I cannot see them being able to recruit players from Australia given the state of their country. Which basically means they're always going to field a struggling team as they cannot come up with a side of locally based players that wouldn't get thrashed by every side in the NSW cup. It's a pipedream.

 

[Perth Red]

The PNG Government has committed 20.5m kina to the bid, with most reserved for the construction of a 30,000-seat stadium in Port Moresby.
Minister Embel recently toured Skilled Park on the Gold Coast and considered it a model for Port Moresby's planned arena.

They can build a bigger skilled park for $8mill?

 

[Green Machine]

PNG is Third World Country. It’s not going to happen,

 

[flamin]

Having a 30,000 seat capacity stadium guareented to be built regardless if this bid is successful or not is a big selling point. Still a lot of stumbling blocks to overcome though. I cannot see them being able to recruit players from Australia given the state of their country. Which basically means they're always going to field a struggling team as they cannot come up with a side of locally based players that wouldn't get thrashed by every side in the NSW cup. It's a pipedream.

Perhaps but PNG would probably have has many kids playing the game as Australia. It's ridiculous that they're aren't measures in place for developing this huge latent pool.