PNG bid for NRL

[Angry_eel]

Take the $20m and create a top class comp in PNG.

won't work. Even if you did create it, they would still need the coaches and players from Australia to make it top notch.

 

[Brownie.Kougari]

won't work. Even if you did create it, they would still need the coaches and players from Australia to make it top notch.

Maybe get NRL clubs to form affiliations with SP Cup clubs and coach the coaches, share training techniques and such in exchange for playing talent?

 

[Angry_eel]

Maybe get NRL clubs to form affiliations with SP Cup clubs and coach the coaches, share training techniques and such in exchange for playing talent?

Ye thats the thing. Instead of putting PNG in the comp. NRL could coach their players and coaches.

Teams get salary cap concessions if they have PNG players.

Thats is the only other thing we can do. But still having a PNG side would be awesome. All they need are a good set of halves and they'll be quite successful. They certainly have the skill as much as Pacific Islanders.

 

[Brownie.Kougari]

Ye thats the thing. Instead of putting PNG in the comp. NRL could coach their players and coaches.

Teams get salary cap concessions if they have PNG players.

Thats is the only other thing we can do. But still having a PNG side would be awesome. All they need are a good set of halves and they'll be quite successful. They certainly have the skill as much as Pacific Islanders.

I think you'd have an issue with restraint of trade from Asssie players who are kept under the cap.

I'd like to see Brisbane (they're my example because they've got money to burn) put up a $50,000 1-year scholarship for the winner of the SP Cup version of the Dally M's to play with them for a year and have such a thing excempt from the cap.

Maybe the NRL should say that they're going to make these scholarships excempt but the clubs have to take it out of their own pockets and rotate which club provides the scholarship.

I think realistically you'd only get Brisbane, the Coast and maybe Townsville and Roosters who would be prepared to pay the extra (Souths may do it if Rusty wants to pump up his ego). This would see a flux of PNG players to the Australian comps and will get past the Government's veto on PNG migrants.

 

[the beavers]

perhaps this has been said before but what if the PNG based side spent a few years in the QLD cup first while their infrastructure was being developed? say 3 years in a top level comp to strenghten and develop the team while they are building staduims etc developing programs and so on.
the team could also be majority png locals rather than imports again improving the local standard
perhaps they could also become one of the qld nrl teams joint feeder club for the 3 years?

 

[roopy]

You guys think small.
The PNG government had a surplus of half a billion dollars last year and have already promised 20 million.
Others have already promised sponsership.
The Australian government have an interest in this as well.

Plans to put a few players in NRL clubs are worth nothing to PNG as a nation and they won't put up a cracker for that plan.

Plans for a side in the NRL will encourage tourism, keep kids in school (as thousands will do their best to have a sporting career), encourage people to lead a healthy lifestyle, give role models to their kids, develop their tourist industry, provide hundreds of jobs, - the list goes on and on and on.

All the same reasons Australia spends billions on sport, but magnified a dozen times because the people of PNG have never had sporting heroes or sports tourism before.

Plans to get a few players in the NRL are not what this is about - it is 10,000 times bigger than that.

 

[babyg]

You guys think small.
The PNG government had a surplus of half a billion dollars last year and have already promised 20 million.
Others have already promised sponsership.
The Australian government have an interest in this as well.

Plans to put a few players in NRL clubs are worth nothing to PNG as a nation and they won't put up a cracker for that plan.

Plans for a side in the NRL will encourage tourism, keep kids in school (as thousands will do their best to have a sporting career), encourage people to lead a healthy lifestyle, give role models to their kids, develop their tourist industry, provide hundreds of jobs, - the list goes on and on and on.

All the same reasons Australia spends billions on sport, but magnified a dozen times because the people of PNG have never had sporting heroes or sports tourism before.

Plans to get a few players in the NRL are not what this is about - it is 10,000 times bigger than that.

Yep everything he said.

 

[roopy]

Why don't they use that 20 Million on its people instead.

Let the sponsors do the high end stuff.

They are spending the 20mill on the people.
Elite sport has dozens of ways of returning value to the people. That's why Australia, England, etc etc etc spend big dollars on it.
PNG can't fund a 300 man Olympic team and 50 different sports like us, but they can have one world class team in which to invest their national pride, encourage tourism, advertise healthy lifestyles, and all the other benefits gained from funding sports.

Australia does the sums and finds spending money on sports is good value, and PNG has the benefit of novelty value as well. The impact on their society of having sporting role models will be much higher because they haven't had them before.
PNG have out of control rates of AIDS, smoking, alcohol abuse etc etc etc - and positive role models are one very good way to address those problems. For the last decade or so they have been using Mal Meninga amongst others to promote healthy lifestyles.

 

[mtngry]

I want to join the new teams fan club.

 

[Mr_Ugly]

They are spending the 20mill on the people.

According to today's Herald, the $20 mill is for a new stadium:
http://news.leaguehq.com.au/sport/lam-committed-to-png-rugby-league-cause-20081110-5lfg.html

The Kumuls went into Sunday's game in Townsville on a high after receiving their Test jumpers from PNG Prime Minister Michael Somare who told them his government had committed $20 million towards building a first class stadium in Port Moresby.
Mr Somare revealed he'd held recent talks with his Australian counterpart with the aim of both governments working together toward PNG fielding a team in the NRL.
Lam said the first step would be for PNG to play in the Queensland Cup competition by 2010.
"We obviously going to push hard for (the NRL) in 2015 but state league needs to happen first and they're talking 2010 now.
"The idea of a rugby league stadium in PNG is fantastic news for us and they (government) are going to put some money towards developing the game at the grass roots and though the villages and hopefully that will show at the next World Cup."
"If all that can go through and we can push ahead, how exciting is that?"