Shorten Government to sort it all out

[DIOGENES]

The ALP National Conference just passed a resolution committing a Labor Government to supporting a PNG team in the NRL

https://www.9news.com.au/2018/12/18/16/12/labor-will-back-png-team-in-nrl

Given the high probability of a Labor win at the next election we may as well stop discussion

 

[titoelcolombiano]

Well, I don't think PNG should have an NRL team but it is nice to see our game supported publically like this instead of it being bagged or worse, seeing politicians fap over AFL

 

[Perth Red]

" committed the party to investigating"

lol straight out of the Greenberg expansion press response handbook!

 

[The Great Dane]

Thanks, but no thanks.

There's no way that a PNG club is sustainable, and it'd only be a matter of time before this issue would become a political football or simply that there'd be a change in government or something and funding would be cut, then the NRL would be left with a money pit of a club on their hands and looking like the bad guys if they didn't foot the bill...

 

[Diesel]

It’s an interesting way to give a grant to a third world country

 

[jim_57]

Strange, I won't pretend to know how they plan on working this but they can't exactly tell NRL what teams they have to have.

How about one or more of the below?

• Increased funding for Hunters
• Funding for a 2nd QLD Cup side
• Funding for Hunters to field a junior side/s
• Funding for PMXIII program to be increased, possibly including Fiji and maybe Tonga or Samoa
• "Pathways" and links developed like bringing PNG students over on a sport and education basis to some top Rugby League schools.

 

[El Diablo]

The ALP National Conference just passed a resolution committing a Labor Government to supporting a PNG team in the NRL

https://www.9news.com.au/2018/12/18/16/12/labor-will-back-png-team-in-nrl

Given the high probability of a Labor win at the next election we may as well stop discussion

does he know PNG can't vote here?

 

[applesauce]

Thanks, but no thanks.

There's no way that a PNG club is sustainable, and it'd only be a matter of time before this issue would become a political football or simply that there'd be a change in government or something and funding would be cut, then the NRL would be left with a money pit of a club on their hands and looking like the bad guys if they didn't foot the bill...

If set up correctly it could be aid/charity/grant that is tax deductible for the NRL if your scenario were to eventuate.

 

[The Great Dane]

If set up correctly it could be aid/charity/grant that is tax deductible for the NRL if your scenario were to eventuate.

It’d still become a political football with the parties arguing over wether those expenses should be tax deductible or not.

 

[herbert henry1908]

National second division is the way to go for a PNG team.

Can test out other expansion areas too.

 

[titoelcolombiano]

It’d still become a political football with the parties arguing over wether those expenses should be tax deductible or not.

And then the AFL will get their snout in the trough and demand a PNG team too - and will get it even though it is completely unwarranted. I'm surpised this wasn't the plan on the table to begin with.

 

[taipan]

And then the AFL will get their snout in the trough and demand a PNG team too - and will get it even though it is completely unwarranted. I'm surpised this wasn't the plan on the table to begin with.

With all the AFL snouts in the money trough ,it's a wonder none of them have suffocated.

China/South Africa have all received Govt largesse for AFL.
Rest assured should RL receive some financial backing, the heavies from AFL house will lean on politicians to ensure they don't miss out.
One thing AFL does better than any other code in this country, is squeeze out every last money drop they can, from lobbying Govts.

 

[Hello, I'm The Doctor]

The ALP National Conference just passed a resolution committing a Labor Government to supporting a PNG team in the NRL

https://www.9news.com.au/2018/12/18/16/12/labor-will-back-png-team-in-nrl

Given the high probability of a Labor win at the next election we may as well stop discussion

This is great? I dont want a PNG team in the NRL now, but this opens 2 possibilities to the game:

- The NRLs brand has cleaned up enough that pollies actively want to associate with us
- The government views RL in PNG as a means social progress. Even outside of an NRL teams, this has a million possibilities; funding for school RL programs to keep kids in school, assistance with funding for more reserve grade teams, help with their nation team to make tours happen.

I think this announcement is a hollow pitch, but it indicates a deeper potential for the game.

 

[Foreign Legion]

This is gonna go down well...Remember Labor drowned 1200 people on good intentions.

 

[DIOGENES]

The policy is being promoted by Richard Marles the MHR for Corio (Geelong) who is co-chair of “The Parliamentary Friends of AFL” and sounds like a complete AFL Shill

http://www.richardmarles.com.au/wp-.../18.08.13-THE-FORBIDDEN-TIP-OPINION-PIECE.pdf

Not sure what to make of that except he once had a role in distributing foreign aid

 

[Angry_eel]

This is great? I dont want a PNG team in the NRL now, but this opens 2 possibilities to the game:

- The NRLs brand has cleaned up enough that pollies actively want to associate with us
- The government views RL in PNG as a means social progress. Even outside of an NRL teams, this has a million possibilities; funding for school RL programs to keep kids in school, assistance with funding for more reserve grade teams, help with their nation team to make tours happen.

I think this announcement is a hollow pitch, but it indicates a deeper potential for the game.

When I first heard it on Chasin Kangaroos podcast, I thought of it as the Australian Govt might simply switch over the dev fund for PNG to PNG RL as a social progress charity.

 

[The Great Dane]

This is great? I dont want a PNG team in the NRL now, but this opens 2 possibilities to the game:

- The NRLs brand has cleaned up enough that pollies actively want to associate with us
- The government views RL in PNG as a means social progress. Even outside of an NRL teams, this has a million possibilities; funding for school RL programs to keep kids in school, assistance with funding for more reserve grade teams, help with their nation team to make tours happen.

I think this announcement is a hollow pitch, but it indicates a deeper potential for the game.

That might be a good compromise, or other stuff like funding Kangaroo tours of PNG and investing in facilities for RL in PNG, but I doubt the government would go for it.

Doing that stuff would mean that they'd have to regularly approve things and they'd have to over see where the money is actually going, where as with an NRL team they sign off on it once that money goes direct to the group running the club then they can effectively wash their hands of it. Also none of that is a big ribbon cutter like an NRL team would be, which is what this would actually be about for the pollies anyway.

 

[Perth Red]

Only way this would work is if the incumbent Govt put enough up front to financially support. A png for ten years regardless of Govt change. Pipe dream.

 

[TheRam]

Here's another link on this - https://www.2gb.com/why-labor-is-pushing-to-get-png-into-the-nrl/

Great for RL if it ever were to eventuate. But I am so used to the NRL ever getting much right that I don't hold out much hope of this ever coming through.

 

[titoelcolombiano]

Strange, I won't pretend to know how they plan on working this but they can't exactly tell NRL what teams they have to have.

How about one or more of the below?

• Increased funding for Hunters
• Funding for a 2nd QLD Cup side
• Funding for Hunters to field a junior side/s
• Funding for PMXIII program to be increased, possibly including Fiji and maybe Tonga or Samoa
• "Pathways" and links developed like bringing PNG students over on a sport and education basis to some top Rugby League schools.

I agree with this - funding the PNG national team (so that they can tour places like England and France), funding the Hunters so that they can set up reserves, U20's and U18's in the QLD Cup system and funding the setup of full development pathways from Digicel Cup right through the Hunters System and to the pros.

If money is to be spent on PNGRL, this would have the biggest impact.