Rugby league legend and new Australian coach Mal Meninga believes Perth could host a State of Origin clash at Burswood’s new Perth Stadium.
The Queensland Origin coach and former Australian captain has also thrown his weight behind the push for a Perth-based NRL franchise.
Meninga, who spent 10 years as Maroons coach before replacing Tim Sheens at the helm of the Kangaroos late last year, was in Perth yesterday as the NRL launched the first trans-Tasman Test for the city.
After leading the Maroons to victory in nine of the past 10 Origin series, Meninga will be in charge of just his second Test against New Zealand on October 15 at nib Stadium.
“Origin is a showpiece and I feel that you can have one game in Brisbane, one in Sydney and one around the world, the rugby league playing nations,” Meninga said.
“There’s no reason why we can’t be here in Perth. We’re in Melbourne now. To propagate our game we need to do things to showcase our game.”
He said rugby league wanted to expand to WA.
“It’s a national rugby league competition, there’s obviously talk about expansion and deep down that’s what we want to see,” he said.
“We want to see rugby league played at the highest level all through Australia. There’s a lot of things that need to happen before that, but being a true fan I’d like to see that one day. I think we all hope that happens.
“The game needs to foster the current teams and make sure they are all financially viable before those expansion talks go ahead, but you need to plan for the future and there are a lot of positives around rugby league here in the west.”
Meninga said bringing the Test to Perth, as well as two NRL matches in June and July at nib Stadium, was an important step in moving towards a new club. “Coming here and expanding our game and showcasing our game is really important,” he said. “There is plenty of support here.”
https://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/s...eninga-says-perth-could-host-state-of-origin/
