In this bulletin:
1. RUGBY LEAGUE — ‘Our Origin’: Tonga veteran targets revenge on Samoa
2. RUGBY LEAGUE — Samoa welcomes Australia-backed multi-million-dollar Rugby League deal
3. RUGBY LEAGUE — Chaos expected on 01 November 2027
4. RUGBY — Fiji rugby players challenged to respond against Scotland
5. RUGBY — Fiji PM: Give Seruvakula time
6. RUGBY — Q&A | John Sanday: ‘We are building a stronger future for Fiji Rugby’
7. PACIFIC GAMES — Fiji Government boosts sports funding ahead of Pacific Games
8. RUGBY — Italy’s Cannone banned for Wallabies Test after headbutt, Fiji’s Kuruvoli to face hearing
9. FOOTBALL — OFC Women’s Champions Lague 2026 | Tournament Review
10. RUGBY LEAGUE — Invisible string that Australia attached to PNG’s rugby league team
PAC – RUGBY LEAGUE: AAP PACNEWS SPORT: Wed 15 Jul 2026
‘Our Origin’: Tonga veteran targets revenge on Samoa
SYDNEY, 15 JULY 2026 (AAP)—Tonga veteran Felise Kaufusi wants to play in one last World Cup and gain revenge over arch rivals Samoa, with a thumping defeat last year still playing on his mind.
The 34-year-old forward hopes to add to his 15 Tests for Tonga in the 10-team tournament in October and November in Australia, Papua New Guinea and New Zealand.
Tonga have a tough draw. After playing England and Lebanon they face Samoa in Parramatta in a November 1 blockbuster that could decide which of the two teams plays in the semi-finals.
Kaufusi has played for Tonga against Samoa in four Tests and lost them all but the 34-6 defeat in last year’s Pacific Championships still burns.
In front of 44,682 fans at Suncorp Stadium, Samoa dominated a match that included a 95-minute delay for a thunderstorm.
The previous losses to Samoa were close but last year’s defeat still sticks in the craw for Kaufusi due to its magnitude and the occasion.
“That hurt, that last one,” Kaufusi said.
“We got thumped at Suncorp and it hurt even more when that rain came. It just prolonged it. We will do our best to not ever see that or feel that again.
“If both teams have what they can on paper, and all the boys go back to heritage, it is going to make for a cracker World Cup and a lot of competition.
“I think of Tonga v Samoa as our State of Origin. There is always a lot of, not friendly, but competition there. The boys want to beat each other.”
Tonga currently have a wonderful pack that includes young guns Demitric Vaimauga, Leka Halasima and Siua Wong along with proven performers Addin Fonua-Blake, Jason Taumalolo and Moeaki Fotuaika.
Getting in the squad will be no breeze for Kaufusi.
“I would love to but I know how much talent and how much youth we have in that position,” the Dolphins stalwart said.
“I’ll be disappointed if I don’t make it but I know our future for Tonga is in a good space. I would never say no to Tonga, but I have to worry about us in clubland week-in and week-out.”
Kaufusi played his first three Tests for Tonga before linking with Australia.
He was a member of the Kangaroos winning World Cup squad in 2017 on home soil and played in two Tests but not the final.
After representing the Kangaroos on four occasions he switched back to Tonga in 2022 at the World Cup, where Samoa won a thrilling quarter-final 20-18….PACNEWS
PAC – RUGBY LEAGUE: NRL PACNEWS SPORT: Wed 15 Jul 2026
Samoa welcomes Australia-backed multi-million-dollar Rugby League deal
APIA, 15 JULY 2026 (NRL)—Samoa has joined four major Pacific rugby league playing countries in a Pacific Rugby League Partnership announced in Brisbane on Wednesday night.
The Australian Rugby League Commission (ARLC) signed a landmark Statement of Partnership with Pacific rugby league federations in the presence of the Prime Ministers of Australia, Papua New Guinea, Samoa and Tonga.
ARLC chairman Peter V’landys AM signed the historic document alongside counterparts from the PNG Rugby Football League, Tonga Rugby League XIII and Rugby League Samoa.
Joining the Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to witness the signing were Samoan Prime Minister Laʻaulialemalietoa Leuatea Polataivao Fosi Schmidt, PNG Prime Minister James Marape, and Tongan Prime Minister Lord Fatafehi Fakafanua.
The AUD$250 million (US$174 million) 10-year Pacific Rugby League Partnership is backed by the Australian government and the Australia Rugby League.
La’auli told attendees at the signing that the partnership is a transformational investment in the future of Pacific youth.
“This strategic partnership is an investment in our people. It will strengthen grassroots sport, improve health and education outcomes, and create opportunities for young Samoans to develop their talents while remaining connected to their families, villages, and communities.
“Investing in sport is also investing in stronger community, and more prosperity for our future and our region,” he said.
“Rugby league is more than a game, it is a source of national pride, the way we bring community together and a powerful platform to develop our young people and presentation for new opportunities.”
La’auli said that 50 percent of NRL players were of Pasifika heritage, including the likes of Jason Taumalolo, Stephen Crichton, Payne Haas and Jarome Luai.
According to the NRL, the deal is supported by a $250m(US$174 million) investment by the Australian government – a key part of the broader $600m(US$418 million) commitment, which includes support for the entry of the PNG Chiefs into the NRL in 2028 – the partnership will grow rugby league across the Pacific.
Albanese said rugby league would be a catalyst for social change and deepening Australia-Pacific people-to-people and institutional links.
“From the proud island nations of the Pacific, to the suburbs and regions of Queensland and New South Wales, rugby league unites us and inspires us,” he said.
“The first signing for the PNG Chiefs, Jarome Luai is a powerful symbol of that: a premiership player, Origin winner and an Australian who takes pride in his Samoan heritage. The partnership we launch today celebrates these connections.
“Today, our Pacific family draws closer together. We bond around a shared love of this great game, a shared investment in our young people and their future and a shared commitment to the region we call home.
“This is a great day for rugby league, for all our nations and for the next generation.”
The Pacific Rugby League Partnership has three main pillars – community and grassroots, pathways and academies, and elite and international, with a strong focus on introducing young boys and girls to rugby league early.
Initiatives of the partnership include:
*Expanding existing youth engagement and violence prevention programs to reach more communities.
*Establishing primary and high school competitions in Papua New Guinea, Tonga, Samoa and Fiji, supported by a network of teachers accredited as coaches.
*Setting up programs in each country to promote girls’ competitions.
*Building men’s and women’s national competitions across age groups.
*Continuing to deliver Pacific Championship matches and identify opportunities for NRL and NRLW matches to be played in the Pacific….PACNEWS
PNG – RUGBY LEAGUE: THE NATIONAL PACNEWS SPORT: Wed 15 Jul 2026
Chaos expected on 01 November 2027
PORT MORESBY, 15 JULY 2026 (THE NATIONAL) — 01 November 2027 will be one of the most important dates in the build-up to the PNG Chiefs’ NRL entry, and the club must follow the league’s player recruitment rules like every other franchise, says former Queensland Maroons hooker Andrew McCullough.
“There has been plenty of public discussion about which players the Chiefs should sign next, however, recruiting NRL players is not as simple as choosing a favourite player,” McCullough told The National.
“I wouldn’t know who’s off contract on Nov 1. I could name a lot of players, but at the end of the day they might not technically be off contract.”
The Chiefs are continuing to build their inaugural squad ahead of their debut in 2028, with fans eagerly waiting to see which stars will join the club after its first major signings.
McCullough expects Nov 1 to be one of the busiest recruitment periods for both the Chiefs and other NRL clubs.
“Nov 1 will be an absolutely chaotic time,” he said.
“It will be particularly special this year because clubs will begin looking at players who become available.”
He said the Chiefs will not be the only club active in the player market, with the Perth Bears also expected to continue strengthening their roster for future seasons.
“Even though Perth will have their squad, they’ll still be looking at recruiting for the future as well,” McCullough said.
The former Newcastle Knights hooker said many fans do not fully understand how the NRL’s contracting system works.
He explained that clubs cannot simply approach any player they want at any time, as strict rules govern when players can negotiate with rival clubs.
“People have to understand there are rules and regulations,” he said.
“You can’t just talk to players whenever you want, and you can’t just offer a contract because you like someone.”
With the Chiefs preparing to build a competitive squad for their historic NRL debut, McCullough believes patience will be important as the recruitment process unfolds.
He said Nov 1 is expected to shape the next phase of the Chiefs’ roster, with player movements across the NRL likely to attract significant attention from fans and clubs alike. “It’ll be interesting,” McCullough added….PACNEWS
UK – RUGBY: FBC SPORTS PACNEWS SPORT: Wed 15 Jul 2026
Fiji rugby players challenged to respond against Scotland
SUVA, 15 JULY 2026 (FBC SPORTS)— Flying Fijians interim head coach Senirusi Seruvakula has challenged his players to take a hard look at themselves ahead of this weekend’s Nations Championship clash against Scotland.
With one match remaining in the campaign, Seruvakula says the focus now shifts to reviewing the team’s performance and determining who is prepared to step up for the final Test.
“We have to go back to the drawing board and first we talk about what we did wrong and what we did right.”
The coach says individual accountability will be just as important as team preparation in the build-up to Scotland.
“Then we have to look at ourselves and if we really want to play and wear that jersey next week against Scotland.”
The Flying Fijians will wrap up their Nations Championship campaign against Scotland at 1.10am in Murrayfield this Sunday…. PACNEWS
FIJI – RUGBY: FIJI SUN PACNEWS SPORT: Wed 15 Jul 2026
Fiji PM: Give Seruvakula time
SUVA, 15 JULY 2026 (FIJI SUN)—Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has defended the appointment of interim Flying Fijians head coach Senirusi Seruvakula, saying it is too early to judge his performance after two Test matches.
Responding to criticism over the departure of former head coach Mick Byrne and Seruvakula’s appointment, Rabuka said he had always supported the idea of a local coach leading the national rugby side.
“I was informed of the appointment, and we should give the process time,” the former Flying Fijians prop said.
“Let’s see whether the argument that a local coach better understands the players, and the players better understand the coach, proves correct.
“Two Test matches are not enough to judge whether the appointment has been successful. I have always supported having a local coach who understands the nature and psyche of Fijian players.”
The Flying Fijians have reached the Rugby World Cup quarterfinals under local coaches- Ratu Josateki Sovau (1987), Ilivasi Tabua (2007) and Simon Raiwalui (2023).
Rabuka admitted that he was disappointed of the Flying Fijians failure to capitalise on key opportunities during the recent Tests matches against Wales and England.
“There were too many missed opportunities in both matches. I hope those lessons will form part of the team’s preparations going forward,” he added….PACNEWS
UK – RUGBY: FIJI SUN PACNEWS SPORT: Wed 15 Jul 2026
Q&A | John Sanday: ‘We are building a stronger future for Fiji Rugby’
LONDON, 15 JULY 2026 (FIJI SUN)—It’s best to put the Flying Fijians loss to England in the second round of the Nations Championship behind us. The way forward is to learn from what went wrong and how we could make it right.
This journey has been a learning curve with the Fiji Rugby Union (FRU) board of directors having the guts to host three of our Test matches in the United Kingdom (UK).
Despite the Test losses, Fiji Rugby has been gaining in other avenues, which boost the development of the sport here.
After Week 2, we had an interview with FRU board chairman JOHN SANDAY and he has this to say:
SUN: How did things go in the second week in London in terms of hosting our second Nations Championship in the UK?
SANDAY: There is no denying that the result against England was incredibly tough to swallow.
Like all of you, our hearts are heavy because we hold our Flying Fijians to the highest regard and the result hurt deeply.
I hear your frustrations, I share your disappointment, and I take full responsibility to ensure we learn rebuild and improve.
But while the 80 minutes on the field did not go our way, the off the field performance of Fiji Rugby over the last two weeks has been nothing short of world class.
SUN: What were some of the challenges faced and at the same time could you also mention some of the major achievements?
SANDAY: History was made yesterday (Saturday). We witnessed the largest ‘home game’ crowd we have ever experienced, resulting in a landmark commercial success. The atmospheric game-day experience fuelled by a vibrant colourful pre-game entertainment package showed the world how spectacular a Fijian rugby event truly is.
SUN: The Fiji Rugby brand, what is its impact in terms of businesses?
SANDAY: The financial windfall is not just a win for today (Saturday). It is the vital fuel that will fund our financial strength and also fund our grassroots programmes, improve our high performance structures and safeguard the future of Fiji Rugby for generations to come.
For example, the surplus from the England game will pay for the premium of the land we are acquiring at Saweni.
We will share the revenue with our member unions to alleviate their financial struggles in the provincial competitions.
We also plan to clear out all the existing debts of Fiji Rugby. So from that end, it has been a commercial and financial success.
SUN: Were there other impacts that have come out of this series?
SANDAY: Yes, even more powerful than the numbers has been the spirit of our people. The way the Fijian diaspora in the UK has rallied together has been the true hallmark of this tour. To see young Fijian girls and boys born thousands of miles away from our shores, connecting so deeply, proudly and emotionally with their culture through rugby is a victory that no scoreboard can ever take away.
We are building a global family, and the connection is unbreakable.
SUN: Are our players too self-centered and don’t understand that they need to be answerable to their employers- in this case FRU? Also, with Scotland, next what are some of improvements being put in place to better our performance on and off the field?
SANDAY: We are not done yet. This Saturday we face Scotland. It is another massive test, another chance for our players to redeem themselves, and another golden opportunity to expand our global fan base and deepen the meaningful cultural connections we are making here in the UK.
I don’t involve myself in coaching and team dynamics as that the is the domain of the coaching and team management staff.
But from discussions yesterday (Saturday) evening they are all focused on fixing things up and putting on a stronger outing against Scotland.
We therefore need your voice, your prayers, and your unwavering belief as always and we celebrate the immense growth of our game off the field and look forward to a spectacular finish this weekend…..PACNEWS
FIJI – PACIFIC GAMES: FBC SPORTS PACNEWS SPORT: Wed 15 Jul 2026
Fiji Government boosts sports funding ahead of Pacific Games
SUVA, 15 JULY 2026 (FBC SPORTS)—The Fiji government has committed millions of dollars towards sports development, athlete preparation, and international competition as Fiji builds towards the 2027 Pacific Games in Tahiti.
Speaking in parliament Tuesday, Minister for Youth and Sports Jese Saukuru said sport remains one of Fiji’s greatest strengths and a key driver of national development, community wellbeing and economic growth.
Among the major allocations is approximately $5.88 million(US$2.94 million) for overseas sporting tours, allowing national teams to gain valuable international exposure ahead of major competitions, including the Pacific Games.
The government has also set aside $2.19 million(US$1.09 million) for sports coaches and $185,869(US$92,934) for sports scholarships to support athlete development and performance.
Saukuru says the budget also strengthens grassroots sports through a $250,000(US$125,000) Sports Outreach Programme and funding for community sports associations.
In a move designed to attract greater private sector involvement, businesses sponsoring the Fijian Drua or Bula FC will receive enhanced tax deductions, while new sporting facilities will qualify for a 150 percent tax deduction.
The Minister says the investments reflect the government’s commitment to broadening participation, developing elite athletes and ensuring Fiji remains competitive on the international stage…..PACNEWS
UK – RUGBY: AFP PACNEWS SPORT: Wed 15 Jul 2026
Italy’s Cannone banned for Wallabies Test after headbutt, Fiji’s Kuruvoli to face hearing
LONDON, 15 JULY 2026 (AFP)—Italy lock forward Niccolo Cannone was on Tuesday banned for four matches after receiving a red card against New Zealand last weekend, meaning he will miss the Nations Championship clash with Australia.
Meanwhile, Fiji scrumhalf Simione Kuruvoli will have his case heard at the Foul Play Review Committee after his red card during their defeat to England.
Cannone head-butted All Blacks scrum-half Cam Roigard in the second half of the Test in Wellington on Saturday. He was given a yellow card which was upgraded to red on review and led to the Italians playing with 14 men for 20 minutes of the match which they lost 47-17.
The Foul Play Review Committee (FPRC) found Cannone guilty of physical abuse, a Nations Championship statement said Tuesday.
“The dangerous play, for which Cannone received a red card… merited a low-end entry point (ban) of six weeks/matches,” the statement said.
“In light of Cannone’s acceptance that he committed an act of foul play worthy of ordering off, as well as mitigating factors such as his disciplinary record, conduct, and remorse, the FPRC applied a two-week reduction to the sanction.
“Cannone has been suspended from all forms of the game for four weeks.”
For Kuruvoli, he will face the Committee in the coming hours for striking in the heavy defeat in Liverpool.
“Following an initial review by the Foul Play Review Committee (FPRC), the matter concerning Fiji scrumhalf Simione Kuruvoli was referred to a full hearing before a Disciplinary Committee, scheduled for Tuesday, 14 July 2026,” the statement continued.
“Kuruvoli is facing a possible sanction for physical abuse (Law 9.12) after being issued a red card during last Saturday’s Nations Championship match between Fiji and England at Hill Dickinson Stadium in Liverpool.”
Fiji will face Scotland in Edinburgh, having started their campaign with defeats to Wales and England…PACNEWS
PAC – FOOTBALL: OFC PACNEWS SPORT: Wed 15 Jul 2026
OFC Women’s Champions Lague 2026 | Tournament Review
HONIARA, 15 JULY 2026 (OFC)—The fourth edition of the OFC Women’s Champions League recently concluded in the Solomon Islands, with Auckland United FC again being crowned continental champions after defeating Hekari Women FC in the final.
In a testament to the continued growth of women’s football, this year’s tournament was the biggest yet, and was contested between ten clubs, seven of which qualified for the final tournament.
As the dust settles on the action at the National Stadium in Honiara, we’ve decided to take a look back at the moments that defined OFC Women’s Champions League 2026.
Tournament Breakdown
Group A
The tougher side of the draw had three-time runners-up Hekari Women FC placed alongside Fiji’s Ba Women FC, Vanuatu’s Tafea FC, and host club Henderson Eels FC of the Solomon Islands in Group A.
After being held to an entertaining 2-2 stalemate by Tafea on the opening matchday, Hekari surged into top spot with wins from both of their remaining two fixtures, including a 9-1 victory over Henderson Eels.
The fight to see who would join them was decided in a seven-goal thriller, Tafea FC edging Ba Women FC 4-3 on the group’s final matchday.
Group B
The odd number of competing teams in the final tournament saw defending champions Auckland United FC placed in a three-team group alongside New Caledonia’s Drehu Athletico Club and qualifying tournament winners Puaikura FC from the Cook Islands.
The decisive group fixture came on the final matchday, Puaikura twice coming from behind to pinch a 2-2 draw with Drehu Athletico Club that sealed their spot in the last four as group runners-up behind Auckland – making history by becoming the first club from the Cook Islands to reach the semi-finals of an OFC club competition.
Semi-Finals
There were clear favourites for either semi-final, but neither went totally according to script. Hekari Women FC were forced to wait 86 minutes for the decisive breakthrough against a resilient Puaikura FC, Nenny Elipas scoring the only goal.
Auckland United also didn’t have it all their own way against Tafea FC, Charley March and Olivia Ingham scoring two quick second half goals in a hard-fought 2-1 win at the National Stadium.
Final
Meeting in the final for the third successive year, Auckland United made it a three-peat of OFC Women’s Champions League titles with a 3-1 victory over Hekari Women FC.
Nenny Elipas briefly brought Hekari level early in the first half, but goals from Sasha Adamson and Aniela Jensen helped Auckland pull away.
Moments that Mattered
History for Cook Islands football
Puaikura FC became trailblazers for women’s football in the Cook Islands when they became the first club from their country to qualify for the semi-finals of either the OFC Women’s or Men’s Champions League.
The achievement was made more impressive by their route to the final tournament in the Solomon Islands in the first place, winning OFC Women’s Champions League 2026 – Qualifying two months previously in Rarotonga.
Led by a stellar defensive effort from defender Teretia Teinaki and goalkeeper C-Jay Rimamotu, Puaikura were minutes away from sending their semi-final to extra-time before conceding late in a spirited 0-1 defeat to Hekari Women FC.
Three-peat baby!
Auckland United winger Sasha Adamson’s cry of ‘three-peat baby!’ as her team held aloft the OFC Women’s Champions League trophy for a third consecutive time will live as a lasting memory from the 2026 tournament.
The New Zealand club continued their dominance on the continental stage, scoring 23 goals and conceding three across their campaign.
As well as scoring in the final, Adamson was also awarded the Golden Ball for the best player of the tournament, whilst Auckland United goalkeeper Charlotte Eagle was the recipient of the Golden Glove for the best goalkeeper….PACNEWS
PAC – RUGBY LEAGUE: ABC PACIFIC PACNEWS SPORT: Wed 15 Jul 2026
Invisible string that Australia attached to PNG’s rugby league team
By defence and national security correspondent Tom Lowrey, ABC
BRISBANE, 15 JULY 2026 (ABC PACIFIC)—It is a sporting and diplomatic moment nearly two decades in the making and carries significance well beyond the white lines marking Port Moresby’s National Football Stadium.
In early 2029, Jarome Luai, a four-time premiership player with the Penrith Panthers, a NSW Origin representative and Samoan international, will likely lead the PNG Chiefs onto the field in their first NRL match.
For many rugby league-mad Papua New Guineans, having their team compete against the game’s very best has been a long-held dream.
But it is also a strategic statement made by Australia and Papua New Guinea.
The deal comes with an invisible string: an unwritten understanding that if Papua New Guinea signs a security pact with China, the club will be pulled.
In the midst of a contest for influence in the Pacific that senior Australian figures describe as a “knife fight”, it demonstrates the government’s willingness to use every soft power lever at its disposal.
Over 10 years $600 million is being spent, with just over half of that funding to go towards establishing the PNG Chiefs, and the rest to developing rugby league in Papua New Guinea, Tonga, Samoa and Fiji.
The leaders of Papua New Guinea, Samoa and Tonga, spotted together on the sidelines of the State of Origin decider in Brisbane this week, landed in Australia to announce the details of how all that money would be distributed.
The federal government acknowledges it is a remarkable injection of taxpayer funds into the development of one code of football but argues the dividends will be absolutely worthwhile.
A long-held rugby league dream
In late 2008, then-prime minister Sir Michael Somare started speaking publicly about his ambition to have a Papua New Guinea NRL side enter the competition by 2020.
That eventually turned into a pledge from the then-Rudd government in Australia to help develop the game in Papua New Guinea, with the ambition of one day seeing an NRL side.
The PNG Hunters have played in the Queensland Cup, a second-tier competition below the NRL, since 2014 and won the premiership in 2017.
In 2018, the now-Minister for Pacific Island Affairs, Pat Conroy, helped lead a push for a Papua New Guinea NRL side into Labor’s official party platform.
He said seeing the side become a reality was something that for a long time seemed impossible.
“It has been challenging, not because people were opposed to the idea, but because people just saw all the barriers, all the difficulties, all the complications to it,” he said.
“So lots of people thought it was a good idea, but it would never happen.
“Having two national governments really committed to it, as well as the NRL leaning in, has made it happen.”
And there is another key ingredient to making the deal work – money.
Conroy said the government was acutely aware that spending $600m (US$418 million) in taxpayer funds to essentially build a football club was unusual.
But he said there was a widespread recognition that the funding was not about sport; it was about relationships and influence.
“Part of [the case for the funding] was a strong recognition within Australia that we needed to move closer to the Pacific Island region, that we need to work closer with the Pacific family, and use every avenue of statecraft to do that,” Conroy said.
“[That] created the space for this deal to be done.”
Bond University sports diplomacy expert Stuart Murray said it was a simple case of Australia diplomatically playing to its strengths.
“A country like Australia is, in terms of its economy, trade and security, a sort of middle power,” Dr Murray said.
“But when we think about sport, we’re an absolute superpower in terms of our success, our assets, our expertise in coaching and developing sport and the business of it.
“So other countries want that. It’s something we can trade. It’s also part of our image and our brand.”
An unusual expansion
Competitions like the NRL or AFL have looked for new markets to try to convince when seeking to grow their games in the past.
They have scoped out cities or regions with a large population and a strong interest in sport, hopeful of creating new fans.
Tim Harcourt, a specialist in the economics of sport from the University of Technology, Sydney, said that was part of what made the PNG expansion unusual.
“It’s not like the AFL trying to go into Western Sydney or the NRL trying to go down to Melbourne,” Professor Harcourt said.
“You know, it’s a ready-made audience.”
Rugby league is often described as the official religion of Papua New Guinea and a unifying force in a highly diverse country, made up of more than 1000 tribes and 800 languages.
Prime Minister James Marape said the club’s name, the Chiefs, was picked to try to reflect the power of rugby league to unite the country.
“This is more than sport, it is nationhood expressed through rugby league,” he said last October.
The club is not without its critics in Papua New Guinea, however.
Marape has come under fire from political opponents for being too focused on promoting the club and attracting players, trying to distract voters with “bread and circuses”, rather than dealing with domestic problems.
Some Papua New Guineans have questioned whether the Australian and Papua New Guinean funding supporting the club could be better spent.
While the club’s new management sparked criticism online when it proposed setting up a dedicated school for the children of players and staff relocating, with some claiming it was “segregation”.
The club has since made clear it is not building a school, but players, staff and coaches will live in a resort-style compound within the city.
Concerns over opportunity missed
There is a quiet confidence in Australian government circles that the success of rugby league diplomacy is deeply frustrating China.
And there is some evidence it is being noticed.
The Global Times, a Chinese English-language state media outlet, quoted a Chinese academic suggesting the sports diplomacy push was an effort to “shore up [Australia’s] fading dominance”.
But where Australia has invested in rugby league, China has spotted an opening in rugby union.
Last year, Fiji Rugby signed a memorandum of understanding with China Rugby.
While rugby league is absolutely dominant in Papua New Guinea, rugby union remains the dominant game in Fiji, and has a stronghold in Tonga and Samoa.
Fiji’s men’s rugby sevens side has won two Olympic gold medals, and its national rugby union side is ranked ninth in the world, just one spot below Australia.
Jenny Seeto from Fiji Rugby told the ABC the decision to sign a financial agreement with China was made to help secure the game’s future.
‘It’s not more diplomacy for us; it’s more the financial security of Fiji Rugby,” she told the ABC.
Australia is investing in rugby union in the region. It is a financial backer of the Fijian Drua, the country’s men’s and women’s Super Rugby side.
More than $20m (US$13.94 million) in further funding for rugby in Fiji was committed as part of the Vuvale Union, signed in Fiji last week.
But Dr Murray said rugby union risked being a significant missed opportunity for Australia.
“There’s a well-known story going around that although [Australia] pay for the Fijian Drua, the team bus has got a ‘China Aid’ sign on the side of it,” he said.
“So even though we pay for the team, China’s kind of snuck in and got its China Aid signs all over the team bus.
“So China’s starting to creep into this area.”
Leaders in Tonga, Samoa and Fiji made a pitch for $150m (US$104 million) in funding for rugby union last year, amid fears the game would suffer as rugby league rode a wave of funding.
Liberal senator Jess Collins, formerly a Lowy Institute expert on Pacific diplomacy, said the government risked, in parts of the Pacific, placing all of its eggs in the wrong sporting basket.
“Anthony Albanese has joined forces with [Australian Rugby League Commission Chair] Peter V’landys to replace the national sport of Fiji, Samoa and Tonga with NRL,” Senator Collins said.
“Rugby Union will be driven further into the arms of China, and we have Albanese’s clumsy approach to Pacific diplomacy to blame.”
A mammoth task ahead
When the PNG Chiefs were launched, speculation immediately swirled around how the club would recruit players, coaches and staff to leave Australia and move their lives to Port Moresby.
Through a combination of significant recruitment efforts, and the lure of hefty tax breaks in both Papua New Guinea and Australia, progress has so far been remarkably good.
The club has lured a premiership player in Jarome Luai, the game’s highest-ever try scorer (and PNG international) in Alex Johnston, and Roosters hooker and Blues representative Connor Watson.
But Murray said the enormous challenges ahead for the club, and the extraordinary diplomatic weight it was carrying, should not be downplayed.
“t’s no secret PNG has got these very, very challenging security issues from local corruption to violence to a whole raft of security issues,” he said.
“There’s a massive amount of development that needs to go with this – training, security, all these sorts of things, and none of that’s been decided as it stands.”
Conroy argues it is an opportunity Australia and the Pacific cannot, and will not, allow to fail.
“It is a religion. It’s absolute religion [in the Pacific],” he said.
“And part of it is that they see people like them dominating a sport. Fifty pecent of NRL players are of Pasifika heritage. In terms of the total Australian population, only about 3 percent of Australians are of Pasifika heritage, yet 50 percent of players are of Pasifika heritage.
“They see people who might come from their same country or they might know someone dominating sport. So they have a cultural affinity to it,” he said…PACNEWS
