Whilst it was no surprise to see the Kangaroos win the Men’s Test 36-18, there was a big upset in the earlier Women’s Test, where the Kiwi Ferns beat the Jillaroos 12-6.
Good crowd in Melbourne for the games too (20,584) given many sports fans will have switched to cricket mode.
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The submission will reportedly involve the entire Pacific region, encompassing Tonga, Samoa, Cook Islands, Fiji and parts of New Zealand in their bid as well as Papua New Guinea.
No official name has been put forward with the bid, however the ‘Pacific Bears’ could be a possible title.
The Bears would also base themselves in Sydney, with a handful of games per season to be played at the famous North Sydney Oval.
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#breaking Charges against NRL players Latrell Mitchell and Jack Wighton have been dropped. The pair had been arrested after an alleged fight outside a Canberra nightclub in February. @10NewsFirst @10NewsFirstSyd
— Alice Hogg (@alicemhogg) October 31, 2023
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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese reportedly wants a Port Moresby-based team, with games to also be played in Cairns, as a way to counter China’s growing influence in the region.
Interesting we are using rugby league as soft power? Not sure how the two could be linked. Let us assume we have a rugby league team there (which would be great) , would this mean the government in Papa New Guinea will be less likely to join a belt and road program with China? Maybe they could ask the government of China to help build a new stadium. It does happen.
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I remember News Ltd telling us many years ago that they were going to make Wendell Sailor famous in China!
Totally unrelated I know, but yes, can’t see what rugby league has got to do with any of the China politics.
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I meant that’s so obvious, if they’re looking down they’re not looking up. Rugby League and having their own team means they would tend to side with Australia to keep that team (otherwise they would need to fund the team themselves).
On another note, who has NRL broadcast rights in PNG?
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The North Sydney Pacific Bears, and Papua New Guinea? With Perth (and Adelaide to a lesser effect) still having to wait for a team to return…?
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Well, PNG is very “north” of Sydney!
They could call it the North Sydney, Northern Australia and Northern Pacific Bears and call it “Norths” for short 
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There’s sadly not massive amounts of Government funding in a Perth team.
PNG and North Sydney are separate bids.
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Digicel/TV Wan I think. It showed the PNG v Prime Minister’s XIII matches in September.
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Yep you’re right.
Territories
Papua New Guinea
Broadcaster
TVWAN (Free TV)
- NRL Regular Season: 8 per week
- Final Series/GF: all finals and GF
- State Of Origin: 3 mens, 1 WSOO
If that PM’s game is anything to go by they’ll need to up their broadcasting quality.
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New Zealand won the inaugural Pacific Cup this afternoon, thrashing Australia 30-0 at Hamilton. It was the first time since the 2005 Tri-Nations final that the Kangaroos were held scoreless.
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According to News Corp, game 1 of SOO next year will take place in Sydney on June 5, followed by game 2 at the MCG (where the Maroons have a poor record, winning one of five matches played at the venue) on June 26 and game 3 in Brisbane on July 17.
UPDATE - the Victorian Government confirmed the June 26 date for the MCG clash this morning.
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Doesn’t look very “Vegas-ey” to me… looks quite plain really.
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Expected round one schedule
Rabbitohs v Sea Eagles (March 2 in Las Vegas)
Broncos v Roosters (March 2 in Las Vegas)
Knights v Raiders (Thursday, March 7)
Warriors v Sharks (Friday, March 8)
Storm v Panthers (Friday, March 8)
Eels v Bulldogs (Saturday, March 9)
Titans v Dragons (Saturday, March 9)
Dolphins v Cowboys (Sunday, March 10)
Bye: Wests Tigers
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It’s just their away jersey, just so happens they’ll wear it in Vegas.
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But it’s got a collar! /s
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