Is PNG right answer to NRL's 18th team question or just wishful thinking for league-obsessed nation?

With the introduction of the NRL’s 17th team the Dolphins, there is now a heated debate over who should come in as the eventual 18th team to even out the competition again.

While many believe Perth should get another go, and North Sydney fans have laryngitis from constantly screaming “Bring back the Bears” to anyone who will listen, there is growing support for the competition to have a second international team.

A brand new club based out of the league-obsessed nation of Papua New Guinea.

We have all seen the vision. They just LOVE their footy. Young kids play barefoot using whatever they can as footballs so they can mimic their heroes. NRL players visiting the country being treated like royalty. Fans living in Australia pile into the stands whenever they have the chance to see their team play on our shores.

League is almost like a religion, and if they had their own NRL side, their team would be seen as Gods.

A high-profile supporter of the cause is Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who revealed this week that he was “very keen” to see a PNG-based team in the NRL.

“Today I affirm my view that I want to see a PNG-based, Pacific Islander team compete in the National Rugby League competition,” said Albanese during a recent press conference. “Sport is such a genuine and powerful way of building strong and lasting ties between our peoples, at a code and club and community and family level.

“Of course, those links are so important — that we have those cultural links and our common interests. And one of our common interests is, of course, our passion for rugby league.”

The Australian leader also spoke about his experience of watching last season’s Origin series while over in PNG.

“When Prime Minister Marape and I watched the State of Origin together in Suva last year, he said there are only three days your country stops — Game 1, Game 2 and Game 3,” said Albanese. “That’s something I think a lot of Australians can relate to.”

Absolutely. Totally agree.

 (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)

There is an undeniable amount of love for rugby league in PNG. And that is something that bodes well for having their own side.

There are strong opinions that there are too many teams currently in Sydney, with the Dragons and the Steelers along with the Magpies and the Tigers all having to merge. If we are to get a new club, it needs to be from a whole new area, so a push for one 2745km away from Sydney seems like a good idea.

For those crying out for a team to be based once more on the West Coast, there are just as many stamping their feet that Perth had their chance and blew it. The excitement around the Western Reds’ inclusion into the competition in 1995 was never matched by constant support from a highly AFL-dominated state, and the team folded just three seasons later. Similar scenes for the Adelaide Rams.

But lack of support is not something unique to the Reds or Rams, with some current clubs struggling to get fans in the stands. That would never be a problem for a PNG team – it doesn’t take much imagination to visualise the constantly packed-out crowds the locals would give their own side if they had one.

There is just so much love.

Endless amounts of passion and pride pour out of both players and fans each and every time the tiny island is represented. There’s not a dry eye in the house when they hear their anthem being played before a game, and it never matters what the scoreline is at the end. The flags never stop waiving, the cheers never quieten down, and the smiles never disappear.

Even after a 64-14 drubbing to the Prime Minister’s XIII in September. Or the 46-6 thumping at the hands of England at the World Cup. The support was exactly the same as when they beat the Cook Islands 32-16 and smashed the Welsh 36-0 to book a quarter-final spot.

Regardless of the score, the love is always there, and that is just beautiful.

But, is that sufficient grounds to warrant a whole new club?

While an overwhelming passion for the game is a great reason to put forward a claim, it’s that usually blown-out scoreline against PNG that worries many. As per the wise vocals of singer Patty Smyth, “Baby, sometimes love just ain’t enough.”

Despite the passion, pride, love, devotion and support – there needs to be a plethora of talent and depth to ensure success.

There is not a strong junior system in place to help grow the game in PNG and ensure it becomes successful and sustainable. This view is also held by undoubtedly the biggest star from the footy-obsessed nation currently in the NRL, Storm centre Justin Olam.

“We’re not ready to have an NRL team yet,” said Olam in a recent Sydney Morning Herald article. “We still need to develop our pathways for younger generations. We only have the Digicel Cup competition and that is it.

“We don’t have anything younger, like schoolboys competition, so players can develop and come up.

“That is something we should focus on first before we worry about having an NRL team.”

The destructive centre is 100 per cent correct. We have all seen what happens to the top NRL sides when there is no depth. A few injuries here, a suspension there, as well as a mid-year Origin raid, can de-rail a team in the blink of an eye. The clubs that can weather those storms are ones with enough players who can step up to fill the void.

Yes, North Sydney fans, I see you over there waving because you have lost your voices. I know what you are thinking – “The PNG Bears has a nice ring to it. Much better than the Northern Eagles.” Well sorry to burst your bubble, but if Olam’s homeland is getting its own team, it will be THEIR own team.

(Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)

“We don’t want to have a PNG team and have players come in from other countries and dominate our team,” said Olam.

And he is right. While the fans would still show support, it wouldn’t be the same if it was for a team filled with Aussies and only a few glimmers of PNG talent throughout to make up the numbers.

And of course, there is also the issue of dollars.

Clubs cost money. A lot of money. We have all seen first-hand what happens when administration books remain in the red for too long. Souths were lucky to claw their way back into the competition after being kicked out in 1999, and there is no doubt there are other teams currently holding on for dear life.

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There would be some support from the NRL as well as the government, but a lot goes into running a top-level. organisation. You need a stadium, an office, staff, and training facilities – and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

There will be revenue from ticket sales as well as merchandise because we all know everyone would be decked out from head to toe in the new team’s colours. This would eventually turn into dollars.

Eventually. But what about at the start?

Most of us would love to see a PNG team in the competition, and no doubt many would claim them as their second favourite side. But it may not be the right time just yet. Because for it to work, it needs to be done right, ensuring all of the boxes are ticked and everything is put together correctly to give it the best possible chance for success.

Anything less would absolutely crush the hearts of the PNG fans, and their love and loyalty to the game deserve so much more than that.