World Footy News

The AFLPNG have accepted an offer for the PNG National Senior side to compete in the Australian Football League Cairns pre-season competition.

AFLPNG's Scott Reid explains, "It is seen as a taster for the possibility that a PNG Senior team could play in Cairns like the Tiwi Islands team in the Northern Territory comp. This has been something we have discussed over several years but with the current buoyancy of the PNG economy and in particular the mining and resources sectors and the increased AFL interest in PNG footy it is more of a realistic possibility than in the past".

Cairns is in Far North Queensland (FNQ), "relatively" close to Port Moresby. Such a move would be the first time an international side has been a regular member of an Australian Football league. With the NT Thunder playing in AFL Queensland's top league (recall our article Thunder to rumble across the land for a map of the region), perhaps it is a forerunner to PNG one day having a team in that ever-improving competition.

Rugby League in PNG has been keen to enter a side in the NRL, Australia's national Rugby League competition. If that ever occurs it will be a massive step forward for that sport in PNG, so it is encouraging to see smaller but similar progress in Aussie Rules. But first up, we wish PNG all the best in a successful pre-season in Cairns.