- Incredible scenes as NRL stars arrived in Port Moresby
- Josh Addo-Carr and Nicho Hynes treated themselves like rock statistics
- Footy fans online were overwhelmed with fanaticism
- Many now want to see the PNG team play in the NRL
Footy fans have called on the NRL to permanently introduce a Papua New Guinea team after the Prime Minister’s XIII players were mobbed in Port Moresby.
Mal Meninga’s side were treated like rock stars in great scenes ahead of their match against locals on Saturday afternoon.
An incredible social media vision showed the likes of Cody Walker, Josh Addo-Carr and Nicho Hynes receiving a reception that made them feel like royalty.
“These are the kind of scenes you see in Europe when football teams arrive at the airport,” one supporter wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“Why don’t we build on this as the No. 1 priority for the game?
Footy fans have called on the NRL to permanently introduce a Papua New Guinea team after the Prime Minister’s XIII players were mobbed in Port Moresby (pictured left, winger Josh Addo-Carr)
Rugby league is the national sport in Papua New Guinea and is treated as a religion
Many excited fans were over the moon to see their NRL heroes in person
Another said: ‘Think about what (professional) rugby league would do for this country. “Expansion with a PNG team needs to happen.”
A third said: ‘Once the facilities and infrastructure are addressed we can dare to dream of a team from PNG playing in the NRL.’
The Prime Minister’s XIII, made up of players from NRL clubs already eliminated from the finals, returned last year after a Covid-enforced break.
Eight players from last year’s World Cup-winning squad have been selected, with Rabbitohs lock Cameron Murray named captain for the first time.
The match also traditionally features emerging players, with Titans flyer Alofiana Khan-Pereira set to wear his first representative jersey.
Bringing the clash back to PNG, its traditional home ground, for the first time since 2018 is another boost for the Pacific nation in its bid to secure the license for the NRL’s 18th team.