PNG-NRL ACADEMY SCHOOLS TOURNAMENT TO BEGIN NEXT MONTH

THE best young rugby league players in Papua New Guinea will be on display next week with the start of the brand-new Academy Schools Tournament.

This new competition is aimed at bringing together the best school’s players from throughout the country to compete in a tournament that will showcase the incredible depth of talent coming through the ranks.

The tournament is set to kick-off on Monday, 7th of April at the Santos National Football Stadium and Goroka’s National Sports Institute, respectively.

Competing in this new competition includes, male divisions of year between 7 or 8 and 9 or 10, in addition to a female open schoolgirl division and will allow coaches and selectors the chance to evaluate players in a high-performance environment.

This new addition to the pathways structure aligns more closely with the best NRL clubs in creating age-group rugby league at an elite level that will prepare players to play against Australian players of the same age.

PNG NRL franchise CEO Andrew Hill applauded the tournament and added that this pathway is to identify the best local talents to prepare for 2028 entry into the Australia’s NRL competition.

“Everything that we are putting in place right now is to create a junior pathway system which enables our players the best opportunity to play at the highest level possible,” PNG NRL Bid CEO, Andrew Hill says.

“To do that we need a strong Academy program and intense, competitive football at all age groups leading into a senior NRL squad.

“We have already seen the great talent that we have across the country, and we are now creating the environment for those players to experience the best coaching and playing opportunities, as well as learn the right habits in terms of preparation and recovery.

“I know that Academy Head Coach, Joe Grima, and the rest of our coaching staff can’t wait to see our players in action.”

The tournament will end with the Grand Final Championships challenge, on Saturday, May 10th, 2025 in Port Moresby.

The PNG NRL academy is supported by the Australian government through the PNGAUS partnership.