Brisbane overcame the loss of captain and star playmaker Adam Reynolds to defeat South Sydney 28-18 in a razzle dazzle display before 35,507 fans at Suncorp Stadium. With Reece Walsh outpointing Latrell Mitchell in the battle of the superstar fullbacks, the Broncos stormed home in the second half after the Rabbitohs had equalled the scores at 12-12 in the 45th minute. Walsh and rookie winger Deine Mariner scored two tries apiece, while left centre Selwyn Cobbo, in just his second match since moving from the wing, was too hard to handle for the Souths defence. However, the win was dampened by an injury to Reynolds, who started the match with his right knee heavily strapped and was forced from the field in the 70th minute. The win was the first for the Broncos after losing their Round 1 match against Sydney Roosters at Allegiant Stadium, while the Rabbitohs remain winless after being beaten by Manly first up in Las Vegas. Whether it jet lag or the 80% humidity in Brisbane at kick-off, the first half was an error-strewn affair in which both teams struggled to hang onto the ball. Brisbane's completion rate was just 60 per cent and Souths were worse, finishing only 53 per cent of their sets of possession. However, it was a more composed Souths team that came out of the sheds for the start of the second half and after conceding just two points to trail 12-0 while Damien Cook was in the sin bin they drew level within five minutes. Tongan hooker Siliva Havili scored the first Rabbitohs try when he dummied and beat Jordan Riki and Pat Carrigan to force his way over from close range in the 43rd minute. Havili then turned provider to put Cook Islands prop Davvy Moale over two minutes later after holding a pass up close to the line and the scores were suddenly locked at 12-12 Cobbo helped regain the lead for the home side when he put winger Jesse Arthars over in the corner in the 52nd minute and the pair then combined for the try of the match 12 minutes later. Walsh, who had scored in the first half, got his second try of the match after Cobbo sent Arthars racing down the left touch line and the winger kicked in field for the flying fullback, who received a favourable bounce to cross untouched. Broncos right winger Deine Mariner opened the scoring in the 18th minute after Reynolds, who targeted Souths' left edge with his kicking, put the ball behind Alex Johnston and Richie Kennar for the speedster to regather in the in-goal. The Broncos were leading 10-0 when Cook was sent to the sin-bin in the 30th minute for a professional foul after a Reynolds break but they were only able to add a penalty goal while Souths were down to 10-men. The Rabbitohs started the second half strongest but Brisbane overpowered them to secure a comfortable win, with a late Mitchell try making the scoreline more respectable. Source: NRL. com

The Broncos and Rabbitohs kick off an intriguing Round 2 of the NRL Telstra Premiership as they look to bounce back from their Vegas disappointment in the opening round. Also seeking to rebound in Round 2 are premiers Penrith, who square off with olr rivals Parramatta in a Friday night blockbuster. Among the big names returning are Seb Kris and Jared Waerea-Hargreaves, with the Roosters enforcer lining up for his 299th career game on Sunday at 4 Pines Park.  

The Cowboys piled on seven tries in a 43-18 rout of the Dolphins to open their 2024 campaign in style at Suncorp Stadium on Sunday afternoon. In their first game under the guidance of new attack coach James Maloney, North Queensland took full advantage of the Dolphins' inability to defend late in tackle counts and on four occasions scored tries when they opted to run the ball on play five. Outside of the clever decision-making of playmakers Chad Townsend and Tom Dearden, whose tactics were on point across the 80 minutes, second-year centre Zac Laybutt was the outstanding individual performer. The 22-year-old scored a brilliant opener on three minutes and laid on a classy assist for Kyle Feldt later in the half, with the right-centre spot made vacant by Peta Hiku's off-season departure now looking to be his for the foreseeable future. The final score wasn't the only bad news for the Dolphins, with back-rower Connelly Lemuelu reported to have suffered a dislocated kneecap which is set to rule him out for an extended period. While they were able to hit back through new recruit Tom Flegler after Laybutt's early strike, Wayne Bennett's side were never really in the contest once the Cowboys got on a roll and ran in further tries to Dearden, Jeremiah Nanai and Feldt. Josh Kerr offered a brief reprieve with a try on 32 minutes, but Murray Taulagi's effort, a fifth Valentine Holmes conversion and late Townsend field goal made it 31-6 at the break. Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow literally kicked the ball to Heilum Luki for the Cowboys' sixth, in a regrettable attempt to retrieve possession, while a penalty try – credited as a second for Laybutt – came 12 minutes from time after Jack Bostock was ruled to have pushed the centre off the ball and denied him a try. Bostock got at least some redemption minutes later when he finished a scorching attacking play for the Dolphins, but it was too late to impact anything other than the final highlights package. Source: NRL. com

The Papua New Guinea (PNG) National Rugby League Competition (NRLC) has made some changes the 2024 Digicel ExxonMobil Cup draws after revising it recently. Following the announcement of the 2024 Public Holidays in January, and working closely with their clubs, some amendments to the original draw released in December were required. The 12-team competition will still kick off on the weekend of the 13th -14th of April. The season will witness the return of Asila Waghi Tumbe after a one-year absence and will host the Gas Resources Central Dabaris in a home match at Minj. There will be 108 matches in the 18 regular rounds with the top six clubs featuring in the final's series commencing on 25th August, and the grand final will be set on 15th September at the Santos National Football Stadium in Port Moresby. Excitingly, fans will not need to wait long to see the grand final replay between premiers EPG Enga Mioks and the runner up Bintangor Goroka Lahanis. Their match is scheduled in the round 5 clash in Wabag at the Aipus Oval. PNG NRLC General Manager Mr. Leith Issac expressed his excitement for the 2024 season. "We are excited to announce the revised draws after working closely with our clubs over the last couple of months to make the 2024 competition even better,” he said. “The game will be faster, this competition will illustrate the thrilling brand of rugby league in PNG for all our fans to enjoy across the country.” He later went on to thank the wonderful support and commitment of their sponsors, the clubs and their sponsors as well for another highly anticipated season of rugby league action.

The last time the Panthers lost a grand final was way back in 2020 at the hands of the Storm and they have well and truly set the record since then with three premierships on the bounce. The last time the Storm lost a Round 1 game was 2001, with Craig Bellamy never having lost an opening round match in his remarkable two-decade reign as head coach. After being pushed to golden point by the Eels in Round 1 last year, the Storm again face a massive task if they are to keep the streak going, welcoming the back-to-back-to-back premiers to AAMI Park. Coming off the back of a heartbreaking and controversial loss to Wigan in the World Club Challenge, the Panthers will look to hit back hard and make an early statement as they look to the first team since St George in the 50s and 60s to win four titles in a row. The welcome at AAMI Park is sure to be a hostile one as the Storm defend their turf and their outrageous Round 1 record against the NRL's benchmark side. Source: NRL. Com

Newcastle coach Adam O’Brien lamented his team’s lack of patience and poise in their 28-12 loss to Canberra at McDonald Jones Stadium on Thursday night. After their whirlwind finish to last season, when they built a 10-game winning streak that culminated in a 30-28 extra-time victory over the Raiders in the first round of the finals, the Knights were out-muscled in the middle and looked out of sorts at the end of their sets. “Our game lacked any sort of grit,” O’Brien said. “We were impatient, it felt like we wanted the highlight reel, where the other mob, when you score four tries or whatever on the last play, and they were scrappy tries, but that’s what they wanted. “They wanted to come here and get into a scrap, and I don’t reckon we did, and we got a lesson in what wins the first month of footy. “That’s high completions and working hard all the way through to the back end of the set and not looking for the easy way out. So it’s pretty easy to dissect it, I reckon.” Completing at 90 per cent to Newcastle’s 66, and making only six errors against Newcastle’s 15, the Raiders played the way the Knights expected them to. Knights captain Kalyn Ponga was well contained and made some uncharacteristic handling errors that stymied several attacking opportunities. “We weren’t patient. We know what sort of team Canberra are, and that’s how we had to play tonight and we didn’t do that,” Ponga said. “I think ‘Coach’ summarised it pretty well. That’s how it felt, to be honest. We made too many errors in that first half. “I felt like when we were controlling the footy, we were in control of the game, but yeah. “I thought we started the second half well again too. When we held the footy, completed sets, I felt like we were in control of the game, then little things change momentum. “They were scrappy, they were gritty, and we weren’t.” O’Brien believed the Knights lost their way after a Tyson Gamble try was disallowed in the 24th minute because Tyson Frizell obstructed Canberra hooker Danny Levi in the lead-up. Levi ran into Frizell trying to reel in a run-away Ponga in the middle of the field. Though the Raiders received the penalty, which ultimately led to a Zac Hosking try, they also lost Hudson Young to the sin-bin for 10 minutes because of Young’s late contact on Ponga but the Knights could not capitalise on their extra-man advantage. Frizell scored from a Gamble pass just before Young returned, cutting the deficit to 8-6, but the Knights were out of rhythm for most of the second half and could not build or sustain pressure. Tries to Levi, Xavier Savage and Jordan Rapana in a 20-minute stretch allowed the visitors to skip away to an unassailable 22-6 lead with 10 minutes remaining. Both teams had several tries disallowed but O’Brien offered no excuses, suggesting the Raiders stewed all summer on their finals defeat at the same venue last September while the Knights might have allowed themselves to read too much into his pre-season back-slaps. “The disallowed tries had nothing to do with our problems at the moment,” O’Brien said. “There’s some stuff that we need to take ownership of, so I’m not going to sit here and whinge about that. “The other mob were good. They’ve spent their summer dreaming about coming back here, and we’ve been happy with our summer – and I’ve probably told them too many times how good a summer we’ve had – so I don’t need to do that anymore.” Knights winger Enari Tuala suffered a quadriceps strain just before half-time, putting him in doubt for the game against his former club North Queensland in Townsville on March 16. Source: NRL.com

The National Department of Health (NDoH) is gearing up for a significant recruitment drive following the approval of its new structure by the Department of Personnel Management (DPM). In a bid to ensure a robust, transparent, and effective recruitment process, the NDoH has enlisted the expertise of a reputable, independent PNG-based recruitment firm. The PNG Australia Transition to Health (PATH) program has been engaged to evaluate submissions for Expressions of Interest and appoint the selected firm. This process is expected to finish within the week. The selected recruitment firm will assist NDoH with advertising and filling 164 priority positions, including high-ranking roles such as Deputy Secretary and Senior Executive management positions. The recruitment process for these priority positions is expected to be completed by June 2024, with a plan in place to address the remaining positions thereafter. The NDoH is committed to selecting the right people for the right roles through an open, competitive, recruitment process, setting a precedence for driving excellence within the healthcare sector.

The Raiders will be without veteran Elliott Whitehead for their season opener against the Knights as he battles a calf injury. Whitehead is expected to miss between 3-4 weeks, with his place for Thursday's game taken by new recruit Zac Hosking. Also watching from the sidelines at McDonald Jones Stadium will be Knights hooker Jayden Brailey, who is nearing a return from a hamstring injury. "He's very close, if it's not Round 2 it'd be a definite Round 3," Knights coach Adam O'Brien said on Wednesday. "He looks really good, every time I see him, but given his history, it's a long season and I don't want to rush it." Source: NRL. com

Since the ground breaking ceremony for the proposed new state of the art hospital for the Central province two years ago, the construction work on the K700 million health project is yet to start. This is because the Central Provincial Health Authority (PHA) is still waiting on the technical team from the National Department of Health (NDoH) to do the tender evaluation for the best bidder so that construction work for the proposed Central Provincial Hospital can start, hopefully next year, Central PHA Chef Executive Officer (CEO), Dr. James Amini, said they have sent out the tenders for the master planning and design documentation for the Central Provincial Hospital late last year. They are now awaiting the NDoH to choose the best bidder so that they know the total expenditure before the government can negotiate with other foreign governments to help fund the construction of the Central Provincial Hospital. “For example, if it’s going to cost K700 million, than they will have to negotiate for next year’s budget. So that anything on the construction side will be next year.” But in the meantime, Dr. Amini said they have some funds that are available which can be used to go towards installing the power lines and the water system which they plan to acquire from the provincial medical store warehouse by this year. Dr. Amini also stressed that plans are underway to build their office complex in Bautam and not in NCD.

The SP PNG Hunters squad for the 2024 Hostplus Cup Season in the Queensland Rugby League (QRL) is all set to go with Head Coach Paul Aiton stating that he is proud of how the players and staff navigated a tough and enduring pre-season period, to get to this stage. Coach Aiton proudly unveiled his 30-men squad amidst esteemed guests and sponsors of the Hunters at the Stanley Hotel and Suites in Port Moresby recently. “I am extremely pleased with how the squad has come together and is looking forward to round one this weekend," Aiton said. The SP PNG Hunters will play their very first home game at the Santos National Football Stadium as they host the Wynnum-Manly Seagulls this weekend in Round 1 of the 2024 Hostplus Cup season. Here’s your SP PNG Hunters for 2024: 1. Morea Morea 2. Sanny Wabo 3. Solo Wane 4. Brendon Nima 5. Elijah Roltinga 6. Robert Mathias 7. Clent Lama 8. Gairo Voro 9. Zachariah Selu 10. Jamie Mavoko 11. Joshua Lau 12. Sakias Komate 13. Judah Rimbu 14. Tapia Solu 15. Finlay Glare 16. Whallan Tau-Loi 17. Junior Talin 18. Seal Kalo 19. Junior Rop 20. Jordan Pat 21. Anthony Worot 22. Koso Bandi 23. Manase Kai 24. Weiyah Koi 25. Valentine Culligan 26. Joshua Mire 27. Ila Alu 28. Wendle Kipsy 29. Bruce Bawase 30. Alex Max

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, under the EU-funded STREIT PNG Programme, has collaborated with the PNG government through the National Youth Development Authority (NYDA) to establish Provincial Youth Councils (PYC) in the West and East Sepik provinces to promote youth leadership in agriculture. This initiative aims to empower youths, particularly in rural areas, to have a platform to table youth issues, to become good leaders in their localities, and to contribute significantly to the country's sustainable development through active participation in the agriculture sector. Under this initiative, a series of capacity-building workshops and training sessions where hosted in West Sepik and East Sepik. Through these sessions, 87 youths from the 10 districts representing cocoa, vanilla, and fisheries farming groups, acquired leadership skills and were educated on the structure and mandate of the NYDA, the divisional functions of youth programs, the intricacies of the partnership between the EU-STREIT PNG Programme and the Provincial Administrations, and the importance of youth involvement in decision-making and agri-food value chains. FAO's Gender & Youth Inclusion Specialist Ms. Patu Shang said that the initiative is crucial as it serves as a platform for advocacy and the promotion of youth leadership and innovation in development. "We emphasize the importance of professionalizing agriculture and the participation of youths at all nodes of the cocoa, vanilla, and fisheries value chains, which are key economic drivers in the Sepik region." Mr. Christopher Usuka, the National Director of Programs and Extension Services for NYDA reiterated this in his opening remarks at the workshop. “A formalized Provincial Youth Development Council is a prerequisite for acquiring any form of intervention or support, financial or otherwise from any national or provincial funding basket.” Meanwhile, this initiative also facilitates the establishment of Provincial Youth Councils, providing a formal platform for young people to engage with stakeholders and contribute to policy discussions at Provincial and National levels. This includes mobilizing fellow youths to participate in upcoming elections for their councils and advocating for support from district, provincial and national funding to pursue agribusiness careers. "The Provincial Youth Development Councils will empower young people to become effective community mobilizers and advocates," said Ms. Zilpah Yahamani, Gender & Youth Inclusion Officer of the Programme. "They will play a vital role in fostering the development of a Youth Development strategy, action plan and outreach programs, particularly focusing on promoting agriculture at the local level." During the workshop, the East Sepik’s Youth Development Council Working Committee (ESP-YDCWC) was elected, nominating 7 members (3 women and 4 men). Following the workshops, district youth representatives are expected to engage actively in their communities by organizing awareness campaigns and facilitating the election of District Youth Council Executives with the support of the NYDA. These executives will then be confirmed by the NYDA, which will oversee the establishment of the Provincial Youth Council and will support its efforts in sustainable agricultural and community development.

The Papua New Guinea (PNG) Rugby Football League (RFL), as a full member of the International Rugby League (IRL), is pleased with the completion and the meeting of compliance obligations with the IRL after its 2023 audit submission. Asia Pacific Rugby League (APRL) Chief Operating Officer (COO), Mr. Jeremy Edwards said the APRL Confederation continues to work closely with both the International Rugby League and its members to ensure governance is universally implemented and standards are continually improved. APRL is one of three global confederations that combine to form the IRL. In highlighting one of the sport’s core objectives, Mr. Edwards said it is to improve governance at all levels. “Part of this process is the Annual Membership Audit, which member organizations and the international and regional federations can use as a gauge of progress from year to year. The audit is also a gauge of members’ continuing adherence to the minimum standards for each category of membership.” Following an evaluation of its submission, the PNGRFL was advised that it was compliant with the provisions of full membership. “The PNGRFL is a leader in Asia Pacific and a nation with many years of rugby league tradition and a role model for other nations.” Meanwhile, PNGRFL Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Stanley Hondina said that the game is ever growing and PNG must continue to raise and set standards domestically. “It is important that we stay abreast of the governance requirements and practices on the international front, and meeting the success of this audit is a milestone for our organization," said Hondina. “These are standards that we hold ourselves against at the PNGRFL level.” “We are aware of our journey and that there are key areas that we will continue to work on improving as we keep progressing and will work closely with the IRL in ensuring these areas are addressed this year and going forward,” Hondina added.