TO: NZRL Staff, Districts and Affiliates and Board

FROM: Cushla Dawson

DATE: 02 March 2009

RE: Media Summary Tuesday 03 February to Monday 09 March 2009

Why we love : "THE day that God invented rugby league he didn't do anything else than sit around and feel good." So said the immortal Jack Gibson supreme coach, shrewd analyst, master motivator, decent bloke and proud Australian when asked to describe the game he loved. There wouldn't be too many who'd disagree with Gibson's description and it would be only those rugby snobs with their heads up their backsides who would have a contrary view. Fortunately, even given a lingering old school and deep-seated antagonism towards the 13-man-code from some rugby union types, league is accepted as an integral and vibrant part of the sporting scene.

Eastwood has Warriors option: Kiwi international Greg Eastwood is poised to join if his move to falls through. The Broncos back-row forward has signed a three-year deal with the champions and is currently appealing against a decision by the British High Commission to refuse him a visa because of a series of speeding offences.

Go with , urges league rep: With the sport in dire straits, Manawatu Rugby League board member David Puohotaua is adamant Sparc's report must be followed by all regions. Sparc said in a national review the sport must move to seven regions, and Manawatu and Wanganui must come within a zone run by Taranaki. Puohotaua, who is on the board representing Wanganui, said it would be detrimental for clubs to seriously consider voting against Sparc's recommendations.

Sparc backs down on pokie claim: THE PROSPECT of legal action from a former rugby league official has forced Sparc to apologise and retract part of the Anderson Report into the sport. In an embarrassing climb-down after the fanfare that launched the hard-hitting report led by Sir John Anderson, Sparc moved quickly to avoid potential defamation action by issuing a written apology, altering its website and telling media to delete a section from their copies of the report.

Tamou in the frame: HULKING young back-rower James Tamou, 20, remains in the frame to be a bolter for the Cowboys' round one squad, bound for Suncorp Stadium next Friday. The former Roosters Toyota Cup forward is a towering 193cm and weighs 111kg, and impressed during the Cowboys' trial hitouts against the Warriors and Panthers. The 2007 Junior Kiwi has a hard task to break into North 's back row, headlined by former Test lock Luke O'Donnell.

World Cup win could be helpful to Warriors: The Kiwis' World Cup victory last year may be rubbing off on the New Zealand Warriors as they head into the 2009 season. Seven Warriors played in the World Cup triumph last season -- , , , , , and Evarn Tuimavave -- and captain Steve Price said they had come back better players.

Neville leaves Horo in heaven: Shellharbour Dragons coach Mark Horo will turn student when he takes charge of former Origin player Neville Costigan in tonight's trial against at Ron Costello Oval. Horo's NSW Cup side will be boosted by the inclusion of Costigan, a Papua New Guinea international who is rated as one of the NRL's most fearsome defenders.

Vatuvei wants premiership win for lost 'brother': MANU VATUVEI is set to become one of the faces of the NRL after being the first Warriors player flown to for filming of this season's commercial, which begins airing on television tonight. The honour is recognition not just of Vatuvei's standing as the game's best winger but also the Warriors' emergence as a consistent premiership force.

Clubs reject merger with Taranaki: A Conference of Clubs meeting at Sport Manawatu decided yesterday not to support a Sparc recommendation that Manawatu come within a new zone under Taranaki. Sparc said in a national review the sport must move to seven regions and Wanganui and Manawatu must come within a zone run by Taranaki. But Manawatu Rugby League vice-president Shane Culling said the club representatives weren't happy with a lack of consultation.

World Club Challenge eyes Asia: Rugby League bosses admitted on Monday the could be held in Asia in the future. Manly became the first Australian winners of the annual global clash of the champions for six years when they beat Leeds Rhinos 28-20 at on Sunday. The match was held in England for the 10th successive year but there are calls for a neutral venue, including Abu Dhabi and Hong Kong, while Leeds chief executive Gary Hetherington has put forward a proposal to expand the competition.

Rugby league legends want fans to boycott ' appearance: Rugby league legends have called on Sydney fans to boycott Sonny Bill Williams's controversial appearance for rugby's Barbarians against the Wallabies at the on June 6. Williams's inclusion in the UK-based invitational side has raised the hackles of many in the league community, who haven't forgotten the former Bulldogs star walking out on his club mid-contract last year to join French rugby club Toulon.

Rugby League Test may be played in : MELBOURNE is on the verge of landing a sporting coup with next year's rugby league Test between Australia and New Zealand set to be played at the new rectangular stadium. The confirmed it was deep in discussions with the Victorian Major Events Company to stage the match there in May. It would be just the third time the teams have played in Melbourne in more than 90 years and only the fourth rugby league Test staged in the city.

Ireland eye up Championship bid: Ireland head coach Andy Kelly believes there is a major hunger for an Irish club to compete in the English game. And he predicts that, after Ireland's strong showing at the 2008 World Cup, a bid for an Irish club to be involved in the Championship could occur soon.

Former ref will need to whistle up all his skills: Many would say Sonny Hohepa has jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire by accepting the chair of the Whangarei and Districts Rugby League in troubled times. The mild- mannered Hohepa, who has just retired from 25 years of refereeing the game, will once again be in the hot seat tomorrow night as he explains constitutional changes proposed by SPARC administrators to the .

Williams to play for Baa-Baas: Former New Zealand rugby league international Sonny Bill Williams will return to Australia to play for the Barbarians against the Wallabies in June. Williams, who switched codes in a blaze of publicity to join the Toulon club in France last year, is the first Barbarians invitee announced for the historic showdown at the Sydney Football Stadium.

Sinking clubs plead for pokies tax lifeline: PARRAMATTA LEAGUES CLUB has had what it believes to be the biggest loss ever for a club in NSW, $7 million last year, as big clubs cry poor over poker machine tax increases, the anti-smoking laws and the global financial crisis. Several leagues clubs say they will have to make cuts in their football departments unless things improve, and they are pleading with the State Government to reduce poker machine taxes.

Why we love rugby league "THE day that God invented rugby league he didn't do anything else than sit around and feel good."

So said the immortal Jack Gibson supreme coach, shrewd analyst, master motivator, decent bloke and proud Australian when asked to describe the game he loved.

There wouldn't be too many who'd disagree with Gibson's description and it would be only those rugby snobs with their heads up their backsides who would have a contrary view.

Fortunately, even given a lingering old school and deep-seated antagonism towards the 13-man-code from some rugby union types, league is accepted as an integral and vibrant part of the sporting scene.

Central to that are the Warriors.

The 2009 team is a strong, professional, well organised, disciplined, down to earth outfit that competes strongly in a sporting competition that ignites interest, gives us an emotional roller-coaster ride every week, and one that is eagerly anticipating the season kick-off.

Why else would around 27,000 fans turn out to watch the Warriors in pre-season games?

That question must have rugby union officials shaking their heads in disbelief. They'll be asking, "What is it about this game of state house rugby that's got everyone fired up?" It's simple really and it's not just the fact that scrums don't have to be reset every couple of minutes. Surely it has to do with the fact that fans young and old, new and aged can understand the rules, relate to the players and feel comfortable watching the Warriors or whatever team they support.

That's the beauty of league compared with the other code. It's watchable.

And the Warriors are supremely watchable.

Sure, they'll frustrate the hell out of us again.

But they'll also provide the sort of excitement and thrills you normally get at an amusement park.

Let the 2009 NRL roller coaster get under way.

I'll be there in the front seat.

(Source: Doug Golightly, Sunday News, 08 March 2009)

Eastwood has Warriors option Kiwi international Greg Eastwood is poised to join New Zealand Warriors if his move to Leeds Rhinos falls through.

The back-row forward has signed a three-year deal with the Super League champions and is currently appealing against a decision by the British High Commission to refuse him a visa because of a series of speeding offences.

If his appeal fails, Eastwood has offers from both the Warriors and Canterbury Bulldogs - but the Warriors say they want to know by the time they kick off their season against the Eels on Saturday if he will be joining them.

"We wouldn't want to recruit someone for only part of the season, so we would want to resolve something this week," said chief executive Wayne Scurrah, who confirmed the Warriors were prepared to offer the player a three-year contract.

Eastwood met the Warriors players and coach Ivan Cleary after their pre-season trial win over the Gold Coast Titans last Saturday.

"They have a strong team and I know a lot of the boys there," Eastwood told the Herald on Sunday.

"I met Ivan and he said he would be happy to have me. It's nice to know I have options if the appeal fails.

"I spoke with (Leeds coach) Brian McClennan on Thursday night and he is still keen to have me there. It's still my priority but the longer it takes the more of a worry it is.

"I will probably have to make a decision pretty quickly if the appeal doesn't work and then have to be on the next plane to wherever I decide to go."

(Source: The Press Association, 08 March 2009)

Go with Taranaki, urges league rep With the sport in dire straits, Manawatu Rugby League board member David Puohotaua is adamant Sparc's report must be followed by all regions.

Sparc said in a national review the sport must move to seven regions, and Manawatu and Wanganui must come within a zone run by Taranaki.

Puohotaua, who is on the board representing Wanganui, said it would be detrimental for clubs to seriously consider voting against Sparc's recommendations.

"It's time clubs and individual people let go of their own personal agenda's and think of rugby league," Puohotaua said. "There is no option for league to do anything other than go with the report as it's been presented." Puohotaua said individual clubs and regions were financially constrained with the demise of gaming funds, and although all sports are struggling financially he was only concerned about the future of rugby league

"We've been told categorically if we want the money from Sparc and trusts then we must follow the report ... why would anyone think of voting against it?" he said.

"The report is about our sport, no one else, and the positive of Sparc's report is it pulled no punches. It's straight up and down on what has to happen."

Puohotaua said both he and the second Wanganui board member on the MRL, Mick Bartel, will be pushing for following the report in its entirety.

"I'm sure the clubs here see why we have to do it. We're the world champions and the game's in a mess.

"If Manawatu doesn't agree, then we will sign over to the New Zealand Rugby League ourselves."

Puohotaua said it wasn't as though the game was rosy in this region, with the MRL broke.

"How good are we?

"We're not developing players like we were and any good ones are heading off to Wellington. Neither do we even have a paid administration worker now."

Puohotaua believes it's only self-interest which has made some want to go with Wellington rather than the new Central Region zone.

"I don't know why they're saying they don't want to go with Taranaki because that is only where the administration will be ... the new zone will be called the Central Region."

With Howie Tamati one of the real movers at national level and coming from Taranaki, it seems logical to Puohotaua that the base be in Taranaki.

"Taranaki is set up well and Howie has a direct contact to the top. It's obvious that's where the administration should be based."

Puohotaua said the Manawatu and Wanganui sides already play in a Western Alliance with Taranaki sides and the only reason that competition is going ahead is because Taranaki found $30,000 when no one else could find any money.

(Source: Tony Coffin, Manawatu Standard, 07 March 2009)

Sparc backs down on pokie claim THE PROSPECT of legal action from a former rugby league official has forced Sparc to apologise and retract part of the Anderson Report into the sport.

In an embarrassing climb-down after the fanfare that launched the hard-hitting report led by Sir John Anderson, Sparc moved quickly to avoid potential defamation action by issuing a written apology, altering its website and telling media to delete a section from their copies of the report. This followed a letter from lawyer Grant Cameron, who is acting for former NZRL vice-chairman Wayne Morris.

A paragraph in the report said Morris had launched his own pokie trust, the Caversham Foundation, while still on the NZRL board, which would have implied a conflict of interest.

In fact, he started Caversham nearly a year after his resignation from the NZRL.

Cameron said he was surprised Morris was not asked to give his version of events to the Anderson Report but said Morris was happy with Sparc's response.

(Source: Steve Kilgallon, Sunday Star-Times, 08 March 2009)

Tamou in the frame HULKING young back-rower James Tamou, 20, remains in the frame to be a bolter for the Cowboys' round one squad, bound for Suncorp Stadium next Friday.

The former Roosters Toyota Cup forward is a towering 193cm and weighs 111kg, and impressed during the Cowboys' trial hitouts against the Warriors and Panthers.

The 2007 Junior Kiwi has a hard task to break into North Queensland's back row, headlined by former Test lock Luke O'Donnell.

Given that O'Donnell and Scott Bolton have already earned starting junipers for round one, Tamou is vying with the likes of Dayne Weston for an interchange spot and remains unassuming.

"They've got a good side so I'm not dwelling on it too much," Tamou said. "Sure, I'm hoping to get a start somewhere, but there's a good team up here.

"Hopefully I can play as many first grade games as I can. I've been excited to be involved in first grade for a couple of trials and be able to mix it with the high-profile guys."

(Source: Daily Telegraph, 06 March 2009)

World Cup win could be helpful to Warriors The Kiwis' World Cup victory last year may be rubbing off on the New Zealand Warriors as they head into the 2009 National Rugby League season.

Seven Warriors played in the World Cup triumph last season -- Lance Hohaia, Manu Vatuvei, Jerome Ropati, Nathan Fien, Sam Rapira, Simon Mannering and Evarn Tuimavave -- and captain Steve Price said they had come back better players.

"I've seen those guys come back in a different way. I think they're a lot more mature, a lot more confident," said Price, the Australian who would probably have opposed them in the final had he not been injured.

Most of the World Cup winners are under 26 and the World Cup victory was helping them cope with greater leadership roles in the Warriors, Price said.

"They're a lot more mature now and not having Ruben Wiki and Logan Swann and Wairaangi Koopu here it's sort of made them step up in leadership and they have done that without trying to.

"I've certainly seen a change in those guys and then that's brought the other guys up, the guys that may not have been as confident are now following those guys.

"So there's not as much pressure just on a couple of guys, now it's spread right across the team, which is exciting from my perspective."

Coach Ivan Cleary said he'd also seen some development in those players.

"It hasn't been outwardly noticeable -- it's not like they walk in with medals around their neck, but they're more confident," he said.

"I think the biggest feeling's probably been in the community based around our game. We've had good crowds at our trial games here and there's a general buzz about the sport.

"Hopefully we can start well and ride on the back of that."

The Warriors will head into Saturday week's first NRL match at home against Parramatta in a buoyant mood following three pre-season wins.

They also escaped relatively lightly on the injury front. Tuimavave looks certain to miss the first game, as does comeback halfback Stacey Jones, who has a calf niggle.

The Warriors' pre-season form and their last four effort last season sees them third favourites at $9 with Australian bookmakers behind last year's finalists Manly and Melbourne.

They are also strong $1.36 favourites to beat the Eels, rated $3 chances. However, the Warriors have been slow starters in the past two NRLs and had to work hard to make the playoffs in the second half of the season.

"It would be nice to get to halfway through the year and not be looking from the bottom up," Cleary said.

"If you're lucky enough to get in the finals it can be a little bit taxing having been through that emotional ride for so long like last season."

To some extent the biggest problem Cleary will face will be deciding who makes the starting team given the good pre-season form.

Selections in the halves in particular will be difficult, with Jones, Nathan Fien and Joel Moon all performing well.

"Everyone's playing pretty well, there's not too many injuries so we've got pretty much a full-strength squad to choose from," Price said.

"It's going to be a big headache for the coaches next Tuesday to name the first 17 to play against Parramatta."

(Source: 3 Sport, TV3, 06 March 2009)

Neville leaves Horo in heaven Shellharbour Dragons coach Mark Horo will turn student when he takes charge of former Origin player Neville Costigan in tonight's trial against Wests Tigers at Ron Costello Oval.

Horo's NSW Cup side will be boosted by the inclusion of Costigan, a Papua New Guinea international who is rated as one of the NRL's most fearsome defenders.

"For coaches on the way up, much like players, you just love to have players, good players like him around, it's pretty special" Horo said.

"I'm probably going to get a lot more out of it than Neville will at this stage, having a bloke with that sort of ability around the joint. Everything I know fell by the wayside 20 years ago."

A former New Zealand international, Horo is a coach on the rise and is a sponge for new information. And as far as learning opportunities go, working in the same organisation as Wayne Bennett is as good as it gets.

Horo was an on-field trainer for New Zealand's World Cup winning squad, where he got to see Bennett's work first hand.

The six-time premiership winner was assistant to for the Kiwi's and Horo came away impressed by both mentors' unflappable demeanour.

"Calmness - just a sense of composure," is how Horo described Bennett's style.

"They were both very composed (Bennett and Kearney) ... I've learnt you can't do a lot more than what you have to do."

With Shellharbour's first game of the season against Newtown next week, Horo said his side will be going all out to prove they are ready.

"We're going to treat this trial as professionally as we can - there's going to be nothing silly, we're going to be preparing for a round one match against Newtown. What we want to do is prove to the Tigers we can host a side of their calibre and treat it as a very professional exercise."

(Source: Mercury, 06 March 2009)

Vatuvei wants premiership win for lost 'brother' MANU VATUVEI is set to become one of the faces of the NRL after being the first Warriors player flown to Australia for filming of this season's commercial, which begins airing on television tonight.

The honour is recognition not just of Vatuvei's standing as the game's best winger but also the Warriors' emergence as a consistent premiership force. "We've got a pretty good squad and we want to win the premiership so hopefully it comes our way," Vatuvei said. "We're all working hard for it."

After recovering from a broken leg to be a key figure in the Warriors charge to the play-offs and finals wins over Melbourne and , Vatuvei starred in the Kiwis' World Cup triumph that has helped generate unprecedented support for the game in New Zealand - more than 30,000 fans attended trial matches in Hamilton and .

"I thought my season last year was pretty good and hopefully it can carry on," said Vatuvei, who admits he was driven by a desire to redeem himself after a horror game in 2007. "I had that disappointing game against Parramatta the year before and I had to come back and prove myself. It was only one game but people still talk about it and if I make a couple of mistakes in another game it will come up …"

Vatuvei, who will celebrate his 23rd birthday today by attending the NRL's season launch in the Domain, was shocked when initially told his services were wanted for the commercial, which also features Manly's Brett and Glenn Stewart and Melbourne star .

"It's a big honour," he said. "I thought they'd go for someone like ."

Or Stacey Jones, the Warriors and Kiwis great who is returning after two seasons at Catalans and a year in retirement.

Aside from Jones, the Warriors have recruited Joel Moon from Brisbane and Liam Foran from the Storm to bolster their depth in the halves, where Nathan Fien is also likely to play this season.

Driving the Warriors is a desire to win the premiership for teammate Sonny Fai, who tragically went missing presumed drowned at a West Coast beach the day before pre-season training resumed in January. "We're all shattered by it, I'm still shattered myself," Vatuvei said. "It's like losing a member of my family because he was like a brother to me. Every day I think about Sonny and hopefully we can win the premiership for him."

HOW THE WARRIORS SHAPE UP

Coach: Ivan Cleary (since 2006)

Last season: 8th.

Story of the summer: Talented forward Sonny Fai missing, presumed drowned, after saving family members caught in a rip.

Breaking through: Russell Packer. A former Junior Kiwis captain and member of the NRL's Toyota Cup under- 20s team of the year last season, the 19-year-old prop is set to fill the void left by the retirement of Ruben Wiki.

Pinning hopes on: Return of halfback great Stacey Jones.

New buys: Liam Foran (Storm), Stacey Jones (retirement), Denan Kemp (Broncos), Jacob Lillyman (Cowboys), Joel Moon (Broncos), Jesse Royal (Knights).

Have lost: Michael Crockett (Wests ), Wairangi Koopu (Storm), Epalahame Lauaki (Hull), Steve Rapira (Cowboys), Grant Rovelli (Cowboys), Ryan Shortland (released), Ruben Wiki (retired).

If they were an actor they'd be: John Travolta. Consistent performer for a number of years forced to deal with a tragic loss.

(Source: Brad Walter, Sydney Morning Herald, 04 March 2009)

Clubs reject merger with Taranaki A Conference of Clubs meeting at Sport Manawatu decided yesterday not to support a Sparc recommendation that Manawatu come within a new zone under Taranaki.

Sparc said in a national review the sport must move to seven regions and Wanganui and Manawatu must come within a zone run by Taranaki. But Manawatu Rugby League vice-president Shane Culling said the club representatives weren't happy with a lack of consultation.

"At the moment the clubs want us to go to the New Zealand Rugby League annual meeting on March 29 and vote against us coming under Taranaki," Culling said. "They're all unhappy that we weren't asked our opinion and we've been told what is going to happen."

Culling said the clubs were fully aware that a vote against Sparc's recommendation would mean the national body, which was broke, would not receive a $450,000 grant from Sparc and lotteries grants will not be handed to the NZRL either.

Each of the eight MRL board members have clubs they look after and are to approach clubs to determine how they actually want to vote at the NZRL annual meeting.

"We are going to go back to clubs individually and carefully explain the implications of voting against what Sparc want to happen, then see if they still want to vote against.

Whatever the clubs decide is how we will vote."

Under a change to seven zones, Manawatu would lose their vote at national level, though Culling said that wasn't main gripe.

"We would rather come under a Wellington-run zone which will include Hawke's Bay and Bay of Plenty. We have a much closer alignment to Wellington than with Taranaki."

With a $58,000 loss last season, the MRL has cut all paid staff, including administration, with board members taking up those roles on a voluntary basis. Culling said the board would have cut its office at Sport Manawatu as it couldn't afford the rent.

"Fortunately Sport Manawatu have helped us out and we now have an office but no staff," he quipped. "At least it will give us a place we can go and work from."

The Western Alliance competition has been saved by the Taranaki association finding $35,000 for regional competition to go ahead, though it won't be a fully funded competition this year.

"In the past we've been able to pay for everything including tracksuits, playing strips and buses. It was good that even though clubs were told they would need to fund those things they were still keen for the competition to run," Culling said.

"Kia Ora intimated they were sick of playing the same five clubs every year and Feilding said they would lose players with the Western Alliance going ahead."

Good news was that the under-age competition that began with under-13 last year had proved such a success that under-12 and 14 grades had been added. The competitions would run on Sundays, something that had seen a big increase in playing numbers countrywide.

(Source: Manawatu Standard, 03 March 2009)

World Club Challenge eyes Asia Rugby League bosses admitted on Monday the World Club Challenge could be held in Asia in the future.

Manly became the first Australian winners of the annual global clash of the champions for six years when they beat Leeds Rhinos 28-20 at Elland Road on Sunday.

The match was held in England for the 10th successive year but there are calls for a neutral venue, including Abu Dhabi and Hong Kong, while Leeds chief executive Gary Hetherington has put forward a proposal to expand the competition.

Hetherington's plan is for the top three clubs from both Super League and the NRL to contest the event and the are willing to consider that possibility.

"Sunday's match was a terrific and outstanding success. International football delivers a profile that domestic football doesn't and we have got to weigh up the balance," RFL chief executive Nigel Wood said. "All things are possible. The middle east or far east are options but as yet no-one has come to the table with a package that would enable us to take the proposal to the next level.

"It's appropriate to have a discussion about what may or may not be possible. There are issues about the over- playing of players which we need to bear in mind.

"There is every likelihood the event will look the same next year."

Manly's successful coach , who played for the Sea Eagles in the first challenge against Wigan in 1987, has cast doubt over the viability of Australia hosting the event.

"We'd love to defend it in Sydney and I'm sure Leeds would like to come to Australia but, as a concept, I'm just not sure how it would go down there during our off-season," he said.

(Source: One Sport, TVNZ, 03 March 2009)

Rugby league legends want fans to boycott Sonny Bill Williams' appearance Rugby league legends have called on Sydney fans to boycott Sonny Bill Williams's controversial appearance for rugby's Barbarians against the Wallabies at the Sydney Football Stadium on June 6.

Williams's inclusion in the UK-based invitational side has raised the hackles of many in the league community, who haven't forgotten the former Bulldogs star walking out on his club mid-contract last year to join French rugby club Toulon.

Australian Rugby Union chief executive John O'Neill happily agrees Williams would put "bums on seats", though he denied the move was a publicity stunt or an insult to league.

Bulldogs counterpart Todd Greenberg disagreed, however, saying that sports fans had "long memories".

Former league stars Tom Raudonikis and Steve Roach were less diplomatic, saying the game should be boycotted.

"It's an absolute disgrace," Raudonikis said."He shouldn't even be allowed back in the country. They should send him straight back to New Zealand. I can't forget what he did to the Bulldogs. It was dreadful and unsporting. No one should go to the game.

"All Sydney sports fans should boycott the event. I reckon it's just a publicity stunt because the match is only three days after Origin I. I just don't rate Williams as a person. I would hate to be alongside this bloke in the trenches."

Roach added: "Only his family will go to the match. He has dudded everyone else. People won't forget how he left the Bulldogs."

Greenberg said that sports fans would be aware of Williams's unsporting departure. "The Australian public are discerning and perceptive," he said. "I've no doubt they'll judge SBW for the decision he made."

O'Neill said there was no intention to insult the NRL or steal the limelight of its season or major events.

"Will he put bums on seats? I suspect he will. Would I be happy about that? Yes, I would," O'Neill said. "We weren't involved whatsoever in his defection. It happened and it's been settled legally, and he's free to play. We're keen to see him play, and if he adds to the lustre, so be it."

Wallabies winger Lote Tuqiri, meanwhile, welcomed the news of Williams's projected return to Australia.

"It's great that he has the chance to come back and play in Australia," Tuqiri said. "I applaud him and applaud the organisers for getting him. He will certainly draw some attention to the occasion."

(Source: By Dean Ritchie, Jon Geddes, and Iain Payten, www.foxsports.com.au March 03, 2009)

Rugby League Test may be played in Melbourne MELBOURNE is on the verge of landing a sporting coup with next year's rugby league Test between Australia and New Zealand set to be played at the new rectangular stadium.

The Australian Rugby League confirmed it was deep in discussions with the Victorian Major Events Company to stage the match there in May.

It would be just the third time the teams have played in Melbourne in more than 90 years and only the fourth rugby league Test staged in the city.

An official announcement is not expected until later this year, but ARL chief executive Geoff Carr said everyone involved wanted to make it happen.

"We haven't signed off with either party but we certainly have a willingness to do it and we are very keen," Carr said yesterday.

"It won't be the first event at the new stadium but it will be the official opening. It needs to be opened with some sort of priority game and that's why we are talking about a Test match. The arrangement is yet to be finalised . . . but we're not far away."

The match would be one of three, including an Australia-England Test in November next year and a State-of- Origin match in 2012, that the ARL wants to stage in Melbourne.

"The Victorian public have been very supportive and with the we want to keep the profile of rugby league strong," Carr said. "It's certainly an area we want to keep playing marquee games in."

More than 36,000 people attended the World Cup clash between Australia and England at Docklands in November, while 54,833 watched the Origin decider there in 2006.

The new Swan St stadium, which will hold 31,000 people, is on schedule for completion in December. Storm is due to play the first match there in March 2010.

(Source: Russell Gould, Herald Sun, 03 March 2009)

Ireland eye up Championship bid Ireland head coach Andy Kelly believes there is a major hunger for an Irish club to compete in the English game.

And he predicts that, after Ireland's strong showing at the 2008 World Cup, a bid for an Irish club to be involved in the Championship could occur soon.

"The feeling in Ireland for that to happen is very strong," Kelly told the BBC's Super League Show.

"If we can get the finances in place, there is a chance a bid would be made by us."

Helped by Ireland's display at the World Cup in Australia in the autumn, rugby league is growing in popularity in a country dominated by Gaelic football, hurling, rugby union and football.

Teams from France () and Wales (Celtic Crusaders) already compete in Super League, while Toulouse Olympique XIII are making their debut in the Championship this season.

"If the bid is strong enough," said the former Dewsbury Rams head coach Kelly. "We'd like to think it would be accepted.

"We'd like to be involved, are very excited about it and we think that it is the next step for the competition."

(Source: BBC Sport, 02 March 2009)

Former ref will need to whistle up all his skills Many would say Sonny Hohepa has jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire by accepting the chair of the Whangarei and Districts Rugby League in troubled times. The mild-mannered Hohepa, who has just retired from 25 years of refereeing the game, will once again be in the hot seat tomorrow night as he explains constitutional changes proposed by SPARC administrators to the New Zealand Rugby League.

"No one wanted this job, I was bullied into it," Hohepa manages a convincing laugh.

"But seriously, I could see that rugby league here and nationally is in a bit of a crisis, in terms of the structures anyway, so there's a lot of work to be done.”

The failure of the board of the NZRL has been big news over the past couple of weeks and their problems, particularly the financial and structural ones, will affect rugby league players in Northland.

Club delegates at tomorrow's meeting can be assured of an interesting night but there is one burden that is already common knowledge - clubs will need to pay for their own transport to competition games this season.

"Finding sponsorship to replace the bulk funding [that was paid for by the NZRL last season] will be one of our biggest challenges this year," Hohepa said.

"Right now I can't discuss many of the other issues because I haven't informed the local clubs yet - that will happen on Tuesday night."

The NZRL board has been stood down, but Hohepa and former chairperson Sharon Bird, who has remained on the local board as vice-chair, have been talking with the auditors appointed by SPARC.

"The problems [with NZRL] won't be fixed overnight, they're a bit too serious for that, but once the actual season starts, then I think the new board can be left alone to come up with some ideas about how to fix the problems," Hohepa said.

There is a mountain of information to consider - and first are the competition structures.

Last year the decision to leave Northland out of the national under-16 and under-18 competition was a huge bone of contention between the national body and the local league.

"It is a national problem really, they're not playing league in Otago and Tasman for example, Hawke's Bay, Coastline and East Coast are struggling and you'd have to add Northland to that but the thing is we're lucky, we're still playing the game," Hohepa said.

He said while some of the "golden era" clubs like the Otaikas and the West End Jumbos have all gone into recess, Northland still has the Moerewas, the Takahiwais and the Portlands to keep it going.

From the 2008 season, Marist has gone into recess but the league could see a new-look Kensington side replace them, while Waitangi have shown interest in re-entering the competition for 2009.

"We are very interested in them coming back in but we are asking both clubs to come up with a strategic plan and a business plan for the next three years ...we don't want fly-by-night clubs," he said.

The issue of whether the Ngawha Prison team, the Ngawha Saints, will again be involved in the league this year, after controversially pulling out of the playoffs in 2008 is another matter up for discussion.

“They've had a few changes there, they have a new prison manager, new structures, new policies... and I've come in and said let's put all of that behind us and come up with some new proposals, so I can present them to the clubs because they are the ones who will say yea or nay."

There are a few other issues facing Northland league and the former Moerewa Tiger, who now heads the organisation. He may have thought that refereeing was a tough job but compared with this it seems like child's play.

(Source: Peter Thorley, Northern Advocate, 02 March 2009) Williams to play for Baa-Baas Former New Zealand rugby league international Sonny Bill Williams will return to Australia to play for the Barbarians against the Wallabies in June.

Williams, who switched codes in a blaze of publicity to join the Toulon club in France last year, is the first Barbarians invitee announced for the historic showdown at the Sydney Football Stadium.

The match will be the first for the world-famous Barbarians Club on Australian soil, and doubles as the 2009 season-opener for the Wallabies.

The remainder of the international contingent will be confirmed in May.

"I'm looking forward to playing for the Barbarians in Sydney and being on the field with some of the best rugby players in the world," New Zealander Williams said in a statement.

Australian Rugby Union CEO John O'Neill said the match would provide an opportunity to see how Williams' career had progressed since switching codes.

"He was a rugby league player of rare talent who is now midway through his first season of rugby in France," said O'Neill.

"At Toulon he is playing alongside a former long-serving All Black in Jerry Collins and against some of the finest players in the game on a week to week basis.

"I'm sure many people will look forward to seeing how his career in rugby has developed when he arrives with a Barbarians team that will be world-class and ready to take on our own Qantas Wallabies."

Tickets for the match go on sale next month.

(Source: One Sport, TVNZ, 02 March 2009)

Sinking clubs plead for pokies tax lifeline PARRAMATTA LEAGUES CLUB has had what it believes to be the biggest loss ever for a club in NSW, $7 million last year, as big clubs cry poor over poker machine tax increases, the anti-smoking laws and the global financial crisis.

Several leagues clubs say they will have to make cuts in their football departments unless things improve, and they are pleading with the State Government to reduce poker machine taxes. The chief executive of the National Rugby League, David Gallop, and club representatives asked for help from the Treasurer, Eric Roozendaal, two months ago. A working party with the clubs and the Government was then set up. But the Government is reluctant to provide tax relief.

The tax rate for big clubs that earn more than $20 million has reached a high of 39.09 per cent under the staggered tax policy. But this has coincided with a collapse in the world economy.

The poker machine tax debate could therefore become an issue at the next election, and the clubs lobby is likely to pressure the two main parties. The former Opposition leader Peter Debnam pledged at the last election to keep the rate capped at the 2005 figure of 32.79 per cent.

Mr Gallop said he had received a sympathetic audience from Mr Roozendaal, and the Government had to understand that the tax increases had hit clubs much harder than expected. "He acknowledged that a lot of leagues clubs are suffering," Mr Gallop said.

"It's potentially catastrophic … and I don't think anyone quite realised the real impact of the anti-smoking legislation and the lifting of the poker machine tax would be quite so dramatic."

The chief executive of Parramatta Leagues Club, Denis Fitzgerald, said his club had had to make six people redundant at the football club, and the losses the club was incurring were putting at risk its NRL team. "If we don't improve our overall position we won't be able to spend up to our salary cap … that would make it difficult for us to be competitive on the field." St George Leagues Club has recorded a net loss of more than $1 million, and had a loss of $5.1 million, before an income-tax credit turned that into a profit of $1.5 million. The general manager of St George Leagues Club, Danny Robinson, said: "If the Government does not review the tax … the clubs will not survive."

But a spokesman for Mr Roozendaal said there was no desire for further concessions. "The NSW Government introduced financial hardship provisions in June 2008 to assist clubs experiencing a decline in gaming revenue. Eligible clubs can stagger their quarterly gaming machine tax into three equal instalments, without any penalty interest."

(Source: Sydney Morning Herald, 28 February 2009)