Darwin Brothers star Latoniya Norris selected to play for PNG Orchids

A NT rugby league star will feature for the PNG Orchids in the Prime Ministers’ Cup after a sensational 2023. Read about her league journey.

A Darwin Brothers player who has starred at state level and locally has earned her big rugby league breakthrough being named for the PNG Orchids set to play the Jillaroos this weekend.

Latoniya Norris has been in exceptional form throughout 2023 topping the NRL NT try scoring charts with 28 for the premiership-winning team.

She was also named in the National Championships team of the tournament after a thrilling showing for the undefeated NT Titans side.

It isn’t the first time Norris has stood out for club and state winning the Gaynor Maggs best and fairest in 2020.

It was an impressive run that earned a call-up to the First Nations Gems camp, and now a game for the PNG Orchids against the Prime Ministers XXIII.

Darwin Brothers' Latoniya Norris starred in the 2023 season. Picture: NRL NT

The call-up came from PNG coach Ben Jeffries, who Norris had worked with previously in the All Stars space, as well as in the Orchids World Cup squad last year.

“I’m very excited, it’s a goal I have been working towards so I’m grateful to have been selected,” Norris said.

“It came after this year’s Women’s Nationals, I was made aware I was getting looked at from both teams and I received a call from Ben Jeffries congratulating me on making the side.

“The whole of PNG absolutely loves rugby so I’m super excited to experience what the atmosphere is going to be like.”

Norris has already been in Port Morseby for a week where she has been able to experience first-hand the amount of work that goes into preparing for a game of this calibre.

“The team has been training hard this week to come together so I’m excited to go out and smash it with the girls,” she said.

“I have learned a lot over the time I have been here, not just game related stuff but also how different the girls here have it and the journey they have to take to get to where they are, it’s inspiring.

“It’s my first time playing alongside these girls so I look forward to running out on the field with all of them, they are all very talented and teaching me new things each day.”

NT Titans coach Leon Cleal and Brothers captain Bianca Scrymgour have been key members of Norris’ support group pushing her towards the success she is now enjoying.

“I’m lucky enough to have a solid support system around me with a number of people helping me,” she said.

“Leon Cleal has been a big advocate for me over the years and continues to support me which I am always thankful for.

“My captain for club and state Bianca has also played a big part in always pushing to me to become a better player, she’s someone I look up to always leading by example.”

‘Pure shock’: Top End league star named in Jillaroos’ coaching team

A Litchfield player and coach is taking her league career to the next stage after being named as a member of the Prime Ministers XIII Women’s coaching team heading to Papua New Guinea.

Shari Togo has been a stalwart at the Litchfield Bears for the past few years as both a senior captain and junior grade coach, playing a large role in helping grow the club’s women’s member base.

And after another massive season in which she was also an assistant coach of the undefeated NT Titans and worked heavily in the RISE program she got the call-up from Jillaroos’ coach Brad Donald.

Shari Togo leads the Litchfield Bears against the Darwin Brothers in the 2023 NRL NT prelim final. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

Despite her rise in both the coaching and playing spaces it was a moment of pure shock for Togo when she got the call from Donald confirming she would be there for the September 23 game.

“It was pure shock, there was plenty of tears and just happiness when I found out,” she said.

“I wasn’t really sure until the phone call when he said ‘you deserve this, we’ve been watching you, you’ve put in the work and we want you to be part of our coaching staff’.

“We’ve had our first Zoom meeting and emailed back and forth; he’s a very knowledgeable man who likes to keep things simple as we’re working with a lot of players coming into their prime.

“I’ll be helping with prep going over there, running a few game plays, drills, warm ups, and there’s a cultural side to it to as well as building relationships, and I hope to bring that knowledge back.”

There she will interact with some of the best up-and-coming players in the NRLW, and established rep players including Kennedy Cherrington, Botille Vette-Welsh and Tallisha Harden.

It’s been another whirlwind season for Togo in the NRL NT coaching Litchfield’s under-15s, as well as the under-13s for a time, while captaining her senior women to a preliminary final.

Shari Togo has coached junior rugby league at Litchfield, while also being heavily involved in the RISE program for developing players. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

But playing and helping develop the game she loves in the place she now calls home with her husband and two kids is just second nature for her.

“It’s been a whirlwind, you just don’t have time to comprehend stuff until something like this happens and you’re like ‘wow, I’ve actually done a fair bit’,” Togo said.

“You just don’t have time to sit and dwell on what you’ve been doing, it’s not about seeking rewards or acknowledgment, and I just do it for the fun and love of doing it.

“I’ve grown up around football my whole life, I come from an all-girls family and have a lot of really strong, positive uncles and cousins and girls in the family who played the game.

“They’re my role models with their strong morals and values, and I have a good husband and kids who allow me to do this, it’s not just about me, it’s my whole family.

“Everyone from the senior players, coaches and volunteers have played their part in this journey, and I just take everything in my stride thanks to them.”

Meanwhile, Darwin Brothers star and the 2023 women’s top try scorer Latoniya Norris was named in the PNG side set to take on the Jillaroos.