Sport Confidential: ‘Angels’ emerges as contender for PNG’s NRL team name; Broncos’ $3.5m retention coup

As the NRL begins the laborious task of constructing an NRL team in Papua New Guinea, the other key consideration is the name of the PNG team - and one has already caught Peter V’landys’ eye.

The NRL’s 17th team were the Dolphins. The 18th team in 2027 will be the Bears. And in 2028, could the NRL witness the arrival of the Papua New Guinea Angels?

ARL Commission boss Peter V’landys has revealed the Angels are among a number of nicknames being thrown up ahead of PNG joining the NRL premiership.

With the dust settling on the announcement of the Perth Bears entering the big league, the NRL will now begin ramping-up plans for the set up of the code’s first Pacific franchise in 2028.

The NRL will look at housing for players, logistics and coaching and front-office appointments, but the other key consideration is the name of the PNG team.

The men’s national team is known as the Kumuls, PNG’s female outfit are the Orchids and their Hostplus Cup club are the Hunters, who will become a feeder club to the NRL franchise.

One suggestion is the Angels in honour of the ‘Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels’. That was the name given by Australian soldiers to the PNG heroes who helped injured Aussie troops amid the Kokoda Campaign that staved off Japanese invasion during World War II.

“I don’t know what the team name will be at this stage,” ARLC boss V’landys said.

“There has been a suggestion for the team to be called the PNG Angels.

“I’ve had one very creative person suggest that nickname because of PNG’s history with Australia and it’s not a bad idea, but there will be a number of options considered.”

BRONCOS SIGNING COUP

The Broncos have pulled off a $3.5 million retention triple strike by staving off poaching bids to secure Adam Reynolds, Kotoni Staggs and Blake Mozer.

Brisbane have ended months of speculation over the trio by formalising new contracts in a major coup for coach Michael Maguire ahead of Sunday’s clash against the Sharks at Suncorp Stadium.

Reynolds has rejected the Wests Tigers to ink a 12-month extension for 2026, while rising hooker Mozer has signed a two-year deal and strike centre Staggs is on board for another three seasons until the end of 2028.

There were fears Reynolds could quit the Broncos after the skipper fielded a lucrative two-year offer from the Tigers worth around $1.5 million.

But the 300-game champion will finish his career at Red Hill and play beyond his 35th birthday next season in Reynolds’ burning ambition to break Brisbane’s 19-year premiership drought.

Reynolds was originally expected to retire at season’s end but the Broncos have recalibrated their salary cap to afford the skipper, Staggs and Mozer, who is rated Brisbane’s next big thing at hooker.

Adam Reynolds will retire a Bronco – despite serious interest from Sydney teams. Picture: Getty

Maguire lauded Reynolds’ show of loyalty and dismissed concerns about the veteran halfback’s ability to soldier on for a 15th season in 2026.

“There were quite a number of clubs that showed interest in ‘Reyno’,” Maguire said.

“Reyno has shown that he wants to stay and achieve what he came to the club to achieve, which is winning a premiership.

“He’s very focused on being able to try and achieve that for everyone here.

“I know there was huge interest, but I know how passionate Reyno is about the Broncos and he wanted to stay true to what we are building here.

“I have no doubt he can play for another 12 months.

“One thing he has proved as a player is you can’t write him off, because people wrote him off at South Sydney four or five years ago and he is still going.

“His passion for the game hasn’t waned.

“To win a premiership, you need a great playmaker and we’ve got that in Reyno.”

Kotoni Staggs has signed a three-year extension to stay in Brisbane. Picture: Liam Kidston

Staggs’ upgrade is sweet reward for his outstanding form over the past three seasons and his transformation into a senior leader at Red Hill.

It is understood the 26-year-old’s three-year extension is worth around $800,000 annually and 131-game dynamo Staggs goes into the Sharks clash as one of the form centres of the NRL.

Just 12 months ago, Staggs appeared to be behind Selwyn Cobbo in the retention pecking order, but the former NSW and Australia centre has impressed Maguire with his blockbusting form and presence in Brisbane’s leadership group.

Staggs won the Allan Langer Award as Brisbane’s best back last season.

“Kotoni has always been a handful of a player,” Maguire said.

“The one thing I’ve liked since coming here is Kotoni’s leadership qualities.

“He is an experienced squad member now and his leadership has really stood out.

“He has developed a lot as a person and over the last two or three months I’ve seen him step up as a leader.

“He is great in team meetings, he is vocal and is setting the standards of what we want to achieve here.”

Blake Mozer is another to have committed his future to the Broncos. Picture: Liam Kidston

Broncos chiefs have high hopes for Mozer.

The former Queensland under-19s hooker had interest from at least two NRL rivals, including the Titans, but Mozer is content at Red Hill.

Now 21, Mozer has played nine NRL games since his debut in 2023, but has yet to appear in the top grade this season due to a shoulder problem that delayed his start to the season.

Mozer may yet require surgery on his shoulder, but Maguire is backing the Keebra Park product to be a long-term proposition in the Broncos No.9 jumper.

NO CONTRACT PAIN FOR PAIX

Broncos coach Michael Maguire says he is keen to keep Cory Paix in the wake of young-gun hooker Blake Mozer’s retention at Red Hill.

Mozer inked a two-year extension on Thursday, but despite being Brisbane’s starting hooker, Paix remains off-contract going into Sunday’s clash against the Sharks at Suncorp Stadium.

The Broncos kicked off talks with Paix’s management a fortnight ago and Maguire says the Toowoomba terrier is part of his plans for 2026.

“I’m keen to keep him on for sure,” Maguire said.

“It’s a part of fitting it all in too with the salary cap, so that process is being played in the background.

“One thing Cory knows is that if he keeps playing well, that stuff will sort itself out.

“I like Cory’s work ethic, he is my type of player. He’s very dedicated.”

Blake extends as a Bronco 🐎

Details 📲 https://t.co/p5KYfPi0hHpic.twitter.com/vk0f8KxETU

— Brisbane Broncos (@brisbanebroncos) June 19, 2025

PONGA’S CALL ON PERTH

He is touted as Perth’s potential marquee signing but Queensland Origin star Kalyn Ponga isn’t sold on the Bears big vision in the wild west.

Ponga has all-but ruled out joining new Bears coach Mal Meninga in Perth, where he celebrated Queensland’s epic 26-24 defeat of the Blues in Origin II on Wednesday night.

The Dally M champion was seen as the perfect poster boy for the code’s 18th team in 2027 because Ponga is one of the few current NRL stars born in Western Australia.

But the Port Hedland product is already contracted to the Knights until the end of 2027 and says he has no intention of breaking his Newcastle deal.

“No, I am pretty grounded where I am,” he said.

Kalyn Ponga is happy in Newcastle. Picture: Scott Gardiner/Getty Images

“It is lovely over here and exciting for the game to have another team coming into the comp.

“But I still have a couple of years left with Newcastle so definitely not now.”

Ponga has attracted interest from overseas rugby clubs but Newcastle’s $6 million man says he is happy in the NRL, despite past links to the All Blacks.

“I don’t miss it,” he said of union, the code he played at Churchie Grammar in Brisbane.

“It’s nice to fantasise about that stuff (switching to union), but I am focused on where I am now, there’s no point in thinking three years into the future.”

BIG BEN A MAROONS HIT

Ben Ikin may have retired 20 years ago but the former Gold Coast, North Sydney, Broncos and Queensland Origin star is still as famous as ever.

Now the chief executive of the Queensland Rugby League, Ikin was mobbed by supporters at the Maroons’ fan day in Gympie last week.

Forget local hero Tino Fa’asuamaleaui and superstars Cameron Munster and Kalyn Ponga, Ikin was just as popular as he happily posed for pictures with his beloved Maroons faithful.

Older Maroons supporters will know Ikin remains the youngest debutant in Origin history. At 18 years and 82 days, he was the baby-faced assassin who was blooded by coach Paul Vautin in Queensland’s epic 3-0 series rout of the Blues in 1995.

Ben Ikin was a hit at the Maroons fan day.

GRAPHIC WARNING: PHIN CHOP GROUNDS JMK

Dolphins hooker Jeremy Marshall-King has revealed he received 40 stitches to repair a badly cut and infected wound in his leg.

Marshall-King missed a month of footy after returning to the field too soon from a significant cut to his thigh in Redcliffe’s round 6 win against Penrith.

The wound reopened in a round 9 loss to the Roosters and became badly infected.

“Everyone thought it was just a little scratch but it was two cuts on my leg that were pretty deep,” Marshall-King said.

“It got infected at one point and probably didn’t heal enough when I came back. I reopened it and had to go back in and get surgery.

“They had to clean it out because it got infected and I had over 40 stitches in my quad – inside and outside. It wasn’t nice but I had to get it done. It’s great to be back.

“It is a little setback in my footy this year but it is good to be back playing and getting the wins.”

The Dolphins are a better side when ‘JMK’ is in the No. 9 jersey but he has had his fair share of injuries over the past three seasons.

JMK's horror leg cut that required 40 stitches.

COWBOYS CIRCLING TITAN

The Cowboys are eyeing Titans prop Jaimin Jolliffe to bolster their misfiring engine room.

Jolliffe could depart the Gold Coast at season’s end for a longer-term contract at North Queensland.

The Cowboys have identified they need to add some starch to their engine room, particularly after last week’s limp 58-4 loss to the Dolphins.

Jolliffe, 28, has been injury-plagued in recent seasons and is on a sizeable salary worth more than $400,000-a-year.

A move would free up some salary cap space in Gold Coast’s forwards heavy roster that has big money tied up in Tino Fa’asuamaleaui, David Fifita, Moeaki Fotuaika, Reagan Campbell-Gillard and Beau Fermor.

BRONCOS RAID BEARS

The Broncos have quietly added a Bears player to their roster.

North Sydney forward Ben Talty has joined Brisbane as a train-and-trial player after signing with the Burleigh Bears.

Talty will spend the rest of the year playing for Burleigh in the Hostplus Cup and training with the Broncos.

He only arrived at the club this week but was rushed straight into Brisbane’s 23-man squad for Sunday’s clash with Cronulla.

Talty will complete an NRL pre-season with the Broncos in the lead-up to the 2026 premiership and push for a first grade debut.

Broncos add Ben Talty to their train-and-trial list. NRL Photos

FAITH NO MOORE

North Sydney legend Billy Moore has explained his bombshell decision to resign as a director of the Bears.

The Queensland Origin great was being touted as a possible board member for the new Perth NRL franchise after playing a vocal role in the Bears coming out of big league hibernation.

But Moore is cutting official ties with North Sydney by standing down as a director.

“My job was to promote the brand as best as I could and my job was to get the Bears back in,” Moore said.

“Now that Perth are in, I was happy to stand down.

“I wasn’t interested in being a board member because Perth was too far away, but I’m happy to be an ambassador.

“I would love to be the No.1 supporter of the Bears and Queensland for the rest of my life.”

The 54-year-old also revealed he plans to walk away from all media commitments over the next 12 months to focus on the next stage of his life, saying he wants to see the world with his wife.

"Billy, not only a legend of the club, has been an invaluable member of the North Sydney Bears board, bringing passion, insight, and commitment to the club's success coupled with his unwavering dedication to getting the Bears back into the NRL.”
Read more: https://t.co/uOc5B5xHN9pic.twitter.com/aonlQuTJrM

— North Sydney Bears (@NthSydneyBears) June 12, 2025

“I am planning to hang up all boots at the end of 2026,” said Moore, a long-standing analyst for Fox League and ABC radio.

“I don’t see myself doing all the media, TV and all ‘Queenslander’ promotional stuff at the end of next year.

“I will have my restaurant but I want to do some serious travelling with my wife and be the great wandering bear in the forest.

“I want to see another side of life. I would love to see the world before I get too old.

“If Mal (Meninga, Bears coach) asks me to help out in some way, of course I would, but from 2027 I will be travelling in the northern hemisphere and seeing a bit of the world.”

SPOTTED

Manly legends Ken Arthurson and Paul ‘Fatty’ Vautin at Cbus Super Stadium last Friday night watching their beloved Sea Eagles stink it up against the Titans.

SPOTTED

NRL veterans Kieran Foran and Ben Hunt at Tamborine Mountain on Saturday morning watching their sons play in the same junior team for the Currumbin Eagles.

MAL’S BEAR ESSENTIALS

Mal Meninga has announced his first signing since taking control of the Perth Bears after appointing right-hand man Ben Gardiner as chief assistant coach.

And he is quietly going about assembling his key staff, with the important recruitment manager role all but decided.

The Gold Coast Titans have been made aware that recruitment chief Ezra Howe is in the sights of Meninga and the Bears.

A move to the west for Howe seems a fait accompli as Meninga starts planning his November 1 hit-list of potential Perth players.

There will be some nervous people at the Titans given the role Meninga played in poaching Maroons star and Gold Coast captain Tino Fa’asuamaleaui from Melbourne.

Howe is also incredibly tight with Fa’asuamaleaui, who is a free agent when the Bears enter the NRL in 2027.

Welcome back Ben Gardiner!

Gardiner has signed on as the Assistant Coach for the Perth Bears. He was most recently the assistant coach at the Penrith Panthers where he was part of the team that won the 2023 and 2024 premierships.

Read more: https://t.co/WvhMfnw3xlpic.twitter.com/aMytoSCzRI

— North Sydney Bears (@NthSydneyBears) June 19, 2025

GORDON’S BIG BREAK

Luckless Wallabies convert Carter Gordon celebrated a mini milestone at the Gold Coast Titans this week.

Gordon returned to field training for the first time since suffering a spinal injury in the pre-season.

The eight-game Wallabies representative underwent surgery last month in Perth to fix a cerebrospinal fluid leak in his neck.

He is hoping to play his first game of the season in the next two months.

Gordon received a round of applause from his Titans teammates when he hit the paddock with them on Monday.

Fullback Keano Kini is also nearing a return to the field after also undergoing spinal surgery.

Kini is about a month away from being available for selection.

Carter Gordon returned to training. Picture: Adam Head

SMITH’S CRISP FOR NRL

The Hostplus Cup has a genuine blockbuster on Saturday when the two best teams of season meet.

Premiers Norths Devils and Townsville Blackhawks will clash in North Queensland. Both teams have won 10 of their first 11 games, putting them three wins clear of third place.

The Devils’ form hasn’t surprised many - the club has won three of the last four premierships and an NRL State Championship - but the Blackhawks have been the competition’s surprise packet.

Despite not having a direct affiliation with the Cowboys, the Blackhawks have surged with a team of experienced players including NRL veteran James Tamou.

The Devils have named no players from their NRL affiliation with the Dolphins, adding intrigue to the clash.

Norths are coached by Rohan Smith, who returned from Leeds Rhinos this year to take back the team he coached to the 2021 premiership.

Smith’s record with the Devils is astonishing and another reason that he should be seriously considered as an NRL coach-in-waiting.

Since 2020, Smith is 33-4 as Devils head coach. That comes either side of a stint with Leeds which included a Super League grand final against Kristian Woolf’s St Helens.