Rugby league Immortal Andrew Johns believes the NRL’s 18th team should be based out of New Zealand.
With the competition expanding to 17 clubs via the Dolphins in 2023, the NRL has stated they’ll naturally grow to 18 once they’re in a position to do so.
New Zealand has long been floated as a destination for that side, along with Perth and another Queensland franchise, but Johns has a different view of what the franchise should represent.
With participation numbers a point of interest, Johns believes the competition should aim to grow through targeting new players in the Pacific.
“We’re looking to expand the game, we’ve got the Dolphins playing next year,” Johns said on SENZ Breakfast.
“But the problem everywhere in Australia and probably everywhere (else) is that there’s less kids playing.
“So, we’ve got to grow the game somewhere and where we need to build the game is in the Pacific countries.”
With those living in Pacific nations as the target for new players and fans, Johns believes a club representing that region based out of Wellington would be the ideal route for the NRL to go down.
“I think the next team that comes in should play out of Wellington and play under a Pasifika sort of brand,” Johns said.
“We’ve got feeder clubs with the PNG Hunters who play in the Queensland Cup, we’ve got the Fijian team coming into the NSWRL, that’s some sort of pathway.
“Down in that Wellington area a lot of rugby league gets played.
“I’d love to see a team coming out of Wellington under the Pasifika brand or logo and build the game in the Pacific.”
Super Rugby has recently adopted a similar franchise idea, with Moana Pasifika joining the competition this season with players primarily having Pacific heritage hailing from the likes of Fiji, Samoa, Tonga and the Cook Islands.
NRL CEO Andrew Abdo has previously indicated that the 18th team would likely come from New Zealand as league looks to source talent away from rugby union.