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10 Feb 2026 5:34

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Former New Zealand and Samoa league rep Frank Pritchard thinks the international game would benefit from the next NRL expansion team being a blend of Maori and Pacific Islanders

Former New Zealand and Samoa league rep Frank Pritchard thinks the international game would benefit from the next NRL expansion team being a blend of Maori and Pacific Islanders

12 February 2025 - article from www.rugbyleague.co.nz

Mana Pasifika is banking on fan support and playing depth to spearhead its bid to secure an NRL licence for an expanded 20-team comp in 2032.

Pritchard says the recent rise of Tonga, Samoa and Fiji in the international pecking order provides a pathway for Polynesians playing league.

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Other Rugby League News

09 Feb: Champion halfback Adam Reynolds will finish his stellar career at the end of the NRL season

08 Feb: Brisbane prop Payne Haas will reunite with coach Wayne Bennett at South Sydney after signing a three-year contract, a development that has the NRL world in shock

08 Feb: A monumental signing in the NRL, with arguably the game's best prop to shift clubs after the upcoming season

07 Feb: Breakers coach Petteri Koponen is refusing to let recent results diminish their intensity ahead of tonight's fixture against Illawarra in Auckland

07 Feb: A court spat over NRL player Zak Lomax could mean the Melbourne Storm end up with a hefty legal bill instead of the star winger

07 Feb: Melbourne Storm coaching supremo Craig Bellamy has signed a contract extension until the end of the 2028 NRL season

06 Feb: The Indigenous All Stars have confirmed South Sydney superstar Latrell Mitchell will miss the annual fixture against the Maori for the second straight year

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