Thirty-seven referees and touch judges have been officially accredited under the Papua New Guinea Rugby Football League’s Better Development Accreditation program, in preparation for the kick-off of national competitions on April 12.
The accreditation workshop, held over two days at the Santos National Football Stadium, brought together participants from across the country.
Of the 37 match officials accredited, three are women referees, marking a continued step toward greater inclusion in the sport.
The training covered sixteen modules and was delivered through a joint effort involving the Papua New Guinea Rugby Football League, Queensland Rugby League, National Rugby League, and PacificAus Sport.
These officials are the first cohort to be accredited for the 2026 PNG National Rugby League Competition season, qualifying them to officiate across all five competitions run under the PNGNRLC banner.
The initiative forms part of PNGRFL’s broader commitment to strengthening professionalism and raising officiating standards in rugby league across Papua New Guinea.
The workshop is aimed at improving match officiating and overall game delivery nationwide.
QRL Development Coach – Match Officials and facilitator Greer Beck highlighted the importance of aligning local referees with international standards.
“At the moment, we’re focusing on ensuring PNG referees are accredited under NRL guidelines. This ensures they hold the correct accreditation standards so that if they were to officiate games in Australia, they would already meet Australian accreditation requirements.”
Closing the workshop, PNGRFL Chief Executive Officer Stanley Hondina congratulated the participants for successfully completing the program.
“I’m pleased to see all of you complete this two-day workshop, and I thank Greer Beck for facilitating these sessions since last year. Workshops like this are important in preparing referees for our five competitions. Congratulations to all of you for making the cut for the 2026 season. Take ownership of your development, prepare thoroughly, and deliver at a high standard.”
Among the participants, James Tau Amos, a referee since 2018 with Lae Rugby League, described the workshop as a valuable learning experience.
“This would be my seventh time attending such a workshop since I started refereeing. One area I want to improve on after this is working more effectively with the touch judges and improving referee positioning during matches.”
Fellow official Heavenly Paul, who officiates in the Santos Cup, National Youth Competition and Digicel ExxonMobil Cup, also shared her perspective.
“I have been officiating since 2021 and have attended several workshops since then. Although this can be a challenging career, I proudly stand as a representative and role model for other women who wish to follow this path. If men can play and officiate the game, women can too.”
