Hiri rugby league competition starts with 24 teams participating

THE Hiri West Rugby League (HWRL) Development Nines Carnival started yesterday with 24 teams participating for the week-long tournament at Papa and Boera villages in Central’s Kairuku-Hiri district.
HWRL president Hubert Warupi acknowledged the support of the Central Dabaris Rugby League franchise with the aim of creating pathways for developing young talents in Hiri West.
“It’s very exciting to see a Hiri West product like Morea Morea Jr, at only 19, playing so well in the Dabaris and we want to see other talent come through and work on how we can get these talented kids into the Dabaris high performance programme,” he said. “The tournament was officially opened yesterday at Papa village for day one of the carnival before the competition now splits into two venues – Papa and Boera.
“Teams that have shown interest are mainly from Hiri West areas of Koukou, Roku, Kouderika, Porebada, Boera, Papa, Lealea and Kido with a few teams from Gaire, Baruni and Tatana,” said Warupi, who is also a founder and executive director of the Central Dabaris franchise.
Meanwhile, Dabaris chairman Keith Iduhu last week pledged support as sponsor for the major awards during the carnival.
Iduhu said the purpose of the carnival was to provide an opportunity for talented youngsters to play in an age appropriate competition, especially for high school aged players (17-20 years) and to enjoy the shorter version of the game during the third term break.
The matches for the Hiri West rugby league carnival continue today with the 24 teams playing across six pools before finals on Friday.