POMRFL to kick off comp in July

THE Port Moresby Rugby Football League (POMRFL) is likely to kick off its competition on the first weekend of July following a tentative calendar for a reduced season, says an official.
POMRFL football operations manager and administrator Meke Maino said 14 clubs would play 13 matches for the first round.
“For the second, we have a reduced split round that will see the teams divided into two pools (of seven teams) where they will play only six matches each before the finals,” he said.
“We’re anticipating that if we go by that plan, we will be able to complete the season by November.
“We’re hoping to start our nines pre-season in July but we will await the Papua New Guinea Rugby Football League’s (PNGRFL) advice.”
Maino said a draft guideline on health and safety procedures would be released soon.
“We have received a draft on standard guidelines on how we should operate,” he said.
“But we will only act on it when we get the green light from the state of emergency controller and PNGRFL.
“These guidelines cover player safety to ensure that teams are observing the basic health protocols.”
Meanwhile, Maino commended SP Brewery for continuing to support the competition despite impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.