Hull Kingston Rovers’ Willie Peters, who steered the rugby league club to the treble in 2025, was on Monday unveiled as the inaugural coach of the PNG Chiefs.
The Papua New Guinea side are due to enter Australia’s National Rugby League in 2028 after years of lobbying, with the Australian Peters joining at the end of Hull KR’s 2026 season.
“Willie wasn’t just available -- he was in demand,” said PNG Chiefs’ general manager of football Michael Chammas.
“The fact that he chose the PNG Chiefs, chose this challenge, and chose this country says everything about the kind of man and coach he is.
“He understands what this means, not just for rugby league, but for an entire nation.”
Rugby league borders on a national obsession in PNG, but safety fears and a lack of funding in the Pacific nation had long thwarted the idea of an NRL team.
But the Australian government in late 2024 agreed to spend US$385 million on the franchise as it looks to bolster ties with its northern neighbour, who have also been courted by China.
Peters, who led Hull KR to the Super League title, Challenge Cup and League Leaders’ Shield in 2025, said the opportunity was one he could not turn down.
“I believe that what we build with the PNG Chiefs can change the lives of Papua New Guineans for generations to come,” he said.
“Not many coaches get an opportunity like that. This opportunity transcends rugby league.
“I have enormous respect for the vision Prime Minister James Marape has for his country and what he believes the PNG Chiefs can mean for his people,” he added.
“That moved me and my family. I want to honour that vision.
“I want to be worthy of the faith the NRL and the Chiefs have placed in me, and I want to deliver something that makes every Papua New Guinean proud.”
One of Peters’ biggest challenges will be building a competitive squad.
He left the door open for some of the NRL’s biggest names to join the start-up, but said he was not interested in players only looking for a tax-free salary.
The side will be based in the capital Port Moresby, a city with a reputation for violence and poverty.
Foreign players and their families will be housed in gated compounds and offered broad tax incentives.
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