AFL School Carnival returns to West New Britain

After a six-year break, the Australian Rules Football League (AFL) School Carnival has returned to its original turf in Kimbe, West New Britain Province (WNBP). 

AFL Papua New Guinea (AFL PNG) is working to revive the AFL school carnival in the province, with a successful trial event already completed and plans for a larger competition next year.

The upcoming carnival will feature only the winning teams from school competitions across the province, making it a true championship event. 

The revival of the school carnival in West New Britain has excited and piqued the interest of the students, especially those who are passionate about AFL and thinking of pursuing a career in the future.

NGI Regional Development Manager, Alphonse Jambarufo, stated that it was good to resurrect the AFL school carnival in the province after six years and expressed his gratitude to the key sponsors of the initiative. 

“The students will now get the chance to compete against different schools and bring the level of competitive environment to a standard that enables them to be better in the sport of AFL,” Mr. Jambarufo said.

"We would like to extend our thanks to our major sponsor, the Paradise Foods Limited, through its brand, the Smart Start Biscuit, as well as our provincial partners, the WNBP Sports Development Authority, Kimbe Bay Shipping Agency, and NBPOL.”

Mr. Jambarufo added that the revival of the AFL school carnival not only creates opportunities for the students to showcase their skills, but it also helps to address social issues in the communities.

“The school carnival really bonded the communities, which is obviously the whole idea behind this initiative. It also allows the students to freely participate in the tournament and perform to the best of their abilities,” he said.

“The program is basically like a tool to break the chain of criminal activities and trauma that are happening in the communities. We are trying to encourage them to become better people.”

Manager Jambarufo revealed that they wanted to elevate the standard of AFL in West New Britain by creating pathways for emerging talent through the establishment of a new association.

“We are working really hard to set ourselves up to a standard where we can have teachers’ involvement in the pathway activities,” Jambarufo explained.

“Our goal now in the province is to register a teachers' association that will work shoulder to shoulder with the AFL PNG team in WNB to achieve our goals with an understanding that no kid should feel like they are left behind.  Everyone should have a success story on and off the oval.” 

Meanwhile, the AFL PNG in West New Britain Province aims to host four distinct school carnival competitions next year, including:

• Bialla School Competition

• Hoskins School Competition

• Kove School Competition

• Kimbe School Competition

PC: Supplied