THE Papua New Guinea Rugby Football League (PNGRFL) has come down hard on the PRK Mendi Muruks and Bintangor Goroka Lahanis following a major on-field brawl during their Digicel ExxonMobil Cup Round 13 match in Lae on Sunday. The incident, which took place at the Lae Rugby League Oval, has drawn widespread condemnation and significant media attention. In a press conference today, PNGRFL General Manager of Pathways and Performance, Tony Archer, expressed profound disappointment. “It’s with great disappointment that we’re actually here today for an incident that unnecessarily escalated to a point where there was a major incident which received a lot of media coverage,” he stated. “For our game, it’s disappointing. For the people involved, it’s very disappointing.” The PNGRFL launched an immediate investigation, concluding its findings within 48 hours. The PNG National Rugby League Competition (PNG NRLC) was commended for its prompt and firm response, and both clubs involved received thanks for their cooperation throughout the inquiry. The disciplinary actions are as follows: n Nine players from both clubs will face charges, resulting in a combined total of 53 weeks of suspensions. n Three club officials will be breached, receiving a minimum suspension of 12 months. One official, identified as a repeat offender, faces an 18-month ban. n Both the PRK Mendi Muruks and Bintangor Goroka Lahanis will be hit with a substantial fine of K25,000 each. Archer underscored the PNGRFL’s unwavering stance against such conduct. “Our game cannot accept this behaviour. We need to stand tall as a game, take the responsibility when behaviour goes outside of what is acceptable, and what happened on Sunday is not acceptable.” Both clubs have reportedly acknowledged the seriousness of the incident and accepted the penalties. While admitting the severity of the brawl, Archer noted that incidents of this magnitude are fortunately rare within the competition. “It was unfortunately a serious but an incident that doesn’t happen regularly, and that’s a positive as our game moves forward in this country,” he said. “But we have to take action when action is required. We’ve taken strong action, and we don’t move away from it.” The PNGRFL confirmed that video footage of the incident, which is routinely recorded for all competition games, will be released to the media after the press conference. With the finals approaching, the significant suspensions of key players are expected to heavily impact the campaigns of both the Mendi Muruks and Goroka Lahanis. Despite this, the PNGRFL remains steadfast in its dedication to eradicating foul play from the sport. “We took, over the last couple of years, a really strong position on foul play. We don’t move away from it because it’s this incident,” Archer explained, highlighting the rigorous match review process. “The most important thing is we won’t tolerate foul play in our game. We need to clean it up, and we have been.” The PNGRFL noted a marked improvement in reducing incidents like lifting tackles and striking over the past 18 months, despite the recent punching charges stemming from Sunday’s altercation.