Sport: Wan Papua Warriors target London Nines

The Wan Papua Warriors want to take their message to the world at the London Rugby League Nines in July.

Formerly known as the West Papua Warriors, the team was formed to raise awareness about the on-going human rights abuses in the Indonesian province.

Team captain Tala Kami said the UK has a large Papua New Guinea and West Papuan population and, after playing at events in PNG and Australia, they see playing in London as a big opportunity.

"So the last time we played was in January last year at Cabramatta (in Sydney) and it's been over a year now," he said.

"We've just been looking for tournaments where we can play and raise the profile as much as we can internationally so London was obviously an opportunity to get to a place we've never been before and raise some awareness there."

"There's a large Papua New Guinean community in England, in London, and also a very strong West Papuan community in England including Benny Wenda, who is the face of West Papuan freedom campaign so he's well aware of us coming and him and his family are very excited as well," Kami said.

Tala Kami said organisers of the London Nines have no issue with their political stance.

"When we first contacted with them they didn't really know the story - they just saw us as another rugby league team, which was fine," he said.

"As they've done their research a little bit more they actually really embraced it and have been using our team and our message as one of the sort of flagship advertising points of this current tournament so no problems whatsoever, they've been very welcoming."

The Wan Papua Warriors are fundraising to help pay for their trip but Tala Kami said they've already been offered free accommodation in London.

He said a lot of players in England are keen to be involved so only a few players will travel from PNG and they've mastered the art of low-bidget travelling.