True Blues Damien Cook and Kezie Apps have been named captains of the Prime Minister’s XIII squads to play Papua New Guinea in Port Moresby on Sunday 13 October.
Coaches Brad Fittler and Jessica Skinner have each selected 20 players for the men’s and women’s games against the Kumuls and Orchids respectively to be held at the Santos National Football Stadium.
The squads were named in alphabetical order with Fittler and Skinner to announce their 1-17 closer to the date.
Fellow True Blue Hudson Young (Canberra Raiders) joins the former Kangaroos hooker in Cook (South Sydney Rabbitohs) in the men’s PM’s XIII, while Apps, the Wests Tigers NRLW captain and NSW co-captain, is one of eight from the 35-member Westpac NSW Origin extended squad this year.
Alongside her are Shaylee Bent (Gold Coast Titans), Teagan Berry (St George Illawarra Dragons), Jaime Chapman (Titans), Kirra Dibb (North Queensland Cowboys), Grace Kemp (Raiders), Monalisa Soliola (Raiders) and Jesse Southwell (Newcastle Knights).
Apps was also co-captain of the 2022 World Cup-winning Jillaroos but this is her first PM’s XIII team.
In addition to the open women’s players, there are two members of the Westpac NSW Under 19s State of Origin team – Ella Koster (Dragons) and newly-crowned NRLW Rookie of the Year and NSWRL’s U19s player of the year, Kasey Rey (Dragons).
Australia won the men’s game last year 30-18, while the women enjoyed a 56-4 victory with Berry among the seven try scorers.
