The Bears still have more chance than PNG. Nobody wants to expand there except for the Australian government. Players wouldn't live there, and they would have to play out of Cairns or fly in and fly our for games. They would get hammered regularly with very little scope to improve, as I doubt they would ever attract top NRL players except those with PNG backgrounds. I wouldn't be surprised if there's some brinkmanship at play with the Bears bid to get the WA govt to commit more money.
Looking at our squad vs Wigan and Sts, even with the new signings, you have to say some of our players must be on massive overs compared to their ability if we are tight with the cap. Of the players currently on the books for next year a whole bunch haven't got a lot of experience between them, and Holroyd and Gannon aren't exactly seasoned pros at the top of their earning potential.