Can rugby league keep China out of the pacific?

China is pushing harder for influence across the Pacific. Australia is responding with defence agreements, new security partnerships and rugby league.As Pacific leaders gathered in Brisbane for State of Origin, Canberra was expanding its regional diplomacy through sport, including the multi-million-dollar PNG Chiefs NRL deal. At the same time, China's rare intercontinental ballistic missile test sent a fresh signal about the changing security environment facing Pacific nations.So can footy really shape geopolitics?Hamish Macdonald speaks with ABC Pacific's  Sam Wykes about rugby league's cultural power across the Pacific, and with Lowy Institute analyst Oliver Nobetau about the growing connection between sport, security and strategic competition in Australia's neighbourhood.Could rugby league become Australia's most effective soft-power tool or is that asking too much of a football game?