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International rugby league could rise from the Ashes

Roar Guru
15th October, 2014
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The Rugby League World Cup is here again. (AFP PHOTO/PAUL ELLIS)
Roar Guru
15th October, 2014
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I’m a big supporter of the Four Nations concept and the more matches Australia, New Zealand and England play against each other and against minnow nations, the more international rugby league will improve.

That said, there are preexisting opportunities in international rugby league that aren’t being managed to their greatest potential.

I’m proposing every fourth year we should reintroduce the tour concept. For example:

Year 1 – World Cup
Year 2 – Four Nations
Year 3 – Tours
Year 4 – Four Nations

This would mean the Four Nations would remain as a biennial event, however smack bang in the middle of the World Cup cycle there’s opportunity for a money-making tour series.

The Ashes series
Last played in 2003, although the series ended on a one-sided note, it should be remembered that out of the 39 series played Australia have only won 20.

In the past 11 years there have been marquee Scottish and Welsh players that would have fit into key Lions positions and combined with the Irish it would lead to balance.

That said, even as an England series the brand alone is worthy of resurrection.

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The Baskerville series
Last played in 2007, New Zealand’s own version of the Ashes resulted in Great Britain’s dominance. History has also given the edge to the Lions but with New Zealand’s startling recent growth a series between the two could come down to the wire.

The Anzac series
There have been multiple claims that the one-off mid-season Test is a poor reflection of the closeness of the quality levels between these two sides. Also the final scoreline of the World Cup final was largely a result of the epic New Zealand-England match played the week prior.

Head-to-head against each other in a series, you’ll start seeing the Kiwis step up.

The Pacific Cup
This tournament should be played in every non-World Cup year and it’s rather damning that the last tournament was in 2009. Combined with one-off match-ups of individual nations against each of the ‘Big Three’, this helps grow the performance of these nations.

The Pacific Islands
After the Pacific Cup, the best players from the participating nations should combine and play one game each against the Big Three. The money generated from these games every fourth year would do wonders for the development of the sport in the islands.

An approximate schedule:

Mid Season
New Zealand versus Australia (Anzac I) in Auckland
Potential Pacific Cup matches

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End of Season

Week 1
New Zealand versus Samoa in Rotorua 7:00pm NZ, 5:00pm EDST
Australia versus Great Britain and Ireland (Ashes I) in Melbourne 7:00pm EDST
Pacific Cup Week 1

Week 2
New Zealand versus Great Britain and Ireland (Baskerville I) in Wellington 7:00pm NZ, 5:00pm EDST
Australia versus Fiji in Townsville 8:00pm Queensland, 7:00pm EDST
Pacific Cup Week 2

Week 3
Great Britain and Ireland versus Papua New Guinea in Port Moresby 6:00pm Papua New Guinea, 5:00pm EDST
New Zealand versus Australia (Anzac II) in Dunedin 5:00pm NZ, 7:00pm EDST
Pacific Cup Week 3

Week 4:
Australia versus Great Britain and Ireland (Ashes II) in Sydney in 7:00pm EDST
Pacific Cup Final

Week 5:
New Zealand versus Great Britain and Ireland (Baskerville II) in Christchurch 7:00pm NZ, 5:00pm EDST
Australia versus Pacific Islands in Newcastle 7:00pm EDST

Week 6:
Pacific Islands versus Great Britain and Ireland in Suva 6:00pm Fiji, 5:00pm EDST
Australia versus New Zealand (Anzac III) in Perth 4:00pm WA, 7:00pm EDST

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Week 7:
New Zealand versus Pacific Islands in Wellington 7:00pm NZ, 5:00pm EDST
Australia versus Great Britain and Ireland (Ashes III) in Brisbane 8:00pm Queensland, 7:00pm EDST

Week 8:
New Zealand versus Great Britain and Ireland (Baskerville III) in Auckland 7:00pm NZ, 5:00pm EDST

This tour series would only be played in the Southern Hemisphere once every eight years, likewise with the Northern Hemisphere.

Imagine if every Saturday for two months there was a game on at 7pm local time involving the national team in a very rare event. At the same time, around the world we’d see other rugby league tournaments and matches in Europe, America, Asia and the Middle East.

With a little bit of vision we might finally start to unlock the potential of international rugby league.

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