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Foregone conclusion or not, the Rugby League World Cup will still be great

2nd August, 2017
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Cameron Smith of the Australia Kangaroos in action during the 2017 Anzac Test (Image: NRL)
Roar Guru
2nd August, 2017
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1076 Reads

“Australia are the Champions! Mal’s men claim the 2017 RLWC!”

There it is, I’m getting in early and saving you the wait. Come December this year, the Kangaroos will be crowned kings of the rugby league universe after winning their second consecutive World Cup. There simply isn’t an iota of doubt about it.

In truth, Australia could arguably pick a B and C side and they would both go close to making the final in Brisbane. Absolutely no disrespect intended to the other nations – New Zealand in particular – but this current heard of Roos’ are simply too deadly.

From now until October, Mal Meninga will be in a rightful panic. Such is the magnitude of his dilemma, one wouldn’t be surprised if he is forced to take a period stress leave to clear his head.

I mean, who plays fullback? Slater? Boyd? Tedesco? Trbojevic?

And what about five eighth? Maloney? Munster? Morgan? DCE? Norman? Moylan? Milford?

It’s the sort of conundrum that can break even the strongest of gladiators.

While the Green and Gold may be missing a few big names – most notably JT and GI, their depth is still something similar to that of the Indian Ocean. Couple this with the seemingly unbreakable bond Mal Meninga has managed to form among his playing group (much to the annoyance of us passionate State of Origin people) and you’ve got a recipe for inevitable and resounding success.

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So how does one get excited when it isn’t even a contest?

The answer is simple: the magic of the game.

The World Cup presents many unique opportunities. It’s arguably the only platform for third and fourth tier players, heck even some park footballers, to match it with the biggest names in the game. From this, we get to see the rumblings of a potential David and Goliath story.

While they might not have knocked over any genuine heavyweights, how good was it seeing the USA Tomahawks reach the Quarter Final of the 2013 tournament? Something tells me a Mitchell Moses inspired Lebanese outfit will be this year’s surprise packet.

Aside from the minnow effect, there is also something abundantly special about watching the Pacific Island nations do their thing on the field.

The passion, the skill and the intensity.

Look for the battle between Tonga and Samoa in Hamilton to be the game of the tournament. These nations are no minnows at all, and along with Fiji, they’ll all be pressing for at least a semi final appearance in this year’s edition.

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To achieve this, they’ll need to have their strongest side on the field. One can only hope they’re able to pick something close to their top squads once the top tier nations are done crafting theirs.

Papua New Guinea, while not a real threat, would claim the Cup in a canter if it was won on passion alone. Allowing their pool games to be played in Port Moresby will prove a master stroke, special scenes are almost guaranteed.

Finally, the World Cup also provides the sickeningly tasty benefit of allowing footy to be played all the way up until December. Sure, the Ashes will also be on (or so Cricket Australia hopes), but I won’t complain if I’m forced to listen to both Shane Warne and Andrew Johns on the same day.

In fact, that almost sounds like heaven.

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