The League World Cup is a worthy event

Leftrightout....I agree ....my preference is rugby .However after the super 14's is finished the leaguies run the best club competition that is at least close to rugby. We in rugby suffer from what the leaguies have undoubtedly got ...a superior domestic competition. I go to Sydney first grade but it is not the NRL in terms of consistent skill although the two Blues did beat Randwick at granville in the second round. It was my highlight of the club season. I get a little uncomfortable with my rugby compatriots who do not seem to understand that we are now a professional code with a superior international presence yet we still react with what seems to be a giant inferiority complex. The ARL decision to have the referees sponsors donate towards breast cancer and the future committment of the ARL to use the funds from this tournament to develop their game in PNG and the Pacific islands is good. The effort and integrity of the Kumals alone is the best piece of nation building in that country for some time. This is not a threat to rugby unless we allow it to be . One of the Kumals said we must play the best to improve but when we play we never give in. I respected this team and their effort even though they lost every game. I do not believe any rugby person would denigrate This effort or begrudge them the opportunity of playing in this celebration as you say. On balance despite one sided results and some artificiality their is more good than bad in this competition. As you say Leftrightout let them play and enjoy it. I need some sleep i stayed up to watch the Wallabies scrape home. I wished we did not kick so much or if we have to with the precision of Prince or Thurston.

I went to the Samoa/Ireland game last night, was an entertaining game to watch, plenty of tries and lots of skill movement. The only issues I had was with the non-promotion of the game and the time slot of 6pm. If there was more promotion and a better time slot then I reckon the gate would've cracked at least 12K rather than the 8.5K it got. I am a union man but have no ill feelings to league, the 2 codes can exist together. I see this RLWC as more of a festival and celebration of the sport. Oh and a post script what's the story with the video ref? There is too much dead time when this process is in motion!

Westy What do you think of my previous post regarding " The pre superleague war when the ARL was under the control of Autherson & Quale was to move into the Pacific Island unlike the News US targey audience. But a kinda South Pacific Cup with six teams spilt into two groups with Australia & NZ in seperate pools. So Australia, NZ, PNG, Fiji, Tonga, & Samoa, ……..each group plays a round robyn and the winner of each pool becomes plays each other with the winner of the final becoming the Pacific Island Cup Champ." Thats a good crowd BTW ....... maybe RL has a future after all ........will the AFL drink to the health of the RL international games ............ interesting

My son went to the Irish v Samoa game....cheap tickets or free seats the leaguies seem to be rediscovering slowly the habit of going to local grounds.....12000 or so not bad for a Wednesday night

Westy An interesting sub text to your article is the Tonga V Samoa and the form of Fiji. The pre superleague war when the ARL was under the control of Autherson & Quale was to move into the Pacific Island unlike the News US targey audience. But a kinda South Pacific Cup with six teams spilt into two groups with Australia & NZ in seperate pools. So Australia, NZ, PNG, Fiji, Tonga, & Samoa, ........each group plays a round robyn and the winner of each pool becomes plays each other with the winner of the final becoming the Pacific Island Cup Champ. I can see it after the grand final ecery second year with Island player allowed to play for theri country .......as well as in the SOO.

Mtngry Is the malice that bad they cannot get together for their mutual benefit........ no not get together just be governed by one body meaning you could play RL and get picked in a union national or the other way around. ......... Just have one body like FIFA but it covered all aspects of rugby of different types. Fustal, is played with a ball half the size of the 11 aside format, is played on a basket ball size court with the air pressure about half what is in a 11 aside ball, it has only 5 players, and lots of goals are scored ....... how much different can it be ..... as for beach football they don't even have boots bare feet. Yet FIFA govern these sports as I said why not the IRB in charge of RL & Touch .... to me it makes sense.

Sunday evening.8pm.EST QLD. BBC Sport informs me it is halftime at the Telstradome ;Australia 24 v England 4 Chanel 9 will not start their delayed match broadcast for another 30 minutes. If a Rugby League World Cup is not worth broadcasting live on Chanel 9 , then they cant expect potential viewers to take it all that seriously. The chanel 9 promos are tough and forthright.Gritty stuff. But without live coverage its a con. Neither the ARL or Chanel 9 are fair dinkum.

But In Soccer, there has not been a century of malice between all the different forms. I Can't wait to go to Gosford on Wed to watch Fiji and Scotland. I am sure there will be a lot of passion. And I will be cheering for whoever is loosing. Then off to Newcastle on Sat night.

Westy Sometimes it is best to copy a successful working model..........FIFA works well ........... If the IRB & whatever the international body is for RL got together they don't have to merge ..... just have both RL & touch as a greater part rugby would combine the relative strengths of both but allow each to keep their independence.

Midfielder......that is a question that will always remain unanswered. I know from a developmental point of view small sided games of football and indoor football are the easiest and best ways to introduce and skill younger or new players. As much as it hurts to say this it in a non rugby country it may be easier to initially introduce rugby skills by first playing touch football. In fairness to history this is largely a league construct although there is now a rugby variation. Basic league would be next best especially in just introducing simple tackling and passing skills yet playing competitively. Iit has fewer players although sevens or a ten man rugby game is also an option. As these simple skills are introduced the more technical game of rugby could be built on them. i do know that German Rugby has had some success in getting novice rugby players with no background in the sport playing touch first on league lines followed by a game that is closer to league than the mauling and rucking of rugby. I note it is however always aimed at developing players towards the more tecnical game of rugby. Sadly the IRB is not in the same position as FIFA in that unlike FIFA who control the variations of football the IRB has no control over League and it would be poisonous to some to even acknowledge or contemplate that its touch football and simpler rules would be easier to introduce to non rugby nations as a developmental model. I was in London and saw organised touch football competition run by the local rugby club . They had six tackles a side. and a ten metre rule . One of the officials got most indignant when I suggested this is a league derived game. They would never do it.

By the way the best thing towards the end of the Tongan v Samoan match was that the ground announcer said at least three times that there was a $5000 fine for anyone who invaded the pitch . Such was their passion the Tongans and Samoans as soon as the hooter went they erupted onto the field soon followed by everyone else. The Samoans were lifting their heroes and others consoling the Tongans and the kids playing football. The bloke next to me said it was like the old days at Penrith Park when the kids would line up in their hundreds to see who could get the coveted corner posts at the end of the game. We must make sure this type of fun continues in any sport. We might be taking things a little to seriously. I will tell you I think those kids will remember this game. Went to the Aleague on Saturday night. Six cracking goals and another good night. i have to tell you Sydney for $10 I got into a great league game and the A league game was $23. Maybe we should just turn up and enjoy yourself whether your preference is Rugby/Swans or league or football there is simply good relatively cheap entertainment on offer. You can always bring your own sandwiches and drink. There is simply some great entertainment for people who like sport .

Great stuff Westy, couldn't agree with you more about the Indigenous game. This world cup has had some good contests, just not involving Australia. Half the enjoyment of rugby world cups are the minnow teams playing each other and causing upsets or near upsets. Last year's Fiji v Wales and Fiji v South Africa, US doing so well against England. The focus of this world cup has been too much on Australia being so good instead of all these other great countries and great games.

The one good thing, by the way westy, good post and glad you are not one who would just write a post to stir the pot of league fans, but the one thing that i think has been good for league this tournament is the wake-up call the game needed. Like you but not really on the same scale, i have been really impressed with these smaller nations and the Maori and Indigenous players, i always knew the island teams would be good, over the last 8 years with there imoprovement within the structure of the super-league and NRL i had no dought that they would show us some very top footy. So what we have seen out of all this will be the fact that we have to get behind these nations and improve there structures and commitment to the game. The PNG side has really impressed me, even that loss last nite shows how commited they really are, hopefully they get themselves into the queensland cup now with a possibility of entering the NRL, fiji are also flying under the radar and look like they have a good future in the sport. Hard to fault there passion, along with scotland and ireland who, thow they have lots of players who help make up the teams, i am sure that with the super-league expanding will help there progress. What we really need to do is get say lebanon and the russian group up to speed. Along with the USA group the future is looking in better shape. So far i have enjoyed every game, the times they are on is a puzzling. Those island teams are going to be the future for the game, not just new zealand now, also tonga and samoa, with the heavy influx this year in the under 20's by the island lads, yes the future looks good. Good enough any way.

Good read Westy ........ the lack of a domestic competition and rules that are way to hard to understand at times makes RU ability to expand its game more difficult than other codes. But your thread on the RLWC and how you as a rugby person went there and enjoyed yourself is not uncommon a client of mine from Tonga …..and a real rugby bloke was talking about the match for weeks in advance. I asked him and I will ask you if FIFA can claim to run and control, in addition to the 11 aside game indoor football, beach, fustal, under a global banner of football………. Why could not the IRB, assuming RL would agree, ……have RL & touch as different types of rugby games ……. Just a tho