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Queensland prop Steve Price is tackled during Queensland v New South Wales State of Origin Game 3 at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane, Wednesday, July 15, 2009. AAP Image/Dave Hunt
All the debate about the Australia’s World Cup bid is getting a bit old now, and that’s scary because if we get it we still have another eight or twelve years of this to go!
But it’s interesting looking and hearing at all the different scenarios that the NRL will have to look at to work around a World Cup in Australia. For me, the regular season rounds should most likely be played in regional areas – perhaps it also gives the game a chance to play games in New Zealand and head over to South Africa, so I think it’s fair to say we are pretty well covered in that area.
But it’s the games biggest draw card, the State of Origin, the pinnacle of game, which may need to be played in a suburban ground, perhaps in front of only 25,000 to 30,000, which is a concern.
We have only one alternative, which is move all three matches down south to Melbourne’s Etihad Stadium, which is the mostly likely situation. But it would be hard to see NSW and Queensland fight it out only in Melbourne. It just wouldn’t be Origin!
Taking State of Origin overseas is another option.
But if playing in Melbourne is bad enough, how would it go at Wembley, Giants Stadium or Beijing?
Nah, we couldn’t do it to State of Origin, we just couldn’t.
So that leaves us with one option.
Play Origin after the regular season in late October and into early November.
The hoopla of the World Cup would be long over and stadiums would be back in business.
Spread over three straight weekends, or three fortnights, there are plenty of options for the game to take at that time of the year.
We still have eight or twelve years to think about it, but it’s a decision that needs time to consider every single pro and con.
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