There have been some great rugby league teams that have graced Australia’s sporting landscape over the years. Teams whose skill and tenacity have wowed spectators, captured imaginations and gone down in footy folk lore. The 1992 Parramatta Eels were not one of these teams.
After the glory days of the 80’s the new decade had been cruel to the blue and golds, and the 1992 season was akin to watching a former runway supermodel all faded and washed up calling the bingo numbers at the Dunedoo RSL.
Sure the effort was still there, but the sparkle had gone and things were beginning to stretch and sag in all the wrong places.
Parramatta won seven games that year. However, the only one you will ever hear Parra Jesus and his disciples talk about was an against all odds victory against the touring Great Britain Lions side (their only loss to a club side on the tour), the best team to come out of the UK in 15 years, and one that would go on to defeat the Kangaroos in Melbourne soon after.
In a bleak year it became the club’s most famous victory.
Fast forward to last week and both Sydney, South Sydney and Wests Tigers CEO’s have voiced their disapproval of a proposed six match Lions tour at the end of the 2012 season.
Souths CEO Steve Richardson puffed out his chest and bellowed about “player protection” and how that with the incoming Independent commission (ETA 2046) “decisions just won’t be made by the International Federation without the approval of clubs.”
You know, like they are with other tin pot organisations like, I don’t know, FIFA, the IOC etc.
With this sort of short sightedness the Rabbitohs should play out of Jurassic Park, and all this a week after Souths team owner Russell Crowe continued his one man international rugby league crusade by negotiating a deal to have Origin 1 beamed into homes in the USA.
For starters there hasn’t been a real Lions tour since 1992 not counting 3 or 4 Nations and the World Cup. Fans would love a proper rugby league Ashes series on Australian soil. Absolutely love it.
Sure the English haven’t shown a great run of form lately but I believe they would come good in a three game series rather than just a one off four nations match.
Secondly it’s only a six game tour, not six months and that includes New Zealand as well as Australia. Australia are supposed to play an end of season Test from now on anyway, so how much more burnout will there be in an extra one or two games (and how many Souths players will make the Australian side anyway)?
Lastly, by playing England (as it will be now) we are helping them with their development in the year before a World Cup, but what happened last World Cup where the Kangaroos had the post 2007 season off to ‘avoid burnout’? That’s right, we lost for the first time since Jonny Raper had hair!
People may decry international rugby league but it is an important part of the game’s fabric which can actually make a fair bit of money, as witnessed by the fact that the ANZAC Test held at a small stadium (don’t start me) made $7 million dollars for the Gold Coast, all with a third of the promotion Origin 1 received.
Ignore it and in 10 years the NRL clubs will be contacting the Irish Hurling association to discuss a hybrid game or playing rugby league 9’s against the New Caledonian rugby union team or something equally daft.
So here’s the memo CEO’s: stop telling us what you and your prehistoric pal Geoff Carr want and start listening to what we want. If the Australian or New Zealand players really don’t want to play rep football at the highest level and get paid handsomely to do so against Australia’s oldest foe, I know some blokes who will.
The Illawarra and Newcastle rep teams. Northern New South Wales Selection. Country. Far North Queensland. Western Australia. Combined Brisbane.
And given the year they’re having, I imagine probably the Parramatta Eels.
Chris Chard
Roar Guru
Hi Wally, I would like to blame the poor state of officialdom for my mistake. But...I can't really so I'll put my hand up for the mistake, my bad. Must have been thinking of the Hope Valley Hawks chairman http://www.midlandsrugbyleague.co.uk/article/hope-valley-off-the-mark.html Thanks for reading, Vic
wallythefly
Guest
Shane Richardson not Steve
oikee
Guest
Good idea. I still think we need to start with a weakened state teams to help bring along other countries, if they are playing good opposition it will help them get up to speed. This is the problem, the neglect of other countries, so we need to now fast track the international game but keep it interesting and not lose the state rivalry, but enchance it. My favorite game last year was the Tonga Samoa game.
Brother Fesol
Guest
To be honest there is a rivalry between each of these nations. it all jus got lost behind the greatest rivalry which is origin. The 70's was when the gap between Australia and everyone else started to grow, before than great brittain held a good record, even France did with Australia. The international game was always dependant on other teams catching up to Australia otherwise it was a exhibition match just to pay homage to our forefathers. what is helping international league is the NRL with Kiwis and English playing in it. The problem is is that we're opposite the IRB which is the international game before club. Whereas we are club before international. The best thing the NRL can do is work out a way to shorten the season and make rep footbal an end of year showcase. Why not follow the NZ Rugby format. Play your NRL fixtures e.t.c. Come July break up into rep footy as do the tri-nations but have origin with kangaroos v kiwis tri series. Can the four nations and have an end of year tour where New Zealand go to America, jamaica, e.t.c. and australia tour France, england,wales e.t.c. Now thats what i call spreading the international game.
oikee
Guest
I can tell you something, This is old world thinking and has no place in our game anymore. With 3 other codes in this country, the last thing you want is a rusty old tour with not alot of interest being shown by clubs at the moment. I agree it would be good in world cup years in the future, just not now and not until we have a better international scene. International games with a weakened origin teams missing our island players and indigernous players would be better to watch against France, England, America, Italy. We have to start making it a contest. Rugby union does this well because the game is designed to allow a slow game look good. Our game is very fast and needs to be slowed down so others can catch up.
ideasman
Guest
What about this for a Lions tour. Game 1: Eng vs PNG, Lloyd Robinson Oval Game 2: Eng vs Winner of NRL competition, NRL team's ground or SFS depending Game 3: Eng vs Australia Test 1 Melbourne Game 4: Eng vs QLD country or Q Cup selection or strongest regional (e.g. Townsville), Dairy Farmers Game 5; Eng vs Australia Test 2 Suncorp Game 6: Eng vs NSW country or NSW cup selection or strongest regional (e.g. Illawarra), Win Stadium Game 7: Eng vs Australia Test 3 SFS Game 8: England vs Pacific AllStars (Venue subject to bidding process) game 9: England vs NZ, Eden park Game 10: England vs NZ, Wellington Yeeeeeah!
oikee
Guest
Vic, you could make up one mighty good mid season stand alone 3 week tournament which would be a great concept and get most of the good players involved. Have your 2 origin teams, without any ring-ins and minus indigernous players, "they have their own team". So Hayne,Petro, Uate, Sims brothers all play for a Fiji team. Then you have Samoans playing for their team, Tongoans for their team and so on. Whats left you can include a NZ team or better still a exiles team ,which would include any other players. Like they are doing in England this week-end. Then play each team against another team over 3 week-ends which heads into a final, make it a knockout comp. You lose your out. This has most good players involved, makes the week-end interesting and once its over its over, then we get back to our domestic comp. This would be a fantastic 3 weeks. Rugby league needs a shake-up, and we need to start helping the international game. You could also have a invite for 2 Northern teams, they would get paid and be invited to take part if they wished to do so. Maybe a America team plus France one year, the next would maybe England Lebanon. We have to start getting international thinking into the game. If Lebanon came over they could play Robbie Farrah and Reece Robinson, it makes them a better playing nation and creates more news internationally. Our game really needs to start thinking outside our inbred box.
oikee
Guest
Yes Vic, look mate something needs to be done. Rugby league needs a complete overhaul, and i mean complete. The seasons are to long for both north and south hemisheres. We need someone in charge who can draw up a plan to shorten the seasons and introduce more internationals into our seasons. I want to start seeing a Fiji Tonga and Samoa take on France Wales Ireland and Scotland. The game is at the stage where we need to be thinking internationally, not domesticially. I think it is time the game moved forward. It is becoming stale.