Next year will see another edition of rugby league’s World Cup and, as the Kangaroos will fully appreciate after the boil-over of 2008, it is far from a fait accompli.
Since that famous Kiwis victory in the final of the last World Cup, the New Zealanders pinched the 2010 Four Nations trophy with a wonderful last-ditch try and pushed the Kangaroos all the way in the one-off Test this year in Townsville.
New Zealand rugby league has benefitted enormously over the past decade or so from having a team in the world’s premier rugby league competition, as the Kiwis’ fitness, smarts and big game experience have improved dramatically.
The Kangaroos should expect another stern challenge from our trans-Tasman cousins. As has been the case for much of the last century, Australia is the number one team in international rugby league, but the Kiwis are only a touch away and can match it with the Aussies on their day.
The English have gone through something of a revival, with a decent showing in last year’s Four Nations and victory in their tri series this year (albeit against weak opposition).
They have developed a solid squad, particularly with their forward pack, which boasts the likes of Gareth Ellis, James Graham, Sam Burgess and Chris Heighington – these names will get the attention of anyone.
Add to these forward backs such as Ryan Hall and Sam Tomkins and you start to see the components of a handy football side. England simply lack the exposure to the fast-paced NRL game the Kangaroos and Kiwis benefit from and, against the Kangaroos in particular, this has proven costly.
England can have realistic hopes of knocking off the Kiwis but the Aussies may still be a bridge too far. But as increasing numbers of English players get a taste of NRL, the English national team will see their prospects improve.
Among the rest, the most competitive will likely be the French, Papua New Guinea and Samoa – but few will be expecting any of these to be holding up any silverware at the tournament’s conclusion.
Ultimately, it will be a two-horse race between Australia and New Zealand with England hoping to pull off an ambush or two.
A top Kangaroo line-up may look like this;
1. Billy Slater
2. Darius Boyd
3. Greg Inglis
4. Josh Morris
5. Brent Tate
6. Johnathan Thurston
7. Cooper Cronk
8. Matt Scott
9. Cameron Smith (c)
10. James Tamou
11. Ryan Hoffman
12. Paul Gallen
13. Greg Bird
14. Ben Barba
15. David Shillington
16. Tony Williams
17. David Taylor
Renegade
Guest
Think about it before you compare....i've been waiting for this line. Do you realise the Broncos are playing in a club competition while the Reds are representing an entire state in a provincial/state based comp across 3 countries. You tell me who has the wider reach in terms of a support base....."think about it before you compare"
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
And Mr Taylor it was a ru man who introduced, them to the debate,if you do some backtracking.Jus de couchon is hardly an obsessive rl fan.
Mr Taylor
Roar Rookie
For your information this thread degenerate after the third comments when the nz all blacks was mention.
Greg
Guest
That is the pinnacle of the sport though, and try do not play 18 times a year do they? Think about it before you compare
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
sledgie. I still buy it ,the record Tv viewership seems to buy it,the players seem to buy it,as they play their proverbails off during the series,the Tv station has bought it. what more does one need. Should the crowds and tv ratings started dropping,then OK it may well have passed its use by date.Clearly that is not the case.. In fact one could suggest it was overhyped in the past,and it now more or less sells itself..
sledgeandhammer
Guest
The SOO concept is so old it should be moth-balled. Do you guys still buy the hype, I mean really, do you honestly still buy the hype? I got excited back in the 80s but those days are long gone.
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
I actually agree with those sentiments Mr Taylor. If there is a deficiency with the English,it will be in the backs.
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
That I will not disagree with.His Christian name is also a handicap.
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
Let's keep things in perspective with all this code war hogwash.RU is the national sport of NZ(pop est 4m) and a few PI.It can possibly be argued Wales pop about Brisbane's level is also . Soccer is by far the most popular sport in Sth Africa and ditto England. What does it all mean in the scheme of things?Very little, as fans will embrace the game they prefer. Yet the NRL can play a game in Christchurch and get 22,000 in p*ssing rain. I'll stick to 5th most popular, if that is the way to get crowds.So Clip you could rephrase it that way,if it rocks your boat.
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
I have already cleared the ai Clip .I have also noted whenever a RLWC is mentioned,it is like bees to honey for the cynics,and that unfortunately is a given. I never suggested otherwsie about rl in NZ.I know that it has gone through troughs and is now on the upper,and the 20,000 figure is growing. And I further noted ru is the 5th most popular sport in this country,yet few diminish or dismiss the Wallabies .So conversely why the hell should it be done for rl in NZ.
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
Many are to blame Greg.I knew as soon as any mention was made of aRLWC ,how it would degenerate.
Doghouse
Guest
World Cups at the end of the season are a lottery because most players are shagged or injured so the best team rarely makes it on the field and some players treat it as a holiday. I dont have any answers but unlike the Rugby folk who rested players before the Rugby World Cup theres no way RL clubs will do the same...
Mr Taylor
Roar Rookie
The English rugby league team are very unpredictable and if the right team turn up on the day I agree they will be hard for the Kiwis to beat but if they don't turn up they can be very embarrass at times and I think Samoa, Tonga and Fiji can bounce on that if they ended up playing them.
Renegade
Guest
I agree both the kangaroos will be hard to beat but i'd put England in the same category as NZ. In fact i think if Eng and NZ are to play each other in next years World Cup...i'll back England to win. They have the ability to beat Aus as well however it's a psychological thing when it comes to the Kangaroos....the poms just end up being in awe of our players.
Renegade
Guest
So the QLD rugby team got 52,000 to a game.....you do realise the QLD rugby league team sellout suncorp in about 3 minutes flat?!
Greg
Guest
I'm sure that is what people who make this claim are doing.. Idiots.
Greg
Guest
Who did they "pillage" Tatah? Name names of the islanders who were plucked straight from the islands and formed the "bulk" of the abs like u suggest. When you can't, we will laugh.
Tatah
Guest
'Always have been'? I love the kiwis who rewrite history. Presumably with a comment like that, you weren't around in the 80s and 90s where NZ absolutely pillaged the Pacific Islands for talent. I'll give the kiwi side right now seems pretty local, but don't pretend it has always been the case. This is the great hypocrisy of kiwis whining whenever someone not born in Aus plays for the Wallabies.
Max
Guest
Darius Boyd is the most over-rated player in the NRL.
Mr Taylor
Roar Rookie
Those previous Kiwi tours to the UK were mainly made of who was left after all the most of the top players pull out. The world cup will see the Kiwis and Kangaroos in full strengths and will be very hard to beat. The English performances were great against semi professional teams like Wales and a strong French side but the SH teams will be another story.