Australia needs to make space for rugby league internationals

Tom you are missing the point whether it is the pinnacle on the field is maybe debatable but off the field nothing in the world of Rugby League gets within a bulls roar of it by whatever measure you wish to use,

Waste of time... ever seen the NFL - you don't see them caring about playing CFL teams or worry about the international game.

Well, channel 7 generally have RLWC news on first, so I suppose it depends what station you watch. If its fox or channel nine, it will more likely be sour grapes.

+1,000,000,000,000

True, it's a joke. This world cup should be all over the media. But I found a few full games on this website that you can download - http://www.sport-video.org.ua/en.html

Origin isn't the pinnacle of the rugby league, doesn't matter what perspective you take. The very word pinnacle means top, or best of something and origin consists of two teams that are far from the best in the world. On the international level, NZ would rampage the two teams, England too and if it were possible to clone players, Australia would flog the State teams. What can be argued is that from an Australian perspective origin is the pinnacle of competitive rugby league as it (despite recent years) has been won by all participants fairly evenly (something like 17-14 series QLD-NSW) where as it has been Australia winning 8 world cups, England 2 and NZ 1.

The NFL plays to full houses because it has a market of three hundred million people and about thirty teams - that is about ten mill per team not hard to fill a stadium when you have economies of scale like that. The NRL could not possibly slash that much content and hope to get anything like the TV money that it does if you do not believe me just ask any media analyst who has a job valueing TV content. Indeed interestingly I read in the Courier Mail the other day that the AFL are altering their pre season format and bringing the start of their regular season ahead by a fortnight because they are concerned about the NRL getting a head start and a couple of weeks of competition free publicity particularly in Sydney and Brisbane. Imagine if we had a seventeen week season by the time the Storm kicked off everyone in Melbourne would have forgotten they even existed - crazy stuff. Which is the other big difference the US has one major football code (plus a bit of soccer) we have two and only 23 million people.

Trex, Please don't pretend to be reasonable it neither fits nor suits you I don't hate the sport I am indifferent to it , that's what boredom does - The thing I really hate is bad attitudes,bias and real lies( not the ones you like to imagine are happening here!) and if you didn't just react to what I said and actually read it you wouldn't need to act out some fictitious crusade against great and awful make-believe injury your sport has suffered. And has I think you've been asked before if it's so wonderful what are you doing here? now I am indifferent to you no more to say you're becoming as tedious as your sport, bye!

It does need a new break away, a new name that does not contain the word rugby and even the creation of new identifiable features that will shout its uniqueness. The point being to distance itself as far away as possible from any sport that is similar in any way. One of the hardest things to overcome is confusion in the market place and you have to clear that away by what you do within your sport!

Elijah - Australia have played in England 22 times since 2000 if during the same time frame we had been back in the old days playing a three test series every two years we would have played them 21 times - they have had no shortage of competition they just are not good enough as simple as that.

Yawnion? K and C? Bored? Boring? All this hatred over a sport, its just a game mate.

Really good points one of the reasons NFL play to full houses is the less is more principle!

Of course space should be made for internationals and some blame must go to an inward looking NRL. But if there is a genuine feeling that expansion is worthwhile then International matches are the way forward. Trex the poster not the dinosaur ( though looking at those two words I may have mixed that up) is proof of the fact that when you have internationals people get very excited, lose all sense of civility as they are completely taken over by their jingoism and hatred, it works. The more internationals we have, where they take precedence over club demands, the more good matches we'll get and the more passion will be provoked. Trex This is his thread original "All day you been spouting lies about rugby union ..." he replied to one of mine to have a go and I challenged him to show me where I had told a lie- just one about yawnion you'll be really surprised to find he didn't respond. I know there are people who like it but I don't care - played it watched it -bored then boring now. These for the truth challenged out there are not lies just opinions ( Trex the fossil not the dinosaur they're D-I-F-F-E-R-E-N-T! I am told that when people don't comprehend the language you're speaking you have to shout loud at them . The fact is no one needs to tell lies about k and c because you couldn't make up what they been up to for 100 years and if you did no one would believe you!

From an Australian perspective, Origin is the pinnacle of league. If you argue against that you are naive, delusional, or both.

sarcasm is a good defense mechanism when you have nothing better to say. TREX is just stating the truth mate.

All day you been spouting lies about rugby union and this one is also a lie. rugby union internationals have been huge from the first games right through to professional era. Picking on rugby isn't gonna make it go away you wake up in the morning and the sport you so much despise is still bigger and better to watch by many than rugby league and the same goes for slower American football and no matter how many times you dream about rugby league the Yanks will still pick Gridiron over your game.

The non existent coverage of the Rugby League World Cup is absolute BULLSHITE!!!!!!! I'm an avid Rugby League fan...haven't been able to watch any of the World Cup matches at all, let alone LIVE!!!!!!!!...I have Foxtel and access to Seven, Nine and Ten but NOT Seven Mate , Gem or 7Two??????? WTF....gonna enjoy the Wallabies Rugby Union tour of the British Isles instead and to hell with Rugby League World Cup....AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAustralian TV Networks....Epic FAIL!!!!!!!!! It's NO SURPRISE that Rugby League WILL NEVER reach the lofty heights of Football (Soccer) both internationally or here in Australia ( Western Sydney Wanderers and Melbourne Victory experiencing 40,000 plus attendances), Rugby Union Test Matches (Sold out) and AFL (80,000+). SO pissed off!!!!!! Rugby League is an effing JOKE!!!!

TREX don't jump on the AFL bandwagon because your sport can't stand on it's own two feet. Your game is slow as hell! 15 players with little penetration of the line.. you don't even score off cross field kicks! Literally, your highlights reel for best tries of the year are the ones that include about 50 passes and a swan dive into your 30 metre ingoal. And mate, I think you haven't been reading again. The RL world cup started in the 1950s, the RWC started in 1987. League was bigger and tests between Australia, NZ and England drew phenominal crowds. League then went backwards as Union finally went proffesional the ARL/Super League war began.

Only because NSW hasn't seen a win for eight years, where as the Kangaroos bring home the Trophy often. An Origin win may mean more to you being part of a losing team, but that doesn't make the actual game the pinnacle of rugby league. Competition doesn't = the best. I saw an under 11's game the other day which was a really close game! I think they could take on QLD!

I said every player who mention "pinnacle" on television always refer to origin. Yes not every NRL players but most of those who played Origins and wish to play SOO. Just like this piece six days ago. "It might sound silly, but I want to be considered for Origin," Grothe told Fairfax Media. "It's the pinnacle of rugby league ... I never really had goals before, so one thing I want to do now is set some goals. That's one of them. If I miss that goal, hopefully I'll still make it to a decent standard. I'll be doing everything I can to do it." Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/league-news/eric-grothe-jnr-planning-nrl-comeback-20131025-2w6n7.html#ixzz2jG2sVFc8