The NRL and the Asia Pacific Rugby League Federation deserve enormous credit for the recent international activity – and for the plans reportedly underway for a two-tiered Pacific competition headed by an all-southern hemisphere Tri-Nations.
It’s a curious situation for northern hemisphere-based critics of the NRL’s approach to the international game, of which I have been one.
For some time we have accused them of doing too little – be it sabotaging Denver, telling Great Britain to stay home or refusing to play them.
Now the source of frustration might be them doing too much.
England is so isolated as a rugby league power that they have currently sent their B team to Papua New Guinea at a loss of many tens of thousands of pounds.
Their top team went to Campbelltown, played Samoa and then turned around and came back last year. This year the met the Kiwis roughly halfway; the Kiwis won’t be doing that again. They’re like desperate and dateless attendees at the school dance.
There are two competing narratives regarding this situation.
One is that Australia is like the NBA and has a responsibility to the code globally, not just in its own backyard.
Some people in England seem to think the Australians are actually scared of England and GB after only winning the World Cup final by six points last year.
Gareth Widdop of England at the 2017 Rugby League World Cup (NRLPhotos/Gregg Porteous)
There are also theories of personal vendettas within the international rugby league community.
The competing narrative is that the Rugby Football League should have done much, much more to develop the game in the their region and this impending mess is of their own making.
Also, the Rugby League International Federation has a stated ambition to target G20 nations. The thinking is the the Pacific, Central America and Africa might bring us good athletes – but no fans with any money.
The ARLC’s strategy is at odds with this.
Either way, there’s a showdown looming – one that other sports have had their share of – between the northern and southern hemispheres.
I am writing this column from Belgrade. On Saturday I saw Serbia beat Spain in a World Cup qualifier here.
The crowd was tiny but the Rugby League European Federation has done an amazing job in spreading the DNA of the sport – the way it’s played, coached and refereed, to so many countries over the past 15 years.
You see kids play here and their basic skills are good. You could be in Wynnum or Westmead.
Really, when you talk about the rise of Tonga you are talking about professional players filling the Tongan team and winning the support of a massive expatriate community.
That’s a different approach to the RLEF, whose focus has been on grassroots.
A lone Australian flag is seen in a sea of Tonga fans during the Rugby League Test match between the Australia Kangaroos and the Tonga Mate Ma’a (AAP Image/David Rowland)
A key part of finding England opponents closer to home is not just a strong team but a strong team with good support that resonates with someone.
From what I gather there has just been a palace coup in Ireland after the administration there wanted to give more opportunities to locally produced players.
Wales has some tremendous talent but sometimes encounters problems getting Super League players released. Their squad for the upcoming European Championships has a host of true home grown stars.
Scotland has a very small domestic competition and relied on players from elsewhere. Like Wales, their RFL funding has been slashed in recent years.
Where are there players and support? Which territory is the best bet? France. But here’s another one for you: the Toronto Wolfpack players will eventually qualify for Canada on residential grounds.
If England and Great Britain are looking for a northern hemisphere team to give them meaningful opposition, helping France secure releases for their best players and making matches between the cross-channel rivals an event are a must.
And Canada need to be fast-tracked with the Wolfpack’s support base utilised. The West Indies rugby league team could also achieve some cut-through in the UK market while a North American combination playing in Canada would make more sense as English opponents than the Exiles, who no-one supported.
Of course, the West Indies and North America would be “selections”, not Test-playing nations.
But if you’re going to organise your open opposition, you want someone to cheer for them.
Regardless of which of the above narratives you subscribe to, the problem’s not going to be solved by playing an understrength France on a Wednesday night in Leigh.
duecer
Guest
This is one of the strong factors for the decline of league in England. Most of the immigrants have no interest in RL - the first wave from commonwealth countries were more into cricket, the second wave from the eastern bloc were devoted to Football. They had no fall back like Australia has with the PI diaspora. Of course there are many other factors as well. The rise and rise of Football in once strong RL areas, the aspirational nature of the working class, where once they were just happy being working class and use their local RL team as a flag of loyalty, RU going professional and wiping out any gains international RL had, the even worse decline of French RL, where there use to be many tours, now it is a rarity to the point the can only manage 5k and offer no completion.
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
So supposedly is Channel 9.
Aligee
Roar Rookie
Did i say 100 years - no, they granted the local Mosque 999 years at 1 pound for the sporting fields.
Ian Murray
Guest
Not sure about this....England is the home of Rugby League.
Aligee
Roar Rookie
Rugby league has had a huge decline in Northern England due to changing demographics and the last 30 years at least of industrial decline, an interesting book although around 10 years old now was written by well known RL writer Danny Lockwood which is centered on a town called Dewsbury in West Yorkshire. The book is called 'The Islamic Republic of Dewsbury' and a small section notes how a former RL ground in the town had metal and glass imbedded in it weekly so before games players had to go on hands and knees to look, after a period of time the club gave up and the local Islamic community then managed to get the ground for a pound for a hundred years.
stuart
Guest
as far as your concerned they are but more people play and watch rugby than rugby league you only have to look at the last two world cups. attendances 2013 and 2017 league world cups 840,563 attendances 2011 and 2015 rugby world cups 3,955,099 just a slight diff of over 4 million I keep hearing from league fans once they get into usa it will take off because the american sports fans will love it. All I can say they should relook at their medication, league has only 11 teams in the usa rugby has over 2,500 its in schools and colleges and its the fasrest growing sport in the usa that now has coverage by at least 2 tv net works. And best of all for the americans rugby 7s is an olympic sport.
Ghost Crayfish
Roar Pro
Let's just hope the English game can figure out how to promote Toulouse and Toronto, and give them (along with Catalans) the long-term security at the top level that they'll need to flourish... Who knows? A second secure top level French club might help build on Les Catalans momentum to create some real TV, corporate and media interest over there - combine that with a well-organised, long-term schedule for England v France test matches, and they might actually get somewhere!
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
Not really, but I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt. I learned Swahili as a kid.
bbt
Guest
I follow the RLEF website and it is exciting. The only way to grow anything is to grow the grassroots. Anything else is not sustainable. The RLEF is growing the grassroots. Sure the sprouts are small and fragile at present, but the growth is impressive. They have real momentum. My guess is that in 10 years time, the RLEF will have sustainable competition between the member states. I like that they often start with a 9s competition then progress to the 13 man sides. Smart! And as for comments re the size of the attendance, big deal. Even the Beatles were unknown once upon a time. It is definitely looking good.
Justin Kearney
Roar Rookie
You understood that?
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
If they are that desperate, they can secure local players in the rl comp in Canada.
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
I tell you what's funnier, the mile high list of aliases you have drummed up on this site.
Magic Mike
Roar Rookie
For a small poor country, the PNG government puts away $10million each year to rugby league administration and development. It sees rugby league as not just a game but an ideal vehicle to drive social development for its people. More countries and governments should follow the PNG example for the international game to grow.
Justin Kearney
Roar Rookie
Read the other day that 1900 colleges across the USA have ‘rugby union programs’.
johnnoo
Roar Pro
okay cool didn't know for sure. Annoying the game was a shambles as France are the one nation outside the Big-3 with definate potential to be as good as the Big-3...
Paulie
Guest
Yes true but really league is really a big unkown in North America where rugby is more played in club and university's across Canada and the US and on a much bigger and financial scale.
Justin Kearney
Roar Rookie
I haven’t stopped laughing!
Justin Kearney
Roar Rookie
Why?
Gus Wood
Roar Rookie
Don’t forget Rugby League needs to become the number 1 sport in Australia before making elsewhere stronger
nerval
Guest
"Apparently the french side was more or less at full strength." No, johnnoo, whatever else you could say about that French team, it was nowhere near full-strength. The whole game and occasion was a shambles.