Over the weekend, the England Rugby League team defeated the New Zealand Kiwis. Australia played no one. On the contrary, rugby union held fixtures between England and South Africa, Japan and New Zealand, Scotland and Wales while Ireland and Italy played out of the USA.
What is the point? Obviously, more nations play rugby union and therefore more internationals are held.
That is clear, but that is not the point I am trying to make. The rugby union games were played to packed stadiums. I watched three of the union internationals featuring the European nations and then backed it up by watching the League Test.
Yes, I do have too much time on my hands.
What I noticed was interesting, the League Test at Anfield did not sell out. This Test was a game between two traditional powers in the north of England. Granted, Liverpool is not a rugby league hotbed, but it’s not far away from the home of the game in England. What is doing there?
In terms of quality, the game had it in bucket loads. The game was fast, free-flowing and offered plenty of skill. Yes, it did lack some polish, but the passion on display made up for any shortfalls in the contest.
In comparison, the union encounters that I watched were a bore. No this is not a union bashing point. I understand that the Ireland game was lopsided.
Regarding the England and South Africa game, it was close which kept it engaging, and it was an extremely tough fought match, but it lacked end to end excitement.
The Scotland and Wales game much the same.
In the latter two games, penalty goals seemed to be a prominent fixture. Yet, the atmosphere at the games was stunning. I so wish it was like that with League internationals. So the question rugby league needs to ask is: what is rugby union doing better to fill their stadiums?
Is it a promotion issue? Is it that rugby union has intertwined itself into the school systems better? Is it a ticket price issue or a cultural difference?
Probably all are correct, but what else is rugby union doing that rugby league can learn from? How can rugby league attract more fans to its games? It definitely is not the product on the field that is the issue, so what is it?
There is nothing wrong in stating that when it comes to international competition that rugby union is a professionally run sport and rugby league comes off a little amateurish.
(Photo by Kai Schwoerer/Getty Images)
All I know is that when the Great Britain Lions are on tour next year, I hope they play to packed stadiums instead of half-filled grounds with no atmosphere and play Australia.
This matter is an issue that needs to be addressed urgently for 2021 – and that is the Rugby League World Cup puts the game on display to a much larger audience.
As in previous years, it won’t be the quality on the field that is lacking but I want to feel optimistic that there will be the support for the game through a large attendance turnout.
So if you can provide answers to any of the issues above, please share your wisdom.
Cadfael
Roar Guru
Love your point 4. I do miss the old days of the tours. Tourists against country areas, NSW and Qld as well as the tests. Will we see these come back? I hope so but I doubt it, especially as the poms changed their season around.
In Brief
Guest
When the ball is dead it is out of play i.e. before lineout throw. In league the ball is dead after the tackle.
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
LOL Now, now ,Jacko. Jason Stevens is working on it.Don't know about Todd Carney though.
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
Never suggested otherwise Jacko,it happens, but not often.Penalties have won games, but you get 2 points not 3, so the incentive to do so is less. I'm spelling out, the effect of high kicks from the 6th tackle.To suggest there is zero contest for the ball in rugby league is plain wrong.Sure it's nowhere near ru, but rl people want to see more action rather than technicalities.Hence scrums are just guys hugging so the backs get the pill. The number of blocks on the 6th tackle are minimal, the charge down can result in securing the ball and thus creating another contest for the ball. I'm just providing all aspects of the game, gang tackles, one on ones, bundling into touch,40/20, strips, grubber kicks,tackling defenders in the in goal when the ball is not caught on the full, intercepts,In most cases these impact the contest for the ball. Think you meant to say, spectacular tries are not exclusive to rugby league. Any case the number of brilliant tries scored in the cnr by rl clubs by the majority of NRL clubs.And indeed many.And the overall compared to all the major football codes maintained near enough its Tv ratings.Also its crowds have turned the corner, despite poor scheduling, a crappy ANZ stadium for attending, games in the bush. Because in rugby league there are many more examples of individual brilliance by star players to score tries, that don't require 15 man passes(side to side). PTB are part and parcel of rugby league as are the rucks in union, both involve a minimal stalling process.In the former you can see what is going on all the time, the latter not so. And whilst there have been decent numbers of occasions when tries in League have been score by a large number of hands 8-10, individual brilliance is what rl fans like to see(involving say 1 or 2 passes.. And in reality the team that does it best(for continual passing) almost exclusively are the All Blacks. Seriously Jacko with Japan and the Argie side !!and how many times did the Aussie sides knock over the NZ ones?The TV audiences and crowd drops bear testimony to the unevenness.They have voted with their feet. The NRL whether we like the salary cap or not has levelled the playing field.The closeness for example of the top 8 this year was a fair indication.And teams like Manly,Dogs,Newcastle,Canberra,Titans created many boilovers. Union does indeed have better set plays, close in passing skills when you have an extra 4 players(in toto) on the field may be an influence.They have all balanced scrums that are competitive.But IMO add to time wasting, and more so especially with resets. I cannot accept lineout lifting, rather than the individual effort. I'm more than happy to see offloads by a forward with 2-3 tacklers clinging off him ala Fifita. I find with 4 less players on the field, the game opens up ,players have more room to move, hence the reason so much emphasis is placed on tackling in rugby league. It(League) is indeed a far simpler game to play and follow.And I played 5 years of ru, and only 1 of rl in my high school years. And being simpler to play and follow makes it far easier for the uninitiated to catch on, and indeed in many of the East European and Sth American countries, where rl is getting slowly but surely toehold, it is the simplicity which makes it easier to introduce . Which I suggest is where rugby league should be concentrating its efforts, as it relates to the topic in question here. NZ has changed their attitude a lot to both rugby codes(the Warriors have helped), but I can tell you going back many years not so.I visited Auckland many years ago to visit with my wife her cousin, who was a ru nut.He drove near Eden Park and made the comment 'that lower class game rugby league will never be played here."Left me gobsmacked, I said zilch. Thank heavens ,that attitude is no more in NZ.
jacko
Guest
No Steve its because no league players make it to heaven.....LOL...
Jacko
Guest
crosscoder....Go look at your League stats...Some NRL games were won by penalties alone...no trys U6th tackle kicks are very rarely contestable as blocking is prevalent in the NRL and does not allow contest. One on One tackles are like hens teeth in League so no contest...10 strips a year maybe???? SR just as competive in top v bottom as NRL easy... Spectacular trys in the corner are not exclusive to union...The same corner post rules apply...The difference is in Union you could easily have had 15 passes to get that sort of finish...in league a 15 pass try is unheard of I have to agree that the NRL is about individual brilliance compared to Union ...meaning Union is about team play far more than League As you say...each to their own but I enjoy both...I just enjoy them for different reasons....league is more combative than Union individually...but not collectively....Union has far better set play kickers and has far better in-close passing skills...And i dont mean just the ABs...Watch the NZ SR sides play.....As i said above ...Aus seems to have this 1 or the other attitude to their rugby choice where as in NZ they are far more accepting of both as a sport
Paulie
Guest
Gee Franklin youre quite a nasty piece of work you like to put the slipper in.
Steve Franklin
Roar Rookie
They say Union is the game made in heaven, that's cause it is only watched by dead people who were bored to death in the first place.
CTSTORM
Guest
If its boring why are more people watching the test match compare to the empty RL tests. Have you been watching lately.
Steve Franklin
Roar Rookie
What can Union learn from League to get more action into the game than boredom yawning Union needs more action boring.
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
Disagree Jacko. 1.Kicking goals is in reality, not the league go. Invariably near the goal line the attacking player will take a quick tap and spread it wide to his outside backs or a rampaging running forward. Penalty goals are either taken as gimmes in front when the time is running out and 2 points makes it just that much harder for the side behind on the scoreboard. 2."The ball is never in contest" in rugby league.Wrong. High kicks on the 6th tackle or prior depending on the territorial position, are contested in the jump for the ball and that includes crossfield kicks and kicks in goal. See some of the spectacular takes to score tries from the high ball. The grubber kick is used to attempt to get the recipient to knock on, or get trapped in the in goal in defence. A 40/20 kick where the defence tries to prevent such , the successful result means ,the attacking team gets the feed. The one on one ball strip, provides the defence an attacking position. Tackling a player into touch ,provides the defence the use of the ball. Ask Andrew Johns the effectiveness of ball contest with his kicking arsenal. Most multi tackles are made to prevent the attacker from offloading the ball. IOW a contest to prevent an attacking movement continue ,unabated. A one on one tackle where the defender attempts to not only stop the attack, but dislodge the ball . I'm more than happy the code got rid of the mish mash called a competitive scrum, and got on with the game. Super Rugby is not as highly competitive(the gap between top and bottom) quality wise as the NRL ,as any team can win on the day. And you should be aware Super Rugby crowds and Tv ratings are well down not only here ,but I understand also in NZ. Some of the most amazing tries have been scored by NRL wingers in many NRL clubs, just inside the the corner post ,with their bodies usually 90% over the line.Tries score by fingertips within cms of going out .Rapana,Feki,Holmes,Ferguson,the Warrior's wingers, the Storm wingers, Broncos wingers, the list goes on. I applaud the All Black style of football always have ,but it is the exception in RU rather than the rule.Australian ru used to have the attacking style in the days of the Campese and Ellas, no more. From my observations the NRL provides players with individual brilliance, better opportunities to show their wares, than RU.The Storm trio a case in point. Each to his own is the reality.
Mark Campbell
Roar Guru
Thank you Beastie Boy for the constructive comment and not getting stuck in a League Vs Union comment battle (something I hoped to avoid). I think all the points you raised are valid - especially the traditional tours. These aspects of the sport are something the game needs to look at closely.
woodart
Guest
leagues biggest problem seems to be that the game is being turned into a club versus internationals tug of war. even the tv networks are pulling in different directions. it cant be all about money if you want your sport to grow. maori All Blacks are playing brazil and chile, will never be money makers, but great for long term development of the game in sth america. league tries something like this and half the league fans rubbish it because the crowd is bigger for some meaningless club game between campbelltown and punchbowl, big whoop! if league wants to grow, it really needs to promote the lions tour and get ALL of the tv networks and there mouthpieces to talk up the games, not rubbish them(take note, mouth from penrith).
hLarry1950
Guest
On that logic, when the ball is locked in a union scrum or ruck waiting to draw a penalty it's also not in play, likewise when the line out thrower is chatting to his catchers or the inevitable scrum rests. Bottom line, it's just about a fans preference for a particular game.
In brief
Guest
Something league could learn is trying to develop a stronger identity to sell to the international audience. To achieve this you need to really get in touch with your roots and traditions, work out what it all means to play rugby league, and use that as your point of difference.
Dennis Hopper Jr
Guest
Risk averse nails it for me. Constant coach sackings for a decade or more seems to have changed the game. I followed league closely in the Winfield Cup era and in hindsight that was the zenith of everything that was good about the game. I would head off to the pub with my mates for the Sky broadcasts most weekends. I haven't watched a full half of NRL for 2 seasons. Too much weight training, not enough attacking guile. I'm not stating my opinion to put league down. I hope that the people who shape the game take notice of comments like mine and can find ways to bring back the lustre that the comp once had. But until then, this formulaic era of league is as good as dead to me.
Jacko
Guest
Elijah instead of thinking some stat suggests something to you try watching the modern game at SR level....You will be shocked at the skill level compared to the NRL and they score far more points per game than League does.....Not to mention have less penalties these days....I think you are remembering old school rugby not the modern version...As in the last 10 years...Your time in play figures are not correct and if they were then the Super rugby sides score more points ( trys) per game in 30-35 than league teams do in 50 mins of play
Jacko
Guest
Randy Im not an Australian so Im not a "either league or Union but not both" person...In NZ growing up League was watched whenever it came on TV which wasnt much back then...Even now there is not this anger between fans of both codes like their is in Aus so I will continue to happily watch and enjoy both games and can be far more objective than those who are pro 1 over the other
Kangas
Roar Rookie
What’s with the four hour wait for my other comments
Kangas
Roar Rookie
Liverpool is not far from widness Warrington and Wigan and greater Manchester and st Helen’s Not too far away to get a decent crowd