Bad weather in the UK, train strikes, the issues over international TV rights which killed the tournament's biggest revenue stream, over ambitious choices with venues, significant lack of pre-sales (despite the early on-sale, Twickenham was the only match that had more than a couple of thousand pre-sales) all contributed to what was the 2000 RLWC... throw in scheduling that just compounded the issues (opening the tournament in Belfast, playing the likes of England v Australia in front of lots of empty seats all hurt).
It wasn't strikes on the railways, it was the virtual paralysis of the entire national network after a major rail disaster, where every mile of track had to be checked for cracks. I remember commuting on the Thameslink line during those times, and it was a nightmare, even for a short journey within London.












