Exiled Wiganer
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Posts posted by Exiled Wiganer
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I can see your point Dave. But the point here is that in the here and now the NRL/ARL gets it. And this is an NRL/ARL with resources far beyond anything the game has seen before. And we now have 5 top teams who can produce 20k plus crowds.
If you are angry about them over staying the case, then I entirely agree with you. Looking at the crowds Lions Tours got in the 50s and 60s, 30k is nothing to shout about. But in 2024, with a World Cup 2 years away, there is a great deal to be optimistic about. In my opinion at least.
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I would also note that, in Dave’s list, a number of the most recent ones at the top have involved either Samoa (who got slightly more for their game against the Kiwis last year than Tonga this year) and Tonga. For decades there was 1 top team, and 2 a rung below. Now we have 5 teams who can put on a show against one another, with PNG a potential 6th. We have come a long long way.
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This has been a success, by any measure. I take the point that, if we properly sold the international game, the Kangaroos would sell out the Olympic stadium for 5 tests a year, but the key here is that the NRL are openly pushing internationals. They have realised, massively belatedly, that backing the international game is good for the game, and that is good for them. These sell outs and historically massive crowds have been brought about to a large extent by the NRL bringing internationals within their structure for the year of rugby league. Their reach - podcasts, social media, TV, old fashioned newspapers - is vast. Adding international to their portfolio of Crown Jewels is a wonderful result.
In and of themselves, we have been treated to great games played by great athletes, in front of big and enthusiastic crowds. Even better than that, the NRL is waking up to a golden future for the international game.
It bodes incredibly well for the 26 World Cup.
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9 hours ago, Damien said:
The crowd was full of Tongans, that was very evident.
I'm not even sure what you are trying to argue to be honest or why you keep coming back. You talked about NZ and Australia being the traditional power houses, I was merely pointing out that in terms of crowds that is now Tonga. Thought that was obvious and it certainly is to anyone watching these internationals over the last 7 or 8 years.
They certainly turned out in massive numbers for last year’s Samoa New Zealand game, and were even polite enough to wear Samoa and Kiwi tops for the occasion.
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47 minutes ago, Damien said:
While welcome it was only 17k. It was Tonga fans that led to the big Brisbane crowd and completely outnumbered NZ fans yesterday.
Brisbane does not have the same Tonga diaspora as Auckland by any means.
It was a very large crowd by Australian standards this century.
christchurch sold out. It was a very large crowd by Christchurch standards.By this point, I am not sure what you are trying to say - is it how wonderful it is that having a new powerhouse in the game is leading to record crowds? In which case I agree it’s a positive factor, and one in which Australia played a massive part in supporting the second tier eligibility rules. Or is it that the crowds are illusory because it’s “only” Tonga? In which case, I honestly can’t see where you are coming from and your motivation, but I am simply looking at record crowds for our game and am delighted to see them.
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4 hours ago, Damien said:
They should do easily. If they can't get over 25k for a quadruple header then something is up. They should be getting that for Australia v Tonga by itself.
When it comes to crowds in the Southern hemisphere its Tonga that are the power houses.
There was a sold out Christchurch test as well.
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If they get over 25k to the final at Parra - and I can see no reason why that would even be a stretch, then this year’s Pacific Champs will be a major step forward compared with any previous incarnations: 33k in Brisbane, full house 17k in Christchurch, 23k for NZ Tonga and 25+ for the final, giving an average of around 24/25k. And only one game between the traditional power houses Oz v NZ. Going into the 26 World Cup, even this level of coverage/marketing would make that streets ahead of anything we saw in 08 and 17, and we can reasonably expect the crowds to be substantially better.
Once the international games in the SH start making real money, the momentum will be unstoppable.
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3 minutes ago, Dunbar said:
I really can't agree about the halves - I thought both Smith and Williams engaged the line and squared up the defense really well in the shift plays and their execution consistently created space on the edges. You can see this in the tries but they were doing it well all game.
Add the game management of the long kicking game (Smith in particular) and the repeat sets won and I don't think there is a lot to complain about with the performance of the two.
Re watching the game, the halves were even more effective than I noticed first time around. I am not sure what level the previous poster is looking for, but Williams and Smith so far have been the most impressive combination of the big 5. That’s not to say that the Aussie combination doesn’t have a higher ceiling, but I am very happy with what we’ve got across the park.
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I am not sure if this is the right place to mention this, but in the last 7 SL teams v NRL teams, we are 7 nil. Which doesn’t surprise me, as we produce plenty of of world class players. We would lose very little if we had Wardle in 4 and Minchella in 13 against the Aussies. I wonder whether that is in part through our talent pool being in a smaller number of teams. I suspect if the NRL had 11 Aussie teams the overall standard would be stratospheric, but I am happy with how we are developing talent. Who knows, if we make the most of what we have got after the next re structuring, we could finally begin to fulfil our potential as a game.
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5 hours ago, NRLandSL said:
4-5 ? Tuivasa-Shock, Mariner, Talagi, Luai, Tago, May, Nanai, Blore, Leilua, Chan Kum Tong, and maybe Skelton, Tevaga and Molo. Majority of this side will play next year and in the future.
I agree, but I have some sympathy for the “wait until we field our strongest team!” responses. We all rationalise things in our own way.
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Not everyone by any means. Our Super League Champions have no problem teaching Penrith a lesson whether they play over here or over there.
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I thought that Newman was fine in both games. Wardle is a different level altogether, but he did fine. None of our players looked out of place. Oddly enough, I was reflecting on how certain I was a few years ago that Gildart and Percival would be nailed on as our centres. On Farnworth, I thought he moved to the Dolphins to play full back. I think that could work, especially as Wardle is also a natural left centre. There are some excellent young centres aside from Newman, so some day one day he may displace Welsby. The future is bright.
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49 minutes ago, JohnM said:
Right. That's it for 2024. Everyone over to the IMG gradings thread until the season starts again.
We have one more week, when we will be Tonga for the day.
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1 hour ago, Damien said:
Well only got to watch the game later delayed. I've said it before but I'll say it again though, nothing beats international RL when we get matches and atmospheres like that.
We now have 5 top class teams who can beat each other.
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This has been a great day for international league.
Samoa are a good side, and polishing them off 2 nil shows how much talent we have. And possibly that Wane is a better technical coach than had been hitherto apparent. Every England player we have seen over the last 2 weeks has shown themselves to be worth being in the mix for the Ashes, and the World Cup.
All our problems - with loads more good players likely to be in the frame next year - are very much good ones to have.
Again, this is proof positive that the players we see every week in Super League are supremely talented. We are lucky to watch the Greatest Game, and see world class players every week up here.
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Great momentum throughout that set of 6. Winning the rucks, quick ptbs and get them on the back foot.
Let’s go again.
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2 minutes ago, JohnM said:
Is there a competition here by some UK posters to belittle various England players? Is it a fashion to claim we're no good? FFS get behind your team!
I fear that a couple of them may genuinely have mental health problems. It is really sad to see.
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May I say that Clark has been great again. Indeed, there have been no weak links.
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Is he Wardle in disguise?
That was fine reward for a measured set by set period in which we wrested control.
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Just now, StandOffHalf said:
I mean, it was obvious that Nsemba denied Talagi from moving across...
Those defenders were in completely the wrong position. The second one should be ashamed of themselves. We have since shown that it was no fluke - our speed and execution out wide is the problem, not the ref.
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I had no idea we had so many Samoans in our TRL community.
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That pass to put him through was fantastic. Indeed, the sequence that lead up to it was superb. Smith is on it today.
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In Williams and Ashton Wire have 2 world class players.
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Brilliant kick and chase:
Pacific Championships 2024
in The General Rugby League Forum
Posted · Edited by Exiled Wiganer
In its own terms in its own way this has been a game changing Pacific Championships, with superb games wall to wall. By far, for me, the biggest success has been the way in which the NRL has incorporated this into their calendar with 2026 in mind. That is new.
The disconnected way in which the 08 and 17 world cups were run means we have barely scratched the surface in terms of the potential over there. It is very important that they see this as a success, and if they exaggerate their role then that is a positive message for the future.
On the field, across both hemispheres, I have been hugely encouraged by the depth of talent everywhere you look. When I started watching international league in earnest, at the start of the 80s, you could barely put together a team from the rest of the world who would give the Kangaroos a competitive match. We have come a long long way.