Odsal Outlaw

Just finished watching the game, huge congratulations to Wigan. What a performance. The territory was so heavily in Penrith’s favour they should really have been out of sight but Wigan were fantastic in defence and so resilient. And the high shot in the first half where the referee said to Wigan ‘it’s under international rules’ when not giving a card. Great. Could that be the last great game of rugby league on these shores as we now revert to uk interpretations for the SL? Maybe.

I think the point here is that the RFL need to come out and overtly state that this decision was wrong and that is not the right application of the laws. If they do that then as a fan you have to accept that human error can always happen. If they don’t and they double down on this being the right decision then we have issues as a sport.

I’ve said many times about rugby league, it’s not the fact we shoot ourselves in the foot that’s the issue, it’s the speed at which we reload the gun.

Fans have realised after one round the state of the game they'll be watching with the new application of the rules. Highly likely to see a send off and yellow cards resulting in a lack of contest which this was after half time.

Hull red card. This is RL blowing its future if this is the norm. Absolutely agree with Wilkin and Carney here.

Fair point, and yes if we applied NRL rules I’d be frustrated. Agree it’s correct to apply international rules. The one caveat here is that it’s not about whether we like / dislike a 2pt drop goal or whether we like / dislike the way a video ref is used (remember England vs Aus in Melbourne where the NRL video ref approach was used in an international match). This is about the RFL taking a stance on safety which they seem able to remove in certain fixtures. Now maybe this is also the solution for 2026 RLWC or 2025 Tours and maybe we accept that. Over time though this will also put us at a disadvantage in these fixtures playing teams who are used to using ‘stronger’ defensive techniques.

These are great, they have similar units at cricket. Work really well.

RFL getting strict on head contact … until NRL tell them otherwise. Absolute waste of space of an organisation. Albeit I’m happy with the rules for this weekend. Great job NRL!

Yes good point. That maybe would be the right balance to find for 2024. But 2025 could be something else all together. Interested for that Kangaroo series and how it will be reffed!

I honestly don’t think this is moaning. The point in my OP was that coverage wise this is as good as we’ve ever had it in SL. IMG seem to be making a positive difference and fans are excited, engaged and coming thru the turnstiles. This good! We therefore need to capitalise on this and make sure that in a few weeks they don’t switch off. I’ve watched 3 games this weekend and overall they’ve all been a bit average to be honest. But, cards will settle down, standard will no doubt improve from RD1 rustiness. My fear is that the product post rule changes won’t be as watchable and post 2025 rule changes will be even less so. Now, if the exposure we have recruits double the fans we lose then that’s a win. If I look online on X/Facebook/Insta there seems to be a general sentiment of positivity on the refreshing coverage but dismay at the product on the field. So, this isn’t about being a moaner.

Quite like that idea. Would at least mitigate some of the issues the new rules cause and avoid games being mis-matches or ruined as a spectacle (like when Watts was sent off for Cas)

You think I was hunting for negatives with my OP?

Agree with your point on quality - I’ve just watched some of the Rhinos v Wire 2006 play-off match on Sky in their Retro RL series. I do think the 00’s in SL were a golden era in terms of quality of player. But you are right, off the field this feels like our biggest chance since the advent of SL and fair play to IMG they are doing a great job.

This is sort of my point, there is loads of positivity and the profile will be as good as we’ve ever had. My worry then is people watch it and aren’t hooked. But I also hope this isn’t the case. Not at all. Although I guess what is foul play this year has not always been foul play. Like for example the shoulder charge - something I think was a great aspect of the game. But I also think we are confusing deliberate foul play and simple accidents which can then result in game changing decisions - again the late Hull sending off on Thursday. The guys just got a facial and is trying to get out of it and gets sent off.

Yes agree with this, more enjoyable with less wrestle.

I wouldn’t say my OP is wrong. It’s my opinion and was genuinely looking to see if others also felt the same or like yourself actually see it more positively. However your point on 2pt DG’s feels a poor comparison. There have been different rules in the hemispheres for years, I hate that to be honest, but they have been on a different level to having different tackle height laws. This would put us at a huge disadvantage in the World Cup where other nations would be much more dominant under the international interpretation - unless we have all our best players in the NRL by then! In fact maybe that’s the answer, we have to pick only NRL based players for internationals but equally the WCC could be finished.

I don’t think referees are doing anything wrong, they are doing as directed and they shouldn’t be criticised. However I think it’s fine for commentators to critique the situation, they are just voicing what many fans feel.

Also it isn’t just penalising deliberate attacks to the head. It’s penalising any and every contact that touches the head with yellow and red cards.

I don’t know that I fully get this argument that the sport had to change as much as it is doing. How do UFC, Boxing, NFL manage to retain the aggression? Surely it’s about ensuring people know what they sign up to. Fair enough if there needs to be a sanitisation at younger age groups. But I think the RFL are being very risk averse. However, I guess my main point in OP really was whether the game is now more or less attractive. At this moment to me it is a less attractive product.

Yes I’m also really interested in how the new tackle law will translate into internationals. I’d love this to be answered by the RFL - although likelihood is they won’t know yet! To be honest I also wish all the rules were harmonised in both hemispheres, but clearly the tackle height is the really interesting one.

Yes I take your point, I have no issue with foul play being punished. But there is a difference between genuine ‘foul’ play like punching someone in the face and rightly being given marching orders vs. the Hull player who was sent off for the knee to the head when he had just been given a facial on the floor and is trying to get out the way. It feels like we are going so far to one extreme where any touch to the head however slight or accidental is resulting in people being removed from the game. And next year we reduce tackle heights as well. Now this is a choice for the sport. And the result could be more fans, greater interest and the sport sees positive results. The other choice could have been to say we will embrace the aggression, whilst punishing genuine foul play severely. @Damien you say you have found the change positive, which is good. Hopefully this is the general consensus as I want the sport to succeed. My view is its negative (but also interested to fast forward two years and see what the game looks like!)

As we start the new season I, like most, have been really impressed with the refreshing way the game has been presented. The impact of IMG seems clear. Good social media, good stories in the news, positive tv deals and a refreshing presentation of the game by Sky. However the game itself feels less enjoyable. Clearly the amount of cards has a part in this, but these should reduce as players adapt to new rules over time you would think, but we are also slowly removing any aggressive play and this will only get worse from 2025. The sport is clearly going through a noticeable change, and there is a constant reference to it being needed due to the risk the game faces from health related issues, especially around head injuries. Historically fans of TGG have always said that we have the greatest sport in the world, we just need to tell people about it. Well we are finally starting to tell people about it … but what if we no longer have the greatest game? I hope I’m wrong by the way. But I think we need to find a balance in the sport that retains the aggression.

A good decision to rename it. I wonder whether they should have announced this as the plan for 2025 and stated this will be the last HS trophy so they could have formally closed that out at this years GF in the right way. But actually they could maybe find a way to do that so the HS trophy goes out in the right way and hands over to RB

I assumed there would be corporate facilities along the back of the stand, but looks not to be the case from that photo. Is that all done in the stand behind the posts? Looks great though, floodlight issues aside, well done Trinity for getting this from planning to completion! New owner seems good as well.

Lost in the 1895 Cup …