Jim from Oz

I was planning a road (well, train, really) trip like this for 2025 RLWC … sigh

As we all know, rugby league never misses an opportunity to miss an opportunity!

Okay but as a 59-year-old semi-Luddite, I’m not really quite sure how to do this!

Hopefully this will be shown in Australia, at the very least on pay TV and streaming services, Fox and Kayo

Could you expand on this? Cheers

It doesn’t help matters when Nine shows no interest in televising/ purchasing the rights for the RLWC, as has happened since the 2008 RLWC … it means all during the 2013, 2017 and 2022 NRL seasons there was virtually NO mention/discussion/promotion of the respective upcoming RLWCs

I am guessing this means Australia will host the Pacific cup and Fiji will host the Pacific shield… The Pacific cup will be Australia, New Zealand and Tonga, the Pacific shield will be Fiji, Papua New Guinea and Cook Islands… With Samoa to tour the UK… All of the above is pure speculation of course!

I think it is all about warding off Chinese government influence in Papua New Guinea.

Another important part of the plan (haha) should be consistent years for the RL World Cup: for example 2013, 2017, 2021, 2025, 2029 and so on… But, of course, this being rugby league, the years for the rugby league World Cup are changing yet again; we’re now in another four-year cycle yet again, this time in the same four-year cycle as the FIFA Men’s World Cup … Just so idiotically rugby league!!!

Yep, excellent summation Dave T … For what it's worth I reckon we should (since the 2008 RLWC) have moved to a 12-team RLWC from then on, featuring 3 groups of 4 (with the top two of each group plus 2 best third-placers going through to the Q/Fs). Build that up and then, when/if other quality nations emerge (through, say, sustained and planned IRL funding/support/promotion etc), slowly increase to a 14-team RLWC … and eventually, maybe 20 years' hence, to a 16-team RLWC. The lesson is always: don't run before you can walk!

"“We’ve built it from a tuck shop operation, where we once used spreadsheets and some members were in it for themselves, and took money from the organisation rather than putting it back into the sport, to what it is now." That is an extraordinary libellous and defamatory accusation, presented without evidence …

Precisely … we could have had a RLWC of 12, with 3 groups of 4, then also still had quarter-finals. I can just see RLWC 2026 being a supergroup of 4 and 2 x 3 just like RLWC 2008 … totally bogus.

Yes but then it clashes with the rugby union World Cup!!!

It's a mixed bag, a C- I'd say. PROS: 1) we (sort of) have a 6.5 year calendar (but with lots of gaps!!). NEUTRALS: 1) A 10-team RLWC is of course a backward step but may work well if it's 2 x 5, then semi-finals. 2) Good to have the Ashes back – insane that it's been 20 years since the last Ashes tournament – but it needs to be in a set schedule, ie every 2 years or 4 years, so that it "fits" with the RLWC schedule AND is easy for fans to remember so they can plan their footy overseas trips well into the future (as it used to be when we had Ashes every two years, as in once every 4 years in Oz and once every 4 years in the UK). CONS: 1) A RWLC with a 4, 3 and 3 format with a supergroup is a shocking retreat. 2) No actual RLWC qualifiers is a downer. 3) Pushing back the next RLWC tournament to 2026 is understandable with the short lead in but why must we then continue in that 4-year cycle [as in 2026, 2030, 2034 etc]?!?! This is the same yearly cycle as the soccer WC, which is exactly what we want to avoid !!! The following RLWC should be in 2029 and every 4 years after that so we avoid the various cycles of the soccer WC, the Olympics and the RUWC. 4) Some people are commenting that the standalone Women's RLWC for 2028 is to be applauded … okay, agreed, BUT what about Troy Grant/the IRL etc constantly telling us for the past couple of years that having the Men's, Women's and Wheelchair RLWC all together was "this incredible selling point"?!?! We have now gutted this great selling point! 5) No actual detail in this 6.5 year calendar! Are France touring Oz in 2024? Are Samoa touring the UK in 2025? Will there be regular (every 4 years) Pacific Cups? European Cups? What about the Americas? MEAA Region? Up-and-coming Euro nations? Wales, Scotland and Ireland? Eastern Europe? 6) Cancelling the World 9s. 9s are potentially a great way to introduce up-and-coming nations into the international RL scene. And the footy displayed in the one tournament held (in Sydney in 2019, and poorly promoted as usual) was fantastic; one RL-loving mate of mine who'd never seen it said to me after watching it: "I've seen the future of RL, and it is 9s." Now, after one attempt at it, it's just dismissed. SUMMARY: I will be hugely surprised if this 6.5 calendar goes as currently ":planned". It is all so totally rugby league.

So, I have been trawling the interweb to try to find ANY news from today’s IRL meeting in Singapore but so far … nothing. The IRL are more secretive with real information than the old Soviet Politburo!

Quite a way down in this story is mention again + a few details of the Tri-Series between Australia, NZ and Samoa at the end of the season. https://www.smh.com.au/sport/nrl/nrl-considers-cutting-funding-to-players-union-as-pay-battle-rages-on-20230728-p5ds3l.html

https://www.smh.com.au/sport/nrl/how-rugby-league-could-stop-china-s-march-in-the-pacific-20230729-p5ds7l.html

True!!!

The Sydney morning Herald in a very small piece reported yesterday that both Peter V’Landys and Andrew Abdo are attending… Which quite surprised me!

There was actually a NEW story about Las Vegas in the SMH today: https://www.smh.com.au/sport/nrl/nrl-lobbies-albanese-to-get-hollywood-involved-in-las-vegas-opener-20230720-p5dpuk.html

Are the FRAYSSINOUS and BANQUET lads the sons of the former players, Laurent and Freddy? Any other sons of people we know ?? Merci !

A story 6 weeks old, and precious little since … how very rugby league. LOL

At least with the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Victoria today being cancelled, I almost don't feel as bad now about the 2021 RLWC postponement and any (further!) cancellation/postponement of the 2025 RLWC !!!

Henson Park in inner-Sydney’s Marrickville is another beauty. Newtown Jets still play there

As a totally biased North Sydney Bears fan, enjoying the winter sunshine while sitting on the hill at North Sydney Oval back in the day was truly magnificent.