The Rocket

Agreed and have been making this point in every comments section of Oz media where the opportunity arose over the last week. Watching the game again last night the number of times Klein waved play on or simply didn`t react to 50/50 calls, or as is unfortunately often the case, calling anything; forwards, backwards or in between a knock-on, I was stunned by the amount of times he played benefit of the doubt. A reaction that allowed the tension to ratchet up without unnecessary and continuous interruptions. The other thing that struck me watching it again was the reaction of the television commentary team, a brief pause while waiting for the call to come then quickly forgotten with no comment either way. A reaction that only confirmed how unimportant it is in the greater scheme of things it is to be too obsessive about these things.

Can`t see a Pacific or PNG team in the NRL .... yet. Much more likely to see the NRL getting the $60m V`landy`s is asking for to push League in the Pacific, all in the name of national security of course. You know the saying " patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel ", maybe the first in this case. Loved Abdo`s statement too, adding that League is " far bigger " than union now in that region.

There was an intercept by an English union forward in last Saturday night`s union test, I kid you not he probably made about 2 metres before he was run down, even Junior Paulo would have run at least 10 I reckon.

Yes the sight of the three blokes on the ground was disturbing and probably just as disturbing how quickly it was forgotten but overall the general reaction across the wider public over here for that game has been stunned admiration. Something that I was thought was captured perfectly by the writer of the article in the OP.

Article in today`s Sydney Morning Herald. State of Origin 2022 Paul Cully: Rugby is kidding itself if it is still looking down at the NRL (smh.com.au) "But the game has bigger problems. World Rugby would probably point to the July Tests, and the proximity of the top eight test sides, as proof that the game is in rude health. After watching Origin this week, they shouldn’t be kidding themselves.

Lasts nights State of Origin result will likely see a number of dual eligible players not selected in the Australian squad for the up-coming World Cup. Chief among them Jerome Luai, Josh Papalii and Stephen Chrichton and Daniel Saifiti. The first two most likely being very handy additions for the Samoan side.

Great news for the Women`s game with the first three rounds of the NRLW to be aired on Channel 9 FTA in the prime time Sunday 6 p.m. timeslot. NRLW draw 2022: Sunday night football and triple-header final round highlight season schedule (theaustralian.com.au) It`s great to see they`re really giving this a chance to maximise its` audience.

I have read in the past that he is a insomniac.

Thought this thread was appropriate. Phil Gould calls for relaxed State of Origin rules following Brian To'o decision (msn.com) Speaking on 100% Footy on Monday night, Gould said rugby league needs to differentiate Origin from international football to make the latter more sustainable long-term. “I just can’t stand the absurdity of the argument," he said. "Origin and international football are two completely different beasts. "For all of history, anyone who has grown up in Australia played for Australia, we belted everyone and there has been no international football worth serving up. "Suddenly we have an opportunity to create a whole new range of international football. We’ve got emerging nations who love to play in second tiers – what is the problem with kids that grow up in this country playing State of Origin. This is the part you`ll really love. "International football is a whole new world that has never been explored. NRL needs to take control of world rugby league and there is a real opportunity there for a whole new level and a whole new brand of football. " "If anyone can’t see that, they are brain dead." You`ve got to laugh, it`s like he`s the one who has discovered the potential of international football and is now its` greatest champion. Breathtaking.

ARL Commission purchases Gambaro Hotel on Caxton street Brisbane overlooking Suncorp Stadium. Described as a near new 68 room 5 Star boutique Hotel, the Gambaro was expected to sell for approximately $30m. Gambaro Hotel sold to Australian Rugby League Commission - HTL Property | The Hotel Conversation "The transaction represents the Commission's first investment to strengthen the game's financial position and acquire assets that protect the game and provide new revenues for reinvestment in the game," a statement on Monday read. "The ARLC has a focus on strengthening its balance sheet with stable, secure investments that provide steady income, long-term capital growth and to protect the game against major interruptions." Interesting to see where they go from here on this.

Abdo said in Feb they`d be taking it to N.Z. but they hadn`t decided where. Great to see this announced on the same week we`ve had two sell-out games over there. There`s a real appetite for League in N.Z. Great choice Rotorua considered by many to be the Maori capital on N.Z. I expect this will sell-out in hours. I`m very excited about New Zealand, a lot of things seem to be coming together at the same time to make a big push into there. Not least the rise of the NZ national team and the opportunity for Kangaroos/Kiwis matches to fill the void left by the demise of the Bledisloe Cup. Three match Test series every year will be a blockbuster, could easily knock Origin of its` perch.

I find this figure quite incredible but my son assures me that the NRL is very popular on TicTok. NRL and TikTok partnership: An Australian first | NRL.com "The NRL are one of the leading sporting leagues on TikTok, joining others globally such as NBA, NFL and UEFA, and have almost 900k followers,” added Lee Hunter, General Manager of Tik Tok Australia & New Zealand. “TikTok has become a vibrant hub of sporting content for our billion users globally, including NRL fans looking for fresh content from the likes of Brian To'o, Kalyn Ponga, and Katelyn Vaha'akolo.

That whole quote is just the sort of statement - with an emphasis on the highlighted part - and I`ve that sort of thing on here several times, is just the sort of thing that coaches love to hang on dressing room walls. As someone who has been watching Pacific Tests for 30+ years, these aren`t the Pacific Island National teams of the past. Mock them at your peril.

And the second one rated over 3.1m could easily hit 3.2 once the 7 day consolidated figures come in. Also in the crowd at Perth : No less than 60 members of the touring England rugby union team — including coach Eddie Jones and assistant Anthony Seibold — attended Origin II ahead of their Test against the Wallabies at the same venue on Saturday night. “We were behind the goalposts, which gave us a really good perspective of the shapes and plays,” Seibold said when tracked him down during England training. “The players loved it. Guys like [fly-half] Marcus Smith were keen to watch Cameron Munster and Nathan Cleary and they were impressed. And Eddie, coming from NSW, was happy with the result.” Interesting that they obviously know of Munster and Cleary. I`d love to know what they really think of League when it is played at the highest level.

Yeah he`s getting a crash course, they had old SOO games on TV in the lunch room literally the whole day starting at 9.00 a.m. on Origin day. @gingerjon he follows soccer, I asked him : " isn`t that the game where England are really hopeless and have only won the World Cup once ? "

A 31 year old English bloke from Brighton has just started at our work, this is the work where one bloke dyed his hair blue and the place is currently festooned with SOO paraphernalia and it`s not uncommon for people to stand around in groups discussing League. I told him this was Rugby League territory and he gave me a blank look, I then asked him if he knew the difference between League and union and he replied " does one have seven players ? ". I think if he is going to remain in the valley he`s going to learn the difference pretty quickly.

To be fair though, I think your interest in crowds is probably because of the lack of any other metric to measure fan interest with. I used to have a similar obsession with NRL crowd numbers; recording them, predicting them, tallying them. Thankfully now with the abundance of TV viewing figures I don`t have to do that and really only have a passing interest as long as they appear to be holding up.

I think there is a very real danger that should the Kiwis continue their rise, win the WC and consistently knock off Oz, a three match Test series between Australia and New Zealand could easily become a permanent fixture on the Rugby League calendar that would have to be fitted in somewhere every year. In fact I could see it ultimately eclipsing SOO as the pinnacle event for Rugby League in this country. Players fighting it out in Origin for the right to face the Kiwis might bring back a bit of the fire that some say has gone out of Origin.

If that is the extent of our problems I think we`ll be alright.

I expect that by the time that becomes a problem the pathways coming out of the Pacific Island nations will be developed enough to ensure a much larger pool of players to choose from. A situation aided by the relatively high birth rates and young demographics of most Pacific nations..

Why wasn`t that game played in Papua New Guinea ? I`m sure the PNG Government would have under written it or even payed for TV production costs if that was the issue. 20 000 baying Papua New Guineans would have topped the whole thing off perfectly.

It was only a few years ago that the women kickers could rarely get the distance on kicks from the sideline, now they put them over regularly and last night we had a game which probably would have gone into extra time but for a sideline kick hitting the upright. I think it really is indicative how far the women`s game has come in such a short time.

And increasing by $500k each year for the next 5 years.

Sydney Morning Herald chief sports writer Andrew Webster says he has spoken recently to NRL CEO Andrew Abdo and says Abdo is determined that an annual end of year ( in non WC years ), one month international tournament, yes England are mentioned, will become a permanent fixture. @smh chief sports writer Andrew Webster revealed this morning the @NRL is potentially looking at an end of season international rugby league tournament. Listen below for more details on the idea. #NRL LISTEN | https://bit.ly/3bjyM5S .https://player.whooshkaa.com/episode?id=1011822

Couple of times recently I`ve seen posters remark the forum feels a bit flat lately. I reckon by the looks of those rep sides, especially Tonga and New Zealand, throw in the women`s and men`s Origin and if that doesn`t get the juices flowing then there`s no hope. What a four days we`ve got coming up.