The Rocket

There are about 80 000 Lebanese born Australian residents in Sydney and you could probably triple that if you include the 2nd and 3rd generation. There is a lot of money in the Lebanese community in Australia, they are a very entrepreneurial race, they maintain very close ties to their country of origin and they love Rugby League. The fact that such a small country with a relatively small immigrant base can assemble a World Cup standard Rugby League team speaks to both their involvement in the game and their passion for representing Lebanon. Lebanon is not that far from Turkey which has shown tremendous growth and interest in the game in recent years. I think I recall a post on here a while back about NRL being broadcast into Turkey with a Turkish speaking Rugby League commentator providing commentary. This may give it the opportunity for some form of representative schedule and we know how important this is. Lebanon is also I think a former colony of France and maintains close ties with that country. I saw Macron there the other day there talking about the rebuild. Perhaps Lebanon, a country of ~7 000 000 people could develop a competition similar to Serbia and then perhaps start to forge similar ties that that country is forging with France then why not. The passion that the local Australian Lebanese have for the game, their wealth and their strong ties with their home country would augur well for investment in the game in that country.

Updated Harvey Norman All Stars teams - NRL Can`t wait for this, gets bigger and bigger each year. Would love to see this as a month long celebration of both indigenous Maori and Aboriginal culture where ever it is held. Great thing about this is that they can take it anywhere, even across the ditch or afl states. No other sport in Oz has anything or could hold anything like it. Other big news: 30 days to NRL kick-off.

Great work mate. You`re making a lot of little Rugby League fans for life.

Yeah the fine is fantastic news and none of this `$25 000` suspended nonsense, 3 games is odd but it`s going to hurt especially being the opening rounds. The talk on the news was that amount is the maximum under the current NRL rules but they are looking to increase it substantially. I heard Andrew Abdo interviewed and he said that if the NRL are going to be a major sport in this country then players are going to have to behave accordingly. I think the only way to make these blokes think twice before they do something stupid is if they know it`s going to cost them mega-dollars. $10-20 000 fines are peanuts for these kids on $500-800 000. $100 000 will make them think twice. I think this image thing is one of the last great hurdles holding the game back in this country, a bit if fresh-air from these scandals will give the detractors of the game a lot less ammunition, should really help us expand our sponsorship base and make the game more appealing to a much wider proportion of the population. For the first time in a long I feel like we have an administration that is actually going to do something about this player behaviour issue. I live in hope.

Well said Graham.

Headline in the `Australian` newspapers sport section yesterday. 'Players costing NRL millions of dollars." According to Brent Read of the Australian, Payne Haas`s outburst at police and particularly his foul-mouthed abuse directed at a young female police officer. has lead to a prominent Hardware chain walking away from a multi-million sponsorship deal with the NRL. Haas`s actions were the last straw for the potential sponsor after a couple of weeks of bad headlines. Bunnings hardware chain were the likely suitor as they already have large sponsorship deals with the afl and cricket. Bunnings run a series of `tailor-made` advertisements for those sports with their employees using cricket and afl jargon and mimicking the actions of those sports as they do their work. I was grumbling to my son recently why doesn`t League have a deal with them as well. Turns out they might have had. There goes x-millions that the other codes will have for development that we won`t have because of the bone-headed actions of a few players. Graham if there was one thing that would make me walk away from the game it`s these repeated incidents, I just find it so infuriating. Expect a massive crack-down by Vlandy`s and Abdo, but if they are actually game enough to start suspending high-profile stars, we`ll have to wait and see. Because until they do that I just don`t see anything changing.

I saw the same thing, in fact I once saw Jamie Soward quoted as saying that when he played under Griffin at Penrith they had the most conservative game plans he had ever experienced in his life. This corresponds with claims that Griffin is seen as too `old school` by many, I think even Gould said that about him, yesterdays man type thing. One other thing, wasn`t there some stink a while back where Griffin was linked to some ultra-conservative political group in Queensland, I know it sprung to my mind when it was said that he was so keen to get Folau and quite willing to overlook Folau`s indiscretions on social media. Not 100% sure on that one though.

Taped applause at the snooker..priceless. The mob that did the fake crowd noise for the NRL got so good at it over here that by the end of the season they had fake hecklers and all. My sons and I had a good old laugh watching one crowdless game on TV when during a hold up in play we distinctly heard someone yell " Get on with it !!". A dedicated " Get on with it " button on the fake crowd noise console. In the NRL TV broadcast income makes about 75% of total income in a normal year, the only thing I can compare it with is the afl where I heard it was once 50%, although I saw an article last week stating it currently makes up about 65%, still reflecting however their larger crowds and higher sponsorship.

G`day Graham, Figures released by the NRL this week show the code only lost $16m during this pandemic affected year. This is well short of the predicted $100`s of millions that was being bandied around as a possible figure when the game was halted in March. It was reported that several more clubs than usual actually finished in the Black due to belt tightening and the increased NRL Grants. I Imagine this means that the $130m that the NRL had in the Bank before the shutdown would largely remain in tact. It was reported the game lost over $100m in decreased revenue for the year but this was somewhat offset by V`landys deal with the Betting Agencies extracting more revenue, by them having to pay an extra fee for the right to place bets on the big League events like SOO, Finals. The extra revenue was said to amount to more than $10m dollars and did not include SOO1 as the arrangement was only put in place after it had taken place. For the code to only lose $16m when all the talk was $300m-$400m during the pandemic is absolutely fantastic ,especially when you consider all the extra costs that would have been incurred, this augurs very well for the future running of the games finances under the guidance of V`landy`s and Abdo. This does not even include V`landy`s famous ability, a reputation he has achieved running NSW Racing, from extracting maximum Financial help from Governments. The first inklings of which we are beginning to see in the negotiations around Stadium renewal and the right to host the Grand Final.

So no more Warriors. Just as long as he stays at the Storm this year and continues to learn his craft, I think Hughes at halfback for the Kiwis is essential if they are to realise their full potential at the WC. It absolutely blows me away how that bloke manufactures players down there.

I believe it was something similar with Women`s soccer in Japan. What was it about these two countries that allowed women`s soccer to take off. Perhaps part of it was that soccer was seen as being a bit of an `un-manly` sport and therefore not the preserve of largely `men-only`. Personally though, I think that soccer probably gave women in those countries a game that allowed them to express their physicality in a way that `small` court sports don`t. I`ve watched a bit of it over the last couple of years, the W-League our national Women`s comp is broadcast on the ABC. There is an openness and freshness to it that I found enjoyable, I recall even remarking to my sons that what a great sport for women especially given the bonus that some of the girls in the Women`s comp have played in different Leagues around the world. What a great experience. But back on track that `freshness and openness` is reminiscent of the women`s Rugby League this year, not bogged down like the men`s game can be, can`t put my finger on why or what is the difference though. I do know in the women`s game you do see that style of tackling that you see in kids footy, where they aren`t quite game enough to go head first into the tackle and tend to make that old kids move of arms wrapped around your opponents waist, head held clear and drag them down through being a dead weight. Not sure if I`m making myself clear there. I am sure that is not the only difference though. I suppose a lot of it is that old joy de vivre of the beauty and enjoyment of the running game and open spaces., probably what the American women get out of soccer. This is where I suppose Oztag/League Tag can offer something similar, I agree that getting into the education system, anywhere for that matter, basically where it is almost compulsory for kids to play, not sure whether it`s the same in your part of the world but kids over here by and large have to participate in a sport at school, at least great if it`s on offer, is ideal. Whether Pedant it does take a life of its` own is something we can`t worry too much about, I suppose ties can be maintained and developed and an invitation to our WC would be a good starter. One last thing on this topic though which I guess is related, there has been a push from within the NRRRL, that`s the group above Group 3 where I live, by some of the women in their 8 team League Tag comp to abandon that comp and form a 4 team women`s tackle comp. Coincidentally I spoke to one of the guys involved in running our local comp yesterday and asked him if he knew what was going on, he agreed with me that why would you give up an 8 team comp and replace it with a 4 team comp but obviously some of the girls in the League Tag want the extra physicality, I assume, that tackle offers. There has been no resolution so far as he knew, but it is an insight into how the game may evolve overseas if the non-contact versions take off first. Hope fully one will lead to the other.

I`ve been reading a book called `Why the West Rules......for now` by Ian Morris, which I`ve seen widely quoted in other books and even his ideas mentioned in documentaries. It has been called a `modern day classic`. One of the theories he pursues is the idea that the city/state started in Mesopotamia and migrated to Egypt then Greece etc as the different geographical advantages of those places had suited the further development economically of larger and larger cities. His theory is fundamentally that a theory or concept, be it cities or capitalism may originate in one area but may shift to other areas as other factors in that area may be more conducive to its development. The home of capitalism shifting from Britain to the U.S. being another example. It got me thinking whether the same theory could be applied to how Rugby League was taken from its` birthplace in the north of England planted in Australia and why it has been so much more successful. Applying Morris`s theory a possible solution that I came up with was because League was planted over here 100+ years ago when Oz was largely a nation of the working class the game has been taken up into the middle classes by those same families as their children gained an education and moved into the professions as well as still being a game of more manual professions, i.e. there was a more conducive environment for the game to grow over here out of its` working class roots. This combined with being such a rapidly growing and spreading country. Funny enough that same upward push of League has probably led to union being pushed further into more areas that are solely the reserve of those who considered themselves the `upper class `originally. A very small percentage of the population. Got me thinking where is the next growth spurt or area more conducive to League`s growth going to occur. I can`t help but think that it will be those areas that embrace the low contact forms of our game as being the most important form of the game. The Tackle version will spring from that but not be the dominant form of the game. Maybe that could be Asia who knows. Coinciding with that was the ARLC announcing today that a big funding push to be announced soon for grassroots boys and girls Tackle League and for Touch and Tag League as well. Great to see their high up on the agenda as well. According to Morris`s theory there may be reasons why a good idea may not expand to its` full potential or hit a ceiling, in one region, now whether Touch and Tag will ever really take off in our countries where it maybe seen a Tackle `lite`, and not really suitable for grown men but potentially in new regions be it Asia, Africa whatever, it may not meet the same resistance. If any Touch/Tag players make it this far, I mean no offence.

Lovely post Wiltshire and Happy New Year to you as well. Yes I certainly know that name and without googling it didn`t he play forever as well, started out in Oz or something, any way I`ll look that up later. One other thing about that photo that struck me was where was the person taking the photograph, it is an exceptionally clear picture and the angle is odd. Don`t know much about photography I suppose it just must have been taken with a telescopic (?) lense from the stands on the other side of the field. Otherwise the camera man would have had to been on the field. Just went back and had another look. Looks like it may have been Mr. Boston involved in a victory lap or some such and not a photo of him having just scored a try like I initially thought. Anyway interesting to speculate. Enjoy the rest of your day, Rocket.

G`day Harrogate, I`ve been back a few times now to have a look at the footage you posted of X-League being played on what looks like a tennis court, I also searched high and low for the post where you describe the rules of X-League but have been unable to find it, Pedant gives one clue away below about the touch being on the ball, and I think you mention kicking somewhere as well. Couple of things, firstly I assume the game could be scaled up so that more than three players per side could be accommodated, is that so, and perhaps if you could refer to me something to get a better handle on the rules. You explain very comprehensively above where you are coming from in trying to set a `Touch` competition that is not automatically associated with English Rugby union on the one hand and yet your desire to avoid the prohibitively expensive costs associated with a TTR franchise for your participants on the other, especially in what is a bit of fun on a weeknight. I suppose the RLF are in a bind here because they can`t subsidise the costs of shorts and tags for Rugby League clubs like yourself because they are affiliated with the TTR franchise system and they TTR I gather are making money out of selling that kit. And having read the TTR franchise promotion you posted earlier it is depressingly `rugby this` and `rugby that`, honestly it sounded like one great big promotion for union to me. Do you ultimately consider X-League to be to be English Rugby Leagues` long term competitor with England Rugby`s domination of the Touch competitions, would that be your ultimate goal, you did mention that you are having a WC in November and have RFL backing., and what are their plans with X-League, is it being encouraged at other clubs. I read somewhere here the other day about Coventry`s popular Touch and Tag competitions, I wonder who they are aligned with. It would seem to me that the RFL, IRL even the ITFF all need to sit down and plan a comprehensive strategy of what needs to be played and where.

I had been pondering this very observation the last couple of days following the article on the `International Rugby League` Thread about the success and positivity that surrounded the recent IRL backed event in India. I posted my thoughts on that thread just now and are an echo of and an expansion on the advantages that may accrue of presenting Rugby League in a `contact/non-contact package` in new markets. It does open another interesting angle of this debate though, especially given I know that you consider `Touch` Rugby League to be lost cause in your part of the world. I will touch on it briefly here in that the big advantage that touch does have over other forms of non-contact is its` potential to be played as a `casual` version of our game given the lack of equipment required. Thoughts.

Palmerston North teen on the path to playing in the NRL | Stuff.co.nz 16 year old Maraki Aumua signed by the North Queensland Cowboys to a six year contract after being spotted at a u16`s Touch tournament in New Zealand. Plenty of time to convert that Touch talent into a tackle League player. I think that Rugby League could really start to see the benefits of investment in the non-contact versions of our game as illustrated by the above example. Very exciting.

It really does have everything, the kid in short pants, flat caps, men in ties and jackets, horn-rimmed glasses like your Grandfather used to wear, but the thing that first struck me was the body shape of the player and he doesn`t look particularly young either, my first thoughts were that he was the referee !

We have here the perfect case study of how a stronger association with Rugby League could benefit the game. I note that `Wakefield Ram` says that "quite a few (are) RL fans", this implies that many of the participants are not, a closer association with RL, active promotion by RL, special ticketing offers for participants and their families to attend RL matches is the sort of thing we should be aiming for. At that venue, everytime they play we have potential Rugby League recruits, fans and otherwise, who already enjoy playing a version of our game. This should be the case across the whole country and beyond. Wakefield, I know you are obviously Old School, but two things, maybe you can be the one who starts calling it ` Tag Rugby League` so everyone knows what they are playing and two, good luck with that over 55`s rep team. Loved your post.

If you attended a Tag/Touch tournament in Oz with literally thousands of participants and thousands more attending to watch, the majority wearing jumpers with their Touch/Tag logo on one breast and the Rugby League club they are affiliated with on the other breast you might get a better appreciation of the value of these non-contact versions of our sport have in attracting new fans. As I posted recently a tournament recently held in Coffs Harbour was won by a team of Vietnamese Australians, not a demographic that is overly represented in Tackle League but I bet are much more likely to attend a RL game and buy RL merchandise if they know from where the sport they play originates from and are backed by a Rugby League Club. After watching a bit of Touch and Tag on television lately I would even go as far as saying given the quality of the entertainment I saw, I would not be surprised that potentially that as these competitions mature they may have some broadcast rights value in themselves. As you say "accessibility" is the key, but there will always be, as in most sports, those individuals who will want to take it further, put together representative teams and play in large tournaments and/or representative matches. Rugby League must be associated with them. P.S. when you say `pro rugby team`, what does that mean League ....Union ..what ?

These two quotes deserve rereading in the context of the " Adult Participation in Sports Survey ". BTW, LLT is Ladies League Tag, 13 a side, full sized pitch all the rules of Tackle League but no tackle.

Slightly unrelated, in 1974, the ABC, our national broadcaster, sent a 23 year old journalist Shaun Dorney, not long out of his cadetship and up for a challenge, to Papua New Guinea as Australia`s foreign correspondent. The beginning of a life long love affair with that country and region. He had been half back for his university team in Townsville and started playing RL up there in New Guinea and ended up getting picked for the National team. Played for the Kumuls for two years ,1975-6, and was given the captainship for his last game There was some great photos of him on the team bus with the Kumuls in the paper a couple of years ago which I unfortunately couldn`t find. I bring it up because you were speculating about how a white fella could end up in a New Guinea team. Dorney married a local girl had two kids and served there until 2014. He tragically passed away of Motor Neuron disease a couple of years ago.

Send this in. Your first testimonial !

Not wounded at all, perhaps more surprised, and the offending post was far from gentle to neither Cockneys or Australians. But I`ll leave it there, that`s O.k. Good night.

And this is why my friend you must get together with someone more tech-savvy than yourself (your words) and put together a CD or whatever you put these things on (I am as tech-savvy as you) of exactly everything you have been talking about and you can show plenty of highlights from the different League Tag competitions and send to the relevant people at the different clubs. There has been some wonderful promos for different clubs on here recently, York, Coventry, Newcastle and all the other clubs you mention with plenty of contact numbers etc., plus importantly send one to the RFL. I hesitatingly refer to you as friend as I read your post on " rat faced Cockney oiks " and Australians a couple of days ago. Not quite sure where that came from, very strange. I don`t like Victorians and I mock Tasmanians and Queenslanders and even Poms sometimes, but Pedant, that attack was beyond the pale. Anyway it`s good to know exactly how you feel about Australians, I won`t forget. One thing that has struck me about this forum is the antipathy felt by some, it appears only some, to Australians, I don`t quite understand where that comes from, I have met quite a few English people over the years, gone camping and to the League with Pommy backpackers and they always struck me as being not much different to ourselves. Anyway it`s all very interesting.

This difference that you talk about between the two, is that due to the fact that Tag requires the removal of the Tag which is more difficult than the simple `touch`, hence the `pinging` it around in Touch to avoid approaching defenders. The difficulty in removing the tag also aided by what you describe as the `hip-swivelling evasion techniques`. I imagine this is why it is easier to make breaks in Tag as mentioned by a poster on here recently. Last weekend or possibly the weekend before they had the semi-finals of a W.A. womens touch tournament on NITV here, looked awfully like full field with either 7 or 9 players per team. Had an interesting rule where the player couldn`t score from dummy half, but where several times the dummy half would find themselves in the in-goal frantically looking for an unmarked teammate to plant the ball. Led to some very dramatic finishing with players catching and diving to plant the ball before they were touched. The whole thing was a great advertisement for the sport in that `afl rusted on state`. The numbers you quoted in the Monarch Blues competition are mind boggling and the success of the touch/tag competitions in Auckland likewise, it`s interesting when you talk about the revenue raising potential of such ventures, I think it would be wise for all RL clubs to head down the path of health, fitness, well being centres for their communities, the money raised isn`t going to fund a first grade team but could be awfully handy even just expanding in their own areas. I exchanged emails with the young lady who runs the community programmes at Coventry Bears recently, she talked about the success of their Touch/Tag competition and other community programmes they have run, ` fitness in the park`, fun-runs and community bike rides. They also do a weekly podcast featuring local musicians, very innovative. I suggested they might try involving local comedians, the afl have done a masterful job over here enlisting several very high profile comics to their cause, they even have a programme which combines afl news with comedy which rates exceedingly well, it`s called ` The Front Bar`. The whole thing was very interesting and she was keen to know what my interest in League was, I told her I was just a fan from Oz and encouraged to have a read of our TTRL thread on this forum. Always spreading the word. I find the problem when talking to most people about these things is that they are familiar with Touch and Tag but League Tag is to many an undiscovered and unnamed species , it makes it difficult, especially when to us, the initiated, see it as that obvious missing evolutionary link between the different RL creatures.