World Cup in Doubt…Again

[RP London]

7 minutes ago, DI Keith Fowler said:

Do they mean might be denied entry back to Australia and New Zealand? I think as a minimum for hosting an international sporting tournament we'll be covered from our end in terms of allowing people in.

I would have thought there was an easy fix in terms of agreeing with the Australian govt that this was possible. should be relatively simple if the will was there to do it. 

[Chronicler of Chiswick]

Apparently parts of Queensland now going into lockdown.

[Jim from Oz]

3 hours ago, Spidey said:

Sorry to repeat The delay will have nothing to do with Covid or vaccines. The NRL value their trial games over the World Cup, they’ve said so. Nobody is really addressing that point. 

But only 34 players (those appearing in the final) will really face missing an (incredibly important! haha) trial game (as everyone else will be back much earlier, as their teams are knocked out) … and if England makes the final it will be even less NRL players who miss it.

If the RL World Cup is postponed for this reason, RL will become the greatest joke of a sport EVER !

[Jim from Oz]

17 minutes ago, RP London said:

I would have thought there was an easy fix in terms of agreeing with the Australian govt that this was possible. should be relatively simple if the will was there to do it. 

The huge Oz Olympic squad is about to go to Tokyo !!! So, as you say, it should be relatively simple if the will was there to do it. 

[Spidey]

8 minutes ago, Jim from Oz said:

If the RL World Cup is postponed for this reason, RL will become the greatest joke of a sport EVER !

Yes and it will be all down to the NRL

[gingerjon]

22 minutes ago, Chronicler of Chiswick said:

Apparently parts of Queensland now going into lockdown.

Brisbane is going into a three-day total lockdown, I believe, along with other areas (different lengths and severity)

[DoubleD]

I would be very reluctant to delay it - everything is setup for this year, so financially it would be awful, there would be no guarantee you’d be able to play in the same stadia, you’d be up against the football World Cup and there’s also no guarantee that covid situation will be better next year. There could be a new variant then which evades vaccines. 

It’s all about risk management and we need to learn to live with it. As others have said, if there’s a will, there’s a way. Plenty of international sport is ongoing now, albeit with some challenges but they can be overcome. 

[Spidey]

The easiest solution to all of this is to delay the start of the NRL next year to get their precious trial games in. Nothing has scheduled yet for the ‘22 season. That’s if they actually care about the World Cup

[RP London]

1 minute ago, Spidey said:

The easiest solution to all of this is to delay the start of the NRL next year to get their precious trial games in. Nothing has scheduled yet for the ‘22 season. That’s if they actually care about the World Cup

i disagree... the easiest solution is just to get on with it as it is and let some non international players have a chance in a trial match (which is surely what trial matches is there for, which of the youngsters and trialists are worthy of a contract rather than to see international players play again) and I bet is pretty much they way it would work anyway.. 

so for me.. business as usual rather than making a mountain out of a flat piece of land in Lincolnshire that hasn't seen a mole for 250 years. 

[Spidey]

Just now, RP London said:

i disagree... the easiest solution is just to get on with it as it is and let some non international players have a chance in a trial match (which is surely what trial matches is there for, which of the youngsters and trialists are worthy of a contract rather than to see international players play again) and I bet is pretty much they way it would work anyway.. 

so for me.. business as usual rather than making a mountain out of a flat piece of land in Lincolnshire that hasn't seen a mole for 250 years. 

Well yes. But that doesn’t seem to sit well for them. This would be the next best option. Delaying it for 12 months now would kill it dead. Especially for the weak reasons coming out from Australia. This isn’t the first time they’ve tried this. It stinks 

[Jim from Oz]

8 minutes ago, Spidey said:

Well yes. But that doesn’t seem to sit well for them. This would be the next best option. Delaying it for 12 months now would kill it dead. Especially for the weak reasons coming out from Australia. This isn’t the first time they’ve tried this. It stinks 

Yep, Totally agree. Come next year the NRL clubs will just try the same thing again. This is utter ###### from the NRL and they must not be allowed to get away with it

[RP London]

10 minutes ago, Spidey said:

Well yes. But that doesn’t seem to sit well for them. This would be the next best option. Delaying it for 12 months now would kill it dead. Especially for the weak reasons coming out from Australia. This isn’t the first time they’ve tried this. It stinks 

No thats true.. i was being slightly facetious to be honest... but i really cannot buy any of these excuses coming from Australia and they just need to get on with it. There are always injuries so if some want to stay at home so be it.. they always say they could win with a 2nd team or 3rd team so whats the problem now when that may be put to the test. 

[Damien]

1 hour ago, RP London said:

I would have thought there was an easy fix in terms of agreeing with the Australian govt that this was possible. should be relatively simple if the will was there to do it. 

Nail on head. I think this is the trouble though, there isnt.

[Dave T]

1 hour ago, gingerjon said:

Wrongly filed under rugby union: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/rugbyunion/article-9734539/Rugby-World-Cup-jeopardy-travel-fears-Australia-New-Zealand-prepare-WITHDRAW.html

They can have that one.

[RP London]

and the world T20 goes from India to the UAE and Oman.. no negative press because its properly Covid related... if that was the issue with us i don't think it would be... if teams are weaker due to positive tests etc nothing will be said I'm sure.. but to stop because teams just don't want to travel is where there is a "story to be had" for the press.

[Dave T]

9 minutes ago, RP London said:

and the world T20 goes from India to the UAE and Oman.. no negative press because its properly Covid related... if that was the issue with us i don't think it would be... if teams are weaker due to positive tests etc nothing will be said I'm sure.. but to stop because teams just don't want to travel is where there is a "story to be had" for the press.

And I think this is why we will see the noise from RLWC organisers about not being able to guarantee full grounds, when if that was the real reason they'd have cancelled it ages ago, as things are looking more positive than ever on that front.

But they will go into damage limitation mode and safe face with sponsors, broadcasters, the government etc.

What I find really frustrating is the impact this will have on so many people. This isn't just about he NRL clubs it will impact wheelchair players, women, officials, plus the many many players who do want to travel and are prepared to isolate if necessary. For once it would be good if we heard a real positive noise from that side of the world where they put the game first. For all the talk about how they are making an effort with the international game, they still #### about with WCC's every year, they put on half-assed tournaments, and are really only happy to support these nations if they can hire a field and give them a game in Sydney. Any more than that and we may as well forget it. 

[RP London]

3 minutes ago, Dave T said:

And I think this is why we will see the noise from RLWC organisers about not being able to guarantee full grounds, when if that was the real reason they'd have cancelled it ages ago, as things are looking more positive than ever on that front.

But they will go into damage limitation mode and safe face with sponsors, broadcasters, the government etc.

What I find really frustrating is the impact this will have on so many people. This isn't just about he NRL clubs it will impact wheelchair players, women, officials, plus the many many players who do want to travel and are prepared to isolate if necessary. For once it would be good if we heard a real positive noise from that side of the world where they put the game first. For all the talk about how they are making an effort with the international game, they still #### about with WCC's every year, they put on half-assed tournaments, and are really only happy to support these nations if they can hire a field and give them a game in Sydney. Any more than that and we may as well forget it. 

got to say i would be shocked if they use that as an excuse at the moment.. The noise generally is that we are back to full capacity on 19th July when "freedom day" (ffs who coined that!) allows for the lifting of restrictions. The off restriction may be there but mostly around mask wearing it sounds. 

Certainly from what we are hearing at work we will have to re jig some of our documents as the rules that we want to keep on (due to contact tracing etc) are going to be company rules rather than govt rules. 

If they use that excuse and then they lift restrictions that is when bad press will quickly ramp up. 

[Man of Kent]

Phil Caplan on the Forty20 podcast says we'll find out tomorrow. The RLPA (player union) is in favour of playing, it's the (unbelievably selfish) clubs who are kicking up a fuss.  

[Jim from Oz]

27 minutes ago, Man of Kent said:

Phil Caplan on the Forty20 podcast says we'll find out tomorrow. The RLPA (player union) is in favour of playing, it's the (unbelievably selfish) clubs who are kicking up a fuss.  

Then surely the players can tell the clubs to go get ####ed !!

[Dave T]

1 minute ago, Jim from Oz said:

Then surely the players can tell the clubs to go get ####ed !!

Players want it, fans want it, organisers want it, partners want it, broadcasters want it - we are ready to go, if the NRL clubs veto this it would be the worst thing to happen to the game in my lifetime. 

[DoubleD]

1 hour ago, Man of Kent said:

Phil Caplan on the Forty20 podcast says we'll find out tomorrow. The RLPA (player union) is in favour of playing, it's the (unbelievably selfish) clubs who are kicking up a fuss.  

That’s pleasantly surprising. If the players want it, that’s the biggest obstacle overcome IMO. Can’t see it not going ahead now. The clubs will get pulled in line rightly now

[The Future is League]

On 24/06/2021 at 22:54, Hela Wigmen said:

SMH states that NRL clubs want the World Cup moved to next year to counter the effects on players’ in pre-season after the amount of games they have played the past year or so. 

It seems that people in the know in the Southern Hemisphere seem to think the tournament is off but people up here seem to think it’s on. 

The NRL/ARL are really not interested in playing internationals. The be all and end all for them is SOO.

[Rupert Prince]

3 hours ago, Jim from Oz said:

The huge Oz Olympic squad is about to go to Tokyo !!! So, as you say, it should be relatively simple if the will was there to do it. 

Yes.  The Aussie Olympic Committee and their players WANT to go to the Olympics.

The NRL and it's players do not want to go to the Rugby League World Cup.

[RP London]

1 minute ago, Rupert Prince said:

Yes.  The Aussie Olympic Committee and their players WANT to go to the Olympics.

The NRL and it's players do not want to go to the Rugby League World Cup.

except....

1 hour ago, Man of Kent said:

Phil Caplan on the Forty20 podcast says we'll find out tomorrow. The RLPA (player union) is in favour of playing, it's the (unbelievably selfish) clubs who are kicking up a fuss.  

suggests that maybe the players do and that we should be more annoyed (if we have to be) with the clubs rather than the players

[Dunbar]

1 hour ago, Man of Kent said:

Phil Caplan on the Forty20 podcast says we'll find out tomorrow. The RLPA (player union) is in favour of playing, it's the (unbelievably selfish) clubs who are kicking up a fuss.  

 

3 minutes ago, Rupert Prince said:

The NRL and it's players do not want to go to the Rugby League World Cup.

Bit of mixed messaging here. Has anyone actually heard any quotes from any players.