Rugby League World Cup 2021 (Merged Threads)

[Big Picture]

10 minutes ago, Damien said:

At most NRL players make up the majority of players in 9 teams. Even many of those would have a smattering of players from elsewhere too.

I count ten: Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Tonga, Samoa, Cook Islands, Italy, Lebanon and Greece.  In addition antipodeans would probably make up half of the Ireland and Scotland teams.

[Damien]

12 minutes ago, Big Picture said:

I count ten: Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Tonga, Samoa, Cook Islands, Italy, Lebanon and Greece.  In addition antipodeans would probably make up half of the Ireland and Scotland teams.

Papua New Guinea aren't mainly NRL players.

[Tommygilf]

39 minutes ago, DC77 said:

Aussies and Kiwis who play for Aus and NZ is the same thing as the other Aussie and Kiwi born NRL based players who play for other nations. The NRL.com fella outlined this as being the major reason for their reluctance to go. With RU (wallabies) it’s just one group of players, likewise the Aussie Olympians all under the roof of one building, whereas with RL it’s a group of players who represent most (if not all?) the 16 teams in the competition who would be spread out and sharing facilities with the general public. Such a spread out group cannot be contained. In Australia they are taking such drastic measures that NZ players are stuck in Aus until Christmas.

Take the little Englander approach if you want, the Aussies ain’t bowing down to anyone.

Its not the same though is it. 

If the FA said we're boycotting the Qatar World Cup, players from or representing every other nation wouldn't be prevented from going.

I see you've taken the kidding yourself option.

[Big Picture]

10 minutes ago, Damien said:

Papua New Guinea aren't mainly NRL players.

That's splitting hairs, most of their non-NRL players play in the Queensland state league so they're susceptible to pressure from the NRL too.  Lebanon likewise has some players in the NSW state league and the same applies to them.

 

[Exiled Wiganer]

I suspect a bit of DNFTT is called for on this thread. 

[Davo5]

2 hours ago, Damien said:

You just sound like you are trolling now.

Or goes by the name of Gus 

[Damien]

18 minutes ago, Big Picture said:

That's splitting hairs, most of their non-NRL players play in the Queensland state league so they're susceptible to pressure from the NRL too.  Lebanon likewise has some players in the NSW state league and the same applies to them.

 

Just because you were wrong does not mean it's splitting hairs. It's the NRL that has caused issues because of their trial games. That said a good chunk of the PNG squad play for the Hunters and a fair few play in England, including their captain, and France. A minority play in the NRL.

[Big Picture]

1 hour ago, Damien said:

Just because you were wrong does not mean it's splitting hairs. It's the NRL that has caused issues because of their trial games. That said a good chunk of the PNG squad play for the Hunters and a fair few play in England, including their captain, and France. A minority play in the NRL.

Newsflash: the Queensland and NSW state leagues are affiliates of the NRL, and their seasons are aligned with the NRL season.  Did you not know that?

[Damien]

13 minutes ago, Big Picture said:

Newsflash: the Queensland and NSW state leagues are affiliates of the NRL, and their seasons are aligned with the NRL season.  Did you not know that?

Who cares? They did not sign any statement and haven't been mentioned throughout this whole saga. They are not top flight leagues. Again that does not change what I replied to or what you replied to, which was regarding NRL players. Aren't the Hunters owned by the PNG RL anyway? 

Look you tried to be smart, failed then moaned about splitting hairs when what you said was incorrect. The only person splitting hairs is the one trying to say its 10 and not 9. Now that is splitting hairs.

Edited August 10, 2021 by Damien

[DC77]

38 minutes ago, Damien said:

Who cares? They did not sign any statement and haven't been mentioned throughout this whole saga. They are not top flight leagues. Again that does not change what I replied to or what you replied to, which was regarding NRL players. Aren't the Hunters owned by the PNG RL anyway? 

Look you tried to be smart, failed then moaned about splitting hairs when what you said was incorrect. The only person splitting hairs is the one trying to say its 10 and not 9. Now that is splitting hairs.

They are under the NRL umbrella though.

I had a look on Wikipedia and counted nine Aus based PNG players (most in the lower league), half the squad. On a side note looking at their squad I was surprised that a team made up of quite a few lower league players were able to beat GB quite recently. 

Basically anyone who plays in Aus, their participation in the RlWC was compromised due to the measures Australia as a nation are taking towards this pandemic. Had they been where we are then yeah, the virus would have been a non issue with regard to playing. They aren’t though, the Kiwis not being able to get back to NZ before Christmas just an example of that. If they cannot get back home to NZ it’s a tad cheeky to expect them to travel halfway around the world. A town gets 100 cases in Aus they go berserk, here we have towns with 5k cases and everything is open. With the vaccine roll out here it’s a very different situation to Aus.

[LeeF]

2 hours ago, Exiled Wiganer said:

I suspect a bit of DNFTT is called for on this thread. 

Definitely and there is a track record

[Cumbrian Fanatic]

12 minutes ago, DC77 said:

They are under the NRL umbrella though.

I had a look on Wikipedia and counted nine Aus based PNG players (most in the lower league), half the squad. On a side note looking at their squad I was surprised that a team made up of quite a few lower league players were able to beat GB quite recently. 

Basically anyone who plays in Aus, their participation in the RlWC was compromised due to the measures Australia as a nation are taking towards this pandemic. Had they been where we are then yeah, the virus would have been a non issue with regard to playing. They aren’t though, the Kiwis not being able to get back to NZ before Christmas just an example of that. If they cannot get back home to NZ it’s a tad cheeky to expect them to travel halfway around the world. A town gets 100 cases in Aus they go berserk, here we have towns with 5k cases and everything is open. With the vaccine roll out here it’s a very different situation to Aus.

Its a tad cheeky telling them they can't go rather than asking their opinion on whether they want to, or are prepared to go

[Damien]

25 minutes ago, DC77 said:

They are under the NRL umbrella though.

I had a look on Wikipedia and counted nine Aus based PNG players (most in the lower league), half the squad. On a side note looking at their squad I was surprised that a team made up of quite a few lower league players were able to beat GB quite recently. 

Basically anyone who plays in Aus, their participation in the RlWC was compromised due to the measures Australia as a nation are taking towards this pandemic. Had they been where we are then yeah, the virus would have been a non issue with regard to playing. They aren’t though, the Kiwis not being able to get back to NZ before Christmas just an example of that. If they cannot get back home to NZ it’s a tad cheeky to expect them to travel halfway around the world. A town gets 100 cases in Aus they go berserk, here we have towns with 5k cases and everything is open. With the vaccine roll out here it’s a very different situation to Aus.

Talk about clutching at straws. Even the NRL or any representative never mentioned part time state leagues. This was all about 16 NRL clubs and their pre season trial games. Stop trying to change the facts to suit your opinion.

Aren't the Hunters owned by the PNG RL anyway? The players are the employees of the PNG RL and have nothing to do with the NRL. There is no player welfare nonsense that the NRL can use.

The rest of your post is just waffle where you are ignoring the facts that have been pointed out in the last 150 pages. You are even ignoring and not replying to where this nonsense has been pointed out to be false by people in the last couple of pages. Then the rather pointless line about. GB That is pure trolling.

[LeeF]

1 minute ago, Damien said:

Talk about clutching at straws. Even the NRL or any representative never mentioned part time state leagues. This was all about 16 NRL clubs and their pre season trial games. Stop trying to change the facts to suit your opinion.

Aren't the Hunters owned by the PNG RL anyway? The players are the employees of the PNG RL and have nothing to do with the NRL. There is no player welfare nonsense that the NRL can use.

The rest of your post is just waffle where you are ignoring the facts that have been pointed out in the last 150 pages. You are even ignoring and not replying to where this nonsense has been pointed out to be false by people in the last couple of pages. Then the rather pointless line about. GB That is pure trolling.

I don’t think it is an opinion more a stance to allow trolling 

[John Drake]

Quick note to all concerned in this thread.

If you think someone is a troll, put them on ignore. Never respond to them. At all. Ever. Certainly don't divert the thread into a discussion all about them, rather than the topic at hand.

There is nothing guaranteed more to annoy a genuine troll and drive them away than steadfastly ignoring them.

By using the ignore feature on here, you don't even have to see their posts at all, so ignoring them involves no effort of willpower.

However, it his worth pointing out that someone expressing a strong opinion contrary to your own does not, in itself, constitute trolling.

If the comment is on topic, and does not contain personal abuse or foul language, however annoying it might be to your sensibilities to read, it isn't really trolling and we cannot ban someone for it.

If you see any posts which are deliberately off topic, or do involve personal abuse, or attempts at foul language, then please report them. And as is always our advice, do not respond to them.

Now, back on topic.

Thanks.

[Jim from Oz]

21 hours ago, rlno1 said:

Great podcast here with IRL boss Troy Grant, talks about RLWC2021 and future of international RL

Explains alot to give us hope

https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/chasing-kangaroos-for-international-rugby-league-fans/id1441882710

OK I have now listened to this. Troy Grant comes across really well.

Some points:

* IRL is still hoping France will back 2025 RLWC but nothing confirmed. Incredibly, as of early 2020 there was NO bidder for this tournament, and it was Troy Grant's idea and initiative to take it up with the French.

* IRL is STILL working on the mythical 8-year international RL calendar and they hope it will be agreed to and released by year end. It will be condensed by one year in the 2022-25 period because of the 2021 RLWC postponement; it will also include the qualification pathways for the 2025 RLWC.

* The 2023 RL World Cup Nines is still "on track". No venue or date mentioned.

* IRL still hoping to increasingly commercialise and professionalise all their operations, but progress is slow.

* Most incredibly, Troy Grant and the entire RLWC board are ALL volunteers.

 

Edited August 11, 2021 by Jim from Oz

[tiffers]

On 09/08/2021 at 16:44, Big Picture said:

You have it a bit backwards there.  The International game can't generate profits for ILR and individual federations unless those Internationals become big events played by full time pros, and for that a league must first exist which can provide somewhere for full time pros from all the relevant countries to play.  Until that league does exist, there won't be any profitable Internationals other than those against Australia and New Zealand.

I have to say I disagree there. I think our lack of action on the field with regards to internationals has caused this huge gulf in quality, resources and indirectly weakened our game.

I firmly believe we need to be playing more internationals at all levels. If nothing else, it allows those countries to get a regular calendar and work at smaller levels with sponsors/corporates etc. This strategy builds longer term to generate consistency, stablility and provides a basis for growth to build revenues from. I dont think we need to be focused on filling huge grounds to start with (for most NH countries). Yes the comeptitions/games need to be profitable. But a minor profit for Greece or Italy that we would no doubt turn our noses up at in England, would go a long way to growing the game in that country. It could pay for new equipment for the amateur game or help finance the national teams to tour somewhere else and further monetise the international game. The key thing is that the expectations we set for England & French international revenues will be different to Serbia.

We have seen the results of inaction, unwillingness and snobbery from the top tier nations. We are at a tipping point for RL's international scene. We have to get more internationals rolling.

[The Future is League]

This seems a good proposal to me

https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/15816644/proposed-move-for-the-rescheduled-rugby-league-world-cup-revealed-after-2021-axe/

Edited August 11, 2021 by The Future is League

[Damien]

6 minutes ago, The Future is League said:

This seems a good proposal to me

https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/15816644/proposed-move-for-the-rescheduled-rugby-league-world-cup-revealed-after-2021-axe/

It would be the right thing to do but as we have seen it needs the NRL to agree and commit to that too. That commitment has to be firm in the event of covid causing issues with any future NRL schedule.

[The Future is League]

7 minutes ago, Damien said:

It would be the right thing to do but as we have seen it needs the NRL to agree and commit to that too. That commitment has to be firm in the event of covid causing issues with any future NRL schedule.

On the face of it the NRL would find it hard to disagree with it, but with them being so insular who knows

[Damien]

Money talks for the Australian cricketers anyway:

Some of Australia’s leading white-ball players, including resting stars Steve Smith, David Warner and Glenn Maxwell, are on course to tune up for the Twenty20 World Cup by returning to the IPL next month.

An obscure triangular T20 series between Australia, Afghanistan and the West Indies will be officially cancelled this week, allowing a dozen or more Australians to head to the UAE and finish the postponed IPL.

https://www.smh.com.au/sport/cricket/switch-hit-australian-stars-to-play-ipl-as-t20-world-cup-preparation-20210811-p58hw4.html

[DC77]

15 hours ago, Cumbrian Fanatic said:

Its a tad cheeky telling them they can't go rather than asking their opinion on whether they want to, or are prepared to go

The Kiwis cannot return home to NZ. It makes no sense to then say okay but you can travel 10k miles across the world. 

The Aussies have been very consistent with this. To ignore what is happening in Australia and only focus on what you think should happen is insular thinking. 

[Damien]

22 minutes ago, DC77 said:

The Kiwis cannot return home to NZ. It makes no sense to then say okay but you can travel 10k miles across the world. 

The Aussies have been very consistent with this. To ignore what is happening in Australia and only focus on what you think should happen is insular thinking. 

Kiwis can return to New Zealand. You seem to keep ignoring this.

Do not confuse the lack of concern for player welfare that the NRL have shown over the last 2 years to keep their competition going with what people are actually allowed to do.

[Griff]

21 hours ago, DC77 said:

.......a virus riddled island ........

And yet life carries on here as normally as it did eighteen months ago.

Astonishing how resiliant we are on the big island.

[Griff]

1 hour ago, The Future is League said:

This seems a good proposal to me

https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/15816644/proposed-move-for-the-rescheduled-rugby-league-world-cup-revealed-after-2021-axe/

To be fair, it's not rocket science.

Not really worthy of a detailed article in a national newspaper, even the Sun.

Why don't we just wait for the fixtures to be published?