Rugby League World Cup 2021 (Merged Threads)

[Damien]

Just now, Henson Park Old Firm said:

This reminds me of the Super League War

 

Some of the antics are very reminiscent. 

[DavidM]

The more that comes out from down there the more you see COVID is a convenient excuse . 

[redjonn]

33 minutes ago, Hela Wigmen said:

Given how many cases there’s been in Super League and subsequent cancellations, I can see why they’d want no part of the competition unless plenty of conditions were met. We’re told they were met, which is then disappointing that they’ve then made this decision and even more frustrating that they gave four minutes notice and didn’t consult their players. 

I would tend to agree that SL covid cancellations/postponements would be a key observation. If SL clubs had been much stricter in containing the risk however difficult for the players that would surely have been a more positive observation.

In the world cup for a period surely the players would be cocooned to a better degree but difficult to show that when SL players seemed to so easily pick up covid.

Could use magic weekend to demonstrate how covid risk would be mitigated by  having the players effectively protected/quarantined to a degree to ensure no problems for that weekend.. 

If any games are effected at the Magic weekend then I would have more sympathy  with the Aussies.

[FearTheVee]

Those NRL players that come out and play for their nations should be treated with enormous respect - as they will have done so despite pressure from their clubs to pick up a "knock" or blame Covid concerns for not travelling.

Those who would have played for Oz/NZ and opt to play for other countries to participate in a WC should be given a hero's reception - as it will be they who best encapsulate the hollow "player protection" excuse that is being pushed by the ARLC and NZRL.

My concern is that the arrangement of alternative Australia / NZ internationals at the time of the WC is designed specifically to combat this risk and will ensure that we don't see the players representing other nations.  I could even see the Australians picking an unusually large squad and naming three different teams in such a series just to spite the IRL - it's their style.

[Allora]

Just out of interest has anyone listened to the latest podcast of BBC 5 Live?
It was said that the New Zealand team would be sharing accomodation with general members of the pubic if they toured and were sharing Gym facilities with all and sundry walk ins.

I do not know if that is true but if it is it’s hardly any sort of safe bubble where you would feel safe.

Just saying.

 

[JohnM]

22 minutes ago, Henson Park Old Firm said:

This reminds me of the Super League War

 

Yes. It's nothing more than a crude power-grab by a couple of old men in their declining years. 

[Rupert Prince]

43 minutes ago, Hela Wigmen said:

They’ve never seriously debated Origin in England. 

And we should not seriously debate Origin in Australia. 

[Hela Wigmen]

2 minutes ago, Rupert Prince said:

And we should not seriously debate Origin in Australia. 

Up to you. I’ll happily continue watching it and talking about it, thanks. 

[Scubby]

8 minutes ago, Allora said:

Just out of interest has anyone listened to the latest podcast of BBC 5 Live?
It was said that the New Zealand team would be sharing accomodation with general members of the pubic if they toured and were sharing Gym facilities with all and sundry walk ins.

I do not know if that is true but if it is it’s hardly any sort of safe bubble where you would feel safe.

Just saying.

 

Who were saying this, official WC co-ordinators?

[Rupert Prince]

21 minutes ago, redjonn said:

I would tend to agree that SL covid cancellations/postponements would be a key observation. If SL clubs had been much stricter in containing the risk however difficult for the players that would surely have been a more positive observation.

In the world cup for a period surely the players would be cocooned to a better degree but difficult to show that when SL players seemed to so easily pick up covid.

Could use magic weekend to demonstrate how covid risk would be mitigated by  having the players effectively protected/quarantined to a degree to ensure no problems for that weekend.. 

If any games are effected at the Magic weekend then I would have more sympathy  with the Aussies.

This is now, not October.

And remember all this pinging stuff is not that all those pinged have been infected, just that they keep in quarantine just in case.

[JohnM]

This action is clearly proof that New Zealand is a client state. 

"A client state is a state that is economically, politically, or militarily subordinate to another more powerful state (termed controlling state in this article) in international relations. "

[Eddie]

1 hour ago, Hela Wigmen said:

Given how many cases there’s been in Super League and subsequent cancellations, I can see why they’d want no part of the competition unless plenty of conditions were met. We’re told they were met, which is then disappointing that they’ve then made this decision and even more frustrating that they gave four minutes notice and didn’t consult their players. 

I thought that at the start, but as their Union team are coming over in the autumn it’s blatantly nowt to do with their government’s concerns about Covid.   

[The Art of Hand and Foot]

Sorry if I'm repeating a question, couldn't see it in the 37 pages, but are Australia and new Zealand sending teams to the Olympics? If covid is such a threat then surely the same must apply for Tokyo!?

[wilsontown]

The Guardian today giving more coverage of RL than I've seen for years. Well done everyone.

[Hela Wigmen]

4 minutes ago, Eddie said:

I thought that at the start, but as their Union team are coming over in the autumn it’s blatantly nowt to do with their government’s concerns about Covid.   

I don’t know what package or health and safety conditions the Union side have requested or had agreed, so it’s difficult to compare. That said, the organisers of the World Cup have said that they had agreed things with Australia, so it’s disappointing that it seems to have fallen through and/or not satisfied their needs and desires. 

[sweaty craiq]

 

[Tommygilf]

29 minutes ago, Allora said:

Just out of interest has anyone listened to the latest podcast of BBC 5 Live?
It was said that the New Zealand team would be sharing accomodation with general members of the pubic if they toured and were sharing Gym facilities with all and sundry walk ins.

I do not know if that is true but if it is it’s hardly any sort of safe bubble where you would feel safe.

Just saying.

They'd be using Headingley's Leeds Beckett Uni Gym facilities. These are used by pro athletes all the time, for example Leeds United used them for their first days back in preseason a couple of weeks ago an England RL in a mid season training session perfectly well in a bio secure way. Indeed I believe the kiwis have been there regularly before 

It is a huge professional campus with multiple facilities within it. Asking them to close all of it down to anyone who is not the 30 odd man Kiwi travelling team would be unreasonable. Likewise hotels, what are they actually expecting beyond what everyone else says is acceptable?

Its all conjecture anyway, I hope those trial games are good!

[FearTheVee]

Just now, Tommygilf said:

They'd be using Headingley's Leeds Beckett Uni Gym facilities. These are used by pro athletes all the time, for example Leeds United used them for their first days back in preseason a couple of weeks ago an England RL in a mid season training session perfectly well in a bio secure way. Indeed I believe the kiwis have been there regularly before 

It is a huge professional campus with multiple facilities within it. Asking them to close all of it down to anyone who is not the 30 odd man Kiwi travelling team would be unreasonable. Likewise hotels, what are they actually expecting beyond what everyone else says is acceptable?

Its all conjecture anyway, I hope those trial games are good!

The reality is it is very easy to place such unreasonable demands on player treatment as to render the competition unworkable.

To be fair to them though, all of the hospitalisation and deaths of young professional athletes due to Covid shows that it just can't possibly be risked due to the enormous health risks.  Hang on a minute . . . . 

[Futtocks]

15 minutes ago, JohnM said:

This action is clearly proof that New Zealand is a client state. 

"A client state is a state that is economically, politically, or militarily subordinate to another more powerful state (termed controlling state in this article) in international relations. "

A client state under the thumb of a bunch of small-time yokels, to boot.

[Dr Tim Whatley]

19 minutes ago, The Art of Hand and Foot said:

Sorry if I'm repeating a question, couldn't see it in the 37 pages, but are Australia and new Zealand sending teams to the Olympics? If covid is such a threat then surely the same must apply for Tokyo!?

They care about the Olympics though.

[Allora]

38 minutes ago, Scubby said:

Who were saying this, official WC co-ordinators?

The reporter who asked the head of NZ Rugby League

[Allora]

13 minutes ago, Tommygilf said:

They'd be using Headingley's Leeds Beckett Uni Gym facilities. These are used by pro athletes all the time, for example Leeds United used them for their first days back in preseason a couple of weeks ago an England RL in a mid season training session perfectly well in a bio secure way. Indeed I believe the kiwis have been there regularly before 

It is a huge professional campus with multiple facilities within it. Asking them to close all of it down to anyone who is not the 30 odd man Kiwi travelling team would be unreasonable. Likewise hotels, what are they actually expecting beyond what everyone else says is acceptable?

Its all conjecture anyway, I hope those trial games are good!

So you are saying there was no isolation bubble at all?

Maybe that is why the Kiwis were worried?

I am neither for or against what has happened but some of the mad rubbish posted on this site in the last two days makes you wonder.

[Allora]

23 minutes ago, The Art of Hand and Foot said:

Sorry if I'm repeating a question, couldn't see it in the 37 pages, but are Australia and new Zealand sending teams to the Olympics? If covid is such a threat then surely the same must apply for Tokyo!?

They are in total isolation.

The arenas are empty.

Have you ever heard of the term Apples and Apples?

[Allora]

I love to make you laugh DKR, it makes my day mate

I mean DKW

[Allora]

Sharing a Gym with all and sundry hardly makes it any sort of Bubble at all.

Many Players from the Pacific Islands will not get a Vaccine where does that leave them in a Public Gym and Hotel with 40-50k cases a day?
Just playing Devils Advocate.