Potential Of Women`s Rugby League.

[gingerjon]

29 minutes ago, Scubby said:

Hopefully it will be treated differently in France 2027. However, I am comfortable with it being at the same venue this year - especially as it will be blanket coverage on the BBC all day. As with the 2013 WC the crowd will come early and it will be a tremendous occasion.

Saying that, anyone who watches the NRLW regularly will know what is coming at the WC. In my opinion it will be 1982 all over again with Australia absolutely slaughtering anyone outside NZ.

England will not stay within 50 points of Australia - too big, too strong, too fast. The conveyer belt of talent coming through in Australia now is frightening. Of course the upside is it raises the bar.

Yes, the bonuses are that the BBC will give it a very high profile.

And I think the skills that Australia and New Zealand will bring will silence any and all doubters.

I will be positive about it when the time comes but my frustration about it is genuine.

[Scubby]

1 minute ago, gingerjon said:

Yes, the bonuses are that the BBC will give it a very high profile.

And I think the skills that Australia and New Zealand will bring will silence any and all doubters.

I will be positive about it when the time comes but my frustration about it is genuine.

I think the fact that the World Cup was confirmed a few years ago (and we are talking about this now) shows just how far the women's game is accelerating.

What a coincidence that Australia suddenly see huge value in it now it can boost their TV deals in the future! It is a very exciting game to watch and a unique style in its own right. It is rating higher than other mainstream sports on Aus TV.

Sadly, the RFL really don't how to manage the women's game here. They certainly won't know how to monetise it.

[Stirlin]

The enthusiasm from Tara Stanley bodes well for the Knights ladies........

 

WOMEN'S rugby league remains in an embryonic phase but anyone doubting the dedication and professionalism of its players has clearly never met Tara Stanley.

The England international was the latest player to depart Castleford Tigers Women for York City Knights Ladies during the off-season and has quickly settled into her new club, both on and off the field.

Stanley bagged five tries on her York debut at Dewsbury Moor and played a starring role in the victory over Wigan Warriors, as the Knights set up a Betfred Challenge Cup quarter-final tie with Oulton Raidettes on Sunday (2pm).

 

Off the field though, Stanley is also making a keen impact in her first season with the Knights.

"The coaching staff here are amazing and they will do anything for you," hailed Stanley.

“I’ve messaged a fair few of them at a ridiculous time of night saying ‘I want to do this at training tomorrow’ and they’ve said ‘Okay, we’ll sort it.’

“It’s a professional environment and that’s what I thrive off.

 

“I do reflect on my games a lot, probably more than Lindsay (Anfield, director of rugby) would like me to.

"In one session, my kicks weren’t going right and I messaged Callum (Windley), the assistant coach, that night, saying ‘I need to work on this’.

“If there’s ever a Super League game on TV, I’ll say to myself ‘Watch him, and do it like him’.

“I’m always on the ball with rugby, I live and breathe it. Sometimes I do need to chill out a bit", laughed Stanley.

Even just two matches into her York career, it is evident that Stanley has quickly become of the side's senior players. Anyone who watched the number one in the Knights' 46-0 win over Wigan last month could attest to the vocal leadership skills that the former Woman of Steel nominee possesses.

“I watched York last season and had conversations with Lindsay at the back end of the year, and we spoke about taking my full-back game up a notch," revealed Stanley.

“Full-back is an authoritative position and you’re telling people where to go. I expect people to listen to me and if they don’t, I’ll have something to say about it.

“The position I play in allows me to have that leadership from the back.

“I have got the England caps, but I don’t think it matters what someone has previously done, it’s about what they do there and then on the field.”

Stanley and co. return to the LNER Community Stadium this weekend in what will be their first standalone fixture at the ground.

The move by the club is a continuation of its backing of the Ladies ever since last year's major recruitment drive in players and backroom staff.

“It was a big shock when Lindsay told us, it was a massive surprise," admitted Stanley. "We’re chuffed that the club are doing what they do for the men, for us, which I don’t think any other club has done.

“The club are really making an event of this. In the women’s game, even though there’s been massive improvements in how it was, it tends to be that we’d be before the men’s game or afterwards.

“Now we’re a standalone event with people willing to pay to come and watch us and make a day of it, which is what we want.

“We want to show the fans what we’ve been working on and we’ll have such a good stage to show them what we’re all about."

Having been edged out in last year's Cup final, Stanley did not hide from her desire to see York go one better in 2022.

 

“I want to win everything with York," Stanley bluntly added. "It’s massive that we put on a performance and we get to the final and put another strong performance then.”

[gingerjon]

21 minutes ago, ShropshireBull said:

The same way to monetize the men´s international tournaments with other home nations. Think the womens game is perfect for a 9´s roadshow which avoids blowout scores and creates a new product we can take to different markets whilst actually giving a reason for people who aren´t english to play the game. 

https://www.rugby-league.com/article/36919/womens-nines-–-a-new-competition-in-the-rugby-league-calendar

[theswanmcr]

7 hours ago, gingerjon said:

I don't know if 30,000-40,000 is realistic but the match is devalued by being the curtain raiser on a double header. It should have been played as a standalone game.

It's pretty much the only bit of tournament scheduling I think they got completely wrong.

I think they got it perfectly right 3/4 years ago. It’s just that the woman’s game has come on enormously in that time - especially down under.

So yes there’s an argument it could be sold as a high-quality event on its own now but not when the schedule was made. 

Either the way the fact we’re even thinking along those lines is a huge shift and bodes well for France where I think they probably will separate the finals.

[RigbyLuger]

56 minutes ago, ShropshireBull said:

So not internationals which means it is not going to attract the commercial and financial partners it needs. Eng, France, Wales + 1 , it´s not hard. 

May as well rebrand St. Helens as England, signing another international yesterday.

[Scubby]

19 minutes ago, RigbyLuger said:

May as well rebrand St. Helens as England, signing another international yesterday.

My guess is St Helens are paying players (and rightly so) as opposed to giving pocket travel money. You can't blame St Helens for being one of the few clubs taking the Women's pro game seriously.

[RigbyLuger]

28 minutes ago, Scubby said:

My guess is St Helens are paying players (and rightly so) as opposed to giving pocket travel money. You can't blame St Helens for being one of the few clubs taking the Women's pro game seriously.

Not at all! Helps that the England head coach works for the club too.

[Richard de la Riviere]

1 hour ago, Scubby said:

My guess is St Helens are paying players (and rightly so) as opposed to giving pocket travel money. You can't blame St Helens for being one of the few clubs taking the Women's pro game seriously.

they're not paying players 

[Scubby]

17 minutes ago, Richard de la Riviere said:

they're not paying players 

I know York offered incentives for a group of Castleford players to join and I'd imagine Saints are doing the same. If they are not paying them they should be.

[Richard de la Riviere]

2 minutes ago, Scubby said:

I know York offered incentives for a group of Castleford players to join and I'd imagine Saints are doing the same. If they are not paying them they should be.

there's definitely no wage or incentives being paid by Saints. I don't know about expenses though. There should be wages though. They'll come with a tv deal, but the bigger clubs can still afford something before then. 

[Scubby]

26 minutes ago, Richard de la Riviere said:

there's definitely no wage or incentives being paid by Saints. I don't know about expenses though. There should be wages though. They'll come with a tv deal, but the bigger clubs can still afford something before then. 

Given how much petrol costs at the moment, these Yorkshire-based players aren't doing it for fun.

[RayCee]

12 hours ago, Scubby said:

I think the fact that the World Cup was confirmed a few years ago (and we are talking about this now) shows just how far the women's game is accelerating.

What a coincidence that Australia suddenly see huge value in it now it can boost their TV deals in the future! It is a very exciting game to watch and a unique style in its own right. It is rating higher than other mainstream sports on Aus TV.

Sadly, the RFL really don't how to manage the women's game here. They certainly won't know how to monetise it.

I think with the dominance soccer and how marginal RL is in the UK, it's a challenge for RL to get noticed at all. The RFL may indeed be able to do more but it must be discouraging constantly fighting for any sort of recognition. You say they don't know how to manage the women's game and that maybe is the case but how would they go about it? 

 

[Pulga]

Good to see the ratings absolutely destroying both men's soccer and men's union in Australia.

England certainly need to step up. The Jillaroos are going to bully everyone at the WC. Just hoping NZ is up to it. 

I wonder if the NRLW could entice some of the England RU girls over? They certainly seem to need the challenge.

[The Rocket]

2 hours ago, Pulga said:

Good to see the ratings absolutely destroying both men's soccer and men's union in Australia.

England certainly need to step up. The Jillaroos are going to bully everyone at the WC. Just hoping NZ is up to it. 

I wonder if the NRLW could entice some of the England RU girls over? They certainly seem to need the challenge.

I know Oz soccer and union both have a stack of internationals included in their broadcast deal, but even if those internationals accounted for 50 % of their $40m and $30m broadcast deals respectively.

With a longer regular season, three SOO`s and some internationals at the end of the year what would a NRLW broadcast deal be worth. Especially one that is rating 2 to 3x`s those competitions. $20m minimum ? maybe $30m given the strength of the viewing figures.

[Pulga]

1 hour ago, The Rocket said:

I know Oz soccer and union both have a stack of internationals included in their broadcast deal, but even if those internationals accounted for 50 % of their $40m and $30m broadcast deals respectively.

With a longer regular season, three SOO`s and some internationals at the end of the year what would a NRLW broadcast deal be worth. Especially one that is rating 2 to 3x`s those competitions. $20m minimum ? maybe $30m given the strength of the viewing figures.

This also points out that Channel 9 are absolute idiots for paying that much for Super Rugby. 

[RayCee]

On 08/04/2022 at 21:24, Scubby said:

Sadly, the RFL really don't how to manage the women's game here. They certainly won't know how to monetise it.

 

22 hours ago, RayCee said:

I think with the dominance soccer and how marginal RL is in the UK, it's a challenge for RL to get noticed at all. The RFL may indeed be able to do more but it must be discouraging constantly fighting for any sort of recognition. You say they don't know how to manage the women's game and that maybe is the case but how would they go about it? 

 

Seems like their in good company when it comes to ideas.

[Tommygilf]

On 08/04/2022 at 19:52, Scubby said:

I know York offered incentives for a group of Castleford players to join and I'd imagine Saints are doing the same. If they are not paying them they should be.

Did they offer incentives? I heard that a lot of the team were peeved with how things were being managed with Cas and moved because of that.

[Scubby]

31 minutes ago, Tommygilf said:

Did they offer incentives? I heard that a lot of the team were peeved with how things were being managed with Cas and moved because of that.

Yes my understanding was they were cheesed off with Cas and York offered to give them travel expenses etc. to move across to York. With the price of petrol at the moment, the Yorkshire-based Saints players aren't going to be parting with their own cash for travel and expenses.

Given the the NRLW are moving to a salary cap of A$360,000 plus two marquee players for the next competition in August, the game here needs to pull its finger out and start paying incentives/payments to players.

[The Blues Ox]

Saints are a bit like the Wigan team of the late 80's early 90's at the moment and are a total class above any other team. Although in the short term it might not be great for the womens game in the longterm it will see standards rise overall. I think one of the main reasons I am involved and one of the main reasons I enjoy it is because it very much reminds me of the game of Rugby League which I grew up loving. Not everything is about structure and wrestle, players are encouraged to use their flair and be off the cuff and things like that do stand out more because of the wide range of skill levels at the moment. For the time being community clubs are a huge part of the structure and hopefully that remains the same as the game grows and they don't just get tossed aside like in the mens game.

[RayCee]

So the RFL have been criticised for not knowing how to monetise the women's game but then no constructive ideas of how they are supposed to do so have been forthcoming. I think patience is needed and as has been stated before comparing the UK situation with Australia is of little use.

[Scubby]

10 minutes ago, RayCee said:

So the RFL have been criticised for not knowing how to monetise the women's game but then no constructive ideas of how they are supposed to do so have been forthcoming. I think patience is needed and as has been stated before comparing the UK situation with Australia is of little use.

The way to monetise the women's game is through international pathways.

There is no reason why England couldn't be playing Australia in a home (or away) Ashes series mid-season. There is no women's NRLW between June and mid August.

We are not strong enough to have a professional league yet but the RFL could start by centrally contracting the top 10-15 players and even let them go over and play in the NRLW.

If you leave it to the clubs they will do a half arsed approach as Cas and others are showing.

[RigbyLuger]

8 minutes ago, Scubby said:

If you leave it to the clubs they will do a half arsed approach as Cas and others are showing.

Which do you think are half arsed?

[Scubby]

19 minutes ago, RigbyLuger said:

Which do you think are half arsed?

Most of them. They are not helped by the governing body that really doesn't know what to do with the structure - hence why Saints are taking advantage and creating a Wigan 1980s-like set up.

[RayCee]

21 minutes ago, Scubby said:

The way to monetise the women's game is through international pathways.

There is no reason why England couldn't be playing Australia in a home (or away) Ashes series mid-season. There is no women's NRLW between June and mid August.

We are not strong enough to have a professional league yet but the RFL could start by centrally contracting the top 10-15 players and even let them go over and play in the NRLW.

If you leave it to the clubs they will do a half arsed approach as Cas and others are showing.

RL doesn’t have a great record of promoting internationals. Its a sport reliant on domestic leagues. Sending top players over to Oz would be a bold move but would the NRL want to accommodate that influx? Would it just weaken the game in the UK too much?