GREAT, BUT COULD HAVE BEEN GREATER!
The World Cup was, in my view, a real success in a couple of very specific ways.
The PDRL, Wheelchair and Women’s game got outstanding exposure that surely can only benefit them going forward . The most diverse and inclusive sporting event yet?
Also, the players, coaches and yes, referees, provided us with some exhilarating rugby, nail biting games and wonderful examples of humanity. Take a bow Junior Paulo and the rest for showing how to conduct yourself with humility and grace in all situations. Also the scene of Jarome Luai (and others) comforting the outstanding Elliott Whitehead in defeat will live long.
There were some other aspects we should also reflect on. Many complaints on pricing and stadium choice have been raised, quite reasonably, and on this point, we must accept that the event needs to be a financial success, which I don’t know as yet, but also it should be about new audiences whilst remaining true to the loyal fanbase.
I don’t know how 8,000 fans in a 30,000 stadium in Middlesbrough with no perceptible Teessiders present can fulfil those objectives. And that was not the only disappointing reflection of Rugby League for the TV viewer. Newcastle had 47,000 present and the Emirates 40,000 for England games. Is there a lesson to be learned? And how tough, logistically and financially, was it for the fans?
The BBC did, generally, a good job and, in my view, they are so much better than Sky.
We all have our favourite commentators and some we’re not so keen on. This is, of course, entirely subjective and I was delighted that Andrew Voss was part of the team. If you didn’t catch his food trail across the Rugby League heartlands, then you missed a treat.
Dave Woods is the BBC voice of Rugby League. He is enthusiastic and knowledgeable, and so it was quite right he got the headline games. But Mr Voss is the same and not having him commentate at the Tonga v Samoa or Australia v New Zealand games was an opportunity missed, particularly for the viewers new to our game.
Finally, the big scorelines did not help so a more competitive structure should be considered, and many would say the seeding process did not, perhaps, reflect the world order.
I had a great time and watched every game live or on TV, but I’m an avid fan and I do worry that we’ve missed a trick or two.
Bob Simpson, Threshfield, North Yorkshire
INCLUSIVITY? YOU CAN’T BE SERIOUS!
Now that RLWC2021 is over I feel that I can highlight some experiences which I believe show the event to have been exclusive and not as inclusive as advertised. Inclusivity in a sporting event should mean allowing as many people who wish to be able to take part, either as a competitor or player, to do so.
Whilst much was made by organisers of the ladies and wheelchair tournaments, I noticed that at the actual final at Old Trafford the Physical Disability World Champions were absent from the joint photographs of winners of the other three tournaments.
However, from the viewpoint of a spectator, I would like to ask how can something be deemed inclusive when populations of people were either largely excluded or treated differently than they are normally treated by Rugby League authorities in the UK.
Tickets were only available online. Unless bought at the gate, the ability to phone and purchase a ticket was removed. It may be 2022 but not everyone has access to the Internet, nor the skills or confidence to purchase online, or even the actual ability to see a computer screen. This is hardly inclusive! An example of this is my father who, at 75 and registered disabled, was completely unable to purchase a ticket without the help of family members but can quite easily do so over the phone when speaking to a human being.
This leads to another issue, which is that a person such as my father, who is registered disabled but not wheelchair bound, was able to purchase his tickets prior to the RLWC2021 as a concession and received a free carer’s ticket for Rugby League events.However, for this World Cup, whilst being able to get his free carer’s ticket, he had to pay full price for his. I appreciate that this is a better deal than what people without disabilities get. But how is this inclusive when people who use a wheelchair got concessionary tickets, but people registered disabled but not in a wheelchair did not?
The RLWC2021 organisers were effectively discriminating against disabled people on the level of disability. For example, a double amputee who may have played in the Wheelchair World Cup would have qualified for a wheelchair ticket at a concessionary price, yet one of their team-mates who may have used a prosthetic leg or just had walking difficulties would have to pay full price.
The final complete lack of inclusivity in my opinion was that people over 65 who are normally treated as concessions by the RFL and Super League were made to pay full price for tickets. The only concessions were for students and under-16s. Perhaps the ageism displayed by the organisers is that they don’t feel the need to attract older supporters to events as they may not be around for the next World Cup in this country. What makes this galling is that I received Black Friday emails advertising Rugby League events in 2023, where pensioners and non-wheelchair disabled people will once again be concessions, a reversal of the “inclusive” RLWC2021 policies.
Unfortunately, the only answer to this I have been able to get from the powers-that-be, who hide behind emails, is that the organisation of the RLWC2021 was nothing to do with the RFL or Super League. But, given the number of RFL and Super League staff working at World Cup events, I found this a cop-out. With the exception of the final and some of England’s games, perhaps the legacy of the Rugby League World Cup 2021 was a non-inclusive ticketing policy that helped to guarantee swathes of empty seats at stadiums.
Dr G Lyons, Swinton
WHO HAS THE MONEY?
A feature of the Men’s World Cup that hasn’t been much commented upon is that the total attendance was 423,689 this year compared to 458,453 in 2013.
If all competing countries received financial guarantees and the target audience was 750,000, the actual finances don’t look too healthy.
Much is said about the quality of the RFL’s marketing of its product.
I had thirty years in professional boxing, working in the Board of Control, and I can only refer to the famous boxing promoter, Mickey Duff, who, when asked what the best day of the week for putting on a boxing show replied, “If you have a bill which the public is prepared to pay to see, any day will do. If you have a bill the public won’t pay to see, no day will do.”
So much for the marketing criticisms. You can’t force people to come to Rugby League – they have to want to. Expansion is fun to talk about, but we should remember that the Irish sports, hurling and Gaelic football, do not travel, nor do Aussie Rules and Gridiron, and I say that as one who loves the Irish sports and has attended finals at Croke Park.
There was a problem we had at the Boxing Board of Control and the RFL is in a similar position. Putting it briefly, the clubs have money and the RFL does not. In boxing, when there was conflict between the Board and the promoters, the promoters always held the whip hand because if disputes went to litigation the promoters would out-money the Board. Both sides knew that, so any real control was impossible.
I suspect the involvement of IMG may in part be an attempt to introduce the real finance needed to get hold of the game. In any event, their involvement is going to be expensive, though not perhaps as much as private equity, which has not exactly helped the other code.
Finally, I don’t go to professional games, but I do support amateur Rugby League every week, and I don’t believe either code can afford full time professionalism. That, however, is another story.
Alan Simpson, Leeds
CELEBRATE SUMMER BASH IN YORK
I can highly recommend York’s LNER Stadium and, of course, the city of York as well for next year’s Summer Bash. It’s just a pity about the distance between them.
Last year I wrote to the Mailbag about this year’s venue at Headingley. I said that it was too big and out of the city, but that it was close to half the Championship clubs and that if the Yorkshire fans turned out, then it had the potential for a successful weekend. But unfortunately they did not turn out in sufficient numbers and 10,763 was the lowest ever attendance.
York has more chance of success, despite it being farther into Yorkshire territory. And the women’s fixture should be a great addition.
Jim Charlton, Lytham St Annes
OFF-PUTTING JARGON
How to disconnect with you fans 101. ‘The sport’ shall henceforth be referred to as ‘the product’, ‘the game’ as ‘an advert’, ‘spectators’ as ‘a market’ and ‘the club’ as ‘the brand.’
Alan White, Rotherham
LET’S REJECT THE CAPTAIN’S CHALLENGE
There have been many letters commenting on RLWC21 that complain about ticket prices, venues and referees but I cannot remember seeing any letter relating to the Captain’s Challenge. It was no surprise to hear former players in favour of this innovation on the television, especially the ones who were always waving their arms in the air at officials.
The only commentator I heard who was against this innovation was the Australian, Andrew Voss. He has experienced this for a season back in his homeland.
To me it seemed a complete waste of time, with the majority of challenges being turned down. I am sure somebody, somewhere has a record of the number of successful challenges against the number of unsuccessful. I would imagine it is a low percentage. It is bad enough having the video-referee prolonging games. This will just make it longer.
Do spectators want to stand or sit around on a cold, wet night in February wondering what is going on? If it is introduced into Super League, then I will stick to Viaplay and the Championship.
Colin Harris, Warwick
FOUR YEAR INTERNATIONAL CYCLE NEEDED
Putting aside the mostly unwarranted negativity from some of your correspondents, the one clear lesson we can take from this year’s RLWC is that there is an audience for International Rugby League. The TV viewing figures prove that.
I am no businessman, but if we want the game to grow and I hope we all do, Rugby League needs to find new markets, and Internationals are an important means of making this happen.
However, rather than the seemingly ad hoc way in which Internationals have been organised in the past, there needs to be an International calendar agreed, at the very least annually but ideally, one that sets out a four-year programme between World Cups.
That would allow teams and spectators adequate time in which to prepare and potential sponsors a product that they might be interested in.
Will Morecombe, Prestatyn
HOW TO PLAN THE INTERNATIONAL SCHEDULE
John Kear or I should be put in charge of the international calendar.
For a more even series of contests, England should play the Combined Nations All Stars three times per season, in Cumbria, Lancashire and Yorkshire. Ireland should play France three times per season – in the south of France and Dublin, to promote the amateur game there.
Scotland should play Wales also three times per season, in Glasgow and Colwyn Bay, again to promote the amateur game and the North Wales Crusaders.
There should be trophies for the three winners. Sky could show the games on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. We should do this every season until the next World Cup and all five teams would then be in better shape to take on the southern hemisphere teams.
Michael Leather, Warrington
ONE SIZE DOESN’T FIT ALL
I notice that the RFL is looking into making changes in the disciplinary process, with one idea to amend grade A charges to a fine rather than a ban. That is fine for a Super League player, but players in the lower leagues are mostly part-time, so it could affect their income more seriously. It requires more thought by the RFL or this could smack of unfairness.
|an Haskey, Castleford
