On its return to Las Vegas for “Round Zero” the NRL learnt some very value lessons about what it should, and should not do going forward with the much talked about fixture that kicks off the NRL season.
Quality Not Quantity
In 2025 the NRL decided it wanted to double the amount of games on offer for patrons that attended games at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. They did this by adding a game between two Super League clubs, and a women’s international between Australia and England to the two NRL fixtures they already had on offer.l
The Super League match kicked things off, and the game was done and dusted as a contest by the 25th minute. Warrington didn’t turn up, and the 48-24 victory to Wigan was a no contest.
We then had the first NRL fixture of the day, with Canberra winning 30-8 against the New Zealand Warriors, and that was followed up by the Australian Jillaroos walking through the England woman’s team with a scoreline of 90-4 in just 70 minutes of play.
While the event was closed out with a thriller, with the Penrith Panthers beating the Cronulla Sharks 28-22, you got the feeling that anyone in the United States who had tuned into check out this new sport were no longer watching by the time we got to the last game.
If the NRL wants to have more than two matches to see next year in Vegas, it has to just add more NRL games.
Embarrassing Coverage By Fox Sports Australia
Fox Sports Australia usually offers professional coverage of the game. Even if you not a fan of the individuals they push, it’s still a slick production.
We say that again in Las Vegas, but the way Fox Sports presenters carried on about this fixture as if it was “The biggest in the sports history” was embarrassing. Suggesting these would be the biggest games the New Zealand and Wigan Warriors have ever been involved in, the none stop carry on about the stadium, and then the corny references to Las Vegas, carrying on like they had all been drinking, gambling and getting up to no good…it was bad.
It got worse though with the actual in game commentators…
Matthew Johns was nothing short of a goofball, trying to do comedy skits as he called the game. Pretending someone was breaking in to the commentary box, talking about how this moment will make him a star in the United States, it was so cringy.
The only way I could describe it all was as if they were all acting like they had never been on TV before. It was terrible and a bad look for the game.
English Women Needed That Big Loss
While it was the wrong time and setting for the game between Australia and England, this contest needed to happen.
The England team have been very successful in their own part of the world and the success they have had has helped promote the women’s game in England. However, they are in a completely different point in the development of the women’s game compared to what we see in Australia and New Zealand.
I think the 90-4 scoreline is a good marker for the women’s game in England to see where it actually stands. How much work it has to do to get up to the level of the teams in the Pacific.
The Australian women’s team was not just on another level, they were many, many levels above the England team. Now they know that though, and the work to try and close that gap can begin.
The New Zealand Warriors Need Some Halves
The Warriors forward pack looks really good, and early on they were taking the game to the Raiders. However the Raiders halves simply took apart the Warriors pack, moving them round the field, directing traffic to get the big Warriors pack moving around, and they broke the Warriors down over the course of the game.
The Warriors just had no reply, with Luke Metcalf and Chanel Harris-Tavita being no shows and leaving the Warriors having to just try and use their power game and extremely simple plays to try and get out of trouble. It simply wasn’t good enough.
The Panthers Are Ridiculous
They had no trials games in the leadup to the season and they looked clunky early on in attack, but the Panthers win over the Sharks was impressive. They have so much talent in their team, even looking beyond their core of legendary winners.
It’s an embarrassment of riches and we should all keep in mind that we are very lucky to see a moment like this happening in Rugby League.
The Canberra Raiders Are Young, But Good!
The Canberra Raiders young outside backs all look really good! It has taken a few of them a year or two to get comfortable in first grade, but their size, speed and athleticism is going to cause a lot of teams problem this year.
If they can keep Fogerty on the field, and with their solid forward pack, they should be looking at making the finals this year.
It was concerning to watch Ricky Stuart already having weird meltdowns in the first game of the season though…
The Sharks Can Be Better This Year, But They Need To Make One Change
The Sharks did look a lot more dangerous against the Panthers than they have in the past, and I put that down to two things.
Braydon Trindall has taken his game to another level. He completely guided this Sharks team around the park and kept bringing them back into the game when they were down against a legendary team. That is no small feat!
Then there is Addin Fonua-Blake, whose pure go forward, footwork at the line, and offload, adds an x-factor the Sharks attack desperately needed.
The big problem I see at the Sharks is what they do with Nicho Hynes. The poor bloke looks devastated any time he makes a mistake, and the team is no longer his to guide around the field. I really worry where this is all headed for him, and this is an issue the Sharks really need to be on top of.
The Sharks are more of a premiership threat than last year, but Hynes can’t be carried by the team in to big games.
Grading The Second Foray Into Vegas
After a solid start in the first season to “Round Zero” in Vegas, I felt like on the field the product put on offer was worse, while off the field the crowds were bigger and made slightly more of an impact locally than it did last year, in part due to the fact that last year the weather outside of the stadium was a real issue.
I’d give the 2025 version a C. There’s improvement that needs to be made in the presentation, in the product we offer, we need compelling games that are actually competition, and we should only be offering the best the game has at this event going forward.
