As I write this, Willie Mason is getting ready to play the first Rugby Union game of his life. The previous conversion record for a Rugby League players to switch codes, play a game and walk into a Rugby Union representative team had been held by Iestyn Harris at 11 days. Mason has walked straight into the…
As Queensland crossed for their first try of the opening State Of Origin game after just five minutes, it was easy to worry that New South Wales were going to be on the wrong end of a big scoreline. Considering that for the next 20 minutes of the match, Queensland dominated possession and field position,…
In 1999 the head of the ARU, John O’Neill said he would propose that the IRB give the ARU all the profits from its upcoming World Cup competition. This money would then be used to allow the ARU to “Buy Rugby League” in Australia. It was at a time of great upheaval in the game…
I’ve waited to write this article until both New South Wales and Queensland had announced their State Of Origin lineups. I think its funny that we still see NSW selecting their team ahead of QLD. I guess it comes back to the fact that the administrators of our game have been just about non existent…
I’ve written so many article about the changed that need to be made within the game of Rugby League in Great Britain. If you want to read them, go looking through the site archives. What if you started to think outside the box though? What if you stopped thinking about the basics, and went after…
The Sun newspaper in the UK today has exposed a betting scandal that for me just smacks of being the consequence of the RFL’s soft stance against betting in the past. The Sun article, written by Geoff Sweet, is an absolute beauty and is a must read. It exposes the lackadaisical attitude players within the game have…
English second rower Gareth Hock has been serving a two year drug suspension for cocaine use. Yesterday, Wigan announced that coming out of that two year suspension, they had signed Hock to a five year contract. What a disgraceful, embarrassing day, not only for Wigan Rugby League club, but for Rugby League in Great Britain…
Rugby League in Australia is about to secure a broadcasting deal that will see it earn more than $1 billion dollars over the five years of the contract. The NRL salary cap will rise by an incredible $2.7 million dollars. Two new teams will enter the competition and first grade squads will rise to 30…
The Penrith Panthers needed someone who knew Rugby League. They needed someone that knew the club needed rebuilt at all levels. They needed a guiding hand, and yet, they also needed someone who wasn’t worried about results at first, they just needed to re-establish the club. To make things right again. It doesn’t matter what…
Well, we’ve had City vs Country and a lot of club games to gauge the form of a potential New South Wales State Of origin lineup…so now…its time. I think it is fair to say the the lineup we thought we would see at the season of the season is very different from the lineup…
Australia has defeated World Champions New Zealand 20-10 at Skilled Park on the Gold Coast. This was a really interesting game, a true test match, and I think it showed a lot of the strengths and weaknesses of both sides. Overall, Australia always seemed to have the upper hand in the game, especially in the…
Well its a bit of a milestone for The Glorious League Freak today as this is the 1000th article posted to the web site. I’d like to say that I have sat down 1000 times and put forward my opinions on the great game of Rugby League, but the truth is, I have done it…
How many halfbacks in the NRL right now can take the game by the scruff of the neck and drag his team kicking and screaming to victory? Chris Sandow has just signed a $550,000 a year deal to play for the Parramatta Eels, and good luck to the young bloke. Sandow is someone that plays…
There have been some interesting changes to both the Australian and New Zealand test sides ahead of the ANZAC Test on the Gold Coast on Friday night. The Australian team is slowly moving on from players who either have proven they can not get the job done at this level, or who will simply not…
Optimism is the most important emotion for a sporting fan. Without it, supporting a team is a soul destroying process. You can have optimism no matter where you sit on the ladder. The team in first place give their fans hope that they can go on and win the title. The team at the bottom…
Today has been a glorious day in the history of Penrith Rugby League club, for today, we have finally, officially, got rid of Matthew Elliott as coach of the Penrith Panthers. Elliott was told on Tuesday morning that he would not have his contract renewed at the end of the year. Not long after, the…
After being told by the Sydney Roosters (Of all clubs!) to just go away and not come back, Willie Mason made the decision to head over to England and play for a Super League club. It took many months and a lot of hassles over his visa, but eventually, a month into the 2011 Super…
How many chances should you give a person? Nothing in life is ever black and white. As much as we wish we could, you can’t put the behavior of people into nice, neat little boxes. Everything is a degree of something, and therefore, when it comes to giving someone another chance, everything comes into consideration….
I always felt as though Wayne Bennett left the Brisbane Broncos is a fairly average position. Basically when he left, the club needed to completely rebuild itself. It’s highest paid player was getting on and would never be around once the youngsters kicked on. Thats not Bennett’s fault, that’s just how Rugby League works. The…
The Widnes Vikings will participate in Super League again from 2012 and as you can imagine, their fans are ecstatic about the prospect of being in the top flights again. Recently we have seen players, commentators and fans pushing for Super League to raise revenues and the salary cap. Just about everyone within British Rugby…
Sorry for being late chaps, just picked up a new Audi, sweet set of wheels! Ok, so as you all know, we have the Great Britain Rugby League team. It is not only one of the most famous brands in the game, but one of the most famous in English sport. So much history… Lets…
South Sydney hooker Issac Luke had a bit of a situation on his hands recently. For what ever reason, he had a falling out with his player agent, and that meant that he had to put his upcoming contract negotiations on hold for quite some time. Luke is the current New Zealand test hooker, he…
I’m not going to talk about how good of a player Darren Lockyer was. If you have eyes in your head, you could see what he did. You don’t need me to talk about how good he was! Last season there was a lot of talk that the Brisbane Broncos wanted to groom Lockyer to…
In three years time Jamal Idris will be 23 years old. That is a year younger than Greg Inglis is right now. He will be playing in a Bulldogs side that will have been together for a number of years and grown as a premiership force as a result. He will have earned a number…
I wasn’t going to write this. This web site has always been one that a general fan of the game can come to a feel like they will get a taste of all the flavors our game has to offer. I might be a Panthers fan, but you don’t come to this site and get…
English Rugby League players get no respect. They are under paid and they have very little profile in the media. Because of this, players find it hard to get any sort of decent personal sponsorships, and you know who is to blame for all of this don’t you? Well, take your pick…. The BBC, Soccer,…
If you wanted to see why the Melbourne Storm are the best Rugby League club in the world, you just had to be watching the television on Saturday afternoon. It started with their Under 20’s team. The Melbourne Storm is the team to play for if you are a youngster looking to make a name…
The start of a new Rugby League season brings expectations. Everyone starts with the same number of wins, the same number of losses, no baggage and for the most part, injury free. The first few weeks of a season don’t make or break a campaign, but they are telling. You can see who has come…
A Pacific Islands All Star Team will face England in 2012 with England to do a tour of Australia and New Zealand. With no international competitions having been planned for 2012, the year before the World Cup, this is seen as a way to expose England to some high quality opposition, give Pacific Islanders a…
If you head down to my local McDonald’s with ten of your mates, find a Kiwi bloke and start racially abusing him, you better expect to get punched in the face. Do me a favour though… If that is how you get your kicks, and you do end up being punched in the mouth while…