Up until 1994, Australia had been one of the most active touring teams in world rugby league. They regularly toured to England, France and New Zealand, as well as playing hosts to all visiting test sides. Usually these tours had between 5 and 20 matches, including tests, against both clubs and regional representative sides, with…
Over the course of its history Rugby League has had all sorts of leadership structures. It has been run by entrepreneurs, its been run by committees, its been run by corporations, its been run by boards….and you know what, Rugby League is never stronger than when it is run by a dictator! When Peter V’landys…
Australian Rugby League administrators have already shown their hand when it comes to the future of the Rugby League calendar. They have talked about expansion of the NRL club competition allowing for fewer rounds of the club competition which would result in having more games on offer for broadcasters. This is to ensure the sport…
Fresh off coaching New Zealand to the Pacific Championship and a record breaking win over Australia, the New Zealand Rugby League gave an ultimatum to Kiwi’s coach Michael Maguire. He could coach New Zealand, or New South Wales, but not both teams. As a result Maguire chose to step down as New Zealand coach, leaving…
The National Rugby League is in a fantastic position right now. The game is flushed with cash, there are tens of millions of dollars every year basically being put in the bank and saved by the game, and there are Port Moresby – Papua New Guinea When you’re a sporting competition who is getting backing…
Want to know what the biggest losing margin in the history of the Australian Rugby League team is? You’ve come to the right place! On November 4th in 2023 the New Zealand Kiwi’s defeated the Australian Kangaroos 30-0 in the Pacific Championship Final in Waikato, Hamilton New Zealand. Jamayne Isaako scored 18 points in the…
The Rugby League World Cup is one of the most exciting and fiercely contested events in international sport, with nations from all over the globe competing for the title of world champion. Through its various incarnations, the tournament has been won by a number of different nations, each bringing its own unique style of play…
Presented by Palmerbet In this episode of the Fergo and The Freak NRL podcast League Freak gives his thoughts on the huge win by New South Wales over Queensland in State Of Origtin 2 before having a chat about the international football we saw over the weekend. The Freaky talks about the silly argument that…
Presented by Palmerbet In this episode of the Fergo and The Freak NRL podcast League Freak gives us a rundown of all the internatinal matches we will be seeing this weekend leading into State Of Origin two! The key players, the awsome matchups and the betting odds! He also talks about his passion for international…
The Australian and New Zealand Rugby League Commission pulled out of the tournament due to player safety concerns, pushing its start date by 12 months. The fact that it’s going to happen next year is still great news for rugby fanatics and on that note, a great opportunity for sports fans to visit puntersport.com to…
Some great news overnight as we got confirmation that the 2021 Rugby League World Cup will go ahead. The Australian Rugby League sought assurances from tournament organisers that every effort would be made to protect the health of players and allow players free movement to travel to and from England without government lockdowns being applied….
In this episode Rugby League historian Andrew Ferguson takes us through the first Rugby League tour to Australia which was by the New Zealand Māori . From promising beginnings to a breakdown in the relationship between the Māori and the Australian administrators, this is a fascinating story that had some big ramifications for the game. To have…
In some really disappointing news the NZRL have announced that it has cancelled the Rugby League test match between the New Zealand Kiwis and Tonga that was scheduled for the end of the year. Citing restrictions in travel due to COVID19 and the need for players to have to isolate for an entire month to…
So you want to know who has played the most test matches for New Zealand? You’ve come to the right place! Ruben Wiki played 55 test matches for the New Zealand Rugby League team between 1994 and 2008. He played in 31 wins and 21 losses and 3 draws for the New Zealand Kiwis. Ruben…
You have to hand it to the Rugby League International Federation, they can come up with some nutty ideas that seemingly have no connection to what we see on the field. Take the newly released “Rugby League World Ranking” which have been put out this evening. New Zealand has moved past Australia into top spot…
In this episode we look at all the international games from the weekend. We look ahead to next weeks game, and just have a general chat about international footy! We would love your feedback on this episode so if you have anything to say just email us at podcast@leaguefreak.com You can also follow Andrew Ferguson and The Glorious League…
In this episode we do a review of all the international Rugby League player over the weekend. Including the Jillaroos vs the Kiwi Ferns, the Kangaroos vs the Kiwis, Australia A’s big win over France, Tonga’s domination of Great Britain, Scotland on fire against Serbia, Spain hosting Ireland and a fiery clash between Malta and…
Australia has scored an impressive 26 to 4 win over New Zealand at WIN Stadium in Wollongong. New Zealand played well in the first half and it looked like we had a real test match on our hands. In the second half however it was a far different story. The young Kangaroos side ran away…
Here you will find a complete list of Rugby League World Cup winners dating back to 1954. The Rugby League World Cup is the longest running Rugby World Cup in existence. Since 1954 there have been 15 tournaments that have been held in various formats. Australia has been the most successful nation followed by Great…
In this episode we are joined by Professor Tony Collins, a Rugby League and Rugby Union historian about the birth of the game of Rugby, Rugby Leagues split from Rugby Union, as well as the birth of Rugby League in England, Wales, New Zealand, Australia and France. This was a fantastic discussion and we are…
Dates and venues have been announced for the Oceania Cup and Great Britain Lions Tour of 2019. The Jillaroos and Kiwi Ferns will play alongside the Kangaroos and Kiwi’s in a historic match at WIN Stadium at Wollongong. The same weekend will feature a great game between Great Britain and Tonga in New Zealand which…
Here is a list of the Rugby League mid season internationals for 2019. All times listed below are local times for the venues involved. Cook Islands vs South Africa Friday 21st June 2019, 19:00pm Ringrose Park Wentworthville, Sydney New Zealand vs Tonga Saturday 22nd June 2019, 5:40pm (NZ Time) Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland, New Zealand…
We are just hours away from a new look Australian Kangaroos team taking on New Zealand in a rare test match played in New Zealand. It should be a good game, but honestly, it isn’t the match that I am most excited about this off season. When Australia plays Tonga next week, then I will…
Without a doubt, Australia are the strongest rugby league nation in the world. The National Rugby League (NRL) is a class above England’s Super League – although the British sides are catching up. The influx of Australians now plying their trade in Super League has helped to develop the game over in England and Wayne…
Did anyone really enjoy the 2016 Rugby League Four Nations competition? We had Australia playing just one really good half of football in the entire tournament, New Zealand not turning up at all, England being England, all round terrible while pretending they are still highly relevant to the international game, and a fake Scottish team…
As a fan of the Kangaroos, Saturday Night’s game was a close to a train wreck as Kangaroo performances get, yet there could not have been a better result for the Four Nations tournament, or the international game. Before we all get too carried away with the big victory to our brothers across the Tasman,…
As the 2014 Rugby League Four Nations edges closer, excitement has been rapidly building following the squad announcements of all four teams. This year’s tournament – involving Australia, New Zealand, England and Samoa – will be the fourth time the event has been held, and thrilling conclusions to the Super League and NRL seasons has…
With news breaking that superstar five-eighth Johnathan Thurston has withdrawn from the upcoming Four Nations Tournament, the door was well and truly thrown open for the New Zealanders and English in terms of possibly winning the tourney. With Thurston joining the likes of Matt Scott, Paul Gallen, Billy Slater, James Tamou, Nate Myles, Brett and…
So the World Club Challenge has now been expanded and the World Club Series will become the latest cash grab by clubs on both sides of the world. Great, looks like League Freak needs to make another bloody banner for his site! The NRL Grand Finalists will join a third team and play one off…
One of the big things that came out of the 2013 Rugby League World Cup was the clear message that supporters of the game were giving administrators. Give us more international Rugby League. Heading into this weekend, plenty of people were saying the Australia vs New Zealand test match was a waste of time. Even…