This weekend see’s Super League clubs take an entire round of games to one stadium, Etihad Stadium, home of Manchester City. The concept was born as a way to try and open up expansion markets in Wales and Scotland. The Rugby Football League would take over a major stadium for one weekend and put on…
If Sam Tomkins wants to play in the National Rugby League he will need to learn how to do one simple thing. Shut the fuck up! Sam Tomkins has a weekly article he writes for the UK’s Mail Online. It is actually a pretty good read if only for the fact that he doesn’t hold…
Australia beat New Zealand 32-12 in the ANZAC Test Match in Canberra on Friday night. After the match the reaction from fans and the media was interesting. They talked about how strong the Kangaroo’s are and how easily they will win the World Cup at the end of the season. Me….I’m not so sure about…
It took a long time to get there but the NRL has finally worked out a deal with Sky television in New Zealand that will see a wide range of broadcasting shown across New Zealand. The deal between Sky and the NRL will run for five years and will see New Zealand based fans get just about…
In life, the ability to say the word “No” is very important. In fact, I’d go as far as to say our ability to say the word “No” is what our entire society is based around. You see, for things to run smoothly you need some level of control. You need to be able to…
Tickets have now gone on sale to the general public for the 2013 Test match between Australia and New Zealand to be held on April 19th at Canberra Stadium. This match will be important to both teams as it is really their last good hit out before the 2013 World Cup kicks off at the end of…
What a great achievement! Australia managed to beat New Zealand in Townsville 18-10 while being led from the front by a player born and raised in New Zealand who our officials and coaches recruited thanks to the possibility of at least $10,000 for every State Of Origin game he was selected to play in. What a proud moments for the…
I love international Rugby League. I grew up watching test football and enjoying every single minutes of it. I would set my alarm late at night to watch games played over in England, and I still credit the 1994 Kangaroo Tour for giving me the terrible sleeping habits I have today. Then Super League hit,…
Australia, New Zealand and England poach talent from other countries, and then they dare to suggest that no other country can offer them a decent contest, so they refuse to play anyone else. That is the current situation in international Rugby League right now. You have a bunch of growing Rugby League nations playing games…
He had a brain for rugby league, creative, speedy, successful and spent most of his life with a bullet in his chest. He was Duncan Thompson. Thompson was born in Warwick, Queensland on March 14, 1895. He joined the Australian Bank of Commerce in 1911. While at Ipswich he represented Combined Country in 1913 and…
In 1908, Rugby League in Australia and New Zealand was officially born. So too, unfortunately, was the first reported attempt to fix a game. Northerners though were always keen for a punt, however one punter attempted to go one step further to get a win. Wigan were the competition heavyweights for season 1908-09, and rightfully…
The deal has been done and the budget is now set, so where does Rugby League go from here? For well over a decade Rugby League in Australia was just trying to survive. It wasn’t that the game wasn’t growing, it simply come down to the fact that clubs at first were spending way beyond…
The Australian Rugby League Commission has today announced that the broadcasting rights for Rugby League in Australia have been retained by Channel 9 and Fox Sports Australia. The deal will run over five years and is worth $1.025 billion dollars. $100 million dollars of that is advertising on Channel 9 and Fox Sports. This deal…
The New Zealand team contains an Aussie. The Australian team contains a Kiwi and a Fijian. One side was picked with an eye on State of Origin. The game won’t even be shown live into Australia. So why should I care? As a die hard Rugby League fan that grew up watching some great test…
Australia has defeated World Cup and Four Nations holders New Zealand by a scoreline of 24-12 in Warrington in a game that was marred by poor refereeing and a dangerous tackle that will probably not receive any punishment at all. This was an interesting, if not exciting game to watch. Both teams to me looked…
Lets get right to a point that needs to be made. The Four Nations does not determine the best team in the world. We already have a competition for that, its called the World Cup. If Australia wins the Four Nations and wins every game by 50 points, the World Cup will still be sitting…
Rugby League is a funny sport in that, it is controlled by just a few countries, and yet there is a will to have it become a true international democracy, even though there is no way in hell that will ever happen! In the past, many in England have felt that the international schedule is…
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…
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…
So what is a Rugby League World Cup supposed to be about? It’s an interesting question and one that could have a thousands different answers. For me a Rugby League World Cup has always been about the countries I don’t normally get to see. In fact, in any international competitions we have in our game,…
The draw for the 2013 Rugby League World Cup was announced with little warning at an event held in Salford over night. It was announced that 14 teams will take part in the next World Cup, which will be held in Great Britain, and the format for the group stages would be completely overhauled. I…
Just when you think the international season is crap, along comes an incredible Four Nations Final and it leaves you wanting more! I’ve been lucky enough to attend three of the best Rugby League test matches of the modern era. The 2006 Tri Nations Final that Australia won in extra time, the 2008 World Cup…
The 2010 Rugby League Four Nations has been disappointing. The quality of football has been dreadful and when only two of the four teams have ANY chance of winning the tournament, you have to think of other ways to grab the public’s attention. People want to see a decent contest, you can’t sell people rubbish…
Australia has beaten New Zealand 34-20 in front of 44,432 in Auckland. I have to say, it was great to finally see a Four Nations game of some quality. Both teams looked sharp, with the Kangaroo’s obviously looking the better of the two, however this game was a real contest for the full 80 minutes…
Laughter is under rated. I like to laugh, and for that reason, I like watching England play Rugby League because England make me laugh. Just look at poor old Sam Tomkins who this week said it was a myth that the NRL was a better competition than Super League. Forget the basic case you could…
New Zealand have easily accounted for England 24-10 in front of a pretty decent crowd in Wellington. With both teams wearing historic jerseys and really going all out for a few photos to mark the occasion, its was interesting to see James Graham snarl “Don’t touch me” to a ground coordinator who was just trying…
The Four Nations finally start next week as Australia and New Zealand look to tune up over the next few weeks with an eye on the final. We’ve had a couple of big name injuries this week, but hardly crushing blows. I had heard on the radio that PNG would be training at Blacktown today….
International Rugby League is a funny thing. You always get the feeling that its held together with sticky tape and rubber bands. Whether its the expert commentary team from England stuffing up players names from the opposition they have clearly never seen, depspite the fact these players are regular NRL players, to the Kiwi commentators…
Its a tournament that was conceived with the notion that regular test football between the top nations would see other teams life their game and come up to the same level we have seen Australia play at forever. Has it worked? New Zealand’s success in 2006 and the 2008 World Cup is look at as…
New Zealand have easily accounted for England 24-10 in front of a pretty decent crowd in Wellington. With both teams wearing historic jerseys and really going all out for a few photos to mark the occasion, its was interesting to see James Graham snarl “Don’t touch me” to a ground coordinator who was just trying…