I thought we were excellent in the first half barring creating more chances from the field position we gained far too often it was an easy read or when we called a move Burrow (mainly) or another in possession ignored the call and went the other way.
It's obvious but those basics they and ALL NRL teams do so well lay the platform for that 2nd half yes we were busted and down on personnel but once JT had that base to work from he put us to the sword albeit with a couple of lucky kicks thrown in.
Their 9 Granville also showed what we are missing around the ptb.
I don't think we disgraced ourselves overall but for 1 or 2 poor errors and hopefully we learn from it going forward but again as a sport over here the RFL/SL Clubs and the game as a whole HAS TO have a structural and financial re-think imo.

At last a point well made.
You see WE can talk extreme good sense when he wants to, unlike some others on here.
Thurston displayed a range of kicks that most SL halves can only dream about. If you can't see that then it's no wonder we can't compete at this level.
As has been said his kicks were on the back of much better field position than we were able to create. Due to defensive line speed, forward physicality (& backs too) & playing the conditions far better than we could.
One thing that irked me constantly throughout the game was the continual presence on the field of the Cowboys support staff. The guy in an orange bib (the alleged water carrier(?) - he was carrying a blue bottle but I didn't see any of their players drinking from it) was on the field longer than their bench forwards. Surely the off-field officials can see that he was coaching their players, telling them where to stand etc.? Aussie teams seem to do this a lot without ever being pulled up for it.

Genuinely sad to hear this. Back in the early to mid 80s it was just the same. I was a promising swimmer but got bored with endless lengths and absolutely no technical coaching on anything. I remember giving it up for a few years and then came back for a one off competition. I happened to win my races that day but the coach said "oh you could've been great if you'd learnt to dive properly!" He'd not once said anything about this in the years I'd been in the team or offered any guidance at all.

Rugby coaching at school followed the "give it to the big lad" approach too. Not much good for an enthusiastic but shrimp-like kid like me at the time.

The question now remains as how we get participation up - surely this is the base point to increase competitiveness.

For me there are two ways:
1. a better international side that can win the WC
2. a better domestic competition that attracts quality players that kids can aspire to.

The quick fix is the former but are we prepared to have a competition that might be equally competitive allbeit at a lower standard because our top players are all playing in the NRL.

We already have half a side playing in the NRL - 3 x Burgess brothers, other Burgess, Reed, Graham, Cooper, Widdop and Hodgson if say Hardaker and Watkins were also playing in the NRL you would have a good foundation of a really competitive side.

As an aside to all the negativity, I enjoyed the weekend and the opportunity to see genuine world class teams and players strutting their stuff. It was the equivalent of dining out all weekend at five star restaurants. I guess it's back to Greggs pasties next week with Batchelors Mushy Peas!

In spite of the lopsided results, I'd like the game to persist with this WCC weekend. Scrapping it would be the Ostrich equivalent of sticking your head in the sand.

The poblems around youth come from the top I'm afraid.

At the basic level, the RFL has no cash. It hasn't for years. As a result, there is no money passed down to the grassroots clubs, who have no money to run a club on. If there's no money then you are relying on someones dad to do stuff. Based on the lack of knowledge about the game you hear on the terraces (wherever you go), its not surprising that kids end up underskilled.

At Outlaws we run a very decent youth section. We get players who are playing for our first team (and often the Uni teams to coach the juniors, and we pay for them to get coaching badges to improve the quality of coaching. we are now getting lads coming through and making it into our first team because they know and understand the game. Our main problems are that we are a non heartlands club, so recruitment is difficult, and finances. I don't think the RFL gives any support for the junior section. We pay for coaching courses and the like out of our own money because its important to us as a club. Many don't

Has Ryan Hall recovered from being bitchslapped by his opposing winger Kyle Feldt yet?

That was probably the biggest embarrassment of the whole evening.

That was terribly disappointing. He should have knocked the guy into touch.
Even Lewis Tierney made a better fist of it against the Broncos winger almost preventing a score.

It was a poor effort but I think thats what he was trying to do. If he goes low he scores anyway. You have to go high there, but that increases the chances of getting bumped / spun, which is what happened and Ryan looked silly

For all those who seriously believe the appointment of Silverwood as referee was as good as handing the game to the Cowboys, the penalty count last night was 12-6 in Leeds favour.

I'm not sure we have the halves to develop. Williams possibly then I'm struggling. Smith, our current international SH has nothing to his locker but a very average kicking game. He tries to impress by frantically waving his arms about like a dervish at every PTB, something I never saw the Aussies do once. They didn't have to, they knew what they were doing at all stages & positions, even the rookies.

I think being a non-heartland club may be more beneficial for you! Recruitment may be difficult and as a result you are having to use first teamers and uni teams as parents wont event pretend they know enough to coach and as a result choose not to be involved (or maybe actually learn the game in order to coach). As a result you will get more knowledgable and coaches making objective decisions regarding junior player development. As a parent I had to frequently pull up a 'coach' and explain rules such as why quick taps couldnt be taken and even when a tackle was considered complete.

You do have to wonder what it is about coaches in union which make them much better than their counterparts in league (in general) - these coaches are also parents but are much more profesionsal in their role as a coach. They appear to have a much better knowledge about the rules of the game! Is this because they have to take an on-line test regarding the rules of the game and also attend a rugby child welfare course before even start to coach? All coaches in union must also have a basic level of coaching qualification, the last time I was involved in junior league club, I was told that a qualified coach merely had to be present after I 'raised concerns' - one qualified coach for three age groups (60 children on two full sized pitches).

I dont think that money is the main problem either, its that the junior governing body is constantly turning a blind eye to what goes on. I have heard comments that they need complete amateurs running clubs because they make so much money out of fining clubs. Another financial difference between the codes is in league clubs spend many hundreds of pounds on referees but in union coaches from one team often take on the roll (and provide coaching to both teams throughout play) saving money for coaching courses and developing skills. Parents are happy with this and dont wear rose tinted glasses - they arent allowed to! Any abuse from parents and they are sent from the pitch - if they dont leave the game is called off.

I do however think your last line is the most telling though 'We pay for coaching courses and the like out of our own money because its important to us as a club. Many don't'. For many parents (coaches), it is just a good excuse to get together and have a drink or two (or five).

It's not all rosy in Union. You can coach kids with no qualifications, clubs do like head coaches at mini age group to be at least level 1 qualified but some of the teams we played against didn't have that. There were three of us at our age group, we were all level 1 and two of us could referee.
Frankly, anyone can pass level 1. Level 2 is a little harder but is only required when you move to junior rugby and you're coaching 15 a side on a full pitch.
The worst thing I dealt with was refereeing. I ran our clubs minis festival for 4 years, we had upwards of 600 kids over two weekends. Every year I would ask every club attending to provide one referee for each age group - to ref minis you need to be level 1 or have the basic reffing qualification. Every year we would end up with clubs turning up with nobody who could ref. Some who did were utterly clueless. I would end up spending the whole day refereeing non stop.
Coaches in Union will be exactly the same spectrum as league, you can be as good as you want to be, I did as many additional courses as I could get to (CPD's) and regularly met with our local RFU rep. Others just want to drink and others thought they knew everything anyway.
The big thing Union had done really brilliantly is to provide a safe, secure and welcoming environment for people to bring their kids to. Facilities are generally good, and clubs tow the line because the RFU tolerates very little. Clubs also generally value their reputations.
I also believe the guys at the mid level in the RFU, county/regional, have the right attitude and vision. I've represented our club at our regional committee meetings and it's progressive, pragmatic and there is a lot of common sense used.
Having said all that I packed in coaching last year because my son went into swimming full time. Now swimming is another story - total f*******g nightmare.

Coaching is so good in RU that England have just had to appoint an Aussie deemed not good enough to coach his own country.
Scotland have a Kiwi as do Ireland & Wales. I think Italy's coach is South African. The French is the only side coached by one of their own.
It's the same in cricket, why can't we produce our own world class coaches?

I walk past my local yawnion club with the dogs every weekend & look on in envy at its facilities & the numbers of players participating. But the coaching seems to consist of endless line out & scrummage practice. I think there are a good number of yawnion forwards who have never actually touched a ball in their careers. Which is apparent when forwards get the ball & look completely lost. Compare to NZ players & league players who seem to have grown up with a ball in their hands.