I've not really been bothered about it for a while now because for all the talk about raising the profile of the game over here, its own fans would then make excuses for the NRL team when a SL team won and do their best to downplay the win.

With the SC getting wider and wider between the 2 competitions it's become less and less relevant to play this game.

We have no chance to pull out of league games, we had a choice not to do this game.

The league is our bread and butter. If we end up outside the top 4 I wonder how many of the same posters who were pro-WCC will be pointing the finger at the squad saying players X, Y and Z need to be let go.

And it is largely the timing that I really disliked. You can say it's a chance to test themselves, but flying over to Aus the day after a league game and landing less than a week before the game, only taking 19 players, then letting the Aussies take the mick with the late ref change. That's not a proper test that's just dumb. I'm not really fussed about it but if you want to go over there for games do it right. I'd also argue the usual line "they'll have learnt loads".....I don't think you do in one single game and whatever they do learn will be offset by not playing that level of opposition again for a quite a long time.

So you want to grow the relevance/profile of SL but are happy if the top teams throw several games.

No Hall and Briscoe now

Golding
Newman
Watkins
Keinhorst
Handley
Sutcliffe
Myler
JJB
Parcell
Singleton
Walters
Delaney
Ormondroyd

Dwyer
Oledzki
Garbutt
Smith

Would love to get a win today.

I think their team selection suggested they very much did care for the concept - they fielded virtually their strongset side including the best player in world.

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Short term losses for long term gains. The strength of the teams playing our competition certainly arent going to improve by not taking these opportunities.

Any evidence that they'll be long term gain or is that just a buzz phrase people use to defend this game?

How long have we been playing WCC's now and we've increased it to more games/teams in the last few years but is the standard of SL improved from 10/15 years ago? No because the issues with SL aren't and won't be fixed by one game against an NRL team.

I'd love to win the EuroMillions, unlikely to happen though.

No they wont, but then i didnt claim that to be the case. Keeping these games on the calendar (for me) are part of where the game should be heading.

Of course they were going to play their strongest team, if they had played the virtual reserves when playing at home and Leeds had gone to so much trouble to travel during our season it would have been the complete death knell to the WCC.

JJB early in his career missed a lot of games through injury , but he's making up for it now bless his heart. Would love a win today , but its not just today its going to be awhile before we are near full strength

It's trying to run before you can walk. If you can't sort out your week in week out competition then 1 game a year vs the NRL is pointless.

It was always going to be tough today, hopefully we get some back for next week and move on

Our annual loss to Widnes away. Does the owner have some dodgy pictures of Gary or summit.