Quote: downo "So, you tell me?? what element caused the crowds to stay away?'"
I'm guessing the fact that RL fans don't bother to turn out to support the game they profess to love.
You're acting as if Australia v England/GB has been the most one sided rivalry in the history of sport. Yes, you've been superior to us in my lifetime of watching RL (1990 onwards), but not to the extent that rivalries in other sports have been. You won the 1992 world cup final 10-6 and the 1995 final 16-8. Hardly on the scale of 142-0 is it now?
As I said, other sports have similar issues and yet they seem to do just fine. For example, New Zealand have beaten Wales in every rugby union match since 1953 - something like 30 wins in a row or thereabouts. Shall we check the attendances for the 2016 New Zealand v Wales series? Auckland 46270, Wellington 35907, Dunedin 28726. Just an ordinary series, not even a World Cup, son.