Again, I don't really see the point in spending big money on marketing an event to a group of people that, however interested they are, have nothing to follow it up with. Fine if Scotland is a strategic development area but I don't think it is. If 10,000 people from Edinburgh love it and want more RL what do they do, unless we have Magic Weekend back up there in 2017?

One event should follow another, have Magic in a city, then follow it up with an international in the same year to build on the first marketing effort.

It would ve great for the game to have the profile to take games on the road and guarantee sell outs / but with the limited financial and marketing resources that the sport has we have to do things a bit smarter.

For Me all England games must be in ENGLAND

So for me

Rd: 1

Scotland V Australia - The game to be In Scotland (not too familiar with stadia 20k max capacity one though)
England V NZ (wigan)

Rd: 2

Scotland V NZ
England V Australia (Id be happy with an Olypic Stadium or Wembley double Header)


RD: 3

England V Scotland (Headingley if the bulldozers are not in If not Huddersfield)
Australia V NZ (Langtree)


Final:

City Of Manchester

Lets avoid Old Trafford. The only thing in it's favour is the capacity, but most seats are uncomfortable; and I hate the narrow in-goal, it's going to cause a serious injury one day.

Got to start well:

Round 1:
Double header at Wembley (I would prefer the Olympic Stadiums size but having gone to it in November I thought it was a bloody awful stadium)
England v Australia
Scotland v NZ

Round 2:
Australia v NZ - St Helens/Wigan
Scotland v England - Huddersfield

Round 3:
Double header at St James Park
England v NZ
Scotland v Australia

Final at Etihad

I've got to say I preferred the old Tri Nations format of playing each team twice. Gave the comp more "heft" to it and kept it in the media for longer. If England don't make the final it's effectively over and done with in 2 weeks.

League Express reckons-
Rd 1-
Rd2- Ricoh- Aus v NZ & Eng v Sco
Rd 3-
Final- Anfield

In the gaps somewhere 1 match in London, 1 in Scotland, others in the heartlands

Scotland vs England at Coventry would work best. A poor selling game in the north but smashing the Scots and lots of points make it a good sell to a newbie.

NZ vs Australia would be a good bet for London as the last game at the Stoop got some real interest going with the ex-pats. Unless they fancy trying the Olympic Stadium again, which was a great success last year.

England vs NZ/Australia will work anywhere in the north or London. Hull for the NZ game is a good bet as they have a poor record there. A win against NZ will get us into the final and that means £££ for the RFL. Maybe Wigan for the Australia game as that gives Lancashire a game.

The other two Scotland games are hard sells regardless of where they are. Maybe have these as double header openers?

Anfield sounds exciting but if you think there is no leg room at Old Trafford then you have never sat in the Centenary stand.

'More or less London'? Ask an AFC Wimbledon fan about MK being 'more or less London'!

I think Anfield is a great suggestion, it's an historic world famous ground with a great atmosphere, and with the new tier they are bulldog capacity will be approx 54k with new corporate facilities. Liverpool is also a massive northern city where we don't get much coverage (despite Widnes and Saints not being too far away)

Not keen on the ideas of Coventry and Milton Keynes, both places aren't the kind that would attract many northern fans to go down for the weekend like London would, and we would need thousands of fans to travel from the heartlands to make it work.

The aim is to attract other supporters from around the country, not just northerners.

Buy Sky Sports memberships, products from advertisers, merchandise etc, thus giving us a better negotiating position for TV and advertising deals. Go to the odd game when in the UK, or make special trips to watch finals etc. Take up playing the game. Spread the word that rugby league actually exists so others might get involved. I used to think along the same lines as you but when i thought about it more there is still a lot to be gained from putting events on in areas where there are no pro clubs nearby.

If it is Anfield, I feel sorry for the people who get tickets at the back of the bottom tier of the Anfield Road End. It's like watching the game through a postbox back there.

But we can get that AND the possibility of "new" people going to clubs if we hold the games in areas where there is at least some RL pro or semi pro presence. Newcastle or Manchester for instance.

England v NZ & Scotland v Australia - Murrayfield or either of the Auld Firm stadiums. Doddle to get to by train, Virgin Trains are now in partnership with the RFL and hopefully they can get some sort of ticket deal involved.

England v Scotland - Heartlands,

England v Australia - Wembley (sod it, what's to lose?)

Scotland v NZ - Firhill? 10k capacity, Glasgow?

Final - Anfield, Etihad

They should do an England - Scotland, New Zealand - Australia double header in London. That way it's a pretty much guaranteed win for England and hopefully a close, good quality game for the Antipodean population. Preferably at Wembley as the Olympic Stadium is a poohole of the highest order.