Erm, yeah

Union is focusing on growing participation, and diversifying the player base. Feel free to stick your head in the sand and write them off as posh frat boys, maybe they were but they won't be eventually - because they have a plan to change, and the resources to do it. I can't stand the game personally, but if you think that's a worse long term strategy than having a few clubs on the East coast for a few years and then pretending a pro league wil just spring out of nowhere like magic in 2010, then good luck to you mate. I loved that Kevin Costner movie too, but I reckon in the real world they won't just come if you build it - you need a step-by-step, organic approach. Step one? Get amateurs playing the game for fun. The obsession with professionalism and illusory business opportunity is stupid - first things first, get people to enjoy the game through participation. That then becomes the platform for later pro growth. If the US guys had spent more time since 1994 focused on that, and less on grandiose schemes and bizarre press releases, who knows we might have a bridgehead now to kick on from. As it is, we've got vapourware. A great job indeed!

Lofty goals that are repeatedly unrealised get people bored, and diminish your chance of ever building anything real - cry wolf anyone? That's my point - this is not a one-off, this has been said time and time again

what a load of poop.

the NZRU recently helped one of their clubs sign michael witt.

1. hes not a kiwi
2. he doesnt play union.

and this is the nation where RU is a strong sport.

even talking about union having junior development is just one big laugh

i dont fully believe these RL stories but im sure the RU efforts in the US are a load of poop too.

union fans have been talking up the US for years.

a few stuck up kids playing some union hardly comprises much of a sport

funnily enough union have managed to trick the world into believing that places like australia even care about the sport.

and georgia, russia, romania, half of africa, canada, japan, much of asia, uruguay, chile....
none of these countries have made it into the top nations.
argentina were in this list, but fair play to them, there's no way you could say they haven't made it.

Negative crap

havent made what?

no one gives a s** there.

have a look how the sport is almost gone from australia without worrying about places like argentina etc.

the way soccer has over taken union in australia theres a fair chance the sport could go back to semi pro within a decade.

the failure of union in australia is going to have a big impact on union as a world wide sport.

the S14 faces a lot of problems and on top of it the kiwis are losing all their best players to france.

www.nrlus.com/nrl2010 seems like they do have some sort of strategy, and they are hinting at having broadcasting arrangements in place.

www.nrlus.com/nrl2010 seems like they do have some sort of strategy, and they are hinting at having broadcasting arrangements in place.

there are hundreds of millions of people in the us, the couple of thousand max who could possibly be disenfranchised if this fails are inconsequential in the bigger scheme of things

You might want to take a look at rlTHISrl before making assumptions like that.

Seems that some people are having difficulty grasping the concept that some things are done very differently over here and sport is one of those things.

I would do, but they are American....and the reason that US footie was popular before TV is simple....gambling.
Now, if you want to tell Lou Cabrazzi to stop swimming with fishes and start supporting RL.....good luck.
TV Cash rules and the sheer aggression of RL will appeal to the US Market.........and good luck to them.
Bottom line is they will throw some cash behind it.....more than my club will ever do

Does anyone think it's a bit confusing the whole two NRLs? Will that help or hinder this in America?