Whats an A team going to do on its own? We have a league of players not good enough for SL, its called the championship and it produces very few elite players.

Dave Brailsford has been able to do what he has done because Team Sky and GB Cycling have invested in everything to give their athletes the best chance to fulfil their potential.

not been impressed with Hodgson at all, everyone been raving about him in Aus, can really ee why hull fans ed that Houghton not given a go.

the experiment of picking every Nrl player available to us as not worked and we are just as far away, cooper is nothing burgess twins poor i'd rather see players like oliver Holmes, Minikin even and raging JJb players that will give everything they've got and show some n venom, than these athletic soft s. (i am really ed off)

Disappointed with the result, but enjoyed the game. England had some chances early on, but the Aussies did their normal thing and ground us down. Would rather have seen the match played in a full stadium with less capacity, rather than somewhere that was always likely to have lots of empty seats. Hope the Kiwis can give the Aussies a good test in the final.

Would you still be taking selfies with Cronk and Inglis??!

No.

Overseas players in Super League isn't the issue. They aren't exactly stopping the next Sam Burgess coming through.....maybe the next Josh Walters or Andrew Dixon getting more game time.....but not International quality players.

On the other side of the coin, are Sam, Tom, George Burgess.....Hodgson, Whitehead stopping a potential Aussie International from game time????

My quote above from the Exchange Rate thread covers some of the issues we have in this country. It's the chicken and egg debate though - It all starts with the amateur game (which is in a complete mess), as we need more juniors playing the game to increase our player pool, but a key thing to achieve that his getting the sport a higher profile and thus more money in the game to improve the amateur game, particularly at junior level.

The amateur game is in a mess - it's fighting itself with the whole summer/winter mess, the level of amateur coaching, particularly at junior level is generally awful. A lack of facilities usually means kids are training in the dark, cold, and wet, the attitude of 'give it to the big kid' and 'smash em in defence' is still prevelant - other than kids who are already from rugby league families, it's hardly a welcoming environment. Throw in then the low profile and therefore lack of star/household 'role models' for the kids to look up to, we're starting well behind the Aussies right from the beginning. They've got their star players as household names/media superstars and the climate to encourage outdoor activities that straight away gets more kids involved, and it all builds from there.

Until we find a way to encourage more kids to play and stay with the game, we're papering over the cracks. We need better facilities, more inclusiveness (how about having both tackle and touch leagues?), better coaching and a change in mindset of what the junior game is about. The only way I can see things getting better is for the professional clubs to take complete ownership of their catchment areas (with non-heartlands then shared out) - they should be responsible for increasing participation numbers, improving facilities (maybe central/shared indoor facilities?), coaching etc.... They're the ones that would ultimately benefit from doing so.

The Aussies have got some natural advantages over us with the climate (and you could even add gene pool with the natural athleticism of Pacific Islanders), plus their existing higher profile and extra money - we have to be creative to overcome this, and it will take a drains up change in approach.

But ultimately, that will all cost money to implement..... back to the chicken and egg...

Just my musings, but I certainly don't see any RFL led initiatives currently in place looking to fix the root cause.

There'll be more ejaculate in the Eve household today than there has been for many a year.

We haven't had a decent English hooker since Martin Dermott, the game has been obsessed over here with scooters from dummy half who lack the ball playing skills of the likes Cameron Smith.

they also increased participation levels across the board and had a clear path to elite cycling so good cyclists were not lost to the sport and had a real chance of getting to the top. for years Britain produced cyclist more by chance an a few who had poetical did not make it through, now young cyclists have a pathway and have a good development programme.

that is why the A team is so important it keeps late developers in the game, and keeps participation levels up. i know so many players who don't make it in academy and simply give up the game, players don't want to drop down a division or two and certainly don't want to go back to their amateur clubs. so many amateur clubs are folding or struggling to get an open age side together. most conference and a lot of Yorkshire league side ran two sides 15-20 years ago,

They are stopping Jordan Baldwinson coming through. Right now. At one of the few clubs we have who actually bother with junior development.

So the only options after a match are to spit at your opponents shirt or take selfies with them?

how do we no these players are not international quality, they get to be if they are given 3-4 year run in the first team, they may not be the next sam burgess or adrian morley, but they could be the next andy Platt, roy power,l paul dixon, daryl Powell Paul lochlan, Mike gregory, all players who now would be written off. plenty off players who stood up well for Gb in the past were not seen as special junior talents or world beaters but played above themselves.

But an A side isn't going to bring them through. Late developers aren't going to develop in a low quality, low intensity league which is what an A side would be. The reason U19's is U19's and not U21's or U23's is because clubs would keep hold of players with even a glimpse of potential which would then be wasted as those players stagnate in poor quality, low intensity reserves leagues.

But yes, brilliant, lets increase participation levels. But GB Cycling did that by being successful, they were successful because they spared no expense, spared no effort in gaining every advantage they could, however miniscule.

Yep if Jordan Baldwinson had been playing instead of Tom Burgess, England would've won.