Super gnarly.

The speed and intensity of the hitting in the NRL is among the most brutal in any professional sport, because the pace the game is played at allows it to be so.

Every set is comparable in intensity to the first set of six in the game of rugby league - players flying into tackles at 100 miles per hour

Close, but I don't count union. RL and American football are both ball control games where the objective is to keep possession and march down the field to score touchdowns and therefore brands of football in my opinion. RU depends on kicking to gain ground more than advancing the ball while retaining possession, indeed it has no rules enabling a team to keep possession for a period of time and restart play without a contest. Therefore, only RL and American football are brands of football to me.

will A.F.L. catch on in the USA

What a strange comment.

You don't count Union because of some bias you have against the sport, no other reason.

It is a form of football as much as any other. The clue is in the name 'foot' ball, yet you don't count because they kick too much.

league. thats what most of us call it. we dont use that rugby name at all. it sounds so weak to call RL rugby

new link www.spike.com/video/wimps-need-not-apply/3244736

new link www.spike.com/video/wimps-need-not-apply/3244736

the padding allows players to hit that bit harder at high speed but im not so sure about the play being dictated by the padding. many of the best tacklers are coached to simply hit as hard as possible in the region where the ball is carried to genereate fumbles and turnovers. In the past this happened with less padding and indeed no helmets. so it could be said the evolving physically in American football as the modern NFL came into being dictated that the players had to wear helmets or cause serious injury. Both arguments are probably correct as ts all interlinked.

They definitely arent super human but the NFL probably has some of the most athletic sportsmen in team sport. the way they can run, jump, turn, react and still have great core strength is very admirable.

Apart from the massive defensive linemen who are 300lbs+ and can hardly walk let alone run.

Ditto, somethings not quite right .

I agree. My opinion is that we should always 'officially' be called Rugby Football League, or Rugby League, but it should be marketed and referred to simply as 'League', and presenters/reporters/commentators should make a conscious effort to refer to the sport as this.

If RU want to monopolise the word 'rugby' then let them. We're not as big as RU so it's pointless trying to compete with them for the use of the word.