People arent being exposed to an international game, They are being exposed to a game between one national side, and a random and contrived team whose existance is solely to play against England and has a near constant turnover of staff

and why would you think people would support a nonsense team like a ROW 13? Nobody goes to a match to watch one side only. Why should i care if England win a friendly against a bunch on players who cant possibly have any pride in their jersey?

And they are doing the exactly the same thing by having east v west, we just get to include more English players. It becomes a real proving ground and trial game for international selection with a few guest stars thrown in.

Which is likely to be a more intense challenge Danny Buderus playing for the ROW against Roby, or Roby and Higham against Diskin and Lunt for international selection?

would you support a team with some Hull players in against a side made up of other SL clubs sides more, or a team with some hull players in against another with some hull players in?

as you would with east v west which you could do in exactly the same way as east v west.

yes as i proposed earlier on, we have 12 english sides in SL, 2 english players from each side voted for by the fans, 8 overseas players (again voted for by the fans) and 6 wildcards as coaches picks. Leaving two squads of 19.


Except it doesnt, it simply gives 17 english players a game against what would be a fairly average side that no-one cares about.

im sure it wouldnt be too difficult. Im also sure, considering players get paid for playing in these games and it formed part of international selection, they wont be too happy to be missing out. Also im sure the clubs wouldnt mind a slice of the takings.

Years ago when Origin was just starting a few Sydney Clubs were going to refuse to release players for the game. The ARL then made it compulsory to play as the player wouldn't have been able to play for the Kangaroos and were heading the Soccer/Football (pending where your from) route if the club's don't release players they don't play for the club now all the RLF would have to do is implement this rule simple as that.

The Super League Season is probably 3 matches to long as it is, so the comp get's culled back to 24 games a season and then have these games around the same time as Origin is in Australia.

A completely different thing the potential of being able to sell the games to be shown in other countries i.e given that a big contingent of the players in the 'Other Nationalities' squad would be Australian and New Zealand it could be shown in Australia and New Zealand(I hope that Fox got if it happens 9 treats League with contempt)

Is it not a game featuring players from one nation (England) and players from another nation (Australia)?


I think you'll find a lot of people go to a match to watch one team and not care what the other team is.

And why can't they have any pride in the jersey? Haven't some players come out and said they'd find selection an honour? You're speaking like all players wouldn't care, and that won't be the case at all. If it was the case, there wouldn't be teams like the Barbarians, and All-Star teams. Do you care that England beat Wales or France?


How can you talk down an Exiles team for being a "contrived" and then come out with an East vs West game with "guest stars"? Doesn't get any more contrived than that.
And no, it's not exactly the same at all. The only way you get experience of playing for England (under the coaching team, structures, experimenting the tactics with the players) is playing for England, not against half an English team.
Super League is already a proving ground for international selection. We now need to see which players can fit into the team the way the coach wants them to.


I'd hazard a guess at the first.


Depends who they're playing for. I wouldn't support New Zealand over England because a Hull player played for NZ.


But not as much quality as the best in England and the best of the overseas players, not to mention the bonus of the England players playing together.


Did you not just say the players from clubs from the East would play for the East and the West for the West? How would it be "friend vs friend"?


So, why would the overseas players have pride in this shirt then? How is this not contrived? You've basically gone against everything you've argued!


I disagree for reasons I've already said. And if I did agree, it would be a better game than England vs France/Wales, so still an improvement.


I'm pretty sure it's not as simple as that.
And I'm sure clubs, as happy as they would be with the takings, wouldn't be happy with the loss of their star players in important games (and thus potential loss of takings due to poor form).

Players from the other team wouldn't be able to be persuaded by international selection as that isn't the RFL's decision to make. If the ARL came out and said they would consider players that play in this game for the full test team, then maybe they would.

I'm sure some clubs' chairmen would be happy to see their players just playing club footy as well.

No, its England (or a version of the England side) playing a 'rest of the world who just happen to be playing in SL at this moment in time' team. I dont know anyone with a rest of the world passport. Though i expect it would be rainbow coloured.

So why does a Leeds v Wigan match get around 10k more than a leeds v some lower league side?

you think the Baa Baas or all star games are treated seriously? the Baa Baas pick a random amateur to play for them, in the NFL the pro-bowl is in hawaii and has different rules to normal, in the NBA is preceeded by dunk contests, and games of horse, These games are treated as what they are, showpieces, and events, a bit of fun.
of course i do, similarly i care when they play Australia, NZ, PNG or Fiji, or anyone in an international test. Im not interested in seeing them play a friendly series against a made up team cobbled together from the foreigners in this league/

Your right, it doesnt. It is contrived, it would be an event, a bit of fun, a trial and a get-together for the players, im not pretending it would be our Origin or a warm in intensity for international games.
then put them against Wales, Scotland, Ireland or France then. The England coaches could obviously be involved in an east v west game, the players are obviously getting together, and get to put themselves in the window for selection, 30 of them, rather than 17.

I can only ask why on earth you would think that?

thats not even close to being an answer to the question i asked.

so the best 30 english players plus the best 8 overseas players wouldnt put on a contest similar in intensity to the best 17 English players and the best 17 overseas players? do you really believe that?


England team mates playing against each other, for the shirt. Overseas players here for about 3 years on average is hardly the life long rivalry expressed by Origin when it sold itself as mate against mate, state against state.

I've fully accepted it is contrived. Im happy with that. Im not arguing it should be used to build us up to the intensity. It wont. Neither will an England v ROW 13. Nothing but closely fought internationals will do that.

As i said i didnt propose it as a means of getting players used to a higher intensity, to be our origin, a chance to try out tactics etc, because it isnt those things. None of the ideas proposed could be close to giving those things. So lets use it how we can, make it an event for the fans, let it get attention, get people involved, get people talking about the game, about whether they voted for Burrow or Brough, Tomkins or Pryce, Whether Kallum Watkins was the right choice as a coaches pick. Let the players get together, relax, get to know each other, play together against players trying to take their place, work with the England coaches and have some bloody fun.


an improvement in what way? that they are playing a team which is a bit better? Thats not going to prepare us for NZ and Australia any better at all. You are saying playing a team which would likely be comfortably the bottom team in the NRL, would prepare us for playing a team picked from all the best players in the NRL.

And when the England players say hang on, I earn about £3k a match here, there is a three match series here, plus the possibility of another 4/5 at the end of the season, plus win bonuses. Not to mention the inherent value in representing my country, are you going to pay me that extra £30k a year to make up for it? no? oh well id like a move to this club please, btw you have also ed of the RFL. and the overseas guest stars say hang on, i was getting £5k a match here, thats £15k you are stopping me earning, are you going to pay that? well that isnt what i came all the way over here for, I might look for another club in this country, but my agent will certainly contractually make sure you have to release any other players for this game if you want to bring them over.

The link in the OP stated that it was an SL-based Australian team. I would hazard a guess at them having an Australian passport in this case