Quote: Him "Yep. We have to build. Use 9's as an international development tool. It's never going to get any traction as a domestic club competition but it can be used as Union has used 7's. Aim to get it into the Commonwealth Games and then build again from there.'"
Trying to force 9s doesn't seem right for me - it's like we've seen the success of 7s and just picked another random number.
What I'd prefer to see is using the 7s, where you'll note a lot of the players aren't full-time RU players, to showcase the benefits of RL. I think we could get more of our players playing in the 7s, representing GB, and then shouting loud about how it is their NRL/SL experience which is what's led them to smash the 7s.
The skill-set of 7s is very similar to RL and if you look at why the Fijians are so much better than GB its because they look like a line-up from an NRL game. GB looks like the back-line of an RU team, which is small and wirey and not designed to do more than one role (ie both attack and defend).
Use what's already there instead of trying to replicate/compete against the much better funded, managed, and marketed RU. Surely it doesn't make sense to try go directly up against that given the limited funding and current support for RL??? That would be like trying to set up an RL team in a RU-only area like Twickenham.