Yes, the NRL accepted the proposal and threw their support behind it too grow the game in NZ, if there had been no Council prize money on offer it may well have never got off the ground.
Many of the NRL Clubs were far below full strength for the Nines and it will be interesting to see how they support it in its second year.


Do you think the NRL Clubs will or should support a second nines tournament in Dubai?

Lol, you just don't get it do you? A world club nines would be about money, plain and simple. Not fans, not growing the game, just money. Clubs get an appearance fee, sponsors get new exposure market and the game gets exposure to potential new sponsors. It also challenges the pit village flat cap image the game continues to suffer from. Nines has huge potential for growing RL and it's exposure to new audiences.

Personally I'd like to see a SL nines like the NRL NZ one pre season or in place of magic weekend and then a world international nines in October every other year.

The NRL clubs have no option but to support it, it is in the contract that x amount of top players have to play. Would they support a dubai nines? If the NRL tells them they have to then yes they would. Should they? If the $$$'s are right then yes they should.

Plenty of big names did not attend the Auckland nines.
The Clubs were only obliged to provide less than half of their top players to the tournament.

If the players union say its too many games in a season in will be an issue.

Give the Auckland tournament a chance to get some solid foundations before trying a pie in the sky Dubai competing nines.

What message does it send to the backers of the Auckland nines if another nines starts up on the back of their success.
Its no wonder this game struggles to get investment and sponsors at times.

The Dubai concept is just mouthy Marwan wanting headlines and tapping into English fans need to be relevant in the game.
Without the southern hemisphere clubs and Test teams it appears England cannot get anything happening that sells or gets interest.

England should concentrate on building France up from the abyss they have fallen into in the last 20 years.

Show me the money.

The money that is being offered in prize money and the money to cover all of the teams costs.

p.s I get it better than you appear to do looking at your timeline on when the "Pirates" will be in the NRL, I don't reckon we will see them next year.

Of course it's a novelty event. That's exactly what it should be to start with.
I really don't think playing a 9's tournament in a place that has no RL team in the US competition would boost that competition at all.

More chance of getting the Yanks interested in a sport like League than the Arabs.

Hang on, so it's ok to have it now as long as the money is there to cover costs and a prize fund?
What about the last few pages worth of objections you've put up against it?

I was answering his post.
I don't think its ok.
Its a total waste of time but who is financing this "concept" that everyone is so keen on?

No one is, its a load of rubbish.

The players union? Lol.

And many stars did take part. It was a good mix of 1st graders and youngsters and the crowds responded accordingly.

Where does it say it will compete with the Auckland nines? Union has taken a one off sevens comp and made it a series played all over the world and in the Olympics. Nines is a great format and we should be exploiting it, same with touch footy which is by far the biggest and most geographically spread form of RL being played.

A SL nines in place of magic weekend, which should be ditched as it creates an unfair fixture list, with a end of season world nines would be welcome additions to the Auckland nines.

Absolutely and if there is no money there is no comp. if koukash is serious and has the financial backing there will be. Time will tell.

Ps ASADA will close down the Sharks and we will be fast tracked to ko off next year lol. Probably time to change it to 2018!

The Players Union have capped years where Tests are played overseas several times.

I am not fussed on what Union does to be honest, but League is not Union and does not have that profile or corporate support to sustain two Nines comps in one season at near full strength IMO.

ASADA are a joke and will not close anyone down, has there ever been a bigger fiasco in sport than how they have put their case forward.
Its set drug testing back a decade in Australia.

you are a terribly ignorant person, what makes you say that? you do realise that Lebanon although not strictly Arab have a rugby league team? and there is local rugby league comp here? And there has just been an international rugby league match played in Dubai?

Also in response to why not the USA have you ever seen a map? what country is half way between the UK and Australia?

Dubai.....

Hard to read what you were saying there, it was all included in my post.

Not that ignorant, I know how to post a quote and reply unlike you.

The fact is the country has been built on imported slave labour
The fact is homosexuality is illegal and severely punished if discovered.
Its run by a bloke that is not much better than many past dictators.
No I would have no interest in going to Brazil AT ALL.
I know third world people and I feel its terrible that people accept paying them slave labour wages and rationalize it because its better than they get back home. I work with many people from third world countries.

Many imported "workers" are treated like absolute e in Dubai and many females are almost nanny "sex slaves" they can not go to the authorities because they would be locked up and condemned.

Not interested in the place, Desert, Arab "culture" Climate, people or "skyline"

Mongolia looks more attractive to be honest.