You want to dismiss all Irish qualified players as half-rate and semi-professional?
Dunno? 2010 man of steel maybe?

No, there are better players in SL than those who played for the exiles who didnt play in that game. Maybe instead of listening to Wiganers moaning about his exclusion we could have seen Irish international Michael Mcilorum play for............well Ireland. Instead we saw St helens 29 year old Kiwi utility who is predominantly a fullback.

Here is what Michael Mcilorum said about his switch from Ireland to England [iThat will give McIlorum the chance to put himself in the frame to face Australia and New Zealand in the end-of-season Four Nations Series, a prospect that prompted his decision to turn his back on Ireland.

“I don’t think my grandad will be too happy but, playing for Ireland, I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to play against these teams,” said McIlorum, speaking at a media day at the England training camp at Loughborough University.
[/i


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Just an idea. A triple header of rugby, hopefully it would increase the attendances.

Knights v Wales
France v Exiles
West v East ( Roses/Origin/Current club)

3 game series. 1 East, 1 West and 1 in france.

Definitely worth £20. It would be difficult to find 3 weeks in the calendar, however if the league was cut down to 12 teams it would certainly be possible!!

Yorkshire/East

Eden
Hall Atkins Yeaman Briscoe
McGuire Brough
Crabtree Haughton Peacock
Westwood JJB
Bateman

Burrow, Ablett, Carvell, Lynch

Lancs/West

Tomkins
Charnley Goulding Watkins Riley
Lomax Briers
Morley Roby Mossop
Hock O'loughlin
Sinfield

Mcllorum, Prescott, LMS, Blythe

The west v east would take priority over the knights. After picking my east v west teams, this could be the knights team. Still strong enough to beat wales.

Hardaker
BJB Ratchford Bridge Broughton
Smith Gaskell
Bailey Lunt Clough
Clarkson Farrell
Flanagan

Ferguson, Cooper,Hodgson, Harrison

France would have a tough game against the exiles but not as tough as playing england.

I just think that whatever the RFL do, fans just are not that interested in rep rugby like the aussies are with state of origin!! Even if it was all 3 games + both days of the magic weekend + CCF + GF for £100 I dont think people would come on mass!

Really? Do Saints fans see themselves as scousers then?

We all know the traditional boundaries of Lancashire and there is plenty of pride in the red rose on this side of the Pennines. The roses cricket games are always intense, competitive matches. I live in Eccles and take great pride in the Lancashire County Cricket Club. There are many reasons why an English state of origin will not get off the ground but lack of association to the west of the county aint one of them.

Let's get away from creating an origin game.

Its a special game that we can't create over here just like you couldn't in New Zealand.

The best game mid season would be France away from home. End of season England should be playing NZ. NZ want test football so forget Australia and build something with NZ instead.

Think the concept just needs time to bed in, origin took a while to get support in Australia and look at it now. I appreciate that it was a poor game and weather was horrendous but given time I think it will come good and people will start to follow it. Like the 5 nations idea too, but having the England knights compete in that to stop it being just an England whitewash every year.
I also think it would be cool for England to do a tour of southern hemisphere one year and play 5 matches against PNG, NZ, NSW, Queensland and Australia.

Sadly, I can't see it.

I liked the concept when it came out, and would have gone last year but I'm just sick of going to Headingley.I went last night and hated it. The atmosphere was non-existent, the Exiles clearly didn't give a damn, the match was truly dreadful and utterly pointless.

I hate criticisng it, as I can see what the RFL are trying to do is for England's benefit, and if they sat back and did nothing, we'd all be slaughtering them for allowing the Aus/NZ dominance of international RL to continue without any effort from us to stop it. We weren't getting much of a test off France so I can see why they altered it, but do we honestly believe that non-event benefitted England's chances in the World Cup next year?

All it did was convince me to not attend another game like that. I went to Wembley and to Elland Road to watch England but I'm not going to watch anything like that again. If the powers that be wanted the Exiles concept to catch on and improve, then they shouldn't have allowed McNamara to pick the same failures we've seen at International level time and time again, and picked a squad with exciting talent that could have learned from the experience, and found a way to encourage the exiles to look like it at least sort of mattered to them.

I hate criticisng it, as I can see what the RFL are trying to do is for England's benefit, and if they sat back and did nothing, we'd all be slaughtering them for allowing the Aus/NZ dominance of international RL to continue without any effort from us to stop it. We weren't getting much of a test off France so I can see why they altered it, but do we honestly believe that non-event benefitted England's chances in the World Cup next year?'"

In terms of Englands prep for WC they should be touring at the end of this year to gell the team. Couple of games in PNG, couple in NZ. Would gell them together and give them some tough competition ahead of the WC.