So, as someone who attended public school, has siblings who live in Hertfordshire, has played rugby union a lot, spent £165 each on 2 tickets to the rugby union world cup opening game (to take my dad for his 70th birthday (as he always played union, but also introduced me to league and incidentally warrington rlfc from when he worked as a surgeon at warrington general hospital)), spent this morning coaching my sons U14 rugby union team on the wirral, is very much interested in rugby union and the world cup......

but... is a season ticket holder at Wire (has been for over 25 years), got the train back from London on Saturday after the union game specifically to get to yesterdays wire game, also played rugby league to a decent standard, makes sure my business sponsors players/ matches (to do nothing more than support the club), doesn't read the daily mail (can't stand it), is already talking to club about sponsorship next year, bends over backwards to support the club in everything it does, doesn't always get to away games, but has been to an awful lot (including France on 7 occasions), supports international rugby league, lives and breaths wire......

Have I 'more money than sense', am a boring 'yawnion' upper class prick, doesn't fit in on this message board, shouldn't be tolerated???????????

I sit back and look at the narrow minded, tedious, negative drivel that is endemic on this message board and amongst many fans. I wonder why people look down on our sport.......

I think next season is going to be great. And if it isn't, so what? I'll still love the wire. Its whats in your heart that matters. If you don't like it, go find something else to whinge about...............

That's a fair comment too, and is the same for every other minority sport. RL fans always compare the coverage it gets with RU - and some advocates of either code even compare them to football which is another stratosphere altogether - but it does okay compared to other minority sports. England RL is seen as representing English RL fans, in the same way as the national hockey team for example would only be viewed by most people as representing fans of that sport.

The only way to change that is for it to become a much bigger contest. England football, RU and cricket teams are seen as representing the whole country because you don't need to be a regular viewer of any of those sports to enjoy the big international occasions. RL is seen as representing northerners and ultimately being won by Australia. The average armchair sports fan in Reading or Watford isn't going to connect with that in the same way the equivalent viewer in Hull or Leeds who has absolutely zero interest in their club Premiership probably can still connect with the England RU team at tournament time.

A competitive GB V Aus series would be bigger than the World Cup but I don't really see how it's going to happen so personally I'll stick to just enjoying Super League and let the more popular sports get on with it. Much as some would like to pretend it is, it really isn't rugby union's fault that rugby league isn't more popular!

Unfortunately, most sports on the world stage that UK international teams are involved in usually finish up with the same regular permutations of winners & not including the British sides. A masterstroke was pulled for the RLWC seemingly by employing the lady who was the mastermind behind the organisation & marketing of the competition. We could do worse than make her an offer she couldn't refuse to take Rugby League in general by the scruff of the neck & drag it as a business into the 21st century.

Love it or loathe it I've just watched the finest game of rugby of either code in the Scotland vs Samoa game

You must have missed the nrl grand final then? Wales and Australia back to the norm

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Perfect

In 13 pages, I think we can sum the whole debate up in this one paragraph.

Let's not get a chip on our shoulder because the 3 point code gets a lot more people through the turnstiles, than our sport. Yes, I wish more people came and viewed the product, but, you can't press gang people into turning up. For some reason, International RL hasn't "

A competitive GB V Aus series would be bigger than the World Cup but I don't really see how it's going to happen so personally I'll stick to just enjoying Super League and let the more popular sports get on with it. Much as some would like to pretend it is, it really isn't rugby union's fault that rugby league isn't more popular!'"