Agreed, I'll move these posts to the RLWC2013 thread, I want capture all debate and discussion like this.

Correct. (apart from Biscuit who seems to be turning a blindeye!

)

The RLWC2013 team fully recognise they need to aim broadly at three groups: the core RL fans; casual RL / sports fans; the wider public. They know they need to do things that capture the imagination of all three and are well on with doing and planning just that. I'm quite excited about the potential if everything they are planning comes off.

To the RFL's credit, they are trying hard with this, even if the casual observer believes otherwise. RFL HQ is in Leeds - I guess it would have been easy to convert a room there into the RLWC2013 office. Instead, they've set up base at Media City in Salford, right next door to the BBC and ITV, with a dedicated team of people with specific RLWC2013 roles. This is giving them great access to the media. They've already seen positive benefits to this and this will grow and grow.

I don't want to reveal too much as it's not all confirmed yet but the plans for use of ambassadors to spread the word look very positive, including past and present RL legends and for a broader appeal, use of Olympics stars. The intention is to create a buzz around the fact the next big international sporting event in the UK after the Olympics is RLWC2013.

The Rugby League World Cup has had its ups and downs - probably never more down than the 2000 fiasco. But the 1995 and 2008 tournaments created lots of great sport and memories. There is no reason why RLWC2013 can't be the best yet. A good starting point would the core RL fans getting behind it.

[uDarren Lockyer at Leigh in November[/u www.leighsportsvillage.co.uk/new ... ews_id=618 See link if interested in what should be a fantastic evening, gutted I am away.

[uDarren Lockyer at Leigh in November[/u www.leighsportsvillage.co.uk/new ... ews_id=618 See link if interested in what should be a fantastic evening, gutted I am away.

I do, I did and I enjoyed it. If you had watched it you would know that you certainly couldn't have described it as a non-contest.

I'm also really looking forward to the World Cup next year.

Which part of the world cup are you looking forward to?

The Titanic clash between those Rugby League Heartland Countries, Samoa v Lebanon, or Australia picking up the cup in an empty stadium?

There certainly will be some titanic clashes. Are you too young to remember Tonga V NZ at Wilderspool in 1995? For the 8,000 people there that night, it went down as one of their most memorable matches ever. I can still remember it clearly, whearas I already have trouble recalling some bits of the season just gone. As for the final - are you forgetting that NZ are the current holders? And empty stadium? The last four finals have seen crowds of 74k, 66k, 44k and 51k. Why so negative?

As I say, some of RL's worst enemies are its own "fans". All this talk of non-contests and matches being not entertaining. Well, I refer you back to the football on Friday. 85k for an utterly unappealing match. We are supposed to love RL and be proud of our tough heroes like Paul Wood who put their bodies on the line for the game they love too. And anyone who did watch yesterday would have seen the pride in the Welsh boys singing the national anthem and the enthusiasm with which they played. Yet so many "fans" just can't be bothered.

If the core RL fans really got behind the sport, it would attract more and more casual observers and help the game grow, bringing in sponsors and better TV deals. Until they do, then the very people who moan and whinge about things being not good enough are the very ones holding RL back.

I don't disagree with your sentiment SEB and i know you're passionate, i lambaste international RL, it frustrates the hell out of me but i'll still turn up and watch.

The thing is though i can fully understand our fickle fans, if the governing body can be fickle and the players can be fickle then surely you can understand why the fans are such?

You're an idiot. Go and watch a different sport.

This shows your complete and absolute lack of knowledge of RL. When was the final last played in an empty stadium? Who are the current holders? Do you know how many Samoan players there are in RL worldwide? It will probably surprise you to know that we've had one at the HJ for the past 3 years.

I was there at the NZ-Tonga match and it was one of the best atmospheres ever at Wilderspool.

We should support or chosen sport. End of.

Finally, some common sense on a thread about international RL! We are set for what could be the best world cup since the concept was introduced in 1954, and I have confidence that the team based in Media City working alongside the top marketing firm Fast Track can put together a competition that will be enjoyed by both traditional fans and people new to the sport.

Look at the game in Lens on Saturday, it wasn't the best game you will ever see and 99% of the crowd were new to the sport. They clearly didn't always understand what was going on, but they absolutely loved it. Why should the USA v Cook Islands in Bristol be any different?

We all know that rugby league is the greatest game of all and a pleasure to watch, whether it is State of Origin or Warrington Wizards v British Police on a cold afternoon at Wilderspool. So why is it that when we are presented with a brilliant opportunity to showcase our sport the people who claim to support it are first at the table to declare it is a sham and they want nothing to do with it?

We have seen what success on an international scale can do with the Olympics, Union World Cup and the Cricket Ashes. People become gripped by this new sport that isn't soccer, and suddenly you see kids on the park throwing a rugby ball about or going out and buying a cricket set. This event has such great potential, as the first major post Olympics legacy event to be held in the UK. With no international soccer this summer and the memory of Borismania fresh in everyone's mind we couldn't ask for a better time to host the contest.

Tickets are cheap, and there are some great venues. As other posters have said, seeing international football played at our own stadium is a special occasion. It looks like some of the Pacific nations could pull off a couple of surprises- take PNG for example who narrowly lost to the Prime Minister's XIII in front of a big, passionate crowd last month. They absolutely love their rugby league over there and can't wait for the world cup to get started and neither can I.

People should take their negativity to soccer where it is actually needed and leave the rest of us to enjoy the pinnacle of the greatest game of all.

Good post. These people who claim to support the game and then constantly deride it should be ashamed. I shall certainly be at several of the games next year and I also fully intend to see at least one game at Hemel too.