I agree with what everything said about the demise of our game. In the last 5 years it has gone alarming backwards.

Too many meaningless games, not enough competitiveness, no interest no crowds.

This was re-iterated on soccer saturday recently, when non promotion/relegation bewteen the Premiership and Championship was debated. It was dismissed as pure stupidity.

The direction RFL leaders are taking the game is suicidal. Our game is dieing.

I have been an ardent RL for 50 years and I am also becoming very disinterested.

Look at the prospect for clubs outside the championship with the amount of travelling the supporters have to undertake that league will be the first to die.

The championship wont be much different either we are on a slippy slide and unless the SKY money is increased for the lower leagues then pro rugby outside of super league will be a thing of the past.

There is no sky money outside of SL, we have been dropped.


Progress, don't ya just love it!

I'm just wondering what game the OP watched.

What I saw was a game that we were robbed of by a couple of cr*p refereeing decisions


Still, it gives the usual suspects a new reason for a rant - the fact that we haven't beaten Australia in a meaningful match in many, many years, long before the introducing of franchising is obviously irrelevant.

The facts are:

The ref did deprive us of a couple of crucial calls that could have made the scoreline closer. However, if you watch the game again (which I have) without the patriotic spectacles on you can see that the better team won the game. In fact I would go as far as saying, that if anything the Aussies were playing within themselves.

The good thing on the horizon however, is that they have to play Wales next time around. This might sound bizarre but that is a good thing for England. The Kiwis played Wales in second gear and will have lost the momentum they gained last week when they played the Aussies. They will come into the game at the KC slightly undercooked and we have a good chance in turning them over. Likewise Sheens will want to give game time to his squad against the Welsh and they could go into the final against (hopefully) the English a bit dis-jointed and under cooked, whereas the English will be coming into this with an increase in momentum. Bizarrely losing against the Aussies means we have a better chance than ever of winning this comp (if only McNamarra picks the right team!).

We can't even beat them by filling our own team with aussies. More imports in our game in key positions means fewer true Englishmen to chose from. Take away the leagues below SL, what will become of SL? It will become NRL division 2

Aye - thats the one I watched as well, Frank!

For me, one thing summed that game up - and the gulf in class that still exists between the Aussies and our [i'creme de la creme'[/i:

Billy Slater goes off injured. They shuffle a couple around, and carry on as if nowt has happened.

Now, imagine the panic and disarray in the England camp if Tomkins had suffered the same fate!!

I agree with alot of what's been said on here, the RFL go way beyond a joke. I used to go to the challenge cup final, internationals etc for a weekend ont ale, but don't any more as I refuse to give any money to the RFL, all I care about is Fev & the championships.
I did watch the England match tho, at first more out of curiousity than patriotism, I wouldn't have been bothered if we had gotten destroyed. But to be fair it did look like we gave them a reasonable challenge & but for a couple of refereeing howlers the score woulda been alot closer. Did the Aussies get out of second gear? I guess if we get to the final we'll find out. The most telling thing was how clinical they were, just about every chance they had they scored.
I think it said 1 of the imports was born in Keighley to British parents who then moved down under when he was young, so that's fair enough. But what a joke Rangi Chase is!!! If there isn't a proper English half-back playing in SL that's as least as average then that to me is a damning reflection on the failures of the RFL IMO.
Good luck next season (apart from when you play Fev & extra luck when you play Fax lol)

Hmm. All those 'true Aussies' who beat us, such as Akuila Uate, who actually played 6 times for his native Fiji before the Aussies stole him. Tony Williams chose Tonga, then changed loyalties to Australia. Petero Civoneceva, Willie Mason, Karmichael Hunt, Antonio Kaufusi, Tonie Carroll, Hazem El Masri-I could go on.

We chose two non English born players, one who's Dad is English and everyone starts whinging.

I will go on-

New Zealand: Gerard Beale, Jason Nightingale, Nathan Fein, Sam McKendry, FuiFui MoiMio, Zeb Taia, Bryson Goodwin, Setaimata Sa, Chase Stanley, Luke Covel, Epalahame Lauaki, Ben Roberts, Jake Webster, Frank Pritchard, Brent Webb, Jason Cayless.

I'm getting bored naming world class players and world cup winners who wern't born in the nation they represent.

Not as bored as I am of watching England get beat off Southern Hemisphere XIII teams though. Maybe if we start bending the rules too something might get done about it, but while we wait let's all play up to the chip on our shoulders and blame Super League because we're Leigh fans.

I mean, look at the harm playing imported players has done the yawnion and cricket teams, as well as soccer teams across the planet, but this is RL and we have to whinge, rather than enjoy.

Saturday was the best day out of RL i've had in years, and that includes and Leigh games. At least a scroat and his 20 mates i've never met or seen at a Leigh game didn't try and start fighting with me eh?

Jonny, that is the post oif the century mate. The backwards thinking idiots shouldnt get to you though, they are the ones holding our sport back with relentless negativity and reluctance to look at the facts before spouting cr*p.

Sorry Jonny but I don't subscribe to the "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" theory. The RFL should be leading the way in getting proper, stricter guidelines for international qualification which will in turn strengthen the Pacific Islands mentioned who get their best players picked off by Australia and New Zealand. We certainly shouldn't be turning to a player who wasn't born in England, raised in England, trained in England nor has any English blood. And it's that reason why I've yet to attend an England game this year having not missed an England/GB home game in probably 10 years. Nowt to do with being a bitter Leyther and everything to do with thinking we should be making a stand instead of "the Aussies do it so it must be ok".

Agree totally Matt. If they have no English parents then they shouldn't Play for and should be the same for everyone.

I'm assuming the players you're talking about are:

Widdop-English
Reed-English
Heighington-HAS an English father
Chase-Mystery but not good enough anyway.