Lengthen them?! The guys go into pre-season training in a week!!! The lads need at least SOME time off! We need internationals at wembley again. This would make us at least look as though we're heading in the right direction, and with some ambition.

For me the four nations is a great concept but teams should play each team twice like the old tri nations. The current format is too truncated and one bad result and your out as we've seen with NZ this season. For me I would have the first round played in the summer -June/ July - have the matches we've just seen now, then a final round at the end of the season culminating in the final. That way it keeps the international game going all season as with RU, and the teams get to build together and develop as a team. I would also keep the SL going for the summer internationals like RU do, as this would give the younger players a chance in all teams while the internationals were away on international duty (with the exception of allowing catalans to re-schedule their games)

I agree about the summer Internationals part but am not sure that we'd be able to play NZ and Australia twice in a year. The costs would be huge.

Surely if the games are marketed correctly you can manage the costs....its only a flight over for each team and a hotel booking after all?

It would become annual though and the whole reason we don't go there so much anymore is because the game is on its . On the other hand you can't expect them to come over twice a year.

We tried going over to Sydney for a one off test match some years ago.
We got battered. Can't remember the exact score but the Aussies put over 60 past us I'm sure.
The RFL won't go with that one again.

72-10 I think. (doesn't Rads call it a ridiculous idea in his book?)

I think the only way we could go with an International mid-season would be for England to play a Barbarians style side from the rest of SL/Championship/Championship1, but i'm not sure how much intensity it would have.

Alternatively, we go the way the Aussies go and not only hire a coach but a panel of selectors. We then bring back the County of Origin and raise the intensity by declaring it the ONLY way you will be picked for England (similar to origin). The games would be intense as players battled for places in the England side and the squad would not just be picked by one man with any possible agenda but by a panel.

A friend suggested playing France twice a year at a weekend free of SL games. The idea is to build it up over the years and make it our SoO.
I think it is a very good idea and we now know that we need the French almost as much as they need us. It was said about the French that they could only last 40 mins. At Wigan, England were 26-0 down by then.
The Murrayfield Tragic could be dropped as it's irrelevant and we could take a week out of the play offs by making the top eight a straight knock out and therefore a three week competition.
I do think we have to get together with the French to work something out to our mutual benefit for the good of International Rugby.

Dropping the Magic Weekend and the Challenge Cup would be for the best in terms of internationals because there'd be more room in the season for internationals and when it comes to the end of the season players will have played less games so they wont be as fatigued when it comes to the 4 Nations etc.

Not a bad idea. Touch one sided to start I would think but has the potential.

IMO our international game is embarasing so i dont see the point to be honest. We have got 3 teams who are any good and France are in a bracket on there own below us Aus and NZ. I wish it wasnt, i really dont, but this is the reason why Union are more of an apeal than we are (as boring as i and all others think union is to watch). They have a good solid 10 teams internationaly and thats were the difference is. Until the likes of France, Wales, Ireland, Fiji, PNG, Samoa, Tonga and so on become more competative with the bigger nations our game wont move on Internationaly. I personally would rather have an Ashes Series at home at the end of 2010

A mid season international should replace the Magic weekend IMO. The magic weekend does nothing to improve the standard of play here nor does it do anything for the international game and you can hardly argue playing it in Scotland is a worthwhile exercise in promoting the domestic game..

A regular mid-season game v France should replace it.

As it is RL internationals seem to pop up out of nowhere and don't seem to have any firm roots in the sporting calendar. We need regular international games so fans (and the media) get back into the habit of internationals being an important part of the RL sporting calendar.

Eventually an England / France game would hopefully reach a standard where the rivalry would be as good as England v France in RU and be good preparation for both sides for things like the four nations or world cup.

It would be one sided to start with but then provided the right development priority is given to it there is no reason a French side could not emulate the pretty rapid rise of Les Cats to becoming competitive.

EDIT: RU introduced Italy to make the six nations and they were very poor. They didn't give up despite some thrashings the Italians got and viewed the whole thing as a positive step. They stuck at it withItaly and now they can win against the home nations. We show far too much impatience with the likes of France and PNG - the two sides just outside the top of international RL.

Argentina are going to start playing in the southern hemisphere version of the six nations. They will get murdered but RU will stick at it.

Dave

I agree totally. We didn't have enough test standard players to fill the squad this year. Until our league has a scenario where a team finishing top can be struggling to get into the play offs a year later and vice versa (like the NRL) we won't compete.

Its is not just about those nations being competative though. Wales, Scotland, Ireland, France, South Africa... they all fill stadiums of 60,000 or more for pretty much every international they play, and thats even more than our biggest 3 teams!

International RL is a mess, the problem stems back much further than we think. Had the governing body years ago realised what was really important we would now have alot more roots to grow from. I also think our own international RL stadium would help alot!

The biggest blockbuster event in Australia is State of Origin and that is only 2 teams, the same 2 every season. England, Asutralia and NZ is enough teams if they are playing out fantastic contests. For a starter a Australia v New Zealand 3 match series would be fantastic and if England can get to that level then we'd have a great event.