Rugby League - International

[Simon]

Civoniceva and Berrigan have said they are both using the WCC to attract interest of ESL clubs for a move over there next season, I'd have thought neither of these guys needs to do much convincing to English clubs.

 

[Mister Wright]

Leaving in about 2 hours with the fanatics for the WCC match. Should be an amazing atmosphere at Bolton Reebok Stadium. Hopefully the game is a good one.

 

[BoyBrumby]

Not too hopeful for Saints, unfortunately. Losses to Harlequins & Wakefield hardly ideal prep. Cunnigham is a big miss too (assuming he doesn't play, of course), although Roby's no slouch as a replacement, tbf.

Broncos by 10-15 for me.

 

[steds]

Broncos by 28.

 

[BoyBrumby]

Sculthorpe & Cunningham both on the interchange bench. Big calls.

 

[Simon]

Broncos have started well, the defence in particular is looking strong.

 

[BoyBrumby]

Crucial time to score for Saints there. Gardner redeems his earlier bollock.Ill-discipline from Hannant to give the penalty when he did & Saints made them pay.

Sets the second-half up well.

 

[Goughy]

Set up for an interesting last 10mins here. Would be big if Saints hold on here

 

[Goughy]

Quality result

 

[Perm]

Only managed to catch the last few minutes as I didn't realise it was on, seems like the atmosphere there was amazing though.

 

[BoyBrumby]

Fair play to Saints. Great win! I've certainly never cheered a Saints try as loudly as I did when Gardner went over for the third! Pretty much a full-strength Broncos side and steds's boys brought home the bacon. Saints big game players really came to the party: Sculthorpe & Roby were both huge and Cunningham played a quality little cameo.

Discipline cost the Broncos; I think all of Sainst tries came from penalities.

 

[steds]

Broncos by 28.

Misunderestimated Sculthorpe's ability to pull a Wilkinson, it seems.

Sculthorpe & Cunningham both on the interchange bench. Big calls.

Didn't do badly for cripples, eh?

Gardner redeems his earlier bollock.

Never in doubt. Best player in the world.

 

[chaminda_00]

Once again we see how stupid the WCC, one team plays a couple league matches before it and another team uses it as its first trial match. Surely it would be better to play at the end of season as a curtain rasier to the Tri Nations, or when both team are in pretty good match fitness. I thought the Broncos did well to get so close.

 

[BoyBrumby]

Once again we see how stupid the WCC, one team plays a couple league matches before it and another team uses it as its first trial match. Surely it would be better to play at the end of season as a curtain rasier to the Tri Nations, or when both team are in pretty good match fitness. I thought the Broncos did well to get so close.

Would sir care for some hard cheese to go with his sour grapes?

 

[steds]

Once again we see how stupid the WCC, one team plays a couple league matches before it and another team uses it as its first trial match. Surely it would be better to play at the end of season as a curtain rasier to the Tri Nations, or when both team are in pretty good match fitness. I thought the Broncos did well to get so close.

May I remind you that this is the first time the Super League side has had the opportunity to get match fitness through league games before this game (although this is the earliest ever start to the Super League season, I think), due to Brisbane's insistence that the game not be played before a certain date, no less. Secondly, if Brisbane were using it as a trial match, why did they field a pretty much full strength side (Michaels apart) and what does that make the game against the Celtic Crusaders? A trial game for a trial game? If the Australian teams really do use the WCC as trial games, it gives a poor account of their professionalism.

And if you think Brisbane did well enough to get so close, it says alot for the constant implication that the NRL is supposedly a "far superior league." The premiers of the NRL doing well to lose by 4 points to a team from an inferior league, who've just lost 2 on the trot to teams who will be battling against relegation from this inferior league this season, who're taking a gamble by having two players who weren't supposed to be fit enough to play on the bench and whose fullback is obviously not fully fit and whose scrum half has a tendency to go missing when the word "Australia" is even muttered by someone a mile away. Well fancy that.

 

[chaminda_00]

May I remind you that this is the first time the Super League side has had the opportunity to get match fitness through league games before this game (although this is the earliest ever start to the Super League season, I think), due to Brisbane's insistence that the game not be played before a certain date, no less. Secondly, if Brisbane were using it as a trial match, why did they field a pretty much full strength side (Michaels apart) and what does that make the game against the Celtic Crusaders? A trial game for a trial game? If the Australian teams really do use the WCC as trial games, it gives a poor account of their professionalism.

The fact that they had one trail game before this shows Australian sides are taking it a bit more seriously. But it will always be just a glorified trail game for Australia team, unless the format is changed so the game isn't in the off season. Also most sides these days play full strength sides in 'trail' games if the other team is as well. Especially if they played on trail before that match.

And if you think Brisbane did well enough to get so close, it says alot for the constant implication that the NRL is supposedly a "far superior league." The premiers of the NRL doing well to lose by 4 points to a team from an inferior league, who've just lost 2 on the trot to teams who will be battling against relegation from this inferior league this season, who're taking a gamble by having two players who weren't supposed to be fit enough to play on the bench and whose fullback is obviously not fully fit and whose scrum half has a tendency to go missing when the word "Australia" is even muttered by someone a mile away. Well fancy that.

I can't really comment on those losses before this match, but it could be a sign that St Helens were looking at the bigger picture for them and the WCC. I might have thought in the past the NRL is far superior league then SL, but will all the imports that you get the standard is improving. But at the end of the day the fact that so many crap players in the NRL go onto become superstars in the SL just shows the standard is below NRL. The fact that guys that aren't good enough to be more then just preimer league players in Australia, are regular in the SL sides, says a lot.

The St Helens side itself would be competitive in the NRL and maybe one or two others, but not too many other sides would. The overall standard of the league is pretty average.

 

[chaminda_00]

Would sir care for some hard cheese to go with his sour grapes?

Why would i really care if the Broncos lose, im happy for any team to beat them, especially Jamie Lyon former club.

Just point out how stupid the WCC is and the lack of merit in a win in this game really is. Most league fans didn't even know the game was on last night. From memory i saw one ad during the AFL last night about the game.

 

[Goughy]

It is interesing how the Super League teams have an exceptional record in this event (I remember going crazy when Widnes won it back in the day and Davies doing a 360 after nearly having his head taken off) so its not really a representivive impression of the relative strength of the game in each country.

However, the question I want to ask (as Ive been out of the UK for 7 years and not played for longer) is-

We used to have an expression, "There is Union, then there is League and then there is Aussie League." Is the gap as big as ever?

Apologies for one of the worst written and phrased posts I have ever made

 

[Blaze]

Such a pointless exercise. Don't quite know why Brian Noble was talking it up as an indication of how close the English are to matching the NRL. The English have won it 7 out the last 8 years or something, and still get beaten easily in the Tri Nations...

I watch a lot of the super league, and the major difference is in the backs. You guys can certainly match the Aussies and Kiwis in the forwards, and have some promising forwards coming through, but the difference in skills amongst the backs is still huge imo. That includes both the halves, and the outside backs. There aren't enough game breakers in the Super League.

I will be very interested to see if Brent Webb dominates as much as Lyon did...

 

[steds]

I might have thought in the past the NRL is far superior league then SL

I do not dispute that the NRL is stronger. Just that people misinterpret how much stronger because the GB side has a desperate lack quality in key positions, such as the halves, and the weaker teams in the comp would rather have aussie mediocrity than home grown mediocrity.

But at the end of the day the fact that so many crap players in the NRL go onto become superstars in the SL just shows the standard is below NRL. The fact that guys that aren't good enough to be more then just preimer league players in Australia, are regular in the SL sides, says a lot.

I'd actually disagree with that, in that the number that become "superstars", is actually relatively low. Off the top of my head I've got Solomona, Motu Tony, Jason Hooper and Michael Withers and perhaps Thomas Leuluai (to a lesser extent), Brad Drew (dependent on how he was seen in Australia) and Justin Murphy (if he has a good 2nd season). Like I said above, most are a case of preferring aussie mediocrity than english mediocrity.

The St Helens side itself would be competitive in the NRL and maybe one or two others, but not too many other sides would.

I've said before, I think last years top six (minus Salford, maybe replaced with Wigan but that's borderline) could hold their own. the other 6/7 wouldn't stand a cat in hell's chance, though.

ust point out how stupid the WCC is and the lack of merit in a win in this game really is. Most league fans didn't even know the game was on last night. From memory i saw one ad during the AFL last night about the game.

I'd say that's more how much the Australian media chooses to market and take note of the game than how much merit it has. It may not have any merit at all, but I don't think how much merit it has is truely represented in how many ads there are for it.

However, the question I want to ask (as Ive been out of the UK for 7 years and not played for longer) is-

We used to have an expression, "There is Union, then there is League and then there is Aussie League." Is the gap as big as ever?

Well, they keep coming back and beating us every autumn...

I watch a lot of the super league, and the major difference is in the backs. You guys can certainly match the Aussies and Kiwis in the forwards, and have some promising forwards coming through, but the difference in skills amongst the backs is still huge imo. That includes both the halves, and the outside backs. There aren't enough game breakers in the Super League.

True. More so for the halves than outside backs, though. Got a couple of decent young backs like Raynor and Gardner, who are improving, and Yeaman and Ashton, who are going to be guns. No halves though.

I will be very interested to see if Brent Webb dominates as much as Lyon did...

He'll go alright.