I wonder if SoO ever becomes less relevance whether it would be good to have NSW and Qld compete against other nations rather than Australia. So NSW, QLD, NZ, ENGLAND, PNG, Samoa etc.
No, it would make RL look even more like the small parochial sport that most people think it is lol Be interesting to see how this year goes in the tv ratings. There is no where near the hype and build up we normally get and it feels like the season is over.
Mate, given a fair go The Oceania Cup has massive potential and can even be the vehicle to drive the game to greater popularity in NZ and the Islands. The Samoa v Tonga rivalry is Origin-like and Tonga has taken their rivalry with NZ and Australia to the next level also. The 4 nations was a quality tournament that should never have been removed and more England v Australia and New Zealand v Australia three-test series could really work commercially if they were promoted well and persisted with.
International RL is a threat to SOO Just look at how many players can play SOO and play for foreign countries Many players are going away from playing for Australia. When both games are on at the same time players must choose. Last few years SOO has missed out.
I actually like the idea of splitting Australia; this was actually how RL did it for a long time (We split the UK into for teams and no one complains....) Anyone who says "It cant work, NSW/QLD arent counties" is a moron who lacks imagination. The only REAL issue is that it would exclude the non-RL states (Vic, WA, etc.)...
The real build-up will come after G1 as we move into the G2 rematch and a potential decider. Thats the brilliance of the 3 game series, the story builds itself... The one-off event games dont mean anything to anyone because their format means there is not build-up and once the game is done the result doesnt mean anything (Even the indigenous Allstars team struggles with this and they are probably the most loved rep team in Australia; put them in a 3-match series and their games will probably become more popular than Origin).
If Origin moves to the end of the year and we use June-July as a window for an International series, Rep football will boom.
If Origin is October, the challenge is how to fit northern hemisphere nations into the calendar. In your thinking, would June be a window for "Pacific" tests (eg NZ v Aus 3 match series, Pacific 4-nations etc without NH countries), then Origin in October, and Australia v England, Great Britain or France in November? I suppose while Origin is being played in October, the Kiwis & Pacific Island teams could play each other in some other configuration (different to June) or tour/host NH countries, before one of the NH countries plays Australia. To have a decent off-season after it all ends in late Nov, you may need to start the NRL season in late March though.
So you think Origin will improve by moving to October and Test football will improve by moving to June and the entire reason for moving Origin is to stop interrupting club season, which we will interrupt with tests instead None of this adds up in the slightest
We had a good balance between SOO and Internationals SOO mid season International Rep Season Oct-Nov Only real issue were the byes and the volume of players not able to play Standalone rep weekend was growing well So the trick is to make it 2 standalone mid season rep weekends and remove the NRL bye If Ch9 still wants SOO midweek then play it on a Tuesday as part of a standalone rep weekend and no ThuNF or Fri 6pm game just after The 3rd bye in a NRL season actually occurs just before Round 1. So starting the NRL season a week early gives you the 3rd mid season standalone rep weekend. WCC is the only other issue game. I would prefer it to kickoff the Int Rep Season by playing it on Fri 3rd weekend of Oct. If we want more TV content during the stadalone rep weekends. Then we can bring in NSW Cup & Qld Cup knockout on ThNF where QF SF F could be played. 2 knockout rounds could be played during the pre-season trials or just have both Top 4's qualify from last year. Where non selected NRL and better U20s players make up the numbers.
I agree with you Adam. Additionally it also means interrupting the ESL for Test matches, and extended travel mid-season for a number of its players. Nah that's not disruptive at all eh proponents?
WCC closer to the GF and in the year that the teams actually won (and the same squads) would give that game a lot more credibility, however when is the ESL GF? I thought it was a bit later in the year
Normally it occurs the week after NRL Grand Final If we line up the two GFs and mid season rep weekends then things start falling into place
https://www.smh.com.au/sport/nrl/yo...l-want-swift-origin-call-20201101-p56ajl.html Thoughts there from PVL that Origin will rate the roof off. I'm sure it'll still have solid ratings but gee I'm not feeling it this year. The footy season feels over
What do you mean "normally"? It hasn't been held at that time since the early 1990s which is 20+ years ago.
That’s how me and my friends are feeling too. Will have to wait and see, maybe the lack of competition from other sports will draw a lot of people in. Overall though it felt like once the GF finished most people I know have basically tuned out till March.
