This has been discussed a couple of times on this forum in the last six months, so I'll just repeat what I've suggested previously. Not one or two representative windows, but four mid season rep weeks each season spaced three to four weeks apart. Each running from Thursday to the following Wednesday night, during which the respective governing bodies (ARL, RFL, NZRL, PNGRL etc etc) are free to organise whatever representative matches they see fit - Tests, Interstate, Regional etc etc. All clubs worldwide obligated to release any and all players selected to play in not more than one match each during these weeks and players must be stood down from clubs games until they have played in that match.
Exactly how many and what matches are sanctioned would be up to the respective governing bodies and not dictated by the professional club comps like the NRL and ESL. The ARL would probably choose to to use its four weeks with the City/Country and Anzac Tests played Thursday/Friday in week one (allowing players to back up for NRL clubs), and the other three weeks with Wednesday night Origin games (forcing players to stand down from the previous weekend's NRL club matches). For the ARL essentially it means zero change - Australian players don't miss club games for City/Country and the Anzac Test but do for Origin. The NRL and ESL could still choose to play during those four weeks - that's their choice. But players must be stood down and released upon the request of a governing body to compete in a sanctioned rep match during those windows. The flip side is the guarantee that players would never be called upon and would not have to released outside of those four weeks. The perpetual arguments over international player release would be ended.
The crucial difference comes with what it allows the other nations to do. By formalising the weeks and the stand down requirements, it allows every other nation to organise rep games concurrently with the Anzac Test and State of Origin matches. The NZRL might choose to play the Anzac Test, a match against a Pacific Islands nation and two domestic Origin games (all four games drawing on eligible NRL and ESL stars). The RFL might choose to play a four match tri series between England, France and Wales. The PNGRL might choose to bring back their three or four NRL and ESL players and play a Papua vs New Guinea match. So each year's third rep week we could see a Kiwi North vs South match in Wellington on the Friday night, France playing England in Toulouse on the Saturday night, PNG playing Fiji in Port Moresby on Sunday afternoon and QLD playing NSW in Brisbane on Wednesday night.
The real bonus of following this model is that it goes a significant way to bringing the development and representative opportunities for the other nations on par with the Australians. Instead of the NRL/ARL being able to dictate the release of their own players for matches and simultaneously deny the same development opportunity to other nations, everyone gets the same opportunity. All nations get the chance to run matches that either build a wider pool of players with rep experience and/or build combination and player familiarity within their national squads. And the additional rep opportunities will encourage fewer players to abandon their home nations in favour of pursuing Origin and Kangaroo selection. These opportunities will pay back for the game in future Tri-Nations and World Cups when the smaller nations (including the Kiwis) can put their best foot forward in providing credible opposition to the Kangaroos instead of always being a mile behind the eight ball before they even take the field.
http://forums.leagueunlimited.com/showthread.php?t=164368
http://forums.leagueunlimited.com/showthread.php?t=160826&page=2
http://forums.leagueunlimited.com/showthread.php?t=157920
Leigh.
How awesome would that be? I don't think there would be any blowout scorelines.
