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New Zealand 2 will deal a massive blow to NZ rugby

titoelcolombiano

First Grade
Messages
6,637
Don’t need the usual suspects talking rubbish here about union not doing its usual anti league stuff

There are loads of interviews of current nrl players who grew up in nz and the pressure on them to give up league
And yet in Australia, League is in the ascendency and we don't stop them playing Union, in fact we pay scholarships to send them to Union schools (that actively exclude RL) so they can get a good education.

Fittler's boy recently signed with Union and was playing both as a junior, ditto the bloke the Wests Tigers just signed. RL doesn't need underhanded tactics. Union, even where they are on top are terrified of RL eventually getting its act together and waking up.
 

Wb1234

Immortal
Messages
33,743
And yet in Australia, League is in the ascendency and we don't stop them playing Union, in fact we pay scholarships to send them to Union schools (that actively exclude RL) so they can get a good education.

Fittler's boy recently signed with Union and was playing both as a junior, ditto the bloke the Wests Tigers just signed. RL doesn't need underhanded tactics. Union, even where they are in top are terrified of RL eventually getting its act together and waking up.
Rugby union spent 100 years fighting a war with rugby league over the issue of “professionalism”

Players were banned for life from union for playing league

Then in 95 they went pro without so much as an apology for being wrong

And union globally from Greece Norway Eastern Europe France Australia and even nz does things to ban rugby league

Nz is the better than most union playing nations but the hatred of league is still there

The warriors are starting to break down the prejudices expanding away from their south Auckland Māori base to becoming a club for all Aucklanders
 

titoelcolombiano

First Grade
Messages
6,637
Rugby union spent 100 years fighting a war with rugby league over the issue of “professionalism”

Players were banned for life from union for playing league

Then in 95 they went pro without so much as an apology for being wrong

And union globally from Greece Norway Eastern Europe France Australia and even nz does things to ban rugby league

Nz is the better than most union playing nations but the hatred of league is still there

The warriors are starting to break down the prejudices expanding away from their south Auckland Māori base to becoming a club for all Aucklanders
They don't see it coming yet but once league finally cracks NZ and the rest of the Pacific, it will be more devastating for World Rugby Union than they can ever imagine. Wallabies was just the tip of the iceberg
 

Wb1234

Immortal
Messages
33,743
They don't see it coming yet but once league finally cracks NZ and the rest of the Pacific, it will be more devastating for World Rugby Union than they can ever imagine. Wallabies was just the tip of the iceberg
Nz is the jewel in the Union crown

Diminish the all blacks and their international game is boring af with the northern hemisphere nations which never run the ball
 

Matua

First Grade
Messages
5,124
Does that friendly rivalry in NZ include banning RL from certain schools and banning players from Union that play RL? Super friendly
Do you have current and specific examples of that? And do you have examples that highlight it's the majority rather than a minority?
 

Matua

First Grade
Messages
5,124
And yet in Australia, League is in the ascendency and we don't stop them playing Union, in fact we pay scholarships to send them to Union schools (that actively exclude RL) so they can get a good education.

Fittler's boy recently signed with Union and was playing both as a junior, ditto the bloke the Wests Tigers just signed. RL doesn't need underhanded tactics. Union, even where they are on top are terrified of RL eventually getting its act together and waking up.
We're discussing NZ, not Oz, but on that note NZR lets Warriors scholarshipped players play in national rep teams.

There's been one high profile case of a dispute between a kid and a school and that was because the kid was expecting to be able to pick and choose when he trained and when he played despite making a commitment to the 1st XV. That is not specific to league, that's specific to anyone making a commitment.

Watching you non NZers wobble on in this thread spouting rubbish like you have any idea is actually quite comical.
 

Matiunz

Juniors
Messages
826
The warriors are starting to break down the prejudices expanding away from their south Auckland Māori base to becoming a club for all Aucklanders
The Warriors have always had a larger Pasifika influence than Maori and especially Pakeha in terms of playing group. Similar demographic ratios are reflected in the Auckland club scene and South Auckland.
Race shouldn’t matter but Maori tend to gravitate to Aus moreso and it’s rare to have Pakeha boys at the Warriors with only SJ well the non Laotian part) and Mannering the more recent high profile examples.
 

Matiunz

Juniors
Messages
826
Nz is the jewel in the Union crown

Diminish the all blacks and their international game is boring af with the northern hemisphere nations which never run the ball
The Administration power has always been in the North and policy and decisions have always been North focused. The Southern teams had to get by on scraps despite being the dominant team, Aus demise has barely registered on their care radar and I doubt NZ would much as long as the home unions were going strong. The Boks bounced back in a big way but they also threatened to follow a similar trajectory to Aus for a while and not too many eyelids batted
 

Matiunz

Juniors
Messages
826
Don’t need the usual suspects talking rubbish here about union not doing its usual anti league stuff

There are loads of interviews of current nrl players who grew up in nz and the pressure on them to give up league
The choice is always on the player/student though- they don’t HAVE to play Union and can pick a club and or a League friendly school if that’s what they wanted.
Often in school you will have to make a choice between sports, I had almost the opposite where I was played both Hockey and Rugby, I had pressure to give up Rugby as I was needed as GK for our 1stXI
 

Matua

First Grade
Messages
5,124
The Warriors have always had a larger Pasifika influence than Maori and especially Pakeha in terms of playing group. Similar demographic ratios are reflected in the Auckland club scene and South Auckland.
Race shouldn’t matter but Maori tend to gravitate to Aus moreso and it’s rare to have Pakeha boys at the Warriors with only SJ well the non Laotian part) and Mannering the more recent high profile examples.
Well, they've always had a decent amount of Aussie Pakeha in the team. Which is a bugbear of mine. I'd rather journeymen Kiwis in the team than Aussies.

The choice is always on the player/student though- they don’t HAVE to play Union and can pick a club and or a League friendly school if that’s what they wanted.
Often in school you will have to make a choice between sports, I had almost the opposite where I was played both Hockey and Rugby, I had pressure to give up Rugby as I was needed as GK for our 1stXI
Yeah, it's hilarious that these posters think that players should be able to dictate when and where they play. RTS played rugby at school because it was a higher level of sport than he could get playing league and because of the mana that comes attached with it. If he didn't want to play rugby he didn't have to.
 

Wb1234

Immortal
Messages
33,743
The choice is always on the player/student though- they don’t HAVE to play Union and can pick a club and or a League friendly school if that’s what they wanted.
Often in school you will have to make a choice between sports, I had almost the opposite where I was played both Hockey and Rugby, I had pressure to give up Rugby as I was needed as GK for our 1stXI
League friendly school says a lot imo

What about like in Australia the good juniors get scholarships to the posh schools and then to play for the 1st xv they have to give up league
 

Wb1234

Immortal
Messages
33,743
The Administration power has always been in the North and policy and decisions have always been North focused. The Southern teams had to get by on scraps despite being the dominant team, Aus demise has barely registered on their care radar and I doubt NZ would much as long as the home unions were going strong. The Boks bounced back in a big way but they also threatened to follow a similar trajectory to Aus for a while and not too many eyelids batted
All blacks are the most famous union side on the planet

They are the probably only union brand that is truly global

How would a union World Cup look with it being largely a northern hemisphere dominated one (plus South Africa)
 

Matiunz

Juniors
Messages
826
Well, they've always had a decent amount of Aussie Pakeha in the team. Which is a bugbear of mine. I'd rather journeymen Kiwis in the team than Aussies.
That is true didn’t think of it that way with the Aus guys was more of an observation that the largest NZ demographic don’t typically gravitate towards league (unlike league in Aus)
My biggest bugbear is we have probably the most depth we’ve ever had across the board for the kiwis whilst at the same time probably the lowest Warriors representation ever.
 

Matua

First Grade
Messages
5,124
League friendly school says a lot imo

What about like in Australia the good juniors get scholarships to the posh schools and then to play for the 1st xv they have to give up league
Firstly, who cares what happens in Australia? We're discussing NZ. Plus, all the NZers on scholarship at (for example) Keebra Park are in the same boat, they can't continue playing rugby when they move over here.

Most schools in NZ don't play league, there a few leaguie schools in Auckland, if a kid wants to avoid rugby altogether they can go there. You're reading way too much into the word friendly.
 

titoelcolombiano

First Grade
Messages
6,637
We're discussing NZ, not Oz, but on that note NZR lets Warriors scholarshipped players play in national rep teams.

There's been one high profile case of a dispute between a kid and a school and that was because the kid was expecting to be able to pick and choose when he trained and when he played despite making a commitment to the 1st XV. That is not specific to league, that's specific to anyone making a commitment.

Watching you non NZers wobble on in this thread spouting rubbish like you have any idea is actually quite comical.
So are you going to tell me it's never gone on and doesn't go on now?
 

Matua

First Grade
Messages
5,124
So are you going to tell me it's never gone on and doesn't go on now?
Do I want to engage with you and your strawman? Not really, but no one has said it has never happened, no one says it doesn't happen on occasion (but there can be good reasons for that as I mentioned above and as @Matiunz notes it's not league specific). But, it's much more friendly than you're attempting to make out it is.

I note that you didn't respond to my post above about specific examples and that they highlight it's the majority rather than the minority?
 

titoelcolombiano

First Grade
Messages
6,637
Do I want to engage with you and your strawman? Not really, but no one has said it has never happened, no one says it doesn't happen on occasion (but there can be good reasons for that as I mentioned above and as @Matiunz notes it's not league specific). But, it's much more friendly than you're attempting to make out it is.

I note that you didn't respond to my post above about specific examples and that they highlight it's the majority rather than the minority?
A couple of examples might be the minority, not the majority.

Also, what are the historical reasons I wonder why just about all schools play Union and many don't play League? Can't think of why...
 
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