NZ lose home fixture to Australia + will play PNG in PNG

[hutch]

Needs to be expanded to a top tier of 4 teams with Australia and NZ taking part every year even if it is a weakened side.

A - Aus, NZ, Tonga, Fiji
B - PNG, Samoa, Cook Islands

Add a C division with a promotion playoff Vs 3rd from B for the likes of Vanuatu, Solomon Islands etc.

Agree with most of it but the tourney should be every two years. You can’t play it properly during world cup years, and the euro cup, MEA cup and America’s cup have been moved to every second year as well.
It also needs a final for each tier! This is the only time there should be double headers!

 

[Springs09]

Needs to be expanded to a top tier of 4 teams with Australia and NZ taking part every year even if it is a weakened side.

A - Aus, NZ, Tonga, Fiji
B - PNG, Samoa, Cook Islands

Add a C division with a promotion playoff Vs 3rd from B for the likes of Vanuatu, Solomon Islands etc.

Well I agree it needs to be expanded but it shouldn't be every year. I like tours as they have the potential to be much greater than they are currently and I think another IRL tournament is needed every 2nd year in the cycle, like the much-discussed Confederations Cup.

Though the 'Oceania Cup' or hopefully something better should be at least once per cycle. It needs to be at least 4 teams with a final though. I've posted this before but I'd like to see a Pacific Six Nations at least once a cycle - NZ, Tonga, Samoa, Fiji, PNG, Cook Islands + final, preferably when Australia and England are touring each other like this year. I just think this format is too limiting.

For example:
Year 1 - Oceania Cup/European Six Nations (w/England)
Year 2 - Confederations Cup
Year 3 - Pacific Six Nations/Ashes Series (Kangaroo or Lions Tour)
Year 4 - World Cup

 

[yakstorm]

Expect the Oceania Cup to be every 2 years after this year... the IRL is purposely trying to align all regional tournaments so they operate on a similar cycle of being every 2 years on even years.

For me, the only plus of the Cup in its current configuration is it guarantees that Tonga, Samoa, Fiji and PNG play a minimum of 2 Tests in each of those respective years... which considering prior to 2013 many of those nations weren't even guaranteed a Test each year, is a significant improvement.

My preference however would be, rather than making it biennial, is for a proper tournament to be played once every 4 years involving at least the six main nations in the Pacific of Australia, NZ, Tonga, Samoa, Fiji and PNG with everyone playing each other before a Final.

Arguably it would be a mini-World Cup, but it would be a fairer way of determining the regional Champions.

 

[Foreign Legion]

http://www.rlif.com/article/8875/oceania-cup-is-back-with-three-cracking-double-headers

 

[Timmah]

September
PNG v Australia-PMXIII

Not sure about this? Haven't seen it necessarily confirmed and usually its October now to allow for Hunters players to be involved isn't it?

 

[jim_57]

I agree with a few of the posts above that we should have a a regional tournament involving all nations at least once in the 4 year World Cup Cycle. That includes England playing in a Euro Cup not scratching around the Pacific for scraps.

 

[deluded pom?]

Not sure about this? Haven't seen it necessarily confirmed and usually its October now to allow for Hunters players to be involved isn't it?

I thought the PM's X111 were playing the Fijians now?

 

[yakstorm]

I thought the PM's X111 were playing the Fijians now?

No, they'll play PNG every 2 years and for every other year they'll alternate between Fiji, Samoa, Tonga and maybe Cook Islands.

 

[jim_57]

No, they'll play PNG every 2 years and for every other year they'll alternate between Fiji, Samoa, Tonga and maybe Cook Islands.

Interesting. It'd be great if it could be a 2 game tour every year with 1 game in PNG then rotate the other between Fiji, Tonga & Samoa.

 

[adamkungl]

They played Fiji last year so I assumed they would play PNG this year. it hasn't been explicitly confirmed but It's been a locked in fixture for as long as I can recall so I think we can expect it 99%.

 

[adamkungl]

Expect the Oceania Cup to be every 2 years after this year... the IRL is purposely trying to align all regional tournaments so they operate on a similar cycle of being every 2 years on even years.

For me, the only plus of the Cup in its current configuration is it guarantees that Tonga, Samoa, Fiji and PNG play a minimum of 2 Tests in each of those respective years... which considering prior to 2013 many of those nations weren't even guaranteed a Test each year, is a significant improvement.

My preference however would be, rather than making it biennial, is for a proper tournament to be played once every 4 years involving at least the six main nations in the Pacific of Australia, NZ, Tonga, Samoa, Fiji and PNG with everyone playing each other before a Final.

Arguably it would be a mini-World Cup, but it would be a fairer way of determining the regional Champions.

My preferred format is this, every 2 years, but 4 in each level and a final.
Who's the 4th in B?

When the Americas Cup is settled into its 2 year cycle and has a B-level forming, the winner of the Americas Cup should get promoted to the Oceania Cup.
Then...
when we have a stable Oceania C, with Vanuatu, Solomon Islands and Niue RLIF memberships locked in,
and the Asian nations get their memberships and form their bi-annual tournament.

We can have a playoff between the winners of Americas, Oceania-C, and Asia for promotion to Oceania-B, with the loser of that tournament dropping down to their sub-region tournament.

There's a weakness here in Rugby Union where the top nations refuse to allow any disruption to the 6 Nations or Championship, leaving nations like Japan struggling for top competition between World Cups.

Rugby League could give every nation a clear pathway to the top..

 

[siv]

My preferred format is this, every 2 years, but 4 in each level and a final.
Who's the 4th in B?

When the Americas Cup is settled into its 2 year cycle and has a B-level forming, the winner of the Americas Cup should get promoted to the Oceania Cup.
Then...
when we have a stable Oceania C, with Vanuatu, Solomon Islands and Niue RLIF memberships locked in,
and the Asian nations get their memberships and form their bi-annual tournament.

We can have a playoff between the winners of Americas, Oceania-C, and Asia for promotion to Oceania-B, with the loser of that tournament dropping down to their sub-region tournament.

There's a weakness here in Rugby Union where the top nations refuse to allow any disruption to the 6 Nations or Championship, leaving nations like Japan struggling for top competition between World Cups.

Rugby League could give every nation a clear pathway to the top..

Niue is the 4th in B

Better that Asia develops the Asian Cup at the moment

Japan Phillipines India Hong Kong

SE Asia need to play a games amongst themselves for a few years

 

[Perth Tiger]

I still think we should be trying to include USA and Canada into the Pacific (Oceania) Cup.

I know that complicates things with the Americas tournament but the Oceania Cup will never be self sustaining if we cant find some wealthy countries that can contribute revenue.

I also feel this would be the quickest way to fast track the development of both given that Toronto and it looks like Ottawa have already go the green light to having pro teams and hopefully some USA teams to follow. Having a meaningful comp with the potential to test themselves against the best on a regular basis may just be the thing to entice some RU or CFL or College NFL players to make the switch across to the pro clubs.

 

[adamkungl]

I still think we should be trying to include USA and Canada into the Pacific (Oceania) Cup.

I know that complicates things with the Americas tournament but the Oceania Cup will never be self sustaining if we cant find some wealthy countries that can contribute revenue.

What's complicated?
I see a future pyramid like

PACIFIC CUP (Australia, New Zealand, Tonga, Fiji)
^
PACIFIC SHIELD (Samoa, PNG, Cook Islands, Jamaica)
^
(odd-year) PLAYOFF (USA, Philippines, Vanuatu)
^
AMERICAS CUP (USA, Canada, Chile, Brazil) - ASIAN CUP (Philippines, Thailand, Japan, India) - OCEANIA CUP * (Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Niue, Tuvalu)
^ ^
AMERICAS SHIELD (Argentina, El Salvador, Mexico, Uruguay) - ASIAN SHIELD (Hong Kong, China, Vietnam, Indonesia)

*rename the top tier tournament back to Pacific Cup to represent wider range. Oceania-C becomes the Oceania Cup.

 

[Perth Tiger]

What's complicated?
I see a future pyramid like

PACIFIC CUP (Australia, New Zealand, Tonga, Fiji)
^
PACIFIC SHIELD (Samoa, PNG, Cook Islands, Jamaica)
^
(odd-year) PLAYOFF (USA, Philippines, Vanuatu)
^
AMERICAS CUP (USA, Canada, Chile, Brazil) - ASIAN CUP (Philippines, Thailand, Japan, India) - OCEANIA CUP * (Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Niue, Tuvalu)
^ ^
AMERICAS SHIELD (Argentina, El Salvador, Mexico, Uruguay) - ASIAN SHIELD (Hong Kong, China, Vietnam, Indonesia)

*rename the top tier tournament back to Pacific Cup to represent wider range. Oceania-C becomes the Oceania Cup.

Oh it is definitely doable, but given the timings of the current Americas cup and travel it would make it more difficult rather than just gathering a bunch of Aus/Nz based players which is essentially what it is now.

I do like your idea of the three regional cups folding into the larger pacific cup. Would give every nation a clear development path along the lines of what the RLEF seem to be trying with their structured European cup.

It would only leave the MEA left out but perhaps they could look to align more with Europe in the future.

 

[adamkungl]

Oh it is definitely doable, but given the timings of the current Americas cup and travel it would make it more difficult rather than just gathering a bunch of Aus/Nz based players which is essentially what it is now.

Timing of the Americas Cup wouldn't change. No one would play Americas Cup AND Pacific/Oceania in the 1 year. The winner would be promoted to Pacific and not enter the next Americas.

It would only leave the MEA left out but perhaps they could look to align more with Europe in the future.

The European one would look like this:

ATLANTIC (name??) CUP (England, France, Ireland, Wales)
^
ATLANTIC SHIELD (Scotland, Italy, Greece, Lebanon)
^
ODD-YEAR PLAYOFF (South Africa, Serbia)
^
EUROPEAN (C) CUP (Spain, Serbia, Russia, Norway) - MEA CUP (South Africa, Nigeria, Morocco)
^^
ODD-YEAR EURO PLAYOFF (Malta, Netherlands)
^
EUROPEAN (D) SHIELD NORTH (Poland, Netherlands, Ukraine) - EUROPEAN (D) SHIELD SOUTH (Malta, Turkey, Czechia) - MEA SHIELD (Cameroon, Ghana)