The real World Game

[Der Kaiser]

The Union team I help train the players are split between League and union but most find there is too much kicking in Union and its very slow compared to League.Some say League is stop start.These players have only been playing 5 years and know nothing about league v union and 99% come from non Rugby (League or Union) areas or countries!.Its just a general opinion.Some German guys are now asking me for Videos/Dvds of League games after lending them a copy of Australia v New Zealand in Auckland in October-and am happy to supply!They say its too tough to play but love watching it.

 

[blaine train]

at my school, in toowoomba near brisbane, everyone calls union shit ball. thats pretty simple. or another suggestion is 40 winks has a great relationship with the game

 

[ruggabugga]

When Rugby commenced it was called RUGBY. When it formed an association it called that association the RUGBY FOOTBALL UNION. When League formed it's association it stole the word RUGBY because it did not have the Balls or the credibility to chance it's arm without the name RUGBY. #-o #-o

 

[NPK]

Why are you on a league forum when you diss it all the time?
Or are you actually a league fan too?

 

[bobbis]

While soccer is the world game, u cant simply compare a sport to soccer to say its not global. I especially dont agree with a couple of points he makes:

"In trying to justify itself in world terms, the Rugby 'World' Cup has only opened itself to ridicule. Hopelessly one-sided games in the first phase, which make the Oceania qualifying section look like a gruelling schedule are bad enough, but it's the television coverage that has really gone beyond the pale."

To compare the RWC to oceania soccer world cup qualifiers is farcical. The thing is both RL and RU are more complex sports than soccer hence the differences in quality tend to show up more readily. Ill give you an example, Liechtenstein has only 33000 people thats less people than such minnows in RU as USA, Japan and Fiji have RU players. Yet Liechtenstein can manage to hold England to only 2-0 if comparitively met in rugby and they never would the score would be somewhere between 200 and 300 points. Liechtenstein even managed to draw with Hungry and beat China. The thing is soccer is a much easier game to compete in than RL or RU, yet in this sport Australia manages to notch up 20 goal wins against pacific teams so to compare it to the RWC is ridiculous.

As for soccer being more accepting, harmonious and generally loving people as the article espouses, when was the last time RU started a war, when was the last time crowds made ape noises at black players, when was the last time full on riots started, when was the last time a rugby player fly kicked someone in the crowd? Soccer is the worst behaved sport in the world, it may be the most popular but his article is the biggest piece of bile ive read in a while, its written by someone whos obviously a little jealous that soccer doesnt quite have the profile it has in Australia that it has in many other countries.

 

[Polynesian Warrior]

We have the name rugby league now and changing would be an admission of weakness in my opinion. It would take a PR coup the sizeof which I'm not sure RL is capable of pulling off to change names AND convince the public it's because we don't want to be tarnished with the sh*t that is RU.

Personally, too many of league's stalwart warriors over the past 100-years would be betrayed if we gave up on the name now, too. It's difficult but I'm for keeping the name and letting the public choose.

RU's slowly changing into RL as it knows its product is crud by comparison. This is the only long term chance RU has.

Rugby Union is still rugby union and will be a million years more. Rugby League is still rugby league and will be a million years more .


Rugby Union has improved 100% than what it was 50 years ago . You guys can tell me what percentage league has improve since 50 years ago ?
The only thing I could think off is Warriors , London , Brisbane and Melbourne + Origins .

Lets see hmmm Russia,Serbia,Lebanon,New Caledonia,soon to be Georgia
,and the West Indies,an increase to 10 teams in the US,a much improved French national team,the growth of rugby league in Wales in particular,Ireland with 12 teams in conferences,a lesser growth in Scotland in junior levels,a 60% increase in the number of players in UK in the past few years.BTW rugby union 100 years ago in Oz was larger than league,it sure as hell aint now.The NRL competition now 15 teams,(rest assured 16 teams will be announced next year) compared to 8 teams decades ago. Do your sums PW there is plenty of percentage increase both locally and internationally in rugby league,like a true union man you might find these facts a little distrubing.

Taipan ! If you are a rugby union fan or a fan of both codes then you will compare rugby union 50 years ago to this day .
All those league playing countries you mention also have union . The spread of rugby union has surprise those on the IRB board .
The word now is which countries haven't got rugby union ?
The truth is rugby union is now played all over the world it is hard to think of which nations haven't got a comp .
Fifty years ago only the main nations were playing test matches . Now there are test matches beign played in every corner of the world .
The RWC , U21 & U19 world cups , Womens world cup , 7s world cup , and the Commonwelth Games .
Rugby Union is now more healthy than it was fifty years ago . And we are not even talking about club rugby here .

 

[Der Kaiser]

Well PW you have no idea of rugby for example in Germany.Most clubs are made up of over 75% from players who come from ENgland,Australia,Ireland,S.Africa,New Zealand,France,Romania etc.Probably only Heidelberg are there more than 75% German players in the 5 teams there.Most teams have no youth system and have little idea how to promote themselves or the game.Most places where rugby is not a popular sport its mainly made up of ex-pats with the odd local so dont get too carried away!The Dutch Union is financially in trouble and last year the comp wasnt even insured!There is talk about Holland and Belguim joining up!So Union is really doing well in mainland Europe!The reason why league has struggled until now to grow is often people within "RL" but also because of Union spreading lies about League and using its power to ban RL being taught in schools,having the use of stadia and training places etc,stealing money as happened in France,threatening to ban players from the national team as happens today in Holland if they even participate in a RL training event etc.If you feel thats in order then you are a disgrace!


Taipan ! If you are a rugby union fan or a fan of both codes then you will compare rugby union 50 years ago to this day .
All those league playing countries you mention also have union . The spread of rugby union has surprise those on the IRB board .
The word now is which countries haven't got rugby union ?
The truth is rugby union is now played all over the world it is hard to think of which nations haven't got a comp .
Fifty years ago only the main nations were playing test matches . Now there are test matches beign played in every corner of the world .
The RWC , U21 & U19 world cups , Womens world cup , 7s world cup , and the Commonwelth Games .
Rugby Union is now more healthy than it was fifty years ago . And we are not even talking about club rugby here .[/quote]

 

[screeny]

When Rugby commenced it was called RUGBY. When it formed an association it called that association the RUGBY FOOTBALL UNION. When League formed it's association it stole the word RUGBY because it did not have the Balls or the credibility to chance it's arm without the name RUGBY. #-o #-o

How wrong can you be?

When what was to become RL split from the RFU in 1895 the breakaway clubs formed a union called the Northern Rugby Football Union and played under the exact same rules as their erstwhile colleagues.

Rugby league, in a de jure sense, was born in 1922. By that time the northern chaps had been playing under the word rugby for 27 years and had collected NZ and Australia with them.

However, I agree with RU fans when they say they have more right to the word 'rugby' than us leaguies. We were the rebels after all. But I suppose in mitigation we weren't changing the actual sport per se, that came gradually and much later on.

 

[taipan]

When Rugby commenced it was called RUGBY. When it formed an association it called that association the RUGBY FOOTBALL UNION. When League formed it's association it stole the word RUGBY because it did not have the Balls or the credibility to chance it's arm without the name RUGBY. #-o #-o

So using that logic netball and basketball, only one of them should not include the word ball in their name, and the AFL should not include football in their name as they stole the name from football(ie soccer).
Yes the Rugby Football union includes the word union, so use the word union in the world cup,and dont try to hide it.The Northern union in the UK were union clubs (not formed out of thin air) and eventually became the Rugby football league.Its the typical union snowjob of giving the impression to the public(just ask Victorians) that there is only one code of rugby.I found this sort of thinking operates in the private school I attended.
If you are going to use the absurd term stole the name,rather ironic coming from a supporter of a code,which know quite a bit about theft particularly in France,and the dirty deeds there show zilch credibility.+Credibility ? rugby union officials wouldnt even compensate players when they were injured in the early amateur days,and believe me that lacks balls.
The UTS jets visited Japan recently in October to play the Japanese side the eastern Bulldogs.A major insurance co that owned the main ground wouldnt allow the game to go ahead as there was an important rugby union game scheduled in a few days time.They were given a smaller ground adjacent to the stadium to use.(info courtesy of rugby league review).Does this surprise me,no because it happens in other countries eg France.
I am also aware of the ties between business and union in Japan,so please dont put on us the stole and credibility bs,when we continue to hear of instances like this.

 

[taipan]

We have the name rugby league now and changing would be an admission of weakness in my opinion. It would take a PR coup the sizeof which I'm not sure RL is capable of pulling off to change names AND convince the public it's because we don't want to be tarnished with the sh*t that is RU.

Personally, too many of league's stalwart warriors over the past 100-years would be betrayed if we gave up on the name now, too. It's difficult but I'm for keeping the name and letting the public choose.

RU's slowly changing into RL as it knows its product is crud by comparison. This is the only long term chance RU has.

Rugby Union is still rugby union and will be a million years more. Rugby League is still rugby league and will be a million years more .


Rugby Union has improved 100% than what it was 50 years ago . You guys can tell me what percentage league has improve since 50 years ago ?
The only thing I could think off is Warriors , London , Brisbane and Melbourne + Origins .

Lets see hmmm Russia,Serbia,Lebanon,New Caledonia,soon to be Georgia
,and the West Indies,an increase to 10 teams in the US,a much improved French national team,the growth of rugby league in Wales in particular,Ireland with 12 teams in conferences,a lesser growth in Scotland in junior levels,a 60% increase in the number of players in UK in the past few years.BTW rugby union 100 years ago in Oz was larger than league,it sure as hell aint now.The NRL competition now 15 teams,(rest assured 16 teams will be announced next year) compared to 8 teams decades ago. Do your sums PW there is plenty of percentage increase both locally and internationally in rugby league,like a true union man you might find these facts a little distrubing.

Taipan ! If you are a rugby union fan or a fan of both codes then you will compare rugby union 50 years ago to this day .
All those league playing countries you mention also have union . The spread of rugby union has surprise those on the IRB board .
The word now is which countries haven't got rugby union ?
The truth is rugby union is now played all over the world it is hard to think of which nations haven't got a comp .
Fifty years ago only the main nations were playing test matches . Now there are test matches beign played in every corner of the world .
The RWC , U21 & U19 world cups , Womens world cup , 7s world cup , and the Commonwelth Games .
Rugby Union is now more healthy than it was fifty years ago . And we are not even talking about club rugby here .

PW I am not arguing that union is not more healthy today than it was 50 years ago, i am replying to your silly comments that rugby league intimating has hardly improved in that period.I responded by giving you the latest info which says it has.end of story.I wouldnt throw club rugby in here , the crowds are deplorable compared to twentyyears ago.
i am aware of union being played in over 100 countries,but the simple fact is like the new countries taking up rugby league,the number of teams and players in the vast majority of those countries is so tiny,that the populations in general hardly if at all knows of its existence.
Despite all the years that have gone by,union is the national code only in NZ and losing to soccer in Wales that mantle,soccer is the main code in Sth Arica,although union has the profile.rugby league is the national code of PNG with a population bigger than NZ.So PW maybe neither code should brag too much.I am still waiting for confirmation of the 6billion tv viewers who were supposed to miraculously materialise in the union world cup of 2004,courtesy of Mr John O'Neill MA institute of HYPE.

 

[Azkatro]

The problem I have with that article is the sentiment that soccer (or football for those purists out there) is such an enlightened sport.

it has to encompass all creeds, all colours, all choices.

Football, fortunately has done that.

So that's all part and parcel of the recent examples of mass racism we've seen in Spain? I realise this article is a little older than those particular events, but to claim it's such a golden child of sport is completely arrogant and false.

Tell me the last time we saw a black player take the field in another football code only to be greeted by a huge portion of the crowd that player by making monkey noises?

:roll:

 

[Dogaholic]

The problem I have with that article is the sentiment that soccer (or football for those purists out there) is such an enlightened sport.

it has to encompass all creeds, all colours, all choices.

Football, fortunately has done that.

So that's all part and parcel of the recent examples of mass racism we've seen in Spain? I realise this article is a little older than those particular events, but to claim it's such a golden child of sport is completely arrogant and false.

Tell me the last time we saw a black player take the field in another football code only to be greeted by a huge portion of the crowd that player by making monkey noises?

:roll:

I seem to remember hearing about a South African commentator spraying racial abuse all over the Australian team fairly recently.

 

[Unknown Pleasures]

The spread of rugby union has surprise those on the IRB board .
The word now is which countries haven't got rugby union ?
The truth is rugby union is now played all over the world it is hard to think of which nations haven't got a comp .
Fifty years ago only the main nations were playing test matches . Now there are test matches beign played in every corner of the world .

Oh come on! so RU is a truely international sport eh? Half the world wouldn't even know what RU was.
But everyone knows what football is.

I seem to remember hearing about a South African commentator spraying racial abuse all over the Australian team fairly recently.

But there are no issues like this in other sports? Ask any Aboriginal RL player and they will tell you there is racism in the sport.

There is no racism in RU in South Africa? There are no crowd problems in the NRL?

But Hill is not claiming that football is a golden child. In that piece (or maybe it was another one) he says that the sport once started a war. All he is saying is that no other sport in the world captures the imagination like football.

 

[Polynesian Warrior]

We have the name rugby league now and changing would be an admission of weakness in my opinion. It would take a PR coup the sizeof which I'm not sure RL is capable of pulling off to change names AND convince the public it's because we don't want to be tarnished with the sh*t that is RU.

Personally, too many of league's stalwart warriors over the past 100-years would be betrayed if we gave up on the name now, too. It's difficult but I'm for keeping the name and letting the public choose.

RU's slowly changing into RL as it knows its product is crud by comparison. This is the only long term chance RU has.

Rugby Union is still rugby union and will be a million years more. Rugby League is still rugby league and will be a million years more .


Rugby Union has improved 100% than what it was 50 years ago . You guys can tell me what percentage league has improve since 50 years ago ?
The only thing I could think off is Warriors , London , Brisbane and Melbourne + Origins .

Lets see hmmm Russia,Serbia,Lebanon,New Caledonia,soon to be Georgia
,and the West Indies,an increase to 10 teams in the US,a much improved French national team,the growth of rugby league in Wales in particular,Ireland with 12 teams in conferences,a lesser growth in Scotland in junior levels,a 60% increase in the number of players in UK in the past few years.BTW rugby union 100 years ago in Oz was larger than league,it sure as hell aint now.The NRL competition now 15 teams,(rest assured 16 teams will be announced next year) compared to 8 teams decades ago. Do your sums PW there is plenty of percentage increase both locally and internationally in rugby league,like a true union man you might find these facts a little distrubing.

Taipan ! If you are a rugby union fan or a fan of both codes then you will compare rugby union 50 years ago to this day .
All those league playing countries you mention also have union . The spread of rugby union has surprise those on the IRB board .
The word now is which countries haven't got rugby union ?
The truth is rugby union is now played all over the world it is hard to think of which nations haven't got a comp .
Fifty years ago only the main nations were playing test matches . Now there are test matches beign played in every corner of the world .
The RWC , U21 & U19 world cups , Womens world cup , 7s world cup , and the Commonwelth Games .
Rugby Union is now more healthy than it was fifty years ago . And we are not even talking about club rugby here .

PW I am not arguing that union is not more healthy today than it was 50 years ago, i am replying to your silly comments that rugby league intimating has hardly improved in that period.I responded by giving you the latest info which says it has.end of story.I wouldnt throw club rugby in here , the crowds are deplorable compared to twentyyears ago.
i am aware of union being played in over 100 countries,but the simple fact is like the new countries taking up rugby league,the number of teams and players in the vast majority of those countries is so tiny,that the populations in general hardly if at all knows of its existence.
Despite all the years that have gone by,union is the national code only in NZ and losing to soccer in Wales that mantle,soccer is the main code in Sth Arica,although union has the profile.rugby league is the national code of PNG with a population bigger than NZ.So PW maybe neither code should brag too much.I am still waiting for confirmation of the 6billion tv viewers who were supposed to miraculously materialise in the union world cup of 2004,courtesy of Mr John O'Neill MA institute of HYPE.

Club rugby has always been played in front of small numbers of local supporters .
But it is the provincial and state level that rugby look after really well and this let to rugby union being look after by their national body(ARU/NZRFU/SARFU) .
Rugby league is run by clubs and they decide where players go to tours or use money to blackmail them .

Der Kaiser I know about the German rugby union and Im not saying that they were millionaires but i do know that they have a good club structure with Jrs and they host Canada not long ago .
My two cousins play club rugby in Holland and they said it is a well run and well sponsor and its not as big as soccer but its there .
Now don't try to compare German and Holland rugby union who has local a comp with local players and strong Jrs developments .
How can you compare that to America Samoa league, Samoa league, Italy and Greece rugby league where there's no local comp but they play international league made up of players from Auckland and suburb Sydney .
Your rugby union brain is very limited taipan because rugby union is the national sport of NZ ,South Africa , Wales and most of the Pacific nations .
Whoever told you that Wales is now a soccer country must have the same hate you have of rugby union .
Australia's national sport is cricket and you don't see people flock to watch the Pura Milk cup etc .
That same goes for Wales rugby at the moment and people are still not use to the Celtic league .
Ask any Welshman who their heroes are and they will tell you one of many rugby legends not some soccer players born and live in England .
So Taipan the Wallabies played in front of 8000 fans 50 years ago and players have to pay their own transport and expenses .
Fifty years later and they are now well off and played in front large stadiums with large TV audience .

 

[screeny]

PW, ask any Welshmen about their sporting heroes of THE PAST and you're right, they'll most probably harp on about JPR Williams, Gareth Edwards etc.

But times are a-changing my friend and Wales RU, just like Scotland, is dwindling in numbers and popularity.

Let's ask your same Welshman, the one who you want to ask about his heroes, about the state of the game in the principality and he'll tell you: it's f**ked.

 

[taipan]

We have the name rugby league now and changing would be an admission of weakness in my opinion. It would take a PR coup the sizeof which I'm not sure RL is capable of pulling off to change names AND convince the public it's because we don't want to be tarnished with the sh*t that is RU.

Personally, too many of league's stalwart warriors over the past 100-years would be betrayed if we gave up on the name now, too. It's difficult but I'm for keeping the name and letting the public choose.

RU's slowly changing into RL as it knows its product is crud by comparison. This is the only long term chance RU has.

Rugby Union is still rugby union and will be a million years more. Rugby League is still rugby league and will be a million years more .


Rugby Union has improved 100% than what it was 50 years ago . You guys can tell me what percentage league has improve since 50 years ago ?
The only thing I could think off is Warriors , London , Brisbane and Melbourne + Origins .

Lets see hmmm Russia,Serbia,Lebanon,New Caledonia,soon to be Georgia
,and the West Indies,an increase to 10 teams in the US,a much improved French national team,the growth of rugby league in Wales in particular,Ireland with 12 teams in conferences,a lesser growth in Scotland in junior levels,a 60% increase in the number of players in UK in the past few years.BTW rugby union 100 years ago in Oz was larger than league,it sure as hell aint now.The NRL competition now 15 teams,(rest assured 16 teams will be announced next year) compared to 8 teams decades ago. Do your sums PW there is plenty of percentage increase both locally and internationally in rugby league,like a true union man you might find these facts a little distrubing.

Taipan ! If you are a rugby union fan or a fan of both codes then you will compare rugby union 50 years ago to this day .
All those league playing countries you mention also have union . The spread of rugby union has surprise those on the IRB board .
The word now is which countries haven't got rugby union ?
The truth is rugby union is now played all over the world it is hard to think of which nations haven't got a comp .
Fifty years ago only the main nations were playing test matches . Now there are test matches beign played in every corner of the world .
The RWC , U21 & U19 world cups , Womens world cup , 7s world cup , and the Commonwelth Games .
Rugby Union is now more healthy than it was fifty years ago . And we are not even talking about club rugby here .

PW I am not arguing that union is not more healthy today than it was 50 years ago, i am replying to your silly comments that rugby league intimating has hardly improved in that period.I responded by giving you the latest info which says it has.end of story.I wouldnt throw club rugby in here , the crowds are deplorable compared to twentyyears ago.
i am aware of union being played in over 100 countries,but the simple fact is like the new countries taking up rugby league,the number of teams and players in the vast majority of those countries is so tiny,that the populations in general hardly if at all knows of its existence.
Despite all the years that have gone by,union is the national code only in NZ and losing to soccer in Wales that mantle,soccer is the main code in Sth Arica,although union has the profile.rugby league is the national code of PNG with a population bigger than NZ.So PW maybe neither code should brag too much.I am still waiting for confirmation of the 6billion tv viewers who were supposed to miraculously materialise in the union world cup of 2004,courtesy of Mr John O'Neill MA institute of HYPE.

Club rugby has always been played in front of small numbers of local supporters .
But it is the provincial and state level that rugby look after really well and this let to rugby union being look after by their national body(ARU/NZRFU/SARFU) .
Rugby league is run by clubs and they decide where players go to tours or use money to blackmail them .

Der Kaiser I know about the German rugby union and Im not saying that they were millionaires but i do know that they have a good club structure with Jrs and they host Canada not long ago .
My two cousins play club rugby in Holland and they said it is a well run and well sponsor and its not as big as soccer but its there .
Now don't try to compare German and Holland rugby union who has local a comp with local players and strong Jrs developments .
How can you compare that to America Samoa league, Samoa league, Italy and Greece rugby league where there's no local comp but they play international league made up of players from Auckland and suburb Sydney .
Your rugby union brain is very limited taipan because rugby union is the national sport of NZ ,South Africa , Wales and most of the Pacific nations .
Whoever told you that Wales is now a soccer country must have the same hate you have of rugby union .
Australia's national sport is cricket and you don't see people flock to watch the Pura Milk cup etc .
That same goes for Wales rugby at the moment and people are still not use to the Celtic league .
Ask any Welshman who their heroes are and they will tell you one of many rugby legends not some soccer players born and live in England .
So Taipan the Wallabies played in front of 8000 fans 50 years ago and players have to pay their own transport and expenses .
Fifty years later and they are now well off and played in front large stadiums with large TV audience .

PW your league hating thoughts seem to cloud what I said - I stated NZ has the national game of union,it was the national game in Wales however soccer is making big inroads(you do or dont have to dislike union to know that),in South Africa as I said union has the bigger profile, the game of the black Sth African(the far greater population) is soccer.The soccer community considers soccer as the national code in terms of sheer playing numbers.
Oh dear did not include Fiji Tonga and Samoa as national codes major catastrophe ,major areas of population and major economic powers .
One of my sporting heroes is Michael Jordan,because of his athleticsm and i am no big fan of basketball.So your argument that I hate a sport because I make some comments you dont like is crap>thats the case i dislike league,because the officials dont think past their little island of Australia,because they have done stuff all in promoting the game in sth Africa,and yes the clubs have a lot of influence.
Then again you are ignorant on union,beacause there are instances particularly in the uK that clubs put themselves before representative games.
Club rugby union crowds for the likes of Randwick used to get on occasions 4-5,000 at a game in the past.their crowds have dwindled dramatically,Warringah and Manly crowds have dropped also.Its funny union club officials are very concerned about club rugby in the current sitiuation,as they were a lot healthier years ago,you seem to know more than club union officials.
The Wallabies played to a packed house at the SCG against the Boks in the early seventies when apartheid was in full swing.a damn side more than 8,000 try close to 40,000.
the Wallabies paid for their own transport and expenses and were not reimbursed for some out of pocket expenses :lol: :lol: :lol: One of the best I have heard,A former Wallaby schoolteacher I know told me reimbursement of petrol money for starters,some expenses were some not.But no pay for play which is fair enough.

 

[ruggabugga]

Taipan,

Why is the fact that RUGBY players including Wallabies paid their way a thing of ridicule to you. Mate, don't you understand that in the amateur era of RUGBY, players were so dedicated and glad of the opportunity , mateship and sheer love of the game that THEY GLADLY paid their own way. I paid an annual fee from juniors right thru to grade, I paid a weekly playing fee right thru juniors and grade. i went on rep trips and paid a substantial portion of the cost...I was delighted to do it as were all the others...It was our sport and our recreation. If you go bowling or absailing or hiking, you pay, just like most RUGBY players do....for the love of it.

In Newcastle, 2004 the REAL NRL lost two side (Maitland & Central Charlestown) because they could not fund their players. What a great pity the players and administrators were so removed from the roots of the game that two clubs were lost to the REAL NRL .. Why could they not find players that loved the game enough to play for love not money.

League has evolved to the point that players at all levels want a free ride. Look at the juniors that require all their costs from uniform to travel to insurance to be met by the RL. Why? No wonder a senior club/s can't function without the dollar as GOD. It is a real shame and a real threat to the growth of League.

 

[screeny]

Right, ruggabugga, RU players play for the love of the game while league players are all mercenaries. Riiiiiight......

Without even going into the complete farce that was shamateurism over a century let me remind you that the England RU team threatened to strike - very publically - if they didn't get a massive pay hike a couple of years ago. It's just one example of mercenary behaviour in RU. Of course every sport at pro level suffers the same kind of crisis, but don't go making out that the amateur ideal pervades union more than league.

"League has evolved to the point that players at all levels what a free ride."

This is just unadulterated tripe. I'll go down all the junior teams, or amateur teams that have sprung up all over the British Isles and Ireland since the RU ban was lifted in 1995 and tell them they're "looking for a free ride."

What a rubbish point you make ruggabugga, completely rubbish.

 

[ruggabugga]

screeny, screeny screeny,

You have misread and/or misinterpreted the post. You have latched onto some imagined remark and run at a 100mph in the wrong direction. I realise this is par for the course for you, but you must understand how stupid you look when you take this tack.

My post was neither anti League or pro Rugby. It was a statement of the differences between the two codes at a point in time.

I played league at junior level and had all costs covered by the club. I didn't ask for that as a prerequisite, they just thought it necessary....it wasn't.

 

[Der Kaiser]

You know little about Rugby Union in Holland and Germany!Yanto works with the RU in Holland and they are heavily in debt and the WHOLE board resigned due to things like Insurance NOT being payed last year.Well Run?
Heidelburg area has rugby in schools etc but that is a rarity in Germany.In Bavaria Rugby is not taught in schools as the State has said its too dangerous-insurance etc.I would say over half the players in German Union are foreigners.The comments were made to you to show not everything is rosy in European Rugby as you make out especially on the continent.Romanian Rugby since 1995 has gone backwards at an alarming rate.I have 2 teammates from their who have told me that Rugby Union is struggling there now adays.

[quote="Der Kaiser I know about the German rugby union and Im not saying that they were millionaires but i do know that they have a good club structure with Jrs and they host Canada not long ago .
My two cousins play club rugby in Holland and they said it is a well run and well sponsor and its not as big as soccer but its there .
Now don't try to compare German and Holland rugby union who has local a comp with local players and strong Jrs developments .
How can you compare that to America Samoa league, Samoa league, Italy and Greece rugby league where there's no local comp but they play international league made up of players from Auckland and suburb Sydney .