Meh, no benefit to league from this circus, just drawbacks.

Can't see the point of this to be honest - I can think of few RL supporters that enjoy watching the other code. I for one wont be bother with this game.

...and, as Gareth hints at, if one of our lads gets injured because they don't really know or understand what they are doing then it can only be detrimental to the Rhinos.

the latter

agree I cant see the point of it

Let Wigan do it.

I thought when Saracens acquired Joel Tomkins that the deal included some form of cross code challenge match along the lines of the Dwyer hybrid - when's that occurring?

Union could learn a lot from league.....starting with 'how to score a try'

These are the rules

Hybrid rugby rules

* Thirteen players per team:

* Instead of six-tackle sets and unlimited phases, a set time in possession (shot clock) is used where the attacking side has 60 seconds with the ball. Teams in possession are required to score or kick during this time otherwise a turn over in possession will occur on the sound of the shot clock or referee’s signal. The ruck and maul will also be subject to the shot clock;

* Play the ball (RL) applies while the attacking team is in their own half of the field;

* Ruck and maul (RU) while the attacking team is in their opponent’s half of the field;

* Six-man contested scrums with the attacking side to have the loose head with the ball fed into the centre of the scrum. Scrums will be governed by current rugby union laws, especially touch and engage;

* A try will be worth five (5) points, conversions and penalty goals will be worth two (2) points and field goal will be worth one (1) point.

* There are to be two referees, one union and one league;

IMO it favours union teams more. I don't see any benefit for rugby league teams to embrace this apart from gaining popularity.

The NRL teams have never been offered this type of match. What the guys in Oz want is Australia Kangaroos vs the Wallabies in a Hybrid match.

The NRL/ARL though are not really showing any real desire to make this happen. They dont need to as RL is in a very strong position.

Absolutely. Much as I admire Hetherington this sham of a match would only serve to be a distraction from what this club and its fans are really interested in - winning Rugby League trophies.

This pointless exhibition may raise the club's profile, but playing it in the middle of our season will only serve to undermine the competition which pays the bills. I thought we learnt this a decade or more ago when we almost lost to easybeats Huddersfield-Sheffield after allowing our star player to play in the Middlesex Sevens.

I don't see how this will raise the profile of the game in other parts of the country. After Wigan blew Bath away, the whole episode was quickly swept under the Union carpet and forgotten.

(Repeat of my post on the VT thread) The rules are awful... thehybridcode.com/index.php?page_id=438 ...any League side would largely be restricted to going for long range scores. I'm not sure how Union sides would build any attacks with the 60s rule in place. As a Leeds fan I hope we go nowhere near this - do we really want to risk injuries in Scrums, Rucks and Mauls?

(Repeat of my post on the VT thread) The rules are awful... thehybridcode.com/index.php?page_id=438 ...any League side would largely be restricted to going for long range scores. I'm not sure how Union sides would build any attacks with the 60s rule in place. As a Leeds fan I hope we go nowhere near this - do we really want to risk injuries in Scrums, Rucks and Mauls?

I'd love to see it

I just can't get excited about this. Seems like a pointless way to pick up injuries and an extra game in a season where, if we get to finals again, we'll need all the fresh players we can.

'IF' (that that's a big if ...) half the South Stand bother to attend, who let's face it hate Union at the best of times, won't they just spend the whole 80 minutes giving out stick to fat Union wingers ?

Not to mention the Union coaches and scouts got a good look at many of Wigan's players close up and signed them.

Nothing good can come from this from the Rhinos or RL perspective. The only thing the inferior code can teach us is off the field.

Agreed. The only benefit would be some exposure (difficult to value) and potentially some cash (not massive amounts I suspect, and anyway to be shared). Obvious downsides include injury risk and some of our players becoming targets for poaching.

In addition, no hybrid game could be invented which didn't suit one team at the expense of the other. Make possession contested and the RL side would get hammered (and rightly penalised) out of sight if played fully to RU strengths. Make possession closer to RL rules and the RL side would run the RU boys off their feet, again particularly if reffed to true RL standards.

IIRC the Wigan-Bath RL game was dull as ditchwater, even with the ref trying to help Bath out as much as possible. There was some excitement at the RU version because Wigan were able to score some points despite very limited possession, and I think RL was very proud of that Wigan team and wanted to see them show the RU boys how good they were. But there's a reason its rarely been repeated.

I just see no benefits at all.

It's been said that, a good compromise is were neither party is happy.

For me, I want rugby to be as big as football. If the best way to get this to compromise some of the elements from league and incorporate some elements from union then I'd personally go for it.

If in 20 years time from now we had one rugby, with all current league and union teams in england playing one unified code, and we had an equivalent to the champions league in Europe, I personally, would be very happy

Whilst it may attract a more than normal amount of press coverage like others i fail to see what the Rhinos OR RL gain from this and i certainly wouldn't want to play it during our season.

1/When?.........The season is already fixture full as it is.With comment about the size of the recuperation period in the off season a talking point already.
2/Why?...........How does a HYBRID really give RL a profile benefit,when its clear the media is RU predisposed.RL win, the event is played down,RU win, the stautus quo is 'justified'.And why on earth are we interested in helping to quote GH "promote BOTH codes".LEEDS RHINOS function to play and promote in RL.
3/The article suggests the idea was discussed in Oz when GH was there.That logically implies it could occur there,so a) travel time is an add on as well as time zone adjustment period.b)Does it imply no NRL clubs are interested and the promoter is looking for a second choice option?

IF we must think about an INNOVATIVE new RL event then maybe that could be simply moving the WCC to the right end of the calendar.Damm, GH COULD have mentioned that instead of course over there.

Not in favour of this if I'm honest.

RU bores me to death especially at club level.

Let's imagine that, in the future, Union and League combine as a sort of hybrid code.
The sum of attendances for that hybrid code would be significantly smaller than the total attendances that League and Union get now.
So, it makes no business sense to combine or hybridise the codes and the fans of each code wouldn't want it.
So what's point of this proposed match other than as a curiosity and a "We'll show those ruggerbuggers" p!55!ng contest?

If I wanted to watch what I imagine to be working class lads stuffing it up the RFU, I'd simply support Wales.

Lets get it right.There is a proposed hybrid game between RL club and a RU club,this is not going to create a 3rd code,nor is it going to leasd to a unification of the two codes.It will give both codes especially RL much needed publicity.Wont this make people think that we dont have that much faith in our own product,so we have to invent a hybrid mockup,and if the hybrid is a flop,they will think "well that was awful,wouldnt like to see the real thing".I just cant see the point IMO,and also remember the advent of 20-20 cricket!it started as a garden fete/festival thing,just a bit of fun,its not going to be involved in mainstream cricket,but once the Genie was out of the bottle,look at it now.Just a thought

As I understand it, this hybrid concept is also going to be trialled in Australia with an NRL side playing against the All Blacks, having already had a couple of junior fixtures to try it out.

IMO it's fundamentally unsafe, simply because it has competitive scrums. A rugby league front rower has neither the body shape nor the technical knowledge and experience to safely scrummage competitively against their union counterparts. They would end up getting destroyed and you would have scrums collapsing left, right and centre exposing players to the risk of serious injury.

If I was in charge of a rugby league side, I wouldn't even consider it until such point as scrums are made non-competitive.

Absolutely.

I remember the Wigan v Bath challenge matches: the only superiority the RU lads had was in the scrummaging. They won their challenge there.

Does any self respecting RL/SL/NRL fan want to see the return of this questionable "spectacle" in any match they watch ? Bad idea.

Any hybrid concept is a retrograde step; RU just needs to admit defeat and bow to the superiority of the better game that has had well over a hundred years head start.