All 16 NRL clubs have (unsurprisingly) backed the decisions of the Australian and New Zealand Rugby Leagues.

Defer to 2022 seems the only option if a meaningful tournament is to take place.

Quote ="Wanderer"All 16 NRL clubs have (unsurprisingly) backed the decisions of the Australian and New Zealand Rugby Leagues. Defer to 2022 seems the only option if a meaningful tournament is to take place.'" https://twitter.com/LeagueUnlimited/sta ... 68480?s=19 It's strange as the clubs are not saying they don't or would stop any player going but I'm really not sure how players from any nation would feel like going when there employers don't want them to go.

Quote ="Wanderer"All 16 NRL clubs have (unsurprisingly) backed the decisions of the Australian and New Zealand Rugby Leagues. Defer to 2022 seems the only option if a meaningful tournament is to take place.'" https://twitter.com/LeagueUnlimited/sta ... 68480?s=19 It's strange as the clubs are not saying they don't or would stop any player going but I'm really not sure how players from any nation would feel like going when there employers don't want them to go.

Unlikely in the extreme I would have thought.

Agree time to postpone it now, they have no hope of shifting the remaining tickets in 2021. Things may have blown over and be out of people's minds come 2022.

The BBC's commitment to showing the Football World Cup may be a problem, but on a positive note it means most of the Football grounds they have booked will be free.

Also gives a chance to move the Grand Final to the World Cup Final date and actually play all the games SL has missed and avoid two games in one week scenarios.

If the tournament is postponed this year, will the RFL, have to return the millions of £s it received from the Government to stage the World Cup This Year? I think I read somewhere that the money was ring fenced for the World Cup this year.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-league/58024695 Quote "The 16 clubs are united that it is in best interests of player health, safety, wellbeing and the international game for the World Cup not to proceed in 2021," the NRL said in a statement. "The support not to play is based on the high Covid-19 infection rate in the United Kingdom and onerous biosecurity and quarantine protocols that would be placed on all players having just completed a lengthy period away from home during the NRL Telstra Premiership. "The 16 clubs support the World Cup being delayed until 2022 where it is expected there will be less risk to player health and safety and a stronger competition."'" Let's ignore the "stronger competition" in 2022 comment, because the only thing "weakening" it is you won't come, so ego ego ego I'd rather call your bluff on this one. Full strength not Australia teams which Australia hasn't stolen all the best players from would be a delight to see. In my opinion, the reasons are those which give plausible deniability, based on available facts, but ignoring the truth behind the decision, and on the basis that the ARL/NZRL did not consult the RLIF before they made their statement, nor consult with the players association before speaking for the players, I feel underwhelmed at their likely sincerity. But there are two concernsthey give, the infection rate, which is too high because of our incompetent government, but they could address through covid secure bubbles which the RLWC organisers are providing, and they are organised by the same people who successfully organised the bubbles for touring Test cricket teams earlier in the pandemic. If they felt they were not secure enough they could have worked towards a resolution through discussion, instead of saying Nah we're out we don't need to discuss it. The other concern being the quarantine/biosecurity being too onerous, and players being away from home for a lengthy period. Again ignoring that most NRL players seasons finish many weeks before the world cup, so they could do something before the world cup, and they could quarantine with their families on return, again like other sports are already doing. The NRL could even pay to make this more fun and luxurious for NRL players of all nationalities if it was so concerned with PLAYER WELFARE (instead of say, getting them back for week one of pre season).

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-league/58024695 Quote "The 16 clubs are united that it is in best interests of player health, safety, wellbeing and the international game for the World Cup not to proceed in 2021," the NRL said in a statement. "The support not to play is based on the high Covid-19 infection rate in the United Kingdom and onerous biosecurity and quarantine protocols that would be placed on all players having just completed a lengthy period away from home during the NRL Telstra Premiership. "The 16 clubs support the World Cup being delayed until 2022 where it is expected there will be less risk to player health and safety and a stronger competition."'" Let's ignore the "stronger competition" in 2022 comment, because the only thing "weakening" it is you won't come, so ego ego ego I'd rather call your bluff on this one. Full strength not Australia teams which Australia hasn't stolen all the best players from would be a delight to see. In my opinion, the reasons are those which give plausible deniability, based on available facts, but ignoring the truth behind the decision, and on the basis that the ARL/NZRL did not consult the RLIF before they made their statement, nor consult with the players association before speaking for the players, I feel underwhelmed at their likely sincerity. But there are two concernsthey give, the infection rate, which is too high because of our incompetent government, but they could address through covid secure bubbles which the RLWC organisers are providing, and they are organised by the same people who successfully organised the bubbles for touring Test cricket teams earlier in the pandemic. If they felt they were not secure enough they could have worked towards a resolution through discussion, instead of saying Nah we're out we don't need to discuss it. The other concern being the quarantine/biosecurity being too onerous, and players being away from home for a lengthy period. Again ignoring that most NRL players seasons finish many weeks before the world cup, so they could do something before the world cup, and they could quarantine with their families on return, again like other sports are already doing. The NRL could even pay to make this more fun and luxurious for NRL players of all nationalities if it was so concerned with PLAYER WELFARE (instead of say, getting them back for week one of pre season).

As quoted elsewhere. "The Anzac's who died at Gallipili must be turning in their graves at this cowardly act by the NRL clubs"
The modern Australians don't appear to have the courage of their forefathers that's for sure. How unaustralian is that lacking courage.

Gallipoli was Winston Churchill's handiwork...and interestingly, more Irish died on those Turkish Hills than Kiwis, but hey ho. let's not let facts get in the way of copywriters eh


This has nothing to do with courage and more to do with the mighty dollar and I genuinely hope that the IRLF do not sanction any internationals for the ANZAC sides this year. The NRL have got their own way now and nobody should be in any doubt who now runs the game.

Just for the record more British died than the Aussies and Kiwis and French put together, but the point i was making was the Aussies always refer to Gallipili as a show of their courage.

Define "British".....a fair few welsh, Irish and Scottish battalions were thrown onto those rocks...., but I digress. ANZAC day is used to commemorate the Fallen of ALL wars.....like you do in the UK on Remembrance Sunday.

The NRL have had their way.........I for one am disgusted at how the Kiwis fell into line and I've made that clear to my Kiwi mates here. How the AB's can be travelling around Europe and North America whilst our League Players are wrapped in cotton wool makes League look very foolish

Sure, but just a reminder that you blamed the "pandemic" and referred to the WC2021 in the same post?
Just debating it, that is all.

Why are we comparing the Anzacs not playing in a world cup to WW2? It's ridiculous

The NRL can ROT IN HELL.

More like show of stupidity by that racist murderer Winston Churchill!

What is this thread about again?

RL RADIO Sifts through it all.

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In a nutshell, It's about Aus and NZ withdrawing from the world cup, presumably due to “covid” aka the flu.
But a guy calling himself “sadfish” only wants the world cup to be discussed, not the latter so the discussion dried up and they skipped to discussing ANZAC..
Make of that what you will.

Is it cool to be woke these days?

This is yet another example of conflating cases with infections, there is no infection rate, it's a case rate, and cases are based on ridiculously flawed science, as demonstrated by labs doing proper testing and as told by Boris Johnson and Matt Hancock regards false positives of cases (when Hancock was still the Health sec.).
This is the prime 'evidence' for everything, restrictions, actions to shut down society, forced poison into humans etc. Remove this deliberate anti science and there's nothing there, the pack of cards falls. But Australia is so far down the road of anti science that it's no surprise that the Australian RL body continue to use language that is incorrect and is based on not just flawed science but deliberately twisted science meant to cause havoc.

They've made a statement inferring that safety of players is at risk and that's their primary reason not to come, this is just another distortion of the truth, even an immune compromised 50 something such as myself who has never social distanced, never worn a muzzle has not being able to 'catch' whatever is being described (despite best efforts to do so with a cov positive person), and I've been healthier than I've been in 20 years. The chances of death for myself from a respiratory ailment is along the lines of getting run over by a number 55 bus, the chances are so infintessimal that you simply have to continue on your life or you'll never have a life, live in constant fear of something that poses no risk to you nor your loved ones over and above everything else that existed before this insanity began.

The tournament should go ahead, even if I think it will be a disaster financially if fans are not allowed in the stadiums or worse their is medical apartheid, because to not do so panders to all sorts of longer term blackmailing by teams and creates massive problems regards the RL calender.

Ireland was under British rule at the time and today Northern Irish. Scots and Welsh and English are British.

In all of this diccussion lets not forget that the Aussies and Kiwis boards didn't want their players playing in the RLWC, but the Aussies want Rugby League to be included in the Olympics of 2032 in Brisbane. That's what a joke the people are running the game in Australia are

This is the Rugby league forum, is it still moderated?

yes.

So, my posts regarding the "pandemic" and the world cup have been removed without explanation. Yet another example of the current drive to introduce censorship and remove free speech, unless of course you support the covid narrative then you can post anything you like it seems..
My post was in response to Orangeman as we were discussing the events down under that have contributed to the refusal of NZ and Aus to send teams to the world cup.
I hope you are all taking note, and this censorship this from Sadfish who actually linked the pandemic to this thread. see bellow.
""we are in a pandemic, the RFL/WC2021 needed to cancel it 7 weeks ago but sure, blame the NRL"
Make of this what you will.
And that's in a thread that has amassed 8006 views, double any other thread bar stickies. So hardly an unwanted discussion.
Sad (fish) indeed.