Why are we always judging ourselves against other sports and criticising from within. We've got a great game, its not a massive worldwide sport but it holds its own against more then most.

If your a league fan you simply must get to these World Cup games IMO. I just can't wait for it and will get to as many as possible. I'm just going to enjoy watching all the different countries and different players ripping in to each other.

It's going to be brilliant.

The WC has made me for the first time in my life wish I was a Northener!

Will definitely be at Wembley for the semi.

Best. post. ever.

After all, when else are we going to see all of these countries at once in our country, for many of us in our local towns and cities. Nations as 'exotic' if you like as Papua New Guinea, Tonga, France, Italy and the USA playing the game we love? Not to mention the chance to give the England team the support they deserve to beat Australia and whoever else stands in our way.

Yep, for instance can't wait for Kiwis v PNG at Headingley

Totally agree, will be 8 more years until we can see these nations play in a WC again, and probably never see most of the players in a WC for most of us.

I can't wait, think NZ v Samoa will be a great game. In fact, i'm buying my tickets now.

The ignorance on this site just gets worse.Half the English cricket and rugby union players are of South African origin.Most of the All Blacks are actually Islanders,whilst the American athletics team comes from the Caribbean.Guess where the Japanese rugby union team come from,whilst the stand out players for Scotland are both South Africans.

It's just another easy excuse not to go and support international RL or the World Cup from people who wouldn't have gone anyway. I'm not sure why people get so upset about things like this these days. We live in an era where it's never been easier to travel across the world and settle somewhere new.

As for residency and bloodlines to represent countries you've never been to, so be it. There are far more serious things in the world to get worked up about than whether Rangi Chase feels as English as someone born here was.

Just bought 5 tickets for the game at Cardiff, got some corking seats in the £20 section in U35...the same position in the middle tier is £99! Bought a Fiji-Ireland ticket as well so I could use the Scrum offer - £27 for three World Cup games is pretty good going I reckon!

For what it's worth, Cardiff is currently the only England game I'll be attending, but I'm far more likely to end up attending the others if Chase et al aren't included....

I presume you do know there is a game at Leigh also.

Certainly do, waiting until a little nearer to the time before buying those along with Scotland-USA at Salford.

Taking my daughter to her first match at Leigh for the Cook Islands v Tonga game. What is there for an 11 month old not to love?!!

Going to get tickets for that and the DW quarter final with the deal that's on.

(14, 34, 76) Pens Biggar (21)


Team
15 FB Ayumu Goromaru
14 W Toshiaki Hirose (c)
13 C Male Sa'u
12 C Craig Wing
11 W Kenki Fukuoka
10 FH Harumichi Tatekawa
9 SH Fumiaki Tanaka
1 P Masataka Mikami
2 H Shota Horie
3 P Hiroshi Yamaa
Hitoshi Ono
5 L Shoji Ito
6 F Hendrik Tui
7 F Michael Broadhurst
8 N8 Takashi Kikutani
Replacements
16 F Takeshi Kizu
17 P Yuusuke Nagae
18 P Kensuke Hatakeyama
19 L Shinya Makabe
20 L Justin Ives
21 SH Atsushi Hiwasa
22 C Yuu Tamura
23 W Yoshikazu Fujita

18 of the 5 certainly seem to come from Japan.

Is there a prize?

What was the 'big event scrum package'?

Because according to the official site that's sold out.

I think it was where you could get tickets for the opener, semi and final with a slight discount in comparison to buying them separately.

I tried for some but by the time I got round to it the £99 bracket had sold out. Got them all seperate for £110 anyways in the end, including a £50 ticket to the final.

[urlhttp://www.rlwc2013.com/tickets[/url

The Big Event Scrum Package
Opening Ceremony at the Millennium Stadium
Semi-Final double header at Wembley
and the Rugby League World Cup Final at Old Trafford


Great news that these have all sold out....

only single seats for the opener in the £30 and £40 sections, that could explain the £15 discount available

By all accounts it looks like the big games are going to get very solid crowds. A lot of good work being done on them.

No chance of getting any seats together in the £30 section. Got 5 together in the U section, the operator says these are selling really well too. Looking forward to it now.

www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/rugbyl ... ds-newsxml Quote England are planning to to play Italy in a rugby league World Cup warm-up on October 19, possibly at Salford. The following Saturday the Lions launch the 2013 World Cup when they face Australia at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium.'" Seems a strange choice of opponents, surely France would provide a sterner test for the warm up match.

www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/rugbyl ... ds-newsxml Quote England are planning to to play Italy in a rugby league World Cup warm-up on October 19, possibly at Salford. The following Saturday the Lions launch the 2013 World Cup when they face Australia at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium.'" Seems a strange choice of opponents, surely France would provide a sterner test for the warm up match.

Have you seen Italy's team?

1. Humble
2. Tedesco
3. Berrigan
4. A.Minichello
5. Mantellato
6. Campese
7. Gower
8. Mauro
9. Romelo
10. Laffranchi
11. Ciraldo
12. Riethmuller
13. M.Minichello
R. Trimarchi
R. Guerra
R. Snowden
R. Nero

Good choice of opponent but poor location. Really starting to get excited now!

Italy should be playing in Italy. I don't see what the point in holding another match in England is when there are already 20+ World Cup matches that need promotion.