=#FF0000How difficult is it to understand the AUP?

Quote THE AUP="THE AUP"1.2b. Copyrighted materials
* Linking to sites carrying content without the permission of the copyright owner, or mentioning how to access such material, is forbidden.
* This also includes posting links to, or explaining how to access, unauthorized video or audio of copyrighted broadcasts and recordings.'"

tb

I am only 19 so can't really remember times like this but it looks similar to how RU is now. What went wrong? How can we get back to these times?

If we were to host the Ashes could we use those same stadiums and get those crowds? Why do we continue playing at small grounds in the North when great things have alreadt been achieved?

Rugby League drives me crazy.

Not only does it drive you crazy It drives many fans crazy as well. Like you say How can they play in such large stadiums for ashes series then revert to small one's now is beyond me.It feels like we're going backwards not forwards..Maybe the first thing they should do is bring back the people that ran it in the first place,it was going fine until this new mob came in.

THe stadiums they used to play @ like Wembley,Old Trafford is a thing of the past.I used to enjoy watching games @ these venues.Here we're in 2013 hosting a WC,let's see which venues get it,hope they wake up to them selves before the tournament starts.

Its not as simple as all that. So many of the reasons why we got big crowds for Ashes tests have gone.

Super League has become the priority for many fans and the game has become more club-centric. International RL used to be regarded as the pinnacle of the game for fans and players alike, but I reckon these days it would come well behind a SL Grand Final (for example) in terms of the regard its held in.

But the main reason is that pre-SL and the switch to summer there was a real buzz about the proper international tours, they were events that people genuinely looked forward to. The Aussies came here in the middle of our season and played several tour games as warm up's for the tests against the club sides which built up momentum for the test series. Also, generally speaking they were only here every 4 years and so people's opportunites to see GB v Australia games were much more limited and so this helped in attracting them to the tests.

Awesome try by Jonathan Davies

Maybe we should start worrying about filling 80,000 seat stadiums when we can fill 25,000 seaters.

A very good point, the simple truth of the matter is that international rugby league is dying (did anyone really care about the 4 nations?)

It also has a lot to do with the game being lost from the wider public concious due to the lack of exposure on terrestrial television channels.

The SL deal with SKY brings in a huge and much needed amount of money but the SL & Grand Final focus has cost us the County Cups & Regal Trophy which were shown live on the BBC. Like boxing during the late 80s and early 90s Rugby League has become a hidden sport from the millions who don't have Sky/SKY Sports.

Bite your tongue.

Leaving aside the copyright issues, a number of factors:

1) the Super League war in Oz had an effect on international game

2) the years it took to rebuild Wembley got us out of the habit of playing big games there (it was always the venue for the opening or closing game of a tour or tournament). Add to that the parochialism many fans have developed: ust look at the threads on venues for the World Cup or next year's four nations - everybody looks at (small) grounds on the M62 corridor, if the national stadium is suggested, it gets pooh-poohed as too far away and too big

3) the seasons coinciding makes tours in the old style no longer an option

4) lack of ambition (among fans and administrators)

No the SL war did not effect the international game,it just effected RL in Australia in a huge way.

I beg to differ.

Must admit I am a fan of the full tours with the Kangaroos playing a series of clubs and us doing the same, I know its something that is unlikley to return, but I (and many of my mates) would go to loads of club games as well as all the tests, I often went to FC, Leeds and even Wigan (midweek) to watch the tour games, which were great atmospheres, something sadly lacking in these modern series. The world cup is the same, we know now its going to feature NZ v Aus in the final and who can get excited about Ireland v Labanon (most of the 34 players involved will never have stepped foot in either country).

I would pay my deposit tomorrow for a trip to Aus and NZ if it was a full Lions tour, but would not be bothered about the four nations.