If you're a sport that perpetually claims to be hard done by in the media and is trying to sell last minutes tickets for a game at Wembley, you keep your commitments.

At the very least you send someone else. Are you really saying sinfield didn't have a spare 10 minutes for a phone call?

So Sir Kev, one of the most intelligent men in the sport cannot hold his own in an interview now? Distracted by what? What is the distraction, please explain.

So Sir Kev hasn't got a spare 5 minutes on his hands? Its not good to mess the national media around.

Who needs to get a grip again?

I've no idea why it was pulled.............but neither do any of you, so it's ridiculous to call the management pathetic without knowing the full circumstances.

Maybe the management decided it was best to have no media for the players in the days leading up, i remember a few years ago wigan had a media blackout in the lead up to a big game.

...I don't know, neither do you playas.

At the moment, literally, everything Mcnamara/the management do is castigated. Damned if you do, damned if don't.

Guaranteed they have the interview and some clown is on here saying it's a waste of time and a distraction.

Who said he can't hold his own in an interview?

You don't understand, there is no excuse.

Media blackout = Pathetic.
Wrapping up in cotton wool = Pathetic.
Not having a single member of team England available = Pathetic.
McNamaras handling of disciplinary this tournament = Pathetic.
Showing himself up time and time again
Oh look no McIllorum or Chase in all the team photos this week.... Pathetic. It stinks.

I son't go against McNamaras team selection and criticise as he is better qualified and we're not in the know. However his handling's of the media this tournament has been woeful, even journalists have stated that.

By saying it was a distraction. I presumed that is what you meant by a distraction. How else can he be distracted? Unless you mean missing 5 mins of I'm a celebrity...you tell me.

to be fair, it isn't his job to manage the media. Sure he could have performed better in his first press conference and the subsequent BBC interviews - but it could have all been avoided with a swift press release and statement re: Hock / Graham / Hardaker from the PR team, and McNamara wouldn't have needed to answer any questions.

I wonder how many questions Tim Sheens has had to deal with re: Billy Slater? Probably not that many, because they put a quick statement out straight away and provided more information. If an England player had been in that situation, I can bet that the RFL would still be refusing to comment or talk about it.

The coach shouldn't have to be answering questions right before the match about discipline (as he did for Hardaker). There should be a media person on hand to deal with those questions.

Today will be exactly the same. He will get 4 or 5 questions about why Rangi isn't in the team, he wont give a proper answer so they will keep on asking till he walks out. There should have been an unequivocal statement put out last night stating the reasons why he isn't in the team.

A proper PR manager would have sorted out all the issues at the outset, it isn't McNamara's job.

But McNamara has been in the game long enough to know what to expect from Media interviews and comes across as someone who has had media training so I don't buy into the fact he can't answer questions.

If we are lead to believe he has introduced great things in how England plan and prep for fixtures then surely there would be contingency plans in how to deal with the media when things don't go exactly as planned. If it is the "here's our statement, we will say nothing more on the matter" approach as seen at the beginning of the tournament then that is clearly flawed and remedial action should have been taken. If Chase did act up then he needs to be honest and it will put McNamara in a very good light whilst shaming Chase for his unprofessionalism.

He really can't win mind cos if it really was a tactical decision who will believe him after the subterfuge used at the beginning of the tournament, McNamara lost the trust of the media and the fans due to his inability to be honest.

The problem with the statement re: Hock at the beginning of the tournament was that it didn't say anything about what had happened, which other players were involved etc....which created a vacuum of rumour and speculation, and inevitably invited questions from the media, and subsequently put him in the impossible situation of having to lie about why he hadn't selected one of his best players (when everyone knew that he was lieing).

If the statement said "Hock been sent home for XYZ, and Graham, McIllorum and Hardaker have all been deselected for XYZ" then there would have been no need for the media to push it in that first press conference. In fact, a proper media person would have done their job and done whatever was needed to stop the media asking the questions in the first place.

He will be asked why Chase isn't in the team for tomorrow - I just hope he is prepared with a proper reason, not just saying "we have selected the best team" repeatedly before walking out (ideally he will have a PR person alongside him to deal with it.)

Agreed EHW, the biggest problem is it may actually be tactical but the damage has been done by his previous media displays. It will then get extremely frustrating for McNamara if he can't get the press to believe him if he is genuine about the changes, but whose fault will that be?

He will have only himself to blame.

OMG OMG OMG OMG

Come on guys, the games tomorrow. Who gives a crap about a 5minute interview, really?

Nick Clegg's sent a video of support

[urlhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGFbOEOfnCA[/url

He'll be supporting New Zealand by tomorrow if he decides that's his best chance of success.

I bet nick clegg has never watched a game of rugby league in his life

That's a beauty

. I bet he hasn't even seen a RLWC game yet

Anyone else watching this 'World Cup Winner: Ten Years On' programme?

A re-run of the final with the squad twittering their 'witty' comments in subtitles. Nauseating.

It says something that during England RU's finest hour, you can still read the comments and miss none of the 'action'.

Won't be watching it all.

Samtomkins saying how jealous he was. Is that a statement of intent for tomorrow or obsequiousness for three years time?

Mate you're showing yourself up here with petty jealousy.

Not at all. I'm not actually anti-RU. While I avoid club RU for being numbingly boring I don't mind the SH Championship and Lions, and occasionally even the Six Nations. Their balls are the right shape at least.

But that was like pulling teeth. A re-run with horribly naff tweets adorning the screen every few seconds? I'd have preferred them to provide commentary rather than that. Any broadcast that relies on 'tweets' deserves a slap. The 2003 RWC has been done to death. There was nothing there that hasn't been heard a million times.

Don't give me that 'jealous' boll0x. While yes, I'd love RL to have that sort of exposure, this was painfully rehashed, nothing more.


He's certainly building bridges. Even got himself a mention in the post-match discussion. He'll join the 15 code eventually, no doubt.

Moz on BBC Breakfast in 15 and we've just had a mention at the start of the weather.

1 Adrian Morley spoke fantastically well on BBC Breakfast this morning. Articulate, insightful and passionate. Not to mention patriotic. Seemed to go down well with all the presenters. Even got in some final encouragement to people to snap up the remaining tickets and get to Wembley. We'll done Adrian! Think it's great that in Morley and Peacock, we have RL props speaking so well and excelling in talking to the uninitiated as well as the committed about RL.

2. Caught a bit of RU, Wales v Tonga on BBC 2 last night after Coronation Street. What absolute garbage! Jonathan Davies described it as dire. Even Inverdale said he found it numbingly boring having to watch scrum after scrum. I know those at the top of the media can give undue weight to whatever sports they want. But after that garbage, what an opportunity for our game with England v NZ at Wembley being on BBC1 later. Come on England!!

Got a brief mention on the front page of the 'i' on Saturday:

anything in any of the broadsheets today? Anyone?

and well done MOZ!