Can't argue, I think I'll leave it. It's just some guy who likes to tell people where they're from based on unfounded opinion. Btw the Mayor of London example is a classic one of someone who is evidently a representative of the UK around the world, but was born in the USA, and spent the first few years of his life there. Mo Farrah as above is another good example (as are people like Graham, Hamilton, Beckham etc who do not live in the UK) of the idiocy of these people who like to try to tell people which country they should/not be allowed to represent.

With the unfair treatment of RL, since the sport began, it's no wonder that many within the sport have a "chip" on their shoulders.
If this means fighting for something that we believe in, then i'll have a bag full wi' bits on !

Really? Your definition of pretty popular and that of the OED are on seperate levels then. There are a load of AFL clubs in Britain and the GB side plays in a Euro and International cup.....it is in no way "pretty popular"....neither was RL in Italy. 73,000+ Watched the Union match v the AB's a few weeks back, with another 32,000 last week v the wannabees...that's more people than watched the 2 ANZAC RL tests this year between the 2 best RL sides on the planet......and in a soccer mad country, I would say that that is the definition of "pretty popular". HTH



So, a sport that was amateur and required it's players to be amateur threatened any players who played a professional sport with expulsion......I see no problem here, given GB RL was full of Welsh Union players who faced the same ban, but took the cash anyway. If you play a game, in this case RU, you abide by the rules and instructions of that games governing body......it's the same for any sport.



The 'it's not fair" chip. You paint a false picture of health in the Italian game from the 60's.....it was a small flash in the pan and as is usually the case in "expansion areas", wasn't followed up with any support from a RL central international body. ......therefore it's demise is immediately blamed on the IRB/IRFU rather than THE FACT THAT NOTHING WAS done to counter the threat from the IRFU.

I find it's more often than not the case, that in 99% of incidents, the FAILINGS of League can easily be blamed on Union rather than to accept that TGG dropped the ball on many occasions.

cheese and gravy is nice with chips too BTW

I'm excited by the potential of the Fijian team. They had a good world cup last time and look even stronger this time. Shame Uate and Hayne won't be playing for them.

Really JB?

Loking atwho's available for each nation I think Fiji are behind a few others.

Such a rule would be illegal. Regardless of that, just because it was a rule, doesnt mean it was right or acceptable or shouldnt be criticised.

Pretty popular, relatively speaking.

As expansion in other countries was very small in the mid-20th century, a 24 team league is pretty popular. If you're going to compare to other sports, it's obviously easy to bash the game in any direction... yet achieves nothing.


I know you're doing your best to defend union from unfair bashing (and most of your defence I usually agree with), but the fact that you can't see a problem with one governing body preventing people from having a freedom of choice by using its influence to ban people is just ridiculous.

Was Italian RL professional? Does being a professional once mean you're not ever able to be amateur again? Were other professional sportsmen banned from playing union? Don't try and dress this one up, it was just an attempt by rugby union governing bodies to stump the growth of league.
And just because it happened in other countries also doesn't make it not a problem. Quite the opposite.


So what could they have done?


That sounds utterly disgusting.

Italy 750/1 to win the world cup ...

Canadians make a national dish out of it.......

If they can get Hayne to switch their backline looks great, There was a couple of young Fijians come through in the NRL last season that looked very talented.

Slight difference with your selection. Vic Mauro, who is normally a second rower, can play at centre. Laffranchi at prop.

So the team would be:

[i
1. Anthony Minichiello

2. James Tedesco
3. Vic Mauro
4. Cederic Prizzon
5. Ryan Ghetti

6. Terry Campese
7. Craig Gower

8. Kade Snowden
9. Shaun Berrigan
10. Anthony Laffranchi
11. Aiden Guerra
12. Mark Minichiello
13. Cameron Ciraldo

14. Rocky Trimarchi
15. Alex Ranieri
16. Fabrizio Ciaurro
17.

[/iThis looks like a very strong team.
It will challenge France, Fiji, PNG and Samoa for 4h place in semi finals.

Dario Esposisto who's at Dewsbury this year should be in the squad too. He's a prop/second row forward.

Italy were Germany's allies during the 2nd world war, this (under RL rules) qualifies him.

'Under RL Rules'

His grandmother was Italian, that would qualify him in every other sport too.

Zola Budd, Andrew Strauss, Kevin Pietersen, Lesley Vainikolo, Willie Mason, Henry Paul, Owen Hargreaves, Allan Lamb, Mo Farah...I could go on for a long, long time.

So why is RL any different? Why critcise your own sport, when there's nothing there to criticise?

Nice try to head them off but it failed I'm afraid. They still turned up with their despondent drivel.

Well said.

With Budd at 6 and Lamb at hooker, that team could compete with fiji and png for 4th place



There is a world of difference from you naming random passport hoppers from multiple sports over a number of decades and trying to compare it to the potential Italian RL squad for 2013.......even Irelands soccer team under Jack Charlton had more locals in it for christ sake.......

My point is against the 'typical RL' comment, England cricket could name a pretty much SA team. Why do people be spefically critical of RL when it's just the way sport is?

I repeat, it is well documented that other sports often have a scenario where 1, 2 or maybe 4 players have questionable rights to represent a nation, IIRC, the Italian Union side of 10 years ago had a smattering of about 7 or 8 including some Argentinians, saffas, Aussies and a Kiwi in their squad for the 6 nations, but the discussion here is about an Italian RL side that contains PRETTY MUCH an NRL, Aussie born and Bred starting XIII with a handful of Italian born players.

Regardless of if these mercenaries get their adopted team to the quarters or not ....it's the level of support that Italian RL gets AFTER the RLWC that will be important.....although if they do well, the post match comments of Gower broadcast in Italy, with subtitles will speak volumes

Which team is stronger: Italy or Fiji?

ITALY:


[i1. Anthony Minichiello (Sydney Roosters)

2. James Tedesco (Wests Tigers)
3. Vic Mauro (Manly)
4. Cederic Prizzon (Villefranche)
5. Ryan Ghetti (Northern Pride)

6. Terry Campese (Canberra)
7. Craig Gower (London)

8. Kade Snowden (Newcastle)
9. Shaun Berrigan (Canberra)
10. Anthony Laffranchi (St. Helens)
11. Aiden Guerra (Sydney Roosters)
12. Mark Minichiello (Gold Coast)
13. Cameron Ciraldo (Penrith)

14. Rocky Trimarchi (Wests Magpies)
15. Alex Ranieri (North Sydney)
16. Fabrizio Ciaurro (Ducato)
17. Matthew Sands (Padova)[/i


FIJI

[i1. Lote Tuqiri (Wests Tigers)

2. Marika Koroibete (Wests Tigers)
3. Darrel Millard (Catalans)
4. Kevin Naiqama (Newcastle)
5. Sisa Waqa (Melbourne)

6. Jarryd Hayne (Parramatta)
7. Ryan Millard (Wests Magpies)

8. Petero Civinoceva (Redcliffe Dolphins)
9. ?
10. Ashton Sims (Nth Queensland)
11. Tariq Sims (Nth Queensland)
12. Wes Naiqama (Penrith)
13. John Sutton (South Sydney[/i)


The selection of Hayne, who played for Fiji in 2008 World Cup, assumes that he won't get picked for Australia, which he may. If Hayne doesn't play then Fiji are a lot weaker with the Fiji halves not in the same class as Italy's.

Personally would quite like to see a strong Italian side even if it was made up with mainly NRL players, think it would add to the WC and maybe increase the profile in that country.

But as far as qualification rules etc it's different in most sports, England cricket rules are funnily enough some of the strictest of all the sports. They've just raised the qualification period to a 7 years residency period, that's even if you have a English parent you still have to qualify. KP has had a British passport since birth because his mother is English but also had a 5 years qualification period before he could play for England. Andrew Strauss has English parents who were working abroad and came back to live here as a young kid. For teams like Italy though I think the advantages outweigh the disadvantages of fielding foreign born players.

What a great promotion for the game in Europe it would have been if Italy, Fiji, France and England had played a four way competition this autumn instead of wasting time with the Welsh. I am sure they could have attracted over 10,000 to every game.

Absolute and utter Bollox.......but carry on dreaming if it means the meds are working!

Italy, Fiji, France and England 10k a game...

...England v France failed TWICE to attract 10k this year........Italy v Fiji in Italy would get less than 4 figures......in the UK or France it might get 3k.....England v Italy or v Fiji getting more than France this year





Better teams don't mean bigger gates..........2011 Wales v AUSTRALIA scraped past 5k.......

So would you draw a line? In International RL you must have x amount of home born players?

But you've cherry picked poor attendances, and we all know this years autumn internationals wern't going to take place until the last month or two of the season so there was no planning or organisation to the tournament and also no competitive games.

There's evidence to say that other than the Italy v Fiji game that tournament would attract every other game over 10k. Games in France recently have easily broken that barrier, England filled LSV only 12 months ago v Wales and the England Knights got 13k against Ireland.

A competitive game involving Minichello or Hayne would attract more fans rather than less.

I'm struggling to find recent Italy crowds, but in 09 they got 2k v Scotland,