Wembley was almost half full today, which is amazing given the effort people had to make to actually get there, the cost and the sure fire knowledge that the home nations wouldn't win!

I went and the atmosphere was great. It was relaxed and fun and whenever possible the crowd were behind the home nation team, bar some clumps of Aussies and Kiwis. For league in the south at an international, over 42,000 is good. Apparently that is about 2000 short of the 2000 final but is higher than the 1997 test match there.

The final touch would be for England to beat the Aussies. If that happened then a lot more people would find the time and the money to travel down there. It was a great day and I'd recommend it.

Incidentally, I was impressed by the number of southern English voices I heard today. That so many southerners came to watch can only be good news for the sport.

maybe next time lets put an incentive for all SL holders to get down there. I didnt go because of the proximity with christmas, maybe the rfl can strike some sort of deal with national rail next time we push the double header!

That would have been a bad move yesterday! www.bbc.co.uk/travelnews/virgintrains/ Imagine being stuck for hours on a Euston-bound train just outside Wembley!

That would have been a bad move yesterday! www.bbc.co.uk/travelnews/virgintrains/ Imagine being stuck for hours on a Euston-bound train just outside Wembley!

Quote ="martinbuckley"That would have been a bad move yesterday! www.bbc.co.uk/travelnews/virgintrains/ Imagine being stuck for hours on a Euston-bound train just outside Wembley!'" I was matey, no direction, no information. Evidentley this happens at least once a month. Luckily I was only going to Milton Keynes. 1 hour to Wembley 3 hours return.

Quote ="martinbuckley"That would have been a bad move yesterday! www.bbc.co.uk/travelnews/virgintrains/ Imagine being stuck for hours on a Euston-bound train just outside Wembley!'" I was matey, no direction, no information. Evidentley this happens at least once a month. Luckily I was only going to Milton Keynes. 1 hour to Wembley 3 hours return.

Amen.
Were you on the Mayfair coach (2)?

Speaking as someone who didn't use to miss an international (including the shambles of 2008 in Oz) I have just become disillusioned with "England" RL and can no longer get behind them with the same passion that I used to. I imagine I will still go to the odd game close to home but I wont be going watching them all over like I do with Wigan.

My disillusion started with the selection of Maurie Fa'asavalu and and now the selection of Rangi Chase. If Rangi Chase were to score the winning try in the final (an unlikely scenario I know) yes I would be delighted "we" won but I wouldn't help but feel it would be a hollow victory and we had cheated to do it.

I know other sports do it and the Aussies themselves constantly tap into the Fijian population but it was something I was always proud of as an RL fan that we didn't stoop to that level and I can't help feel but let down.

I think the only thing that would reignite my passion would be to stop these stupid selections and make it a truly international sport. I would love to see a return of Great Britain and an Ashes series and I think that would make me start going all over to watch them again.

I was mate.

Yourself? Some interesting characters on that coach and I always love getting 30 mins up the road to turn back round!

Good day though.

Really enjoyed the day. The crowd around me were very different to a normal league game - southern accents, mostly aged 20 - 30s, and refreshingly, plenty from the ethnic minorities. We really need to tap into these people rather than expect the week in week out crowds to be RL's only cash cow time and time again.

Oh, was Captain 13 there then..........................

Yes one of the three old barstewards sat on the back seat. I felt sorry for the three people we picked up at the service station they had a hell of a wait and then the misfortune to be sat where they were on the way back.

The IQ intelligence of Leigh was on display for all too see.

He and Jaybee were there, regaled in their Scotland RL shirts. I have a photo on my phone of him fraternizing with the enemy (Saints fans)

Aye the Leythers were some of the characters! Nothing like a bit of infighting with one mate offering to take the other 4 on.

There was just me and my dad on sat infront of the Wakey fans with Australian shirts on (not sure why). Didn't know they were Wakey fans when I was saying they should have been booted out if superleague and are a disgrace for packing their side with 2nd rate Aussies! Ha ha.

I'm just about to set off to the airport to fly back to Catalonia and have been going through some of the threads about international rugby league and yesterday's double-header. Christ there are sone miserable moaning buggars follow rugby league.
I've had a great weekend and the atmosphere in and around Wembley yesterday was superb. Derby, Bristol, London, Brighton, Devon, South and North Wales were all represented by fans and it was great to see interest in the game so widespread throughout the UK. I've missed internationals at our national stadium and I can't wait till the next time we play there.
Was impressed by the RFL using the big captive audience to promote the rest of the Four Nations aswell as London Broncos and wheelchair rugby league.
A couple of defensive lapses, Kevin Sinfield's kicking and some shocking refereeing decisions cost us. It's amazing that we came that close to beating the Kangaroos and yet some folk on here are more interested in the empty seats, a player who has legitimately been selected to represent England and the game not being played in Leigh or Wigan.

That crowd was twice the size of the previous weeks matches. It will be the single biggest crowd of the four nations. I think 48k was the final outcome.

So size wise it was a success. Its been years since we had an international at wembley so for a first turn out in a while not bad at all.

LOts of england shirts on display so it just shows people will turn up for england games at wembley no matter the sport. If that double header had been at manchester city I doubt we would have got more than a half full stadia.

The occasional watcher will go to internationals and we needed this to get people ready for the world cup when we will have games at wembley.

With 48k there for this match it will only encourage more to make the effort next time knowing that it won't be a damp squib.

That's a very good point.

I think it was a mistake taking the game to Wembley. This country for whatever reason don't support the England rugby league team like we should. Don't get me wrong, 40 odd thousand is pretty good but it would have looked and felt better in a 50,000 stadium.

The fact the football season is on and was on at the weekend prob limited the RFL to a choice of stadia.

The thing is a 42,000 crowd at Wembley doesnt necessarily equate to a sell out at Stamford Bridge or 42,000 at the Emirates if you are talking about another London location. A lot of people go to Wembley games because it is Wembley and this adds a lot to the gate. You could easily have played the game at one of these locations, and got no where near the PR and got sub 25,000. Likewise it could have been played up North at say Anfield, or at the JJB like a couple of years ago, and we may have got around 20,000.

Did you go to the match Pete?

I did and it was a great experience. By the end of the game a few fans around me - not one of them northern, incidentally - were buying tickets on their phones for the Hull match. I've watched the match back today and the empty seats weren't that noticeable because for once the RFL used their collective head and sold lower tier tickets first then released some middle tier tickets in the eyeline of the cameras.

Sure, it would be great to sell out wembley but we need fans to stop being so parochial and, in some cases, determined to hold on to a dead past before we can do that. I think the southerners put northerners to shame to be honest. There were loads of them around. Had that match been held at Wigan, say, we would have been lucky to get 20,000. For once the RFL got it spot on. Next time, though, they need to encourage clubs to make it easier for fans to (a) buy tickets and (b) get there. And I do hope there is a next time. It was a terrific atmosphere down there, much better than at a Challenge Cup final because of the broad spectrum of supporters who turned out.

42k is the biggest international crowd in this country fr a long time. Lets build on it. Next step is move the final to OT and make sure we put a team together to get there.

No I didn't go. I got $hit faced in the club as it was £1 pint!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Agreed. The only other place we should take these games is Old Trafford.

I would take the final there.

Quite. So your criticism of the turnout has zero credibility.

Exactly. Take the game to "lesser" grounds (even if they have more than enough capacity for 42K) and you will get smaller crowds.

Wembley has been an RL venue for decades and adds to the occasion. A big reason why International RL dropped off IMO was not being able to play at Wembley or not willing to do so.

We had something like 65000 on when Edwards decked Clyde and J Davie splayed a blinder for us to win an epic match years ago so we may never fill it but RU play games there and do not fill it either.

I hope the RFL view it as a success and any time the Aussies are here at least we always have a game there.

Read my posts sweetheart, I didn't give the turn out any criticism. In fact I said it was pretty good to get 40 odd thousand.

What I said was, i think it would have looked and felt better in a 50,000 stadium but also stated it would be hard for RFL to find such a stadium with the football being played the same weekend.