It doesn't matter what concept they use. England v Exiles, Lancashire v Yorkshire or East v West, the standard of the players is so chronically low that it's irrelevant.

There was no desire, passion or intensity in the game whatsoever and the lack of atmosphere magnified those fundamental flaws to this particular game.



Also, what does not help is the fact that there is no rivalry between the English and Exiles players/fans. The fans around me today just was talking amongst themselves and there was just no interest in what was happening on the field...would they do that at a Saints v Wigan game which is (well 'is' maybe is the wrong word at the moment...) intense and very passionate.



IMO we may as well have played France today.

I don't see why League doesn't think more radically and scrap international league altogether. There are only 3 nations, so it's pretty much irrelevant anyway.



Queensland

New South Wales

Pacific Islands

Europe

Lancs v Yorks. Has the instant bonus of the fans enjoying taking the mickey out of each other.

Does it? Who would you support in such a fixture?

the reason the soo concept works over here is the fact that the players/fans and clubs put soo above their own clubs for the origin period and lose valuable players without too much complaint.the english mentality in most sports is put club first then rep footy, until that changes the yorks/ lancs or exiles thing wont work as intended

but having the game on a free weekend is a better idea than wed nights as per origin as it disrupts the teams for less games

SOO works so well because the fans and players are committed to their state and there is a rivalry between the opposing states.



If we had Lanc v York then would that be the case? I doubt it, maybe Yorkshire folk would have that relationship with their county, but would Lancashire? Is there even a team in the comp from Lancashire?

There is the problem, right there.

That club first mentality isn't going to change on its own though. Fans need a reason to start caring more about rep footy. It has to capture the imagination and provide exactly what the fans are looking for. It has to provide passion and excitement and give fans something that they can really feel a part of.



Games against France, Wales or the Exiles just don't seem to do that. The Lancashire v Yorkshire game didn't seem to do that either.



I go to watch Wigan every week because I enjoy it, because it stirs up the emotions, because it feels great to watch them win and because it makes me swear like a trouper when they lose. When England play these mid season games I feel ambivalent. When they play Australia or New Zealand the excitement is there.

I posted the following on the Wigan Forum earlier, and having attended tonight here are my thoughts:





"I can honestly say that I have never been more bored at a RL game than I was tonight. Forget Tommy's injury, these things happen but no-one gave a monkeys tonight. 11,000+ attendance? Do me a favour, RLF/sky lies - it was nearer to 7K. Mates turned enemies? Yeah right. The problem is you can't generate an atmosphere in the way they tried to tonight. I cringed every time 'we will rock you' crackled over the 1980's speakers in situ at Langtree Park.



I overheard someone in the beer queue tonight with a great idea. Bring back Lancs v Yorks, £2000 to each of the winning players and all supporters of the winning team get their money back along with a free ticket to a SL match of their choice.



Players have something to play for, i.e. money and and England shirt and supporters have vested interest as well rather than asking themselves what possessed them to turn out to watch such a pointless and boring game. I'm not sure of the economics involved but there must be a better way than tonight.



I for one won't be returning in the current format and the overwhelming consensus was that many felt the same."

Please don't confuse this Exiles match with international RL.

Simple facts:



SOO has replaced international competition in Australia - although I don't believe that was the initial concept. They used to be just as fired up to play GB and the games were just as intense. Origin is now the only representative competition the Aussies take seriously (even though Queensland win the bloody thing every year).



Club rugby is seen by fans as being more important than international rugby in this country because hardly any of them were born the last time we beat the Aussies in a series or a WC. That's it. Also, the synchronisation of seasons when we switched to summer rugby saw the death of tours. Tours were what it was all about and playing the Austrlians 3 times and playing club games. I saw the Kangaroos play Leeds in '82, it was a massive event, it generated huge interest in the internationals.



It's a circular problem - club rugby priority and the use of vast numbers of imports for success reduces our chances of winning against the Aussies, and not being able to beat the Aussies means we focus on the club game and lose interest in developing an international side.



As for the concept of playing "exiles" - I don't see a problem with it, the Exiles team on paper looked just as good as the England team. The problem is that England are so awful at the moment that you knew it was going to be rubbish to watch. Which it was, truly, completely dismal in every possible way - far too many to go through here, I can't be bothered.