If we want a better International Team

[cpwigan]

We need to reduce the number of SL Clubs to probably 8 or 10 and we need to play more international games v Aus / NZ.

[eccywarrior]

that would be crazy cp to reduce teams in sl. we would be more of a laughing stock than we do now.
what we need to do is promote the international game better by playing more games. like jason robinson and number of others said.. we need to have a england team to play a team of aussies what are playing over here and instead of a 1 of we play best of 3 like they do with origin games. reducing the teams in league will deffo not work.
it would be nice to see ex football businessmen to invest money into are clubs so we can have more talent coming into teams and not just sl but c1 and c2 which maybe would see rfl raising the salary cap to help the clubs. it works in union so why wouldnt it work in league?

[cpwigan]

The muted England v Other Nats is well meaning but pointless. We need to create more opportunities mid season to play NZ / Aus on short tours.

SL Size. We do not have sufficient players to have an INTENSE HIGH STANDARD competition if we have so many teams. We need a true elite SL and the next tier would be a quality domestic standard too. 8 SL Teams and 12 D1 teams is 20 teams which economically is better than what we currently have.

[GeoffN]

The muted England v Other Nats is well meaning but pointless. We need to create more opportunities mid season to play NZ / Aus on short tours.

SL Size. We do not have sufficient players to have an INTENSE HIGH STANDARD competition if we have so many teams. We need a true elite SL and the next tier would be a quality domestic standard too. 8 SL Teams and 12 D1 teams is 20 teams which economically is better than what we currently have.

I disagree. We need some sort of competition to fill the gap between SL and international level, comparable to State of Origin. Roses games have been tried and failed, but I think there would be the interest in an England v "rest of SL" series, which is logistically easier to schedule than international games are.

We also need a much better production line of youngsters from all clubs, not just the 3 or 4 at present. The RFL's "home grown talent" quota is going some way to addressing that, but needs to be taken further. Cutting the number of clubs simply cuts the available player pool.
One way would be the often suggested amendment to the salary cap to reduce the SC cost of home grown players, and encourage more youngsters to take up (or stay in) the game.

[cpwigan]

Geoff playing any standard lower than Aus / NZ is just a showcase in terms of raising international playing standards. It is an easy option but pointless.

If the NRL are wary about expanding their domestic competition from its present size what makes RFL/SL think it can have a competition of equal number when we know we simply do not have the players to meet that demand.

At the present time our best options are coaches like Madge bringing up to date NRL coaching BUT you are still left with a poor competition to test them in AND players going to the NRL which has a negative impact in the respect we lose our best players.

[GeoffN]

Geoff playing any standard lower than Aus / NZ is just a showcase in terms of raising international playing standards. It is an easy option but pointless.

I still disagree. Top players need to be stretched more than just SL games allow. It's analogous to the current Academy competition being not good enough to develop the best players, they need to be playing against higher level opponents. More international games are simply unrealistic to schedule, compared to some sort of domestic equivalent (similar to Origin).

If the NRL are wary about expanding their domestic competition from its present size what makes RFL/SL think it can have a competition of equal number when we know we simply do not have the players to meet that demand.

I agree we shouldn't expand SL, but I think 14 teams is about right, reducing it would just reduce the available player pool. What we need to do is stop the lower clubs being "passengers" in the production line.

[Panchitta Marra]

It has to come from grass roots up.
The NRL is arguabley the national sport of Australia.
Its bigger fan base is reflected as such, plus the coordination of school kids taking up the sport from a very young age where they are correctly nurtured with the best training methods, using the best coaching staff, equipment and food supplements etc.
Unless we adopt the same stratergy we will always fall behind.
The RFL just dont have the pull, we still play Rugby Union as the main oval ball sports in the majority of schools in Cumbria. There arent any RU teams in Cumbria worth mentioning, they are very poorly supported, yet it is still played in the schools.

[platt-warrior]

The answer has got to be in the calibre of coaches.It has been apparant to everyone at our club the difference has been in a 1st class Ozzy coach.Lets start sending up and comming coaches and some others over there and learning their trade in an enviornment of top coaches and sport science etc.

[THE 18th Man]

i think one idea is a trade of players from us and Auz. send lads like Lee Mossop, Ben Davies, Josh Charnley, Stefan Marsh, Joe Mellor etc and allow them to send over some youngsters over. the Aussie kids would help raise standards in SL and obviously our lads would improve from being over there. also a better Promontional team in the RFL.

[cpwigan]

Geoff, v ROW etc never produces an INTENSE HIGH STANDARD match particularly when all you are doing is taking players from SL. That is the essence of the problem;

To IMPROVE players need to play in a higher standard of matches more frequently than they currently do. Players in weaker competitions / matches stagnate and worse decline.

PM sadly, the amateur clubs have been the best source of improving / developing RL players. Schools rarely do so. The contrast between what Australian Education offers and what British Education offers is frightening. We have Specialist Colleges but the reality is the school gets a little extra money, makes some minor alterations to it's curriculum, supposedly has a bit more selection but EXCELLENCE and WINNING are far behind it is the taking part that matters. Compare that with The Hills Sports High School in NSW where;

http://www.hillssport-h.schools.nsw.edu.au/

Most parents would be aware that the tremendous record of sporting success achieved by our students includes many state and national titles. In the short period since our conversion to a Sports High School, we have produced many national sporting representatives. We receive applications for placement from students in most states of Australia in addition to some from New Zealand, England, Germany, Korea and other mainland Asian Nations, the Philippines and the Pacific Islands.

Talented Sports Program

The Hills Sports High School offers a world-class Talented Sports Program (TSP) designed to provide students who excel in particular sports with elite coaching and an academic framework that enables them to reach both their academic and sporting goals.

The Program aggregates talented young sportsmen and women from Sydney’s west and northwest in the one school providing them with:-

elite coaching and access to modern sports medicine
a Teaching Staff sympathetic to the unique problems of the sporting champion
special academic programs to assist them in coping with absences caused by their sporting commitments
the opportunity to complete their Secondary Education in the company of peers with similar aspirations, lifestyle and interests
The Talented Sports Program provides students with an pportunity to attain their optimum potential in their chosen sport. It enables them to hone their special talent and obtain a pathway to the Australian Institute of Sport and State, National and Olympic representation.

Access to the Talented S p o r t s P r o g r a m

Students applying for a Talented Sports Program placement must demonstrate elite ability in a particular sport and must satisfy high standards in attitude, work habits and academic achievement.

All students seeking placement in a TSP are required to submit an Application Form (this also applies to local community students). The selection process will include physical and skills testing in their nominated sports in addition to an examination of their school
reports.

The 2011 Talent Identification Trials and Fitness Testing will be conducted during the months May or June. All applicants will be notified of the dates they will be required to attend for testing.

All interested applicants and their parents are invited to attend an Information Evening that will be conducted in The Hills Sports High Assembly Hall on Tuesday, 18 May, at 6.30 pm.

Selected TSP students pay a non-refundable Fitness and Administration Fee of $100 on their acceptance into the Program.

You have to be selected and you have to pay to get Elite sports coaching in many schools in Aus.

The Annual TSP Fees for 2010 for individual sports are as follows:

AFL $850*
Athletics $850*
Baseball $850*
Basketball $550
Cheerleading $550
Cricket $550
Golf $550
Netball $550
Rugby League $550
Rugby Union $550
Soccer $550
Softball $850*
Swimming $250
Tennis $850*
Touch Football $550

*Includes 2010 Bus Levy (Terms I-IV)

These funds are used to employ qualified coaching and fitness staff, provide equipment and cover administration costs in each sport offered.

We do not have that sort of culture or specialist elite sports programmes running even in Private Schools.