Paul Sculthorpe has announced his retirement from International Rugby League to concentrate on his club career. I’m sorry? Brad Fittler, Darren Lockyer, Mal Meninga, these are the types of players that retire from International Rugby League. Player who are at their peak, who there are no substitute for. Players who are in a Test side,…
Led by youngsters Issac Luke and Eddie Paea , South Sydney have pulled within two competition points of a place in the top 8 with a hard fought win over the North Queensland Cowboys. Both Luke and Paea have added unpredictability and spark to Souths side thats worked had to be a good defensive outfit…
In what is just another sign or the shambolic way the game is run, the International Rugby League Federation has unanimously approved a $150,000 payment to ARL head Colin Love to run the 2008 Rugby League World Cup. Love will earn $5,172 every day during the running of the competition. When asked about the ridiculous…
The Canberra Raiders have made approches to two players but can only afford one of them. One player is Paul Whatuira, New Zealands Test center, a two time Premiership winner, one of the most professional players in the game, a leader and a player that gives you his best every week. The other player is…
Penrith assistant coach Matt Adamason wants a witch hunt conducted at Penrith to hunt down and punish players who allegedly want him out of the club, sick of his attitude towards them. Adamson is furious at being undermind, an ironic twist for any Panthers fan that knows enough about the club. Adamson publically came out…
Chris Andersons coaching career seems to be finally over after he stepped down with immediate effect from the head coaching role at the Sydney Roosters. After a disasterous stint with the Cronulla Sharks, being sacked as Australian coach for some ridiculous selections and a stint coaching a rugby union club in Wales, Andersons time as…
The second last placed club in Super League, Hull KR have made a decision that shows everything that is wrong with the British game. The club has put in a massive offer for Australian Test player Matt King. The deal is subject to them avoiding relegation this season and just shows the mindset of British clubs…
Penrith has won the race to sign Brisbane, Queensland and Australia prop Petero Civoniceva holding off the Sydney Roosters, Brisbane Broncos and Hull FC for his services. Civoniceva is the perfect player to come into the club at a time when it needs leadership and an example for the young players about what being a…
With so many Australia, New Zealand and Pacific Islands players in Super League you have to wonder what would happen if the RFL managed to make a real decision in regards to the number of Imports in Super League and force many of these players to head back home. There is no doubt that there are a…
If you had any doubt about the pathetic managment at the Penrith Panthers by now then this will hopefully set you straight. After a terrible 54-14 loss to the New Zealand Warriors talk that Craig Gower was finally going to walk out on the club and head over to play rugby union in Europe came to light….
Facing the loss of three key players heading into 2008, the Brisbane Broncos have been making a lot of noise about the need to bring in salary cap concessions for players that have been at a club for over 8 years. The NRL currently allows a $100,000 concession for long serving players, but like most…
I remember once there was a train of thought that players would not want to play for the Melbourne Storm. With the option of Living in Sydney, Brisbane or North Queensland and playing at clubs with bigger crowds on offer, who would want to go and play in dreary old Melbourne and play in front…
You know…I couldn’t have put it any better than the Sydney Morning Herald did in reviewing the game. So I’m going to let them take over for a moment: MITCHELL Pearce scored a miracle try right on full-time to get the Roosters home in his first meeting with Craig Gower since their infamous flare-up at…
The National Rugby League has shown interest this week is having a second team based in Brisbane to take advantage of the booming crowds of the three Queensland based NRL sides. The Broncos, Cowboys and Titans are the top three drawing teams in the NRL and as Sydney clubs struggle to increase crowd numbers surely…
As many of you know the RLFans forum is down at the moment and it has left many of you with hours and hours of time on your hands. Thankfully, I am here to make sure you and your miserable life doesn’t come to a complete end. Visit the totally uncensored League Freak forum! Enter…
Victorious Queensland coach Mal Meninga has called for a Queensland heavy Australian Test side when selectors sit down to pick the national team at the end of the year. After winning the last two Origin series and the last four Origin game, Meninga’s call is common sense but definantly needed in the day and age…
In an ironic move by the New Zealand Rugby League considering the name of the Test is the ANZAC Test, the NZRL has said that the 2008 game will be their last mid season test against Australia because they are unable to compete with the World Champions in the fixture. Despite the fact the game draws big…
Craig Wing will join the South Sydney Rabbitoh’s from 2008 on a four year contract that will see him play in his preferred halfback position. Wing was a Souths junior and was forced to leave the club for arch rivals the Sydney Roosters when South Sydney were kicked out of the NRL competition. When the…
It was April 19th when the Rugby League International Federation (See ARL and RFL) made their big, flashy media announcements in regards to the 2008 World Cup. The draw was released, we found out the number of teams taking part and that the final would be played at Brisbane Suncorp Stadium. Since then…..nothing. Not one…
After the announcement that Jason Smith would finally retire at seasons end the North Queensland Cowboys management has moved switfly to sign a replacement. Young Manly five-eighth Travis Burns will join the Cowboys in 2008 on a three year deal thats see’s him head back to his home state. It’s a great move for all…
Young Panthers five-eight and former Australian test prop Joel Clinton will line up for the Brisbane Broncos in 2008 as the club has all but secured the Penrith pair to cover the loss of some of their own stars due to salary cap constraints. Having lost Brent Tate this week to the New Zealand Warriors…
Broncos center and Queensland and Australian winger Brent Tate will leave the Brisbane Broncos and join the New Zealand Warriors next season after signing a three year deal. Tate will add much needed experience, consistancy and impact to the Warriors backline. Tate’s brother-in-law Steven Price is the captain of the Warriors and it will be…
Clint Newton has asked for, and received a release from the Newcastle Knights after a “falling out” with new Knights coach Brian Smith. Newtons gripe seems to be that he wasn’t offered a contract for next season and as he told Fos Sports “Everyone wants to feel wanted and that’s been the biggest thing for me…
After a dominant display for Queensland in the first State Of Origin, and an even more dominant display in the Cowboys win against the Bulldogs just two days later, Jonathan Thurston is in the form of his career. On a night when channel 9 commentator Ray Warren was comparing Cowboys fullback Matthew Bowen to the…
The Cronulla Sharks have withdrawn their offer to halfback Brett Kimmorley in a week when the Shraks re-signed his halves partner Adam Dykes. The Sharks did have an offer on the table for Kimmorley but after recently upgrading the contracts of a number of players the club has seemingly shown the fomer Test halfback the…
Manly sometimes halfback Michael Monaghan has signed a four year contract to play for the Warrington Wolves after gaining an early release from his contract with the Manly Sea Eagles. Monaghan wanted the opportunity to play halfback on a full time basis and while his form was good for the Sea Eagles, he was never…
We all know the farce that the 2000 Rugby League World Cup turned into an no one wants to see a repeat of that. The sad fact however is that 2008 is shaping up to be more of the same. A rule allowing Australian players to play for teams other than Australia an it have…
Over the last few months you will have noticed The Official Site Of The King Of The Internet: League Freak has been changing and growing. Now its time to make sure you know some of the new and fantastic and exciting additions that have been made. All of it is brilliant, I mean, its all my work…
You will go for many years to see a team play worse than the 2007 Penrith Panthers. The worst team I have ever seen in my lifetime was the Western Suburbs Magpies of the late 1990’s. To be fair to the Magpies, the club didn’t have much money and just didn’t have the cattle to…
Every off season NRL coaches are invited to attend a forum with the NRL to talk about issues within the game as far as rules go. This lets coaches be involved in the decision making process and get their points of view across on anything from game scheduling to rule interpretations. Wayne Bennett doesn’t attend…