😉

 I found This is England formulaic...

 Changing the subject for a moment, if you like "This is England" you will love "Brassic". That's all folks, as you were. 😆

 KD - I am not arguing whether League is a great game or not if you spend ages getting to know it - just that it comes over as dull and formulaic to anyone not familiar with the details- if the question is how the game is judged by outsiders to be honest I am better able to judge than you are. For example- my wife is from Canada and her family are massive ice hockey fans- I have been watching the sport on visits there for 30 years now and it probably took a decade to really understand the sport- one reason that football is so popular world wide is that it is very easy to understand without having to be an expert

 No, no. I like it because of the mix of skill and brute force. It’s a very human game.

 I presume you like it specifically because you don't accept it is formulaic. Other people do, what is the point of worrying about them/us? You're not going to persuade people who have seen some games and find it boring.

 There you are, Nick. You are admitting ignorance. But with rugby league there’s always been a pernicious ignorance borne out of being the forbidden game vis a vis rugby union. But hey, I’m a Wimbledon fan and I love it when sports clubs stick two fingers up at the Establishment!

 I don’t accept it is formulaic, OI. Six tackles are the rules of the game, like cricket has six-ball overs, gridiron four downs and snooker players have to aim for a colour after a potting a red. I accept that it can be played formulaically, much like this great club of ours has played football formulaically from time to time. But to say it is formulaic is a kind of ignorance IMO

 KD- I think if you follow League then maybe you see the subtleties- if you are an outsider it is just each side running into each other 5 times then kicking the ball away until one side gets tired and the other scores - which is probably why it has never really caught on more widely. As I say, if you enjoy it then that’s good for you

 Just accept that a lot of people find the game formulaic, that doesn't stop you enjoying it. I suspect most people think cycling and baseball boring but they are sports I can happily watch for hours.

 I was born in the West Midlands, Windy, so it’s not that straightforward :-)

 You say formulaic, Nick, but I’ve seen rugby league matches between rank amateurs on park pitches in Kent that have been utterly compelling. I feel strongly that there’s an underlying class-based sneering about rugby league that isn’t borne out by what I’ve seen with my own two eyes.

 You’re from Kent you numbnuts, don’t deny your roots watch cricket like everyone else in your county...

 Realistically both rugby codes are flawed games - too the outsider League is too formulaic and Union too dominated by obscure rules and penalty kicks, but if people enjoy watching them then it’s a case of each to their own. It is impossible to rationally deny that union is closer to being a global game than is league but really does that actually matter?

 That’s the stuff, Windy. Gwald! Gwald! Pleidiol wyf i'm gwlad...

 Batley Tripeworkers v Keighley Miners Welfare?

 I have been, yes. I figured there’s they might not stick around too long so I’ve taken the opportunity to watch SL this side of Cheshire. Everyone wrote the Broncos off, they spend much less than other clubs and they groundshare yet they’ve defied expectations though team spirit and hard work. Sounds familiar, eh?

 I see London Broncos formerly Fulham RLFC are still going and were promoted to the Super league last year. Now playing at Ealing of all places. Have you been there to see them Kenty? If so, what's the ground like 🤔

 Yeah Windy, but thanks to that kind of snobbery I have a tremendous sport to watch in summer. Cheers!

 I don’t think it is any surprise that Rugby League has struggled to thrive outside of its grim northern heartlands.

 LD - the only tickets I got for 2012 olympics were slalom canoeing. What a day out the wasn’t.

 I don’t mind rugby league being made fun of by ignorant Southern types who have been conditioned a certain way but don’t try and tell me the rugby union World Cup is any different.

 Three of the last four world cup final for league were Australia v New Zealand, combined population of about 30m 😁😆

 Aren't New Zealand current world league champions 🤔

 And the Number 2 yawnion nation and historically dominant power, New Zealand, has 5m people (with more sheep). And we are supposed to see the Rugby Union World Cup as a big deal?