Though it would be nice to have a bigger impact in the South and more specifically, London, it’s not exactly imperative at the minute and the game’s biggest issue is marketing.
Marketing is the Hearn’s game. Look at what they’ve done to Darts. They’ve projected blokes like Michael van Gerwen, Peter Wright and Rob Cross into homes across the UK and made them recognised sporting figures yet in reality, they’re ordinary looking blokes playing a game that most would agree is a pub game. Play ‘Chase the Fun’ by Planet Funk into classrooms in the UK and I bet there will be kids in most classes recognising it as from the Darts.
Rugby League as a whole is pretty terrible at marketing the game. I bet most people wouldn’t recognise a ‘big’ name Rugby League player in the UK yet I could tell you ‘big’ name sporting figures from sports that I have no interest in. Eddie Hearn, Matchroom or whoever it is overseeing things needs to be making names like George Williams, Mark Percival, Stevie Ward and Greg Minikin into easily recognisable sporting figures.
There’s been talk of a Nines tournament eventually replacing the Super League Magic Weekend and I’d let Matchroom ‘have’ that. I’d tell them that they have free rein to do what they want, just put bums on seats, get people watching on TV and put names like Widnes Vikings, Castleford Tigers and Huddersfield Giants into the limelight.
I cannot see the Super League teams letting Matchroom take control of the game in the UK after gaining a bigger influence on the game. They won’t let it from their grip easily, I fear.
I do think that it’s not a coincidence that on the same day The RFL meet with Eddie Hearn, the details of England taking on New Zealand in Denver has been announced. I can see Matchroom getting that, which wouldn’t be disastrous.