French Rugby League & WW2
What happened to rugby league in France is a remarkable story - one that every rugby league fan should know.

The Mighty Bulldogs DVD Series
A video documentary of the Canterbury Bulldogs

The Harlem Kangaroos are Coming
International Rugby League needs competitiveness, not a one-horse extravaganza.

A World Cup of Critics
What possesses people to attack a sport that is simply celebrating and enjoying its own game?

The Fibros v The Silvertails - a film documentary
Recollections of rugby league's blood-and-thunder era.

"Club, Community & Country"
A rugby league exhibition - State Library of NSW.

"A Century of Rugby League" DVD
A 4-disc DVD boxed set covering 100 years of the game in Australia.

Kill the inter-change & expand the NRL
Can the game really afford 17-man rugby league?

Sonny Does a Runner
The sudden departure of Sonny Bill Williams has ignited a torrent of debate.

Exhibition: Indigenous League Legends
State Library of NSW

SCG & Sports Ground - Rugby League exhibition
"Fields of Tradition" exhibition at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

Is the 10m rule killing Sydney's NRL clubs?
Is the physical demands of the modern game too expensive for the code to afford?

Is the Underdog Dead?
Will we ever see again a truly stunning upset victory in the NRL?

The "held" rule with a 5m defence line
Could a return to the 5m rule make the game even faster?

Merging rugby codes
Another year, another suggestion that the codes should merge.

The push towards two referees grows
The NRL will trial a two-referee system late 2008.

State of Origin - should it be a stand-alone weekend?
Suggestions that all club footy should called off for an Origin weekend are increasing - a good idea?

11-aside - a good idea?
Every now and then this idea comes up - is it worth a go?

Albert Baskerville - 100 years since his passing
Rugby league down under owes a debt.

Where have all the 5/8ths gone?
Are Brad Fittler and Laurie Daley the last of kind?

Which rugby code is older?
Which code is closer to the original form of 1800s rugby?

"A Centenary of Rugby League" book
The official history book of the Centenary has been released.

Dally Messenger: "They Made Me a Bit of a Hero"
On the 125th anniversary of his birth, the impact of Dally M's contribution to the code still resonates.

The Making of the Dally Messenger Sculpture
A sculpture of Dally M has been unveiled at the SFS.

League of Legends - rugby league exhibition
Touring Australia's eastern states from March 2008 to July 2009.

League of Legends - Panel Discussion - 11 MAY 2008
You're invited to join rugby league historians as they discuss the code's greatest and controversial moments.

Cross-code war erupts over 150 (AFL) v 100 (NRL)
The clash of footy code anniversaries heats up.

This is the True History of Rugby League
Does this article by a rugby union writer set the record straight?

AFL's 150th Anniversary TV commercial
The Australian game celebrates history "the Australian way"...er, except for the "best of British" musical score.

The English Origins of Australian Football
A look at Tom Brown's Schooldays and the original rules of Rugby School provides a revealing link with Australian football.

Tom Brown of Rugby tries "kick-to-kick"
The game of "kick-to-kick" is an Australian rules tradition - but from where did it originate?

Did Webb Ellis "pick up the ball" in a soccer game?
Even the myth about rugby's birth has been distorted.

"Number One Fan"
A short documentary film on Balmain Tigers' Laurie Nichols.

NRL to 18 clubs?
Should the NRL open the door to new clubs sooner rather than later?

Team of the Century
No one can from personal experience offer up and discuss their observations of the greatest footballers across 100 years.

History of the Play-the-Ball
A study of the history and evolution of the play-the-ball rule (and associated rules).

An Evolving Animal
Should the playing laws be the same across the globe?

In response to a few critics
My writing forays into 1800s Australian rules and rugby union territory has ruffled the feathers of more than a few!

The superiority of the Melbourne game
Since 1883, the "Australian rulers" have made attempts to make the rugby codes "a thing of the past."

Did league miss its chance to kill-off union?
In the 1920s the amateur code was down and out...so why didn't league hasten union's demise?

"...non-football states..."
What are those Australian rules supporters on about?

Wests Magpies 2008 Centenary Calendar
A classy piece, chock full of photographs and memorabilia.

Australian rules - was the 1858 match rugby?
Claims that Australian football was born of a single match played in 1858 are nonsensical.

"Champagne Rugby"
A book on the fabulous Frenchmen of the 1950s.

2007 Tom brock Lecture
For those who couldn't get there, the lecture was recorded by ABC Radio, and is planned to be broadcast nationally on 20 April 2008. The Ninth Annual Tom Brock Lecture delivered by Sean Fagan, "Nothing But a Nine-Day Wonder": The founding of rugby league—Australia's first professional code.

The age of NRL footballers is falling
With most NRL players on the scrap-heap by 28, is the code killing its stars?

"The Country Tale of a Rugby League Tragic"
Michael Croke reflects upon growing up as a rugby league fan in a country town in the 1960s.

Is AFL trying to rain on RL's centenary parade?
The AFL is marking 150 years of Australian rules football in 2008 - the same year that rugby league is celebrating its centenary.

The founding of rugby league - 8th August 1907
A century ago, Australia's first professional football code was born.

"The Final Winter" - Rugby League movie
An exceptionally "rare bird" is a major release movie centred around rugby league.

"Snuff out the moon"
A book on the development of floodlit rugby league in England.

South Sydney Rabbitohs TV doco series
"South Side Story"

"When did 'rugby league' begin?"
Received an email recently posing an interesting question.

Digging deep for a great game
The 2nd and 3rd matches of the 2007 Origin series provide a telling demonstration of the good and bad of the modern game.

Innovation's always been name of this game
Since its inception in 1895, rugby league has prided itself as being innovative.

NSWRU re-instates Dally M
Almost a century after Dally Messenger was struck from the records of the NSWRU, he is re-instated.

League's Lost Heart
A series of Sydney Morning Herald articles exploring the current state of rugby league in Australia.

Is 2007 rugby league as boring as many think?
An examination of points-scoring averages from 1945 to 2007 make for some interesting observations.

"Pioneers of Rugby League" book - in shops August 2007
An exceptionally "rare bird" is a major release movie centred around rugby league.

Dally Messenger book - in shops August 2007
A completely fresh (and factual) account of Dally M's footballing feats, and his place and influence as "Australia's first sporting superstar".

The "finch" of the football codes
Australian rules is oddity of football evolution, not an innovative new creation.

Time to grade penalties
I've been advocating for some time that one of the biggest problems the game has today is the non-enforcing of certain rules by referees.

Percy Collins - Sydney's "Street Balladeer"
In the 1920s he wandered amongst Sydney league fans at games and sold his poetry.

City v Country - time to farewell a tradition?
Anyone who watched the 2007 "City v Country" fixture will have little doubt that the future of the contest has to be questioned.

Time the NSWRU removed life bans of converts
The bans imposed by the NSWRU in 1907 upon Dally Messenger and his fellow pioneers of rugby league are still in place today - even after passing away, the stigma remains.

All Golds match to reprise Dally Messenger role
The NZRL will invite an Australian to play in the All Golds commemorative match in October 2007 in England.

Saving a lost art - drop goals
Rugby league's first stars were the drop (field) goal kickers. The golden-point has brought back a need for this skill.

Deliberately knocking-on
If the first action in taking an intercept is to deliberate knock the ball forward, it should be a penalty.

Is Australia's RL community "a bit too precious"?
You can be sure the media will spin the negatives - they know interest in the code is so popular it will sell papers and generate talk-back radio calls.

Playing laws "think-tank"
Many rules don't work unless the players are "playing the game" instead of "playing the referee and playing to get penalties".

Are League laws older than Union?
One of the first opinion pieces I wrote for RL1908 claimed league fans could watch rugby union as a window into our past - I was wrong.

Rugby league played during the Boer War?
Claims have been made that in 1900 or 1901 a rugby league tournament took place for a Challenge Cup at Zeerust, South Africa.

NRL cheerleaders
The argument continues as to their place in rugby league.

Don Bradman and rugby league
While Bradman's deeds as a footballer are of no real significance, it is important for rugby league that they be recorded correctly.