Rugby League World Magazine 440 Back Issue

The Rugby League World Cup is providing plenty of talking points. How is the 2017 tournament shaping up? Martin Johnston, the Communications Director of RLWC2013 offers us an expert insight into the unique challenges of promoting international Rugby League to the masses.
On the field, Tonga produced one of the biggest shocks of the group stages, toppling previous winners New Zealand on their own turf before Fiji topped that, making history by dumping the luckless Kiwis out of the competition at the quarter final stage in a tryless nailbiter.
The colour and enthusiasm on display in Port Moresby as Papua New Guinea revelled in home advantage for the first time ever in a World Cup has dazzled us all too, with one of our cover stars Garry Lo leading the way.
He is amongst the ten players we have picked out as the break out stars of the tournament so far. Take a look and see if you agree with our choices.
Off the field, we talk to outgoing RLIF CEO David Collier about some of the big challenges facing the sport, not least its ongoing battle for official recognition by the global sports authorities. We assess the impact on Italy, Lebanon and USA of their early exits from the World Cup and ask why the northern hemisphere nations struggle to compete with their southern counterparts on the international stage.
On the home front, we chat to Gabriel Hamlin, the young Aussie hoping to make a big impression at Wigan next season, and also to Steve Price, the new Warrington coach as he plots a path to success for the Wolves. Jamie Ellis talks about his return to Castleford Tigers, and we visit Leigh Centurions to find out how the club plans to bounce back quickly from the disappointment of relegation.
The sudden disappearance of Oxford and Gloucestershire All Golds from League 1 and the news they are to be replaced by a new Bristol team in 2019 caught many people by surprise. We try to make sense of what’s going on.
There’s plenty more besides in another packed issue!