Post by stxangiexjo on May 6, 2009 10:08:38 GMT 10
Visionary Forty40 concept will see league and union in one match
A visionary "Forty40 Footy" concept has been drawn up to pit Australia and New Zealand against each other in the ultimate tag-team war of the codes.
For the first time, rugby league's Kangaroos and rugby union's Wallabies would unite for a common cause - toppling the best the haka-driven Kiwis can muster from both codes.
The bold plan is the brainchild of venue management kingpin Harvey Lister, head of AEG Ogden, who is pushing for the two codes to come together for a Forty40 blockbuster next year.
"The beauty of this idea is that rugby and league, playing 40 minutes each under their own rules, can unite for a common goal -- supremacy over the Kiwis," Lister said.
The history-making plan would pack Suncorp Stadium, the proposed venue for an event that can finally get league and union's finest on the same field on the one night.
The titanic stoush would see Darren Lockyer's Australian league headliners play the first 40 minutes against Benji Marshall's World Cup-winning giantkillers.
At halftime, Stirling Mortlock's Wallabies would be tagged in to duel with the All Blacks for the second 40 minutes under rugby's laws.
The carryover scores from first half to second half would accumulate to decide the champion Forty40 Footy nation.
"Previous plans with hybrid rules for a league v union match diminished specialised skills," Lister said.
"In Forty40, the league boys play 13-a-side against NZ under their rules and the Wallabies play full on as well against the All Blacks at 15-a-side.
"Two Aussie teams together facing off against the haka . . . that could be the sports TV grab of the year."
A coin toss the day before the game would decide which code played the first half of a clash that could feed a share of the gate to a children's charity.
Lister said he had received a "fantastic reaction" from informal discussions with rugby and league connections.
He is to send letters to Australian Rugby League boss Colin Love and Australian Rugby Union supremo John O'Neill to formally request meetings.
"I fully expect there'll be naysayers but when there is the potential for $10 million in revenues, there are solutions that can be found to any hurdles," Lister said.
"I recall Ron McAuliffe met obstacles too when State of Origin was first mooted and Twenty20 cricket wasn't going to work either."
www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,25434759-23217,00.html
A visionary "Forty40 Footy" concept has been drawn up to pit Australia and New Zealand against each other in the ultimate tag-team war of the codes.
For the first time, rugby league's Kangaroos and rugby union's Wallabies would unite for a common cause - toppling the best the haka-driven Kiwis can muster from both codes.
The bold plan is the brainchild of venue management kingpin Harvey Lister, head of AEG Ogden, who is pushing for the two codes to come together for a Forty40 blockbuster next year.
"The beauty of this idea is that rugby and league, playing 40 minutes each under their own rules, can unite for a common goal -- supremacy over the Kiwis," Lister said.
The history-making plan would pack Suncorp Stadium, the proposed venue for an event that can finally get league and union's finest on the same field on the one night.
The titanic stoush would see Darren Lockyer's Australian league headliners play the first 40 minutes against Benji Marshall's World Cup-winning giantkillers.
At halftime, Stirling Mortlock's Wallabies would be tagged in to duel with the All Blacks for the second 40 minutes under rugby's laws.
The carryover scores from first half to second half would accumulate to decide the champion Forty40 Footy nation.
"Previous plans with hybrid rules for a league v union match diminished specialised skills," Lister said.
"In Forty40, the league boys play 13-a-side against NZ under their rules and the Wallabies play full on as well against the All Blacks at 15-a-side.
"Two Aussie teams together facing off against the haka . . . that could be the sports TV grab of the year."
A coin toss the day before the game would decide which code played the first half of a clash that could feed a share of the gate to a children's charity.
Lister said he had received a "fantastic reaction" from informal discussions with rugby and league connections.
He is to send letters to Australian Rugby League boss Colin Love and Australian Rugby Union supremo John O'Neill to formally request meetings.
"I fully expect there'll be naysayers but when there is the potential for $10 million in revenues, there are solutions that can be found to any hurdles," Lister said.
"I recall Ron McAuliffe met obstacles too when State of Origin was first mooted and Twenty20 cricket wasn't going to work either."
www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,25434759-23217,00.html
