Ashes Rugby League Episode Five

Delve into the upcoming Ashes Rugby League series in this episode of Ashes Rugby League Podcast!

Marcus Vassilakopoulos has played two games against the all-conquering Kangaroo tourists – and they were ten years apart!  

The first was in 1994, when he played for Leeds as an 18-year-old, against the likes of Mal Meninga, Alfie Langer and Laurie Daley, in the days when Australia still played club sides whilst on tour.

The next was in Philadelphia in 2004, when, representing the USA, surrounded by amateurs and Gridiron converts, they were well ahead at half-time against an Australia side who’d just won the Tri-Nations in the UK and were coached by none other than Wayne Bennett!

It’s a very unique and intriguing story about what it’s like to play the World Champions in two very unique circumstances and when all odds are against you!    


Each fortnight, join Lee Addison and John Davidson for analysis, news, interviews with guests, history lessons and lots more every fortnight to help whet your appetite for the 2025 series between England and Australia!

Lee is an Englishman who has coached at NRL clubs and lived in Australia a LONG time. 

 John is an Australian journalist based in the UK for many a year!

You can find and reach out to Lee at rugbyleaguecoach.com.au and John on X at @johnnyddavidson     

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Hello and welcome to the Ashes Rugby League Podcast, Episode five.
My name is Lee Addison, John who is normally with
me John Davidson, he's on another jun kit. He went
to Wembley at the weekend. He told me he was working.
I'm not so sure. He's now at the World Test

(00:23):
Final at Lord's. So he knows we need to try
and get this podcast out each fortnighte He knows we
record on a Wednesday, but he still took himself off
to watch his team Australia at Lord's Mandic. So would I.
So I'm not criticizing him. Listen out for episode six soon, okay,

(00:45):
because there's a bit happening in and around this Ashes thing.
Malmaninger has vacated the Australian position. Looks like we're going
to have a new Australian coach, which we think will
be Brad Fhitler. Wellsby at Saint Helen's got himself an
injury and he's going to be a doubt for the Ashes,

(01:06):
no doubt. And Billy Boston got that knighthood. The King
of England was obviously listening to our podcast, wasn't he
the last time? Got an intriguing interview for you soon.
So once again I've done all the work while Johnny's
out there drinking and doing whatever he does. You can

(01:27):
get me at Rugby League Coach dot com dot au,
and you can get me at Rugby League Coach on Socials, Facebook, Instagram, etal.
And you can also email me admin at Rugby League
Coach dot com dot au. You can contact John at
Johnny d Davidson on X You can also get me
on X two and you can also email John at

(01:49):
Journalist dot dot John Davidson at gmail dot com. John
with an H. As you know on this podcast, I've
been talking to you about an Ashes tour that we
are Rugby Leage Coach are doing. If you want to come,
you can pay in installments and it's only a two
thousand dollars deposit needed. If you're listening to this in
England and you're thinking I would like to go to

(02:10):
the Ashes, and I've not got tickets for Everton, I
have some, and I've got tickets for Wemberley too, and
you can come and you can stay in the hotels
with us as well, and we'll take the price of
the flights off. Now if you're sitting there and thinking
I can't afford something like this. Well, first of all,
it's the best value tour you can ever imagine. We've

(02:32):
got things that you can add on to it. We'll
get you there, we'll give you accommodation, we'll get you
to the games. You will be at the games, all
internal transfers covered. But we're also putting on events that
you can add on as well, So there'll be some
events that are included in the price and others that
you can add on. Listen out at the end of
this podcast for thirteen minutes with myself and a travel agent,

(02:55):
Phil Ray. But the other thing I want to tell
you if you can't afford that, Okay, there's a competition.
Go to Rugby League Coach dot com dot Au forwards,
last Shop for details and for as little as forty
Australian dollars you could win a trip for two to
the UK Rugby League Coach dot com, dootau Forward Last Shop.

(03:17):
Okay to the interview What were you doing when you
were eighteen years old? Please don't forget to email us
about that. Marcus Vassalokopolis, former Leeds player, has played two
games against the All conquering kangaroo tourists and there were

(03:40):
ten years apart and two of the most unique circumstances
you can imagine. The first was in nineteen ninety four,
so Australia came on tour to England in nineteen ninety four.
That was the last full kangaroo tour where they played
against clubs as well as as well as Cumbria and
the three Tests. Marcus Vasslokopoulos was an eighteen year old

(04:06):
and he was playing for Leeds. He was a professional
and in the opposition with players like Malmoninger, Alphi Langer
and worry Day and the like. So they lost that
game by thirty something. Marcus' career went the way it
went and he eventually ended up in America. The next

(04:28):
time Marcus played against the touring Kangaroos was in two
thousand and four in Philadelphia for the USA. Now, for
those who have seen the USA play at any point,
I was the assistant coach of them in the twenty
thirteen World Cup. And some of the players are converted
gridiron players. And there's one or two professionals in there

(04:51):
that played in Australia or England that have American ancestry
and I mean one or two. Marcus was one of those,
Matt Peterson was one of those, Brandon Costin was one
of those. But the rest were all very inexperienced. Some
of them were grid iron converts. And they ended up

(05:12):
well ahead at halftime against Australia, and the game was
being live on Fox Sports in the USA. Australia had
just won the Try Nations in the UK and their
coach was none other than Wayne Bennett. So this is
a very unique and intriguing story about what it's actually
like to play against the Kangaroos, to play against the

(05:33):
world champions when you are eighteen in one instance, and
then ten years later with a few butchers, bakers and
candlestick makers in America. I don't know if there's anybody
on the earth who's had two games against Australia and
those circumstances. And Marcus tells us in this interview how
he was playing against his heroes in nineteen ninety four

(05:56):
and then how surreal things were in two thousand and four.
Going to play this this this interview in its entirety,
So you're not going to hear from John today. Wave
to him if you see him on the on the
TV at the Cricket and we will see you sometime
in the next fortnighte once this new Kangaroo's coach is appointed,

(06:17):
if it's before the next fortnite, we will bring out
another podcast and get you up to date with the
news and give you some more history lessons. But for
now it's Marcus Vassala Coppolis and I and listen out
at the end for the for the travel agent. Take care.

(06:43):
Marcus Vassalakopolis, thanks for joining us. When I was eighteen,
I was playing for Eccles in the National Youth League.
I was training quite hard during the week while at college,
and then playing rugby league on a Sunday morning. Sometimes

(07:04):
a game of rugby league would break out amongst the
fighting that took place, and then Sunday afternoon I'd be
drinking beers, chasing girls, and then the whole cycle would repeat. You,
on the other hand, had already played a handful of
first grade games for who are now the league Rhinos,
and all of a sudden you have to play against

(07:26):
the Kangaroos of nineteen ninety four. Can you think back
to what you were thinking and feeling back then?

Speaker 2 (07:34):
Yeah, I, first of all, thanks for having me on Lee.
It's always nice, always nice to talk to you. But yeah,
I mean, you know, eighteen years old, I'd played maybe
ten or so twelve first first team games in the
previous year. But you know, you're playing against the Kangaroos.
It's the best team in the world. You know, some

(07:56):
of some of these blocks you're you know, you're watching
on you know, tapes from the local video shop that
you had to go get to watch the Winfield Cup
games because you know, there was no Star TV back
then or anything that showed any any NRL. So you know,
you know, a couple of years out of high school,
you'd be running down to the local video shop getting
the Windfield Cup tapes and watching these guys you're about

(08:17):
to play against, you know, on on Telly. You know,
even a couple of years before that, you know, being
at Wembley Stadium watching you know, the Ashes series in
a Great Britain in Australia that yeah, and you know
some of these players still rolled over from that, that team,
you know, traveling with the Night four Kangaroo So yeah,

(08:40):
a bit daunting. Actually, you know, we had a very
very young bench. I think a couple of us were eighteen,
couple of nineteen year olds and then Francis Cummins was
in the first team. He was he was in the
starting team. Sorry he was. He was my age. So
you know a handful of us are, you know, under
the age of twenty. But yeah, it was a it
was a daunting task, but it was it was exciting

(09:03):
at the same time.

Speaker 1 (09:04):
So we're a similar age. Vass. How much did Ashes
series and the whole Great Britain Versus Australia thing mean
to you because the generations of people who don't understand
this now, So when you were an eighteen year old,
just before you stepped on the field, what what did
the Ashes mean to you?

Speaker 2 (09:25):
I mean Ashes? I mean it was it was everything
to you know, you would look forward to them Ashes series.
You know, Great Britain going to Australia. I think eighty
eight when Henderson Gill did a bit of a boogie.
You know what I mean. It's it's you know that
you used to get it consume your your whole week
leading up to you know, getting up early on the
Saturday morning to watch the Test match from Australia, or

(09:46):
you know when Yourses came here. You know hopefully maybe
you know your dad took you or you know you'd
be a jump on a coach to to you know,
Wembley or Old Trafford or you know, allan road and
then you know, be able to actually go to a
test match. It was, it was everything. It made you,
you know, it made it made you you know and
already you know, a young lad who wanted to be

(10:07):
a professional rugby player at some point in his life.
It made you, you know, even strive to be you
know that more of a professional probably player than you
know you were, because you know, you're watching these these
people and you know some of the people you admired
and looked up to and wanted to be like.

Speaker 1 (10:24):
And uh yeah, so this this is just the start
of quite a significant, decorated career for you. That's probably
another podcast at another at another time. But can you
remember what what was your amateur club?

Speaker 2 (10:41):
The whole boys club?

Speaker 1 (10:42):
It's not there anymore, Okay. Would there have been a
big event around this game if you were playing?

Speaker 2 (10:48):
So?

Speaker 1 (10:48):
Would they have been in the clubhouse watching the game,
trying to look out for their mate vaso.

Speaker 2 (10:57):
The game I played against Australia. Yeah, I mean you know,
definitely a lot of the leads I used to play with,
you know during that time. You know, you would definitely
see when I went home, and you know, they were
definitely a bit of a buzz around it. Especially you know,
my family, you know, were pretty excited for me, you know,
my brother, Mam and dad. So yeah, it was you know,

(11:18):
it was nice that you know, these people recognize that,
you know, I was actually playing against Australia and it
was you know, I guess, I mean not to sound
like it was a bad things, but I guess a
couple of them were probably envious.

Speaker 1 (11:32):
You know, it's just from true when you're a young lad,
you know, that's right, that's right. So it just blows
my mind what an eighteen year old would have been
going through. I mean, I don't think there's eighteen any
eighteen year olds playing in the England side this coming
Ashes series. I think the youngest will be early twenties.
So it's quite a significant thing because you don't know

(11:53):
your ass from your elbow when you're eighteen, do you
think you do? And you think that you can you
can take on the world. You're fearless, but otherwise you're
still struggling to process some things. This was Australia's eighteenth
tour and in nineteen eighty six they had gone through undefeated.
In nineteen eighty two they'd gone through undefeated. But in

(12:13):
nineteen ninety Britain managed to jag a Test off them
in the first Test at Great Britain at Wembley. Sorry
when you went down with your family on the bus.
So they're coming over in nineteen ninety four on their
eighteenth tour and they warm up with a little jog
against Cumbria and beat them fifty two to eight, and

(12:33):
then on the next game they're heading to Headingley Leeds,
which is the scene of the third Test this year,
which is already a sellout Wednesday, the fifth of October
nineteen ninety four. So I'm going to transport you back
there now now as I'm going to show you some
footage which I've not prepared you for, and you're just

(12:55):
going to watch and see if you can if you
can get any memories jogged after watching this. So you
can see my screen, I can am I right in
thinking that's Russell Smith the referee.

Speaker 2 (13:12):
Yeah, it looks like Russell.

Speaker 1 (13:13):
Yeah, yeah, there's Alpha Langa that wasn't you with that
head high shot? Was it?

Speaker 2 (13:18):
Well, that's Georgie man.

Speaker 1 (13:19):
I think a SENI five mile low would be a senior. Yeah, yeah, yeah,
Now I'm not quite sure. You may be coming on
the field soon. If you're not already, we're looking for
you in jumping number sixteen. What I'd love to hear
from you is talk about the players around you, in

(13:40):
and around you. Who was directing the traffic, who was
in charge, which defenders you wanted to avoid, and the
defensive line and whatnot, and who was the hardest to
tackle and things like that.

Speaker 2 (13:52):
Yeah, I think you know, obviously you've got you know,
you've got Gary Schofield playing, you know, standoff air for
your eminia as one of the premiere player isn't in
the world, you know, and one of the blokes he
looked up to as a kid coming through, you know.
And and I think a half back. I think Patrick
Contact was playing at half back. Believe internationally really good player.

(14:14):
Was Patrick a little bit of a communication barrier at
times of Patrick because of his his English it was
pretty good, but you know, obviously sometimes it was a
little harder to understand his direction. I think he struggled,
struggled a little bit leads.

Speaker 1 (14:31):
L A l A l A.

Speaker 2 (14:33):
But you know you got stowing. You got you know,
Craig Innis and Kevin Irow in the centers.

Speaker 1 (14:38):
Kevin hero Is, some players in the nr L now
yeah yeah, yeah yeah.

Speaker 2 (14:43):
So you know, so you've got some well weld class
you know players you know all all around you. You know,
like you said, you just mentioned a senior five marl
or guys like that, all all you know, international footballers.
So it kind of it makes it a little bit
eas easier for you when you come on to you know,
transition into the game a little bit. But you know

(15:06):
again you're you're you're looking across across the way and
you just got the big fellow just scored the try
the current, you know, Australian coach Melvin Inger, you know,
and uh it's a bit daunting, right you know. It's
uh Alfie Langer, you know, it's some problem. The best
half back to ever play the game and.

Speaker 1 (15:26):
Then coach the Lake Dougie Lawson just passed away, the.

Speaker 2 (15:29):
Late Doug Lawton R I P love love the man.
You know, I can't thank him enough for for what
he did for me and giving me a start in
the game. But you know, again, like going back to
who you want want. I don't think that one through
seventeen that day. I don't think there was anybody that

(15:50):
was like, yeah, you know what, I really want to
run at him, but I really want to tackle him.
You know, just just hang on for your life and
and hopefully trying not to get made look like a fool,
you know, as much as you can.

Speaker 1 (16:02):
You're on you're on the field, vas, I think now,
oh no, you know, no, sorry, that was Marcus Vassalakopolis.
My apologies. Sorry not Marcus, but Nick Fozzard. You're you're
Marcus vassal Acopolis. Steve Beva Menses has just made a
great break. Laurie Daily passed the ball back inside to
Alfhi Langa. So the current new South Wales coach just

(16:23):
passed past the ball to there you are. There he
is vast full head of the yeah, eighteen years old.
And you do look nervous. Quite frankly, you do look nervous.
But here you are at Marco. Sorry, I mean you
didn't look out of place there. You don't look out
of place physically, that's for sure. Andrew Ettings house and

(16:47):
the leader is leading try scorer in Cronola history.

Speaker 2 (16:50):
And a former He played for Leeds back in the eighties, right.

Speaker 1 (16:55):
Brad Filer. Brad Fidler. Did you did you ever any
good Australian player that you played with at Leeds? Uh?

Speaker 2 (17:03):
Australian players. I don't think I did play with any
Australian players. I played with a bunch of Keiwis, Yeah,
Kevin Iro, Craig Inness, George mayn Asini, Gary Mercer. Yeah,
so more more more Kiwis than I don't think I
did any Australians. To be honest with you.

Speaker 1 (17:26):
Let's see if we can get a carry. Nick Fozzard
would have been a similar age to you, and he
went on to have a very decorated career. You're at
Are you at dummy half here?

Speaker 2 (17:35):
Yeah? I think I was. Yeah.

Speaker 1 (17:37):
So you came on at hooker yep. Okay, because you
played a lot of prop and back role as well,
didn't you You played in that I played?

Speaker 2 (17:46):
I played, honestly, I played. I played everywhere Lee. I
think the majority of the time I played either nine, thirteen,
six or seven.

Speaker 1 (17:55):
The irony is now. If you were around now and
got yourself really in shape. You'd be an absolute asset
to most NRL clubs because of that versatility, because of
concussion rules and and six again, et cetera, et cetera,
the interchanges and the blood bins, et cetera. You'd probably

(18:17):
end up quite quite useful to an NRL or a
Super League club. It's because I remember you were. You
would have come through the British academy system, wouldn't you.

Speaker 2 (18:29):
Yeah, yeah, I played. I played a few tests for
Great Britain Academy and went on the nineteen ninety three
tour to Australia, the first academy.

Speaker 1 (18:39):
There you go, so so you would have been part
of what I mean. I remember I was still a
thank I'm a couple of years younger than you, and
I'm still playing for my local amateurs before I picked
up my professional things. And then I remember reading about
people like you who were part of this new wave
of this new academy system. Because did you fall off

(19:01):
that tackle, then, mister Vassilokopolis feel like that.

Speaker 2 (19:04):
I don't think I fell off the tackle. I think
I just tried. I think it just ran away.

Speaker 1 (19:12):
The big Wendell apparently he was very hard to tackle.
As well, the one one the putting it into context,
because the Australians absolutely battered US in eighty two and
eighty six and went through the tours undefeated. There was
a massive sea change in England, wasn't they in terms

(19:34):
of how we produced juniors and coaches, et cetera. And
Phil Larder was at the at the front and center
of trying to reimagine how rugby league looked in the country.
So you were from memory, you were one of the
first waves of people that came through that. So this
would have been this would have been a huge moment

(19:55):
for you, no doubt. Now. So that's that first Ashes
tour that you were involved with. The game went on
to finish forty eight six, so you did marginally better
than than Cumbria at anything. After the game. You can
tell us about any stories.

Speaker 2 (20:17):
Uh not not really. I mean it's just you know,
you get to rob shoulders with some of these blogs
and you know, I'm eighteen years old, I'm still I'm
still growing. I want I'm not necessarily the biggest person
back then. You just realize how big some of these
blogs are, how big Malmoninga was even even e t

(20:37):
just a a big man to look at, you know,
not not not heavy, but.

Speaker 1 (20:41):
Just Avid Ferner who went on to coach and played
for Leeds as well, was playing on the Laws.

Speaker 2 (20:47):
Laws was Lorie Dealey. Again. It's funny because fast forward,
you know, many many years Barry John Mather when he
was part of the new South Wales coaching set up,
he came over with Laws and uh you know he
was they were doing some stuff looking around different you know,

(21:08):
sports facilities here and seeing how the team was prepared
stuff like that, and Knwie and I took him and
and Matt Parrish was was with him, and uh yeah,
and we took we took we took him up to
Penn State and we did a tour around Penn State,
like there were football weight rooms and and we actually

(21:28):
went over to watch one of the rugby union practice
because Selby David Soon was playing for him at the time.
So it was you know, so it was it was funny,
you know, talking to Laws and like, yeah, hell I
played against you know, you you beat you beat us
up when I played for Leeds.

Speaker 1 (21:44):
So I mean, did did did any of the kangaroos
go out and have drinks that night in Leeds or
did you guys or yeah.

Speaker 2 (21:52):
I'm sure we did. Uh. You know, it was kind
of you know, back back then was kind of the norm. Right,
you played a game and you you went and understand
a few scoops.

Speaker 1 (22:01):
I remember, I mean a bit later on, I'd have
been going out to night clubs sometimes in Leeds as well,
and I used to see half the kangaroos in there.
So it was a bit of a knicky tour I
think for them sometimes, so just to just to sign
sign that game off. So some of the players you
played against that day, well, the whole the whole team.
Fullback was Brett Mullins. The wings were Ettings Housen and

(22:23):
Michael Hancock, somebody I know very well from from up
here in Brisbane. Malmon Inger and no less than Steve
Renoff were in the centers. Another friend of mine, Steve Renolf,
Laurie Daly and Alan Lango were at six and seven.
The props were Dean Paying Paul Syrenond hooker was Jim Sadaris.
That's a name that often forgets gets forgotten for whatever reason.

Speaker 2 (22:45):
Played against Jim. I played against Jim again for the
for the Tomahawks against South Sydney.

Speaker 1 (22:50):
There you go.

Speaker 2 (22:51):
Yeah, when they put that team together.

Speaker 1 (22:54):
Yeah yeah. David Ferner and Jason Smith were the second
Rose and had Fitler, a future Origin coach and a
future future premiership winning captain of the Roosters, was at
lock loose for with the bench Kevin Walters, Wendall Sailor,
David Fairley and Steve Menzi So your job, your bench

(23:16):
is a seventeen or eighteen year old Graham Holroyd, Nick Fozzard,
Marcus Vassal of Coupleist and I think you said Phil,
their bench is Kevin Walters, Wendells Sailor, David Fairley and
Steve Menzies and Bob full Bob Fulton was in the
coaching box. Okay. So you went on to play for
Leads Sheffield Eagles, is that right?

Speaker 2 (23:38):
Yeah? Sheffield?

Speaker 1 (23:40):
And you also played some games for England. I believe
no I played.

Speaker 2 (23:45):
I didn't play any games for England.

Speaker 1 (23:46):
The thought you did, I thought you played against no
full side.

Speaker 2 (23:51):
I did not, Okay. I played great Born Academy against France.
I think I have three teps and then I went
on the ninety three tour Australia. I didn't play any
test matches, but I played to play in the only
game we won against Queensland, so okay.

Speaker 1 (24:06):
So putting all this into context for Australian listeners, this
is like you being an Australian schoolboy playing against a
touring side that the best side, well the best side
in the world. So it might be playing right now.
You're probably playing against one of the Origin sides maybe
or the Kangaroos. And then and then you've had a
professional career at a couple of clubs. Anyway, you've ended

(24:29):
up traveling to America and your next game against the
Kangaroos is ten years later. And so now you are
a senior player at age twenty eight. Your haircut is
a little bit different.

Speaker 2 (24:46):
Yeh.

Speaker 1 (24:48):
Can you how have you ended up in America and
what you're doing playing against the Kangaroos in two thousand
and four.

Speaker 2 (24:55):
Yeah. So mcgrandad was born in Minneapolis, Minneso so to
my Greek granddad was born there, h so, and that
before they moved back to uh to Greece, my great
grand that was building railroads out there. So that qualified
me to play for the USA team. And I played

(25:18):
at Sheffield Eagles with Jeff Hardy obviously Saint George great
in the NRL. You know, one of David News really
good friends, and David knew at the time was running
the American Rugby League. So you know, Jeff, you know,
sent David a message like, hey, I got this. You know, lad,

(25:38):
I played with that Sheffield and you know, I think
it'd be a great asset for you, uh, you know,
to jump on on on with the USA team.

Speaker 1 (25:47):
Oh are you still playing at Sheffield Eagles at this time?

Speaker 2 (25:50):
I was yeah at the time.

Speaker 1 (25:51):
Okay, yeah, So you didn't live in America.

Speaker 2 (25:54):
I didn't. I didn't move to I didn't move to
America till two thousand and three.

Speaker 1 (25:57):
I I, uh, this was two thousand and four.

Speaker 2 (26:02):
Yeah, I moved. I moved into America in two thousand
and three.

Speaker 1 (26:05):
Okay, but you were playing for the Sheffield Eagles still.

Speaker 2 (26:08):
No. I played for the Sheffield Eagles and then I
went to Hanslot in ninety nine and we won the championship.
And then I went back to Sheffield Eagles when they
reformed in two thousand and then two thousand and one
I went to Australia for two years and I played
in the Central Coast.

Speaker 1 (26:28):
Yeah, so did you earn a new quid playing the Coast.

Speaker 2 (26:32):
I certainly did. Played against a lot of good players too,
m MG. Greg Floramo, Barry Berrigan's a bunch of them.

Speaker 1 (26:41):
Yeah, people don't understand that about the A grade football
over here. I mean, I'm I'm a mentor and advisor
to Ash Taylor, the old Gold Coast Titans half. Who's
the coach in the in the in the A grade
competition here? So these I know Robert Jennings is playing
in them other competition for example, not too far away.

(27:02):
So there's plenty of plenty of stuff still going on.
Now I'm going to share this screen with you. Can
you see it? Okay, very different pictures that we see here.
We are we could be forgiven for thinking that we
are a poorly attended Super Bowl final because there's a

(27:25):
few empty seats in there. But there's also quite a
big crowd. But it's not Chopper blot. It is a
good crowd. The field is quite narrow, The markings are
very much unmistakably NFL markings, and I think when we
see the fields with the post soon it's definitely NFL
posts as well. You are playing for the Tomahawks, against

(27:48):
the Australian side that is touring from that are just
toured for the Four Nations and we're on their way home, right,
can you paint a picture for who you're actually playing
alongside here? And then.

Speaker 2 (28:09):
Yeah, I mean a lot of lads were played with,
Like I think that's Nate Smith right there, he just
made that break. And Nate was a college American football kicker.
You want a player, he was a kicker, but just
really really athletic kid, could could run like the wind

(28:30):
was pretty you know, you'd think of a kicking the
guy as a little soft, but he was actually, you know,
pretty a pretty pretty tough kid to be honest with you.

Speaker 1 (28:38):
So that Peterson who's just scored the first try the
ex Paramatta and Gold Coast Titans wings. So you weren't
completely surrounded by amateurs who'd never played the game before,
but it was mostly yeah.

Speaker 2 (28:52):
Mostly mostly lads that played in the local competition. You know.
Obviously you had you have Mike Peterson there and Brendon
cons who was a pretty handy professional footballer in Australia
there in the UK, you know, and then you know
a couple of smattering a couple of other players here
and there, with some with some you know, better rugby

(29:14):
league pedigree, but for the most part, you know, it
just just blokes that you know, roll their sleeves up
and we're playing the game.

Speaker 1 (29:23):
The amazing thing about this story is so ten years earlier,
in eighteen year old playing playing against the likes of
molmon Ingram Steve Runoff. Ten years on, you're in America
playing with a bunch of amateurs who've played probably a
handful of games of rugby league in their lives when
you combine all their careers. But then the craziness starts

(29:46):
when you think about what's actually happening here. So we're
watching a game and you're currently two tries up and
Nate Smith is about to convert the second one to
make it twelve nil to the USA. Now take us
back of this fascica.

Speaker 2 (30:03):
I mean, it's it's kind of surreal because you're kind
of thinking, hold on a minute, this this is the
wrong script here. It should be it should be twelve
and off in the other way, right.

Speaker 1 (30:16):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, No Australia, No no, no, they've not scored.
It's been held up. If that was the Pope.

Speaker 2 (30:25):
Know, we held him up. Yeah, we got we heard
him in there. Yeah, he won't complain and he knew
we never got it down.

Speaker 1 (30:32):
Oh yeah, you're right, you're right, we had him up.

Speaker 2 (30:35):
But yeah, it was it was surreal. So it's like,
you don't you know we we obviously knew that. You know,
they've just come off a pretty long tour, the Try
Nations thing, and they just won. They were probably you know,
on the drink a little bit and haven't good time.
But still again, you're talking about the highest quality rugby
league players in the world at the time.

Speaker 1 (30:56):
Is that just then?

Speaker 2 (31:00):
No, I think I want to say Scott Hill played nine.

Speaker 1 (31:04):
There's Brett cam Yeah, I want.

Speaker 2 (31:06):
To say Scott Hill played played hooker that day because.

Speaker 1 (31:09):
I couldn't find a team list for this game.

Speaker 2 (31:12):
Yeah, but yeah, I'm pretty sure Scott I played hooker.
So I remember backing against Scott.

Speaker 1 (31:18):
Hill, your hair cut, your hair is very different, and
you're in again Tomahawks and again.

Speaker 2 (31:24):
Yeah that's Danny Ball.

Speaker 1 (31:28):
You what were you thinking at this point? Not a
bad crowd at all. I was thinking at this point
that you're playing with all this Yeah, butchers and bakers
and the.

Speaker 2 (31:42):
Yeah, it's like I mean, it's like yeah, you kind
of like you think you're in a dream because it's
you know, everything that could have gone right for us
did and everything that could have gone wrong for them.
Did you know it was?

Speaker 1 (31:55):
Who was the coach?

Speaker 2 (31:56):
John cart Right.

Speaker 1 (31:57):
I've always said he's a coach, A great coach.

Speaker 2 (32:00):
Yeah, fantastic he just yeah, and I think it shows
with what he's done with all FC this year. But yeah,
I just remember cart has been a really really direct,
really easy to work with, just got the boys doing,
you know, what he needed us to do.

Speaker 1 (32:16):
The normals resumed there, the Australians just run right through.

Speaker 2 (32:22):
I think if it weren't for Matt Bowling, yeah, he
was whenever he wanted to. He just yeah, he turned
it on. But if he if they if it weren't
for him that day, I think it would have been
a different results.

Speaker 1 (32:37):
What's noticeable is how much smaller and more athletic the
Kangaroos looked compared to ten years earlier, because I think
in ninety four we'd really started hitting the weights heavy
as a game, hadn't we And there was rumors that
players might have been doing it a bit too much,
if you know what I'm saying.

Speaker 2 (32:53):
But yeah, I know what he's saying.

Speaker 1 (32:56):
Yeah, yeah, the Darren Locke he has just slotted all over.
So the normal script has been resumed a little bit here,
but you're still eighteen six up, and there's some American
commentary from the sidelining in terms of our friend Bobo,
and you've just gone in to make it twenty twenty
two six.

Speaker 2 (33:16):
Kick to come now, Costa running off me and half back.

Speaker 1 (33:20):
Then yeah, great bowl from vas.

Speaker 2 (33:23):
A little in a little in line.

Speaker 1 (33:24):
He ran yes, yes, and Nate will slot the goal over.
We know that over the NFL post. And it's twenty
four six and halftime is imminent. It says, a third quarter?
What's going on?

Speaker 2 (33:42):
Yeah, I just that's the American you know, americanness. They
used to the four quarters. Think, you know, that's what
it was that was filmed.

Speaker 1 (33:51):
Now, So what we need to do now is take
this back to halftime. Right, So halftime on this dat
in two thousand and four. So the Kangaroos had been
on the tour and they'd struggled. I think they'd won.
Did they win the four Nations? The three China?

Speaker 2 (34:09):
Did it? They just came they just came off of
what Yeah, they just be just.

Speaker 1 (34:12):
Be I believe Great Britain in quite quite significantly, probably
to one of the finals, and the Americans are ahead
against them twenty four six. Can you catapult us back
into what was going through yours and everybody else's mind
at that point.

Speaker 2 (34:31):
Yeah, it's just you know, I think, and it was,
you know, kind of surreal, but you want it want
the the lads kind of had a pretty level head
and that Kari did a really nice job with it.
You want you want too excited? He was just he
kept everything pretty calm for us, and you know, just
he just laid out there and said, look, keep doing

(34:52):
what you're doing, you know, and whatever the result is,
be very very proud of what you've done in is
first half, he said. You know, obviously he let us
know that they'd be getting a right bollocking in the
in the locker room, you know, but you know, he said,
just you've got to be really proud of what you've

(35:14):
done in his first half, and uh, you know, go
out there and and and try and finish it off
and then see where it is. So so, h.

Speaker 1 (35:26):
Why didn't you organize some kind of medical emergency or
something that needed the game counseling and then the results stamps, didn't.

Speaker 3 (35:37):
You Yeah, yeah, we should, we should we should have
maybe like uh, you know, prayed to the weather guards
and he could have thunder and lightened and they they're
called off, you know, but you know, but yeah, I
mean obviously, you know, the second second half starts and
you know, after they get a little bit of a
bollockin that, you know, they come back a little bit and.

Speaker 2 (35:57):
You know, they they score, like I said, might one
was was sensational that day, but uh, you know, looking back,
it was just a really a really good moment for
me personally and just being proud of lads around me,
and and now they came together and you got you
gotta remember, you know, it was I think it was

(36:19):
what was it March? Was it in March?

Speaker 1 (36:24):
Would have been November?

Speaker 2 (36:25):
November? November? Sorry, I'm November. So the rugby league season
for the American lads was a summer It was a
summer game. So yeah, you play for like three months
in the summer.

Speaker 1 (36:36):
Yeah, so you've done it already and you probably nobody's
playing regularly at the moment.

Speaker 2 (36:42):
Yeah. We we would have finished up in August, so
it was like lads haven't been playing since August, you know,
and obviously a couple of the other lads like Costo
and Mike Peterson would it would have just finished playing.
But the rest of us, yeah, we were We were
a couple of months out of it, mate, you know,
just so fitness wise, and so it was kind of
amazing what we really did.

Speaker 1 (37:04):
They've put they've pulled back level now unfortunately, h What
players stood out that day? Which what which of the
middles were tough to tackle? Would imagine Willie Mason would
have been something of a handful.

Speaker 2 (37:19):
Willie Mike O'Meally really just really tough.

Speaker 1 (37:22):
To you he's gone over for a try there too.

Speaker 2 (37:25):
Tough to contain, you know, just just big men, just
strong men. So you know, those two kind of stand
out really. Benk Kennedy you know, was playing, he ran
really really hard, two really good lines.

Speaker 1 (37:39):
They what what also I'd love to talk to you
about is your were you full time a lead in
ninety four?

Speaker 2 (37:46):
Yeah?

Speaker 4 (37:47):
I was.

Speaker 2 (37:49):
I was in the apprenticeship scheme right from in ninety
three and then kind of rolled right into first team
trainings when I was in and out at the first team,
So it was yeah, it was full time.

Speaker 1 (38:00):
Yeah, so you would have been a full time athlete
in nineteen ninety four, eighteen years old, full of full
of testosterone, and full of hair, and then ten years
later you'd be a part time player. You probably had
a job, would imagine.

Speaker 2 (38:21):
Yeah, I was working at the Glenville School.

Speaker 1 (38:22):
Yeah, there you go, and I've got the glen Mill
shirt on actually just for you, or wear it whenever
I see you. And so your level of conditioning would
have been different. As much as you tried, your level
of conditioning would have been different. So you would have
been probably blowing out of your asshole during some parts
of this game.

Speaker 2 (38:40):
I guarantee I was. Yeah, I think I played the
played the majority of the game. I think I might
have played seven minutes. I think I got like a
ten minute spell and Kite put one of the American
leads in Oka for about ten minutes.

Speaker 1 (38:56):
And the ball has got the stars and stripes on
what's the surface? Because that's not grass, is it?

Speaker 2 (39:02):
No, it's it's they call it turf over here, but
it's like it's called next turf. It's artificial grass, but
it's not like astro turf. It's a little bit longer.
It's almost like grass, but it's you know, it's artificial, tough,
tough on your skin and your joints because it doesn't
there's no gifts.

Speaker 1 (39:23):
And it'd also be for quite a fast track, which
is just what you need against the kangaroos. A bit
of an error from your back three there, but they're
going to close the game out. It's going to be
thirty six twenty four to end and that's the end
of the game. Now, if there wasn't many stories after
the nineteen ninety four game, surely where are you playing

(39:46):
this game? Philadelphia?

Speaker 2 (39:48):
It's in Philadelphia. It's at Universality of Pennsylvania. It's like
one of the oldest football stadiums, the very historic stadium
Ivy League School, and uh, you know, so it was
where it was it was the home of the Philadelphia
Reels at one point. But yeah, so it was. It

(40:09):
was a really really good venue to be it.

Speaker 1 (40:12):
Now, I've been out in Philadelphia with you, and the
last thing I can remember about one night was having
some kind of rob on my head and drinking something
that had never drunk drunk before, and then waking up
in a hotel room very sore head the morning after

(40:32):
or sorry, later that morning. Should I say, what did
the USA Boys and the Kangaroos get up to that night?
That's suitable for a family audience.

Speaker 2 (40:43):
So it was we actually, yeah, we had a little
after a game party. It was like an Irish pub
in the city. You know, both teams with their family friends, girlfriends.
You know, my my, my now wife, she was she
was my girlfriend that time, she was with me. So
it was it was good, It was kind, it was
it was a little bit. I mean, sure, the Australian

(41:05):
lads kicked on and you know, I got into some mischief,
but for the most part of the American lads kind
of we got you know, got stuck into it at
the Irish pub and a good few hours in there,
but most of us kind of went, you know, went
out of separate ways after that. And you know, a
couple of lads who were staying you know that came
in from overseas, Matty Peters and Costa obviously Carti. You know,

(41:26):
they they probably hung around a little bit in Philadelphia
and I had a few drinks with the dozy leads. O,
no very disappointing tales, and I do believe now the
players are better behaved than ever.

Speaker 1 (41:42):
Like I honestly, they drink a lot less than we do.
Just in general, younger people drink a lot less than
than we did, et cetera. So so absolutely, so let's
let's talk about this series this year. Will you be
keeping a key eye on it from your home from Philadelphia?
Of the ASHES series coming up in October?

Speaker 2 (42:02):
You know it's going to be interesting because I don't
know if it's going to be streamed on the NRL
app because it's been pretty tough to watch any kind
of English rugby league. We'll get some Super League games
on our cable over you on Fox Soccer Plus, but
I don't know if they're going to carry the test matches.

(42:25):
So it's going to be interesting to see where I
can actually stream the games from tones.

Speaker 1 (42:31):
Do you know if you get BBC coverage or I don't.

Speaker 2 (42:36):
I've looked on that BBC eye Player and it says
you're out of region, so I don't think I can
even get it on the eye player, the BBC eye.

Speaker 1 (42:44):
Player, So I think what you need to do that's
is come on my ASHES tour. Okay, because I'm hosting
an ASHES tour. We're having a week in London, a
week in Liverpool and matches for the first two so
I can organize your flight, so you don't your about that.
So if he came to do that, you let me know,
get get a few lads from the Tomahawk's days to

(43:07):
come over and travel, travel through London and Liverpool, and
then you can catch up with some of your family too,
can't you all? You're there just like.

Speaker 2 (43:14):
I, right, my boss, I might be around for three.

Speaker 1 (43:18):
Week, just two weeks, just two weeks.

Speaker 2 (43:23):
Down.

Speaker 1 (43:24):
And when you say your boss, you're talking about your
wife or your actual boss at work.

Speaker 2 (43:29):
No, the boss at home should be fine with it.
My boss at work might be like, hey, I don't know, I.

Speaker 1 (43:33):
Give you that. Okay, Look, thank you so much for
the insight you're giving. I think it's so unique. A
man who played against the all conquering Kangaroos in in
nineteen ninety four as an eighteen year old, and then
his next game against the Kangaroos towards the end of
his career was playing for the USA Tomahawks with a

(43:55):
load of amateurs who've played a handful of games between
them against the two thousands them for Kangaroos on a
synthetic field and you were actually twenty four six ahead
at halftime. Like honestly, when you think about that, your
head must spin. And yeah, what what a very unique

(44:16):
couple of games against the Kangaroos. That's all we can say.
Who do you Who will you be supporting this year?
I assume you were supporting England?

Speaker 2 (44:25):
Yeah, I'll be supporting England. Yeah, yeah, just a little
bit disappointed. It's not great Britain, but you know I'll
be supporting.

Speaker 1 (44:31):
Yeah, exactly exactly do you think they have a chance?

Speaker 2 (44:37):
Oh no, honestly, I depending on what kind of squad
they pick. You know, England always the international size. For
the last few years they seem to kind of they've
aimed up a little bit, but it's always been disappointing
in the end. And I think that's what it's been
like for for for for a long time, an't it.

(44:57):
But I'll be interested, I mean to see to see
what the Australian squad is and you know how they
come off their season, their long season, and you know
the brutalness of Origin and the finals run where you know,
thats just it just seems like the Australian team is

(45:18):
going to be picked and how healthy are they going
to be? Because it I believe it personally, it's a
lot more physical competition there over twenty five twenty six
rounds than it is and it isn't Super League. And
I think the English players that play in Australia are
going to really benefit from that, I think, and they'll

(45:39):
bring that a lot of experience and that toughness and
durability to the English squad. I think that will help
eventually when it comes to test matches the amount of
the English sides that are playing in the NRL.

Speaker 1 (45:52):
So what did you find when you played in the
Central Coast?

Speaker 2 (45:57):
It was it was fantastic, Honestly, I can kind of
I'd kind of lost the love of the game in
the UK and I needed a change and I and
I was I didn't even know I was going to
play in Australia. It was gonna go for a holiday
at the time. And I ended up bumping into Dean Hangar,
who was Australian playing in England for his whole career,

(46:20):
and I was actually watching a preseason game and he
was gonna he's playing for Aaron Eagles and he's gonna
he was going to be coaching the the year after season.
And he's like, I said, he said, what you up to?
I said, I'm going to play for I think I'm
going to sign for y On with Kyle White was
the coach at the time. Josh White was there, Greg Flormo,
a few other you know, pretty pretty well known players.

(46:43):
And he's like, well, come come of a chat with us.
You know, my dad's chairman of the club, Aaron, and
you know, I'd like you to come play with us
if I can talk you into it. So I did
and play for them. I played for them for two seasons.

Speaker 1 (46:56):
And how did you find the standard and the different
sween playing in England?

Speaker 2 (47:02):
You know it was obviously the most of the lads
are not okay, a lot most of them came through
the you know, professional club junior systems. You know, a
few of them were professionals. Obviously. Cliff Lions was still
playing for your minor bunnies. M Gay, yeah, MG, Robert Talker,
Barry Berry and they were all playing for your mind

(47:24):
of Bunnies. You know, I said, Florima, was that why on?
You know? It was you know, you had you had
a few, you know, players that were with some good
pedigree playing in it, and it was just it was tough.
It was a really tough competition.

Speaker 1 (47:38):
And compare that to playing against Hunslet and chef for
Hunslet and Sheffield Eagles or I mean you're saying it
was a step up or a slight step down.

Speaker 2 (47:47):
I think, you know, the championship teams would would would
we'd probably you know, they'd beat they'd beat those that
other teams at the time, I think just because of
the professional element and you know, but I think at
the height of it there they'd give a couple of
teams some good runs. The teams that the team I

(48:08):
played in, a couple of other teams that were really good.
Matt Parrish was coaching the Entrance at the time. They
were they were really good. So there was a Troy
Troy Pezet is the coach of Why You. I mean,
I did sign for Why Young in my that was
my third season, that was in two thousand and three,
and when they moved to the Newcastle competition, so they

(48:31):
moved to a pretty strong competition. But I I played
probably a handful of games and I broke my foot
and then I got my visa for Austria for America.
So I kind of stopped playing and I didn't finish
the season out and I came to America. But Pezzy
was the goods at that time, so.

Speaker 1 (48:50):
And the rest is history. At Marcus Vasselokopolis. Thank you
so much.

Speaker 2 (48:56):
Appreciate your time, Lee, it was it was really nice
talking to you and reminiscent about some of those games.

Speaker 1 (49:04):
I'm just here with mister Philip Ray. Do we call
you Philip or Phil? Is it Philip on a Sunday?

Speaker 3 (49:11):
Yeah?

Speaker 4 (49:11):
Philip by my mum, but yeah, feel good.

Speaker 1 (49:15):
Phil is the boss of Born Travel and I have
been liaising with Phil to put on a very big trip.
You can do the honors, Philip.

Speaker 2 (49:31):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (49:31):
I've been working with League exclusively the last six weeks
or so building out a very exciting trip for all
the listeners on the podcast. Will be taking quite a
few people over to the UK for the Ashes Test.

Speaker 2 (49:47):
Now.

Speaker 4 (49:48):
I believe it's the first Ashes Test for rugby league
played in the UK since two thousand and three? Is
that wrong?

Speaker 1 (49:55):
Two thousand and three?

Speaker 4 (49:56):
Yeah, so so yeah, good couple decades since we've been over.

Speaker 1 (50:01):
Definitely the most eagerly anticipated international series in rugby league
for a long time, and if you ask English people
in particular, it's the most anticipated series full stop. So
I will go in at this juncture and say that
we've got tickets for the first two Tests. But that

(50:24):
was my part of the deal. I've also got some
very firm arrangements with several identities in British rugby league.
There'll be numerous little visits to clubs if people want
to do that as well, and as certainly if we
have some coaches who come with us, we can certainly

(50:46):
work out some best practice sharing and sessions with English
coaches and whatnot. So that's the rugby league stuff I suppose.
So the first two Tests, the one at Wembley and
the one at Everton. If people are wondering why there's
no Headingly Test in there, Honestly, nineteen thousand seats or

(51:07):
something like that phil at that ground and it's sold
out in about three hours, so there was no chance
there was Buckleys chance of getting tickets for that. Yeah,
and the trip everyone will be back in Australia anyway,
to New Zealand or wherever they're coming from. They'll be
back to watch the third Test. Anyway, just in case

(51:28):
people switch off from this podcast because they don't want
to listen to the detailed philm Some of the trip
up in one minute.

Speaker 4 (51:36):
So what we've got, We've got you flying from anywhere
in Australia. We've got the group. It will be officially
departing from Sydney, but we can link you up to
connect through Sydney flying Emirates through Dubai with a short
connection flying it into Landing. From there you'll be picked up.
You'll be driven all the way through to a stunning
property in South Kensington, minute walks to the Naturalhistory Museum,

(51:58):
easy access to get into Central Land. We've also included
two private tours for you. One will take you through
to the pubs of London and also to the streets
of London, so you get to get a bit of history,
a bit of background and a couple of plants as well.
So after that, we'll be then going to Webley on
Saturday the twenty fifth of October I believe the date is,

(52:18):
and we'll be flying into London on the morning of
the twentieth, So you have one full week in London
as well as a couple of activities to fill you in.
From there, we'll be driving you all the way up
to Liverpool where we've got again some absolutely stunning properties
in the heart of Liverpool. We've got a trip out
to the Lakes District included as which is in northern England,
as well as a Beatles tour which you give you

(52:40):
a bit of history around the Beatles, which is liverpools
where they came from. Plenty of other things to do
around Liverpool. But also on the first of November we'll
be going to Everton Stadium and watching the second Test.
We've got the last few seats for that as well,
and we've pretty much so taking those last few. You'll

(53:02):
be flying out of Manchester and includes all your transportation
from Manchester as well to Manchester Airport again with Emirates.
With the short connections through Dubai. You find back into
Sydney on the third of November. So the whole trip
is about two weeks. Everything is taken care of except
for some meals, but you've got all your accommodation, you transport,
all your some tours in both London and in Liverpool,

(53:24):
and all your airfas as well.

Speaker 1 (53:27):
I haven't got the ghost to tell you went well
over a minute. Then, because that was such a good overview,
I think the key thing I want to get across
at this juncture, and you will be able to add
a bit more flavor to this. I asked you to

(53:48):
come up with a trip where the customers, the travelers,
weren't locked into having to do something what we're doing
this tomorrow, we're doing this in the afternoon, we're doing this.
I wanted it to be very flexible and we've achieved that, haven't.

Speaker 4 (54:04):
We Absolutely So you've had the tours go for two
three hours in a day. You're not going to be
taking much of your time up So they don't have to.

Speaker 1 (54:13):
Go do they They don't have to go on those tours.

Speaker 4 (54:15):
No, they're optional, they're included, and it's just something for
you to give you some ideas if you knew to London.
But you've got five days, six six full days in London,
six full days in Liverpool where there's some activities planned.
But you can take that as much as you like.
You can do as much or as little as you want,
and I'm here to help with that. As well Born Travel,

(54:36):
we specialize in luxury, high touch experiences and travel travel arrangements.
So as anything that isn't on the list that you
wanted some assistance with, that's just the conversation that you
have with myself.

Speaker 1 (54:46):
And the team hit them with the price.

Speaker 4 (54:50):
This is the best bit. So all of that. Even
just if you said two weeks in London, not including
all of those things and flights for six and a
half grand per person, you'd be screaming at it says
it is six and a half thousand per person, including
all of the flights, all of your transport on the ground,
all of the tickets to the games, all of the accommodation,
all of the activities and some meals both in all

(55:12):
destinations as well, for six and a half thousand per person.
Now that is based on twin share. If you are
a single traveler, we can and you don't mind sharing,
we can match you up with individuals that also wouldn't
mind sharing. That would be But if you just want
your own room, your own privacy, the whole way through,
you're looking at about nine and a half as strained
dollars per person, so six and a half. If you

(55:33):
come in as a two per person, you get in
private room, then everything is all for you or nine
and a half. If you were to go as a
single traveler, if you did want to share, then just
let us know. We'll work through it and we'll work
with you on it as well.

Speaker 1 (55:45):
Unbelievable deal now non defun well, a non refundable deposit
is two thousand dollars. We will work with people who
want to pay installments and things like that, won't we
just we have to be strict in terms of certain
time scales. Can you paint a little bit of a
picture for that for people?

Speaker 4 (56:05):
Of course, So just when you know that you're happy
to go. The price is available at the moment, it
is based on sales. But we are looking at a
two thousand dollars deposit. That's all we need to secure
that your place on the tour, and that would lock
in all of your flights, all the things I've mentioned,
absolutely everything. So from that, if you what we would
need is then final payments won't be until the thirtieth

(56:27):
of August, So you've you've got three months where you
can slowly chip away at the total balance, or you
can keep it in your account and pay the balance
at your convenience, as long as it's all paid for
by then. Then we're all happy to go. That's all
I need.

Speaker 1 (56:41):
Brilliant the bits that I can add on right. So
of course, first of all, if there's any coaches out
there listening to this and you want to do some
coaching with me while we're over there, I cansult that
no problem. I will probably have to do with the
odd seminar or something like that over there and there's
a chance, and maybe commentating on the games. That's another

(57:03):
issue that I'll laugh to ask my travel agent to
help me with. Even though only family live up north,
I'm sure, I'm sure I can find accommodation. One of
my best mates is actually the media manager for the Kangaroos.
That's great, so we will probably in the second week
when we're up North, well maybe even the week in

(57:25):
London too, we may be able to get some kangaroos
to come and have a night with us. And I
mean we probably won't get him on the drink, but
you get what I'm saying. But Chris is also is
also very keen to do a night and call it
on the piss with Chris because he's a former Curry
Mail and Channel seven rugby league journalist, so he's fully

(57:48):
immersed in rugby league. He's moved on to a different
world now in his daytime job, but he's still the
Kangaroo's media officer. So that's one thing. I've had verbal
confirmation from Terry O'Connor and Barry McDermott, who are the
two Sky TV presenters and commentators over in the UK.

(58:09):
They're going to put a night on for us as well.
So we've got plenty particularly up north, and there's a
couple of clubs that are keen to host us and
I'm sure we can manage that. So how can people,
I mean people know how to get hold of me
Rugby League Coach dot com dot au or at Rugby
League Coach on most socials apart from x which is
at our old coach on the net. There's a link

(58:31):
on there. Now there's a Google sheet but they can
also call you an email you but if you want
to talk through the Google sheet with them and the
email and everything.

Speaker 4 (58:42):
Yeah, So what we're going to do if you have
interest in this, it's best at email us directly. We'll
give you all the details we have our posters and
all the all the collateral that we share with you.
After the podcast. The email address though if you would
like it now, it's Team t E A M AT
Born Travel b O r N t R A b

(59:03):
e L dot com. Do are you? You can also
call us on one three hundred six nine eight one
three three, or ship me a text or give me
a call on my mobile which is four eight zero
eight zero zero zero nine eight. All this information will
be provided so you don't need it, but it's good
to have On the podcast as well on the Google form,

(59:24):
we will be requiring some additional information that will provide
you when when we've got some interest. So yeah, it's
mostly just personal information so that we can lock you
into the trip and get and get you. Your place
is secured.

Speaker 1 (59:36):
And it's also important that any contact made with us
no no, no obligation, isnt it. I mean you can
they can get in touch with us, ask more questions
and absolutely well, just know that once you've paid two
thousand dollars you'll go into England. That's right, you on
that place.

Speaker 2 (59:54):
Now.

Speaker 1 (59:55):
My last question before I'll let you on your merry way,
is he going to join us?

Speaker 2 (59:59):
Mate?

Speaker 4 (59:59):
I'd love to let me get a past of the life,
but it's it's certainly something that's on the list. I'm
a big regul League regby union fan as well, but
we get over there every year for rugby union, so
it's an exciting.

Speaker 2 (01:00:11):
Time for regularly.

Speaker 4 (01:00:12):
Yeah yeah, yeah, I love to get over and I
reckon you need to here get through all those beers
as well, so.

Speaker 1 (01:00:21):
We could have an England versus Australia drinking to contest.
I mean yeah, that's the other thing. Too happy for
families to come as well. It's not going to be
necessarily be a pistole, but if people want to get
piss we can certainly do that and I am partial
to a bit of that. And of course it's my
home country so well be able to particularly when we
get up north in particular, I'll be able to tell

(01:00:43):
people what to do and where to do it because
Liverpool is not far from Manchester and Leeds and Newcastle
is a couple of hours away, so people can do
what they want. Really well, we're not We're not buttlings
or boutlings. Nobile know what bullings means. Over I'm trying
to think of some It's not a kon tickie tour necessarily.

Speaker 4 (01:01:06):
No, not at all. And this is the thing like
we We've created and Taylor made this whole experience with
the idea that we want to give you the freedom
to pick and choose the things that you do while
on the ground, but also have a really great set
of an experience that you're going to be able to get.
If you just booked us what you've got, there'll be
nothing wrong with what we've booked. It's an amazing itinerary

(01:01:26):
with some beautiful properties and some great inclusions. However, if
there was something else that you wanted to do that's
separate to that, It's a simple conversation with myself and
the team and we can we can figure out exactly
what you want to do. If you want to spend
a week in Paris and then head straight across into
into London for the for the game, absolutely fine, there's
not Europe is a big place. The world's your oyster

(01:01:49):
in a sense, and Europe is well you can cover
off in a lot of different places as part of
that what we want to do.

Speaker 1 (01:01:55):
So sorry, I was going to say, people can upgrade
the flights if you want to through you and.

Speaker 4 (01:02:00):
Everything is everything an option. Treat this as if this
is this is your itinery that you can pick and
choose the things that you like and don't like in it.
And we want to make it as good as it
can be because there's a lot of people out there
who don't want to change it. But it's also this
is your holiday, so we want to make sure it's
a great experience from start to finish.

Speaker 1 (01:02:19):
Sounds good, Just go through your contact email again if
nothing else.

Speaker 4 (01:02:24):
Yeah, so it's team t E A m at orn
b O r N Travel t R A b e
L dot com dot au.

Speaker 1 (01:02:32):
Send him an email or send me an email. If
you're listening to this, you'll you'll have heard my email
forty five thousand times before, so I won't repeat it.

Speaker 4 (01:02:42):
Thanks a lot, Phil, no worries, thanks for having me Lee,
and yeah, look forward to helping you with this trip.
Would be amazing.