IMG needs to make sure Super League gets its own docuseries like TDF and F1

14 July 2023 , 21:46

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Action from stage thirteen of the 110th Tour de France 2023 (Image: Getty Images)

Rugby league needs to get its own docuseries showcasing our great athletes.

Just recently I've sat down and watched Unchained, the gripping Netflix show about the Tour de France. Having watched it and seen the personalities involved, the clashes and the rivalries, it made me more interested in sitting down for six hours to watch the Tour de France live on TV. Which is what I’ve done because I now know the stories behind the people riding on the bike and the people behind the teams competing in it.

That personal insight is something we need to get in rugby league. Much like Unchained, F1’s Drive to Survive or golf’s Full Swing, we need a series which follows the Super League teams and goes behind the scenes with some of the characters who play our sport in this country. There’s some really interesting personalities who would be fascinating to follow. I believe inside a changing room at the end of a game is as close as you’ll get in civilian life to the aftermath of a battlefield.

And as an ex-player now, six years after I’ve retired, it shocks me a little just how absolutely brutal it all is and how battered everyone is after 80 minutes. You see just what a physical sport it is and can more appreciate the athletes we’re lucky enough to have in our game. We need more people to see that. And, for those who aren’t interested in rugby league, a TV docuseries would be a great way to get a hook into them.

It’s a way of rugby league increasing its audience share and I’m astounded we haven’t had one yet. I do hope IMG pushes for it to happen and see what benefits it would have in attracting more people to watch our great sport.

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Fifteen years ago it might have been different and players might not have wanted cameras going behind the scenes in that manner. But it’s the way the world works now and I’m sure they would be on board.

It’d make a really good documentary and you could follow leading players through the year. At Leeds, Mikolaj Oledzki would be brilliant to follow and, in his last season before retiring, it would have been great going behind the scenes with Sam Tomkins this year. At St Helens, Alex Walmsley or Jonny Lomax would be quality, Warrington could show one of their overseas players looking at how they settle over here or even one of the coaches. At Wigan, it might be one of the players coming through the academy or even Kris Radlinski, the Wigan CEO, would be an interesting person to follow as well. Regardless, it needs to happen.

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