Super Rugby 2012

Even though the quality is lower I actually find Super League a far more attractive product to watch than NRL.

 

It's been less effected by all the major cancers that have crept into the game since 2000. It resembles early to mid 90s ARL a lot more, and while if an Australian team from the 90s tried to play their style in the current NRL competition they'd get slaughtered, it makes for a much better game to watch.

The speed of the ruck hasn't been as badly effected by wrestling tactics (although it happens more every year unfortunately) which generally allows the referees to employ a slower game. While many people cringe at the thought of a slower game, I think Super League teams adjust to such a thing much better than NRL teams - they play with a lot more depth in attack for their backline movements instead of this flat stuff we see in the NRL, and yardage up the middle has to be made by actual props rather than wingers scooting from dummy half. The greater depth in attack also means the outside players have to actually have ball-skills rather than just being big, strong, fast (usually Polynesian) blokes who can hit a hole.

Some of the players aren't as good, but I think that's somewhat oddly made up by the fact that the coaching isn't quite as good either. Outdated coaching on a wide scale ironically makes the game better to watch. Ex NRL coaches going over there is gradually ruining it though; all the problems I spoke of have emerged or have begun to emerge in the ESL already; they just aren't quite on such a wide scale yet.