If there was any justice, England would be appearing in their first final for 18 years with genuine hope of lifting the trophy for the first time since 1972.
Fate conspired against Steve McNamara’s men, who produced their finest performance in living memory but paid the price for initially failing to finish off a seemingly well-beaten Kiwis side and then coming up with a calamitious last few minutes that cost them the victory their display so richly deserved.
It may take weeks, even months, for those closely involved in that semi-final to fully recover from the gut-wrenching finish but time is of the essence for the organisers if they are to build on what has undoubtedly been the most successful of all the 14 World Cups held since 1954.
More than 400,000 fans poured through the turnstiles and millions watched on television as rugby league seized its big opportunity to strut its stuff on the big stage.
Officials now need to capitalise on the raised awareness by arranging more internationals to satiate the whetted appetites and also reward the players who threw themselves wholeheartedly into the tournament.
Think not only of the full-time professionals from the big three nations whose participation was in some ways merely an extension of their working day but of those from the lesser lights whose contributions really lit up the competition.
If you are looking for memorable moments, think of how the Warrington fans took such delight in Samoa’s spirited fightback against New Zealand or how those in Halifax were thrilled by Tonga’s immense efforts in a seemingly lost cause.
Workington fans were left wanting more by Scotland’s wonderful displays that earned them a dream run to the knockout stages while even Bristol warmed to the fairytale of the United States’ remarkable World Cup debut.
Wonderful stories wherever you look but what will be left once the dust has settled?
Fiji will be rewarded for their semi-final appearance with a step up to the 2014 Four Nations Series (as long as they see off Samoa in a one-off play-off in April) but for the rest there is a serious danger of the current euphoria vanishing in thin air.
Both the Italians and the Americans say their amazing World Cup debuts generated interest back home but neither know when their next matches will be.
Scotland and Ireland are also in the dark over future plans, especially after their central funding ran out at the end of the World Cup, and there are more question marks over Wales after their dismal campaign.
It appears the World Cup could generate as much as £5million in profit which would be small change for the NRL but could go a long way towards strengthening rugby league in smaller nations like Papua New Guinea, who were the one team from outside the big three to give a genuine opportunity to players from their domestic competition.
Meanwhile, the Rugby Football League will now their attention to pressing domestic matters, notably the proposed re-structuring which had descended into chaos by the time the World Cup kicked off and the future of national coach McNamara, whose contract is now up.
McNamara looked to be a dead man walking as the England camp lurched from one off-field crisis to another but it was difficult not to be impressed by the dignified way he handled his side’s agonising defeat by the Kiwis.
The head coach had risked his own reputation with his stoical defence of players who deserved less but in the end he emerged with considerable credit for holding himself together when it would have been so easy to let his guard drop.
Article source: http://www1.skysports.com/rugby-union/news/12507/9042264/autumn-internationals-wales-wing-alex-cuthbert-could-face-australia
Rugby League - Final follows classic clash
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