While the rugby season in the Bay of Plenty has wound down with the finish for the Bay Steamers in the Air New Zealand Cup, local attention now turns to the international stage in several sports.

While the All Blacks head to Europe by way of a stop-off in Tokyo, and the Black Caps play Pakistan in another sporting Mecca of the world – for me the real interest in the next few weeks is the four nations rugby league series.

While France should be a walk in the park for the Kiwis, and who cares about the Poms (unless they beat us) the real match-up is against the enemy from over the ditch.

Last Sunday's draw against Australia sets up, what one would hope is a chance to beat the green and gold brigade, in another big title decider. Who can forget last years' World Cup triumph when the Aussies thought they just had to turn up to win the cup?

Over the years, wins in rugby league over the Australian team, were often few and far between, especially when the Kiwi amateurs were meeting a fully professional Australian unit.

However, in the 1980s Kiwi players started to make their mark in the NRL. My personal favourite was Mark Graham, who was an uncompromising player who took few backward steps.

Today the Kiwi team is comprised of hardened NRL and Super League professionals, who understand the rigour of top-level competition.

After the euphoria of the World Cup victory, the cup went on tour throughout New Zealand. We were especially lucky as the prestigious trophy came to the Bay of Plenty for a whole week. Bay of Plenty Rugby League Coachforce officer Len Reid took the cup on tour throughout the Bay.

I was fortunate to be at Mitchell Park in Tauranga, when the cup was paraded in front of a legion of local fans. Until you actually hold it you don't realise how big and heavy the trophy is.

Some of my thoughts on the afternoon were of how far and organised rugby league has come in the Western Bay. In the early 1970s I played my one and only game of league for a Mount Maunganui team. In those days there were mostly stand-alone teams, organised by a few league fanatics, rather than the structured clubs of today.

My entrance into rugby league was typical of the chaos in the game in the Bay in the 1970s. If my memory serves me well I was one of several ring-ins with the Mount arriving in Kawerau with about 10 players.

The change in local rugby league came when Coastline Districts was formed in 1991. In the early days they were a breakaway movement, who weren't recognised by the national body until 1994.

Today rugby league is thriving in the Western Bay of Plenty with not only senior championships but also age group competitions. The real growth in recent years has come with the growth of the Kiwi League tag, where both young boys and girls play a non-contact introductory game.

Over the Labour Weekend, outstanding success came to a local representative league side. Playing in the 19th National Maori Rugby League tournament in Rotorua the Tauranga Moana representatives took out the Waka section of the tournament.