IT’S BEEN a turbulent few months for Jon Dutton, the Chief Executive of the Rugby League World Cup (RLWC21), now set for 2022.

“We’ve been through a really challenging time,” he tells The Voice of Sport. “It’s been very hard personally. But I’m a big believer in keeping things in perspective. We’re not on the frontline, we’re not saving lives. We have been through a crisis, there’s no doubting that. Uncertainty has led to anxiety. But we’ve survived it, we want to look forward now.”

Four key dates spring to mind when it comes to this difficult period Jon refers to. The first is July 15, when he told a press conference that the tournament would be staged as planned this autumn. Whilst there were doubts over whether Australia and New Zealand would participate, Dutton was confident that the World Cup would go ahead.

“I remember that day,” he says. “We then went to Downing Street on the Saturday of the Challenge Cup Final. We were confident. We truly believed that after six years of hard work that we could deliver the tournament. We knew there were challenges – the pandemic had created uncertainty and the environments in Australia and New Zealand were more challenging than it is here in the UK. But we truly believed with a 100 days to go we were in a position to stage the tournament.”

A week later and Dutton’s hopes were shattered. The Kangaroos and the Kiwis withdrew, citing concerns over coronavirus rates in this country. Having found out this news at extremely short notice, Dutton says he and his team’s devastation was unrivalled.

“It was incredibly disappointing,” he continues. “The way we found out and the way it played out in the media made it all the more challenging. It was a mixture of emotions – anger, disappointment, upset. But, being the leader of the organisation, it was about being calm. We put together a very quick plan and put a statement out. We really wanted to address the media and front up.

“We still thought we could carry on but we had work to do, not least in addressing the players. At the heart of everything, it’s the players. We’re a player-centric tournament and why should we, as administrators, take away the hopes and dreams of people playing maybe in their only ever World Cup? That wasn’t a great day for the sport, full stop.”

In the days and weeks that followed, the powers that be at RLWC21 did all they could to ensure the tournament stayed on track. Conversations with other nations took place, with Dutton admitting that even Maori and Aboriginal Australian XIII’s were considered. However, he says that the decision made on August 5 to postpone the event was ultimately the right one.

“We had three options,” he explains. “We could carry on with the tournament – we spoke to the Aboriginal and Maori teams, as this, effectively, would give players the chance to play in the tournament. We could postpone the tournament. Or we could cancel it, which was the worst case scenario. I couldn’t accept that and it was something we worked really hard to avoid.

“We came to the conclusion it would be irresponsible to carry on and try and stage the tournament in 2021. It was a process of elimination. Time was against us and we had the public pressure and scrutiny. We decided that we would still stage the biggest and best ever Rugby League World Cup… just 12 months later.”

And so to Saturday, October 15 2022, where England will meet Samoa in the opening match of the men’s tournament at St James’ Park in Newcastle. The start date may have been delayed but Dutton says considering the challenges they have faced, not least the competing schedule of the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, this should be celebrated.

“It was really important for us to create some certainty,” he says. “It was incredibly important for us to avoid the FIFA World Cup. We’ve had to work really hard, really quickly to get over the disappointment and we’ve done that. We’ve still got some work to do between now and then but we’re in a really, really good place and we’ve been uplifted by the level of support from our venues, our hosts, competing nations and our stakeholders.

“That really gives me lots of positivity. Yes, we’ll have to wait a little longer but we will deliver something very special. This is a transformative moment for the sport. We just have to reset, rebuild and go ahead. We see nothing but opportunity – we’ve got 12 months to make a difference in regards to social mobility, mental fitness and loneliness and in local communities. We’re really excited about Jamaica, Brazil and the diversity of athletes coming over here. With this extra 12 months, we’re hoping to create even more amazing memories at every level.”

Visit: www.rlwc2021.com.