Kiwi Test gives me a Rocky mountain high

I SPENT last week in Denver ahead of June’s Test between England and New Zealand – and have come home even more enthusiastic about the game.

My first impressions were that Denver is a very cool place – one of the most popular in America to live, with more than 30,000 people a month moving there at the moment.

It’s in the ‘Great Outdoors’ right next to the Rockies and is a sports-mad city that has a franchise team for every major sport in America.

All of that will be brilliant for rugby league and the England-New Zealand clash in particular.

I met Jason Moore, the promoter behind the game, and he is a passionate rugby league man who wants the 2025 World Cup there to be a great success.

He is very much a visionary who can see there is a market in the USA for people who like NFL and one for athletes that don’t make it in the major sports in America.

He sees a crowd of 35,000-40,000 as a minimum for June’s match and wants to fill Mile High Stadium (above) – but whether or not that happens, we must wait and see.

But the NFL’s Denver Broncos are fully behind the game and telling their members all about it.

There is a 12-year waiting list for season tickets with 60,000 fans on it and the Broncos are pushing the game to them as an alternative to American football.

Not only that but the city’s tourism board and sporting commission are also keen to make sure there are plenty of people watching a great game.

The stadium itself is outstanding – this match will stand alongside NRL and Super League Grand Finals or the Challenge Cup final as a once-in-a-lifetime experience for the players who run out.

Playing for England is the pinnacle of anyone’s career and being picked by Wayne Bennett (above) to line up against the Kiwis in Colorado is going to be very, very memorable for them.

Denver is a vibrant city with fantastic facilities – I can’t wait to go back there in June.