The best way to ensure that the NRL All Stars fixture remains a staple of the NRL calendar is for the players to show up with an intent and desire to put on a show. Perhaps in the past this wasn't quite the case, not because the players didn't care, for whatever reason the game never really quite delivered the goods in terms of an entertaining, hard fought 80 minutes of rugby league. This time around however I was left satisfied, ya know that feeling after you smash a mean plate of food and then kick back in your seat, smug, fed and satisfied.

My NRL itch was scratched. I got enough rugby league action in this game at a level that matched my requirements for February (not quite NRL end of season stuff, not quite pre-season stuff). This All Stars game did the trick, fulfilling my needs and all but it also offered a bit of funk/spice that only an All Stars fixture can.

Right now, as I'm writing this, the NBA All Stars game is going down where we are graced with the opportunity to watch Kobe Bryant and Kevin Durant team up, or watch Russell Westbrook reject Drake's approach, shout out to Westbrook's dance...

This NBA All Stars game doesn't quite provide the holistic basketball package though, it's more of an exhibition of a semi Harlem Globetrotters variety. The NRL All Stars game however provided us with a physical battle in which players showed intent on attack and defence, as if something was on the line, which is where the beauty in the NRL All Stars game lies. Something is on the line.

This comes courtesy mainly via the Indigenous All Stars side, who get to represent their people, their culture and those who have fought so hard to level the playing field. This hit home when I was watching Greg Inglis charge, palm blokes off and general play like the beast he is. If you're a player in this game, from either team and you're watching Inglis play in such a manner, you must think to yourself - 'well if Greg's going hard, I better go hard'.

Preston Campbell will forever be the overlord kingpin of the Indigenous All Stars, that's never ending but Inglis may already be the most influential Indigenous sportsman in Australia. Inglis' importance to the Indigenous community could reach deity levels if he is to lead the Indigenous side for the next few years so I'd be prepared for this if I were you; Inglis will break into a different stratosphere unseen before in the NRL and Australian sport.

Seeing Konrad Hurrell enjoy himself alongside the likes of Cameron Smith - rugby league royalty/Cameron Smith who basically ran the All Stars from hooker - was a sight that only the All Stars game can provide. There are so many other examples of this from either side, I mean imagine being Craig Garvey for the Indigenous team playing alongside his Indigenous heroes for example, it's just that we have a soft spot for Konrad and I constantly found myself rejoicing as Koni shook hands/shared a moment of love with a top-tier NRL player from an opposing club.

Obviously Koni was my favourite player from this game and you've got to imagine that the experience for Koni himself was priceless. This is a player who has consistently been peppered with questions about his dedication to a career in the NRL and professionalism throughout his career and here he is mixing it up with some of the NRL's most professional characters. After a few years watching Koni from close range with the Warriors, I kinda know what he's about as a fun loving lad and to see Koni embraced in such a manner by his NRL All Stars comrades gave me warm fuzzies.

Another aspect from this All Stars game that impressed me was how the NRL All Stars team was selected, which had changed from previous years. We might not have been graced with an 'All Stars' team in terms of the best NRL players, we were however graced with a wide selection of players that gave this game a different edge. A guy like Nene MacDonald, who represented Papa New Guinea in this game may not have made the cut for a true blue All Stars team, the way things work now though meant he got selected and it was still an All Stars team, just a wider selection.

This also points to a more inclusive nature that will put the NRL and international rugby league on the front foot in terms of the battle for market-share as sports leagues battle for expansion.

I've also come round to figuring out a way to ensuring that we continue to get pre-season events like this and the NRL Nines. If each squad includes a minimum of 25 players for the game, then players spend less time on the field and there's greater rotation, decreasing the work load on the players. Combine that with the game being played in quarters and we've got a game in which players don't come close to enduring the rigors of an NRL game, especially at this time of year when cricket is played and the beach is a desired day trip to cool off.

This is vastly different to the NRL Nines however which pushes the boundaries of what these players are capable of as they have to play a crazy amount of games, in hot/humid conditions with very little recovery time. If you're a coach, would you rather release your star player to play in the All Stars game or Nines? I'm going with the All Stars option, even with a youngster, they'll get more out of the community work and spending time with established stars along with a far less intense All Stars game.

One last thought on the weekend's action is how little we can read into trials and what not. To come up with any sort of favourite based on trials is completely stupid and I'm gonna put on my Warriors' fan hat here because there's no reason why anyone should read too much into their win over the Gold Coast Titans in Whangarei. The Titans were nothing more than a combination of reserve grade battlers and Under 20s players, so to judge the efforts of the Warriors and any Warriors player would be silly.