Adam Cuthbertson: New film highlights just how good rugby league can get

Jamie Jones-Buchanan has led this and, yes, it is about Leeds Rhinos, but it would be a shame if people didn’t watch it because they support an opposing team.

I think it is a great advert for the entire game and a real insight into the passion, sacrifices, emotion and dramas that go hand in hand with a rugby-league season at professional level.

When watching it for the first time I thought it was basically going to be a recap of our treble-winning campaign in 2015.

I was surprised; it is more than that. It is the story of how the team got through the golden decade and evolved and became the side that ultimately won everything three years ago and provided the perfect farewell for JP and Kev and Kylie.

I suppose fans of other clubs will say “I’m not interested in that, I don’t want to watch a film about Rhinos winning things”. Anyone who does think that will be missing out. The big thing about it is, it is a great advert for the game as a whole.

Supporters will love it and I think clubs and organisations will get an insight into what it takes to be successful, the passion that goes into the sport and what the people who play it are really like.

People like Mac, Kev, JP, Rob and Magsy all come across really well and how they are on screen is exactly what they are like in real life.

The film is not about a team that was put together by money. It was a crafty building of a team by Gary Hetherington from day one. All the success of the last few years comes from the foundations laid down when he and Paul Caddick took over 21 years ago.

For me, it is a very inspirational story and a fantastic way to put rugby league on the map. Rugby league needs more publicity and attention and deserves to get it, but that doesn’t come easily.

If you watch this film at the cinema or via Amazon Prime you are supporting the game and helping get the message out there about what a fantastic sport we have.

With Amazon Prime picking it up, it is going to be seen world wide and that’s a great opportunity.

People will say it’s big for Leeds and the people involved, but it is massive for rugby league as well.

We have a fantastic product, but outside certain areas it is a well-kept secret and I think anybody who cares about the game should help to spread the word.

It’s all about getting it out there and broadening the market. You see this kind of thing so much in the NFL and all the big American sports.

We have a product that is as good as any, but we don’t do enough to make people aware of how exciting it is.

I would like to see more things like this so we can build up the brand. The more publicity the sport gets, the more sponsors will become involved, there’ll be more money in the game and it will only go to a higher level.

‘As Good As It Gets?’ is about the Rhinos because Jamie was behind the project, but it is a rugby league story and the whole rugby league community should get behind it.

It is a bit like when Kev Sinfield was nominated for Sports Personality of the Year back in 2015. That was great for Kev and the Rhinos and Kev came across really well, but everybody in the game got behind him and when he was runner-up it gave rugby league as a whole a big lift.

It only takes a moment to get people hooked.

That’s how people from England and Australia fall in love with American sports, they get captivated by how dramatic those sports are.

Rugby league is a dramatic game in its own right. Anyone who watched the league leaders’ shield match from 2015 would know that, but we have to make sure people get the opportunity.

If the film had been about St Helens’ treble I would have been just as enthusiastic and it would be great if other clubs did something similar.

The documentary is about Leeds because Jamie got behind the project and helped get it off the ground, but it is a rugby league film.

I really think all rugby league supporters – and fans of all sports – will love it if they tune in.