Greenberg is a member of the Rugby League International Federation and cannot show his hand on the matter. “He’s in a very tricky position,” says one powerbroker. Perhaps. He’s also the boss of the NRL, whose clubs will be most affected and players most at risk. An angry letter is being drafted and will be sent in coming days to the New Zealand Rugby League and England’s Rugby Football League, outlining unresolved concerns about travel time, injuries, player welfare, how much players will be paid, insurance … Let’s hope the angry letter does its job because, no matter which way you look at it, this match is an embarrassment for the game. People can keep hiding behind the throwaway line that it will “promote international rugby league”! That clubs who were never consulted about the fixture before it was announced are “self-interested”! That it will capture the hearts and minds of Americans ahead of the 2025 World Cup in North America!

Let’s see how much promotion the game receives if a player suddenly suffers severe altitude sickness in front of 76,000 fans, collapses and starts vomiting uncontrollably all for the sake of lining the coffers of the New Zealand and England rugby leagues. In Newcastle, the sign above the visitor’s tunnel says: “THIS IS NEWCASTLE”. At Mile High Stadium — the home of NFL heavyweights the Denver Broncos — it says this: “ELEVATION 5,280 FEET ABOVE SEA LEVEL”. In other words, 1609 metres. It is slightly higher than Mount Smart Stadium, elevation 79 metres. Mile High Stadium is a graveyard for visiting teams because of its altitude. Credit:Justin Edmonds/AFP/Getty Images Competing at altitude affects athletes in different ways.

At the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, which has an altitude of 2250 metres, Australian team members were gasping for air trying to reach their rooms on the fourth floor of the athletes’ village. Melbourne sprinter Peter Norman, though, relished the thin air, winning silver in the men’s 200 metres, splitting Americans Tommie Smith and John Carlos before they made their famous one-handed salute on the victory dais. World records tumbled in the sprint events but some endurance athletes came close to death because of altitude sickness, including Australian Ron Clarke who collapsed over the line in the 10,000 metres and in later years said his health never recovered. Loading Acclimatised Denver Broncos players have a distinct advantage over visiting teams. It’s why, since 1975, they have the best home record of any team in the NFL.

“It's probably the best home-field advantage in the NFL,” former head coach John Fox has said of the altitude advantage. “That's why our home record is so good." It’s probably why New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady — arguably the greatest of all-time — has a losing record at Mile High. Meanwhile, the Denver Nuggets have enjoyed the fourth-best home record in the NBA since 2003. Retired centre Chris Andersen once famously said playing in Denver was like “having two midgets pulling on my lungs and they wouldn't let go”. How will those behemoths from England and New Zealand fare when they arrive in Denver a couple of days before the Test match before playing an 80-minute, high-energy, non-stop contact sport in the middle of summer? And then, the next day, they all fly home so they can play round 16 of the NRL for their respective clubs with some players having just two days' rest in between.

Rugby league officialdom has banished the shoulder charge. It’s come down hard on clubs that don’t obey strict concussion rules. Five-day turnarounds were a key issue for the RLPA in last year’s collective bargaining agreement negotiations. But that’s all conveniently forgotten because New Zealand and England need the $500,000 each from the mysterious promoter who is running this bizarre event to make ends meet. The players might think differently about playing under these extreme conditions when they learn their match payment is likely to be just $5000 each — not the $20,000 they usually receive for an international. Last year’s Rugby League World Cup showcased what international footy could truly be even though another promoter — IMG, which inexplicably owns the hosting rights to the tournament — failed to invest any money in promoting the event. Tonga, of course, stole the show. There’s some passion worth tapping into.

Do those who truly care about international rugby league believe a Test in Denver is going to promote the expansion of the game? Would a Test between Tonga and New Zealand, at a heaving Eden Park in Auckland, or another match of that ilk, not promote the game far more than a once-off cash grab that could possibly have catastrophic consequences for those playing? Or is that just a self-interested view?