[2][3][4][5] Reception was mostly positive, with star player Andy Gregory calling it "an excellent idea",[6] while Manchester Evening News pundit Jack McNamara liked it due to Japan's relative familiarity with rugby union.

An alternate venue was found in Fukuoka, but Ken Arthurson opposed the move to avoid unfavorable comparisons to the Australian Football League, which had played its Japanese games in the capital.

[11] Despite the lack of an official IRLB sanction, RFL representatives Widnes announced that they would bypass governing bodies and approach then Australian champions Canterbury-Bankstown directly to face them in an unofficial world championship.

[14] Interest from the Australians was rumored to have picked up again after Widnes signed highly regarded rugby union defector Jonathan Davies in a blockbuster deal, providing the competition with a more tangible promotional angle in the southern hemisphere.

Jonathan Davies cited a need to provide for a young family and heavy pressure as Wales five-eighth as his motivation for accepting a then-record £230,000 signing fee.

[20] While the Oceanian qualifier mooted at an early stage did not take place, the European Club Challenge between English and French representatives did proceed on 27 May 1989, albeit under less than ideal circumstances.

Coached by Tim Sheens and captained by Australian international centre Mal Meninga, the Raiders finished the minor rounds in 4th spot.

A crowd of 30,786[23] saw an all-action game of two halves, with a Mal Meninga-inspired Canberra opening up a 12-0 lead by playing a brand of rugby that BBC commentator Ray French described as "like basketball".

However Widnes' offload game would bring them back into the match, with tries by Offiah and Paul Hulme both coming as a result of good late passes to make it 12-10 at the interval.