: Thu Apr 30, 2009 4:16 pm  

yes quite rugby chick.

Now remind me, how many games from celtic won this season?

: Thu Apr 30, 2009 4:21 pm  

Tones Tackle wrote:

yes quite rugby chick.

Now remind me, how many games from celtic won this season?

You can't use that as an argument for giving Widnes and Leigh a license. There is no guarantee that they would have won any games yet either. Widnes' financial problems have been well documented and the RFL made the right decision giving them 3 years to prove they are financially solvent. There is no way Leigh would be more competitive than Celtic and the benefit of allowing Celtic the license is the expansion of a top-flight RL team in Wales and not yet another team in the Northern heartland.

Rugbychick

: Thu Apr 30, 2009 4:25 pm  

eddie gordo wrote:

The chances of that were always negligible.

The franchise system is cack. I'd wager Celtic will finish bottom in all 3 seasons, their crowds will be poor, the facilities will not improve nor will youth development.

You only have to look at recent results to know that Youth development is going really well at Celtic.
Last season their 'A' team won the RLC National with 99% of the side welsh, and only last Sunday their Under 18s side won the National Youth League Grand Final 32-0 at Widnes against Leigh Miners Rangers.
These two mentioned are only the tip of the iceberg, as the game is without doubt getting stronger and stronger in South Wales which is to be applauded and encouraged rather than mocked.
So to say that they will not improve in that area is untrue.

: Thu Apr 30, 2009 4:28 pm  

we will have to agree to disagree there rugby chick.

as for teams like wakefield, they get poor attendances because their ground is terrible with no adequate facilities. poor attendances create rubbish atmospheres which tends to produce poor games.

therefore i think decent stadiums are a must for a SL team.

come the end of the season im sure all the usual suspects will be down at the bottom. for mine i would prefer them to be clubs who have good grounds ie, clubs that are looking to progress.

im sure Leigh could become a force if they were given three years in SL with all the finance that comes with it.

: Thu Apr 30, 2009 4:46 pm  

What would Leigh bring to Super League, bugger all. Widnes would bring a bit more but at the end of the day they are not a long term franchise that is going to grow, its a small town with little future, both of those teams would always be struggling to retain their franchise as they would be struggling to grow.

Salford at least is in a growing area with the Quays and media city and there's the prospects of some serious investment, sponsorship and a big population, which has more of a case for a long term Super League franchise than the other clubs.

If we are looking at cutting vulnerable franchises then thats one thing but lets not argue to replace them with others that would struggle - I would rather we trimmed down to 10 teams and upped the quality, than diluted with small town clubs for which the only argument is nostalgia and tradition.

: Thu Apr 30, 2009 4:51 pm  

Tones Tackle wrote:

come the end of the season im sure all the usual suspects will be down at the bottom. for mine i would prefer them to be clubs who have good grounds ie, clubs that are looking to progress.

Ok I'll have you a wager of £50 that the "usual suspects" won't be there again.

I bet that the no more than one of last year's bottom three will be in the bottom three this year. Are you big enough to take the bet?

: Thu Apr 30, 2009 6:48 pm  

sally cinnamon wrote:

What would Leigh bring to Super League, bugger all.

Exactly, the likes of Toulouse should get a license ahead of them. Don't remember them getting huge crowds last time they were in Super League.

What's the population of Leigh, about 50,000 if that.

: Thu Apr 30, 2009 7:12 pm  

sally cinnamon wrote:

What would Leigh bring to Super League, bugger all. Widnes would bring a bit more but at the end of the day they are not a long term franchise that is going to grow, its a small town with little future, both of those teams would always be struggling to retain their franchise as they would be struggling to grow.

Salford at least is in a growing area with the Quays and media city and there's the prospects of some serious investment, sponsorship and a big population, which has more of a case for a long term Super League franchise than the other clubs.

If we are looking at cutting vulnerable franchises then thats one thing but lets not argue to replace them with others that would struggle - I would rather we trimmed down to 10 teams and upped the quality, than diluted with small town clubs for which the only argument is nostalgia and tradition.

Care to qualify that comment?

: Thu Apr 30, 2009 7:45 pm  

Tones Tackle wrote:

we will have to agree to disagree there rugby chick.

as for teams like wakefield, they get poor attendances because their ground is terrible with no adequate facilities. poor attendances create rubbish atmospheres which tends to produce poor games.

therefore i think decent stadiums are a must for a SL team.

come the end of the season im sure all the usual suspects will be down at the bottom. for mine i would prefer them to be clubs who have good grounds ie, clubs that are looking to progress.

im sure Leigh could become a force if they were given three years in SL with all the finance that comes with it.

Definately, I completely disagree with everything you have said.

For you to state that poor grounds produce poor attendances and therefore produce poor rugby is a bit ridiculous. Try telling Saints that. The amount of supporters inside the ground have no real bearing on the fare produced on the pitch. Yes a larger attendance makes for a better atmosphere but I've seen some awesome games of rugby with hardly any supporters. You only have to watch the National Championship for that.

You can't seriously say that clubs with poor grounds are not looking to progress. Any club wants a shiny new stadium but it's not always the desire that makes the deal. It's down to funding, the council, planning permission, a suitable site, all kinds.

I completely disagree about Leigh being more of a force with 3 years security than Celtic. What exactly have you seen of Leigh that makes you think that, aside from their stadium? How is it healthy for RL to keep SL in the NW and Yorkshire? What good is that going to do our sport?

Rugbychick

: Thu Apr 30, 2009 7:56 pm  

If the RFL are really looking to expand to scotland and ireland its gonna be a recipe for disaster.

The poor crowd at this weekends magic shin dig will tell you all you need to know.

RL used to be a relatively affordable spectator sport, i remember when it used to be £6 to stand on the terraces! You only had to travel a few miles to get to saints, wigan, widnes. The furthest you had to go was north yorkshire or east yorkshire.

However, it is now becoming more and more expensive to follow your team, people cant afford to travel all the way to Scotland, wales, ireland and london. Attendances will dwindle and also the amount of fans that come from these new areas will be minimal ie, celtic at hj earlier this year was pathetic. Again i hark back to poor atmospheres due to poorly attended games.

One of the main attractions, for me, of RL is capacity crowds watching rip roaring games. Ask the players, im sure they will tell you that a great atmosphere gives them that added edge to perform. It stands to reason.

This season especially i have witnessed first hand too many games lacking in atmosphere and passion both on and off the pitch. Its like this great sport is dying. Its really really sad.