After today's performances by Toronto, Toulouse and London I think we may have missed an opportunity.

A super league of 14 which included all 3 teams certainly would have merit.

Television and streaming opportunities in Britain, France and Canada could have been explored as never before.

With the new structure with only one promotion I think that we may have missed the boat unless we move to a 14 team super league in the next two years.

Well played all 3 of these teams today.

You sir, are absolutely correct. We need all three expansion teams in Super League. We don't need Widnes or Salford, nor Wakefield for that matter, who bring nothing to the prestige, nor to attracting new TV contract possibilities, corporate sponsorship, or crowd support of the competition.

Yeah...we need more controversy like no tries given and biting......

No we haven't, because if they were added the standard of the comp would drop significantly the Toronto Toulouse game was terrible

100% agree. A close scoreline doesn't = a good game...the standard of play was awful...has anyone got the stats on completion rates? Would be stunned if either side was at 60%+......

Toronto would need a total team replacement for SL, the current squad is unsuitable in both ability and attitude.

London who play out of a wedding venue and Toulouse some farm in france?

yeah...coz Caravan Park is state of the art



London would be fine except for the visits of Wigan, Saints and Leeds...they'd need to move those games to the stoop, whilst Toulouse have a selection of grounds they could use would they get there....but neither will get there this year as the RFL have already decided that Toronto must get in.....that try decision was an absolute travesty

Difference is HKR average over 7k and are already in super league

wow...7k you say? Fantastic.......just imagine how well you'll do in another 120+ years

Mmm well London's 650 in 40 years is well... BRILLIANT

London narrowly beat Widnes at Widnes. Toulouse easily beat Widnes at Toulouse. That suggests that either London or Toulouse could replace Widnes in Super League and perform at a satisfactory standard, especially given the fact that their increased income in Super League will enable either of them to buy a couple of big Antipodean forwards from the NRL --- which would make a huge difference to either team's performances.

Bad call by the officials, but the RFL, who can't organise much, are capable of such a conspiracy?

Why not home grown talent, after all you say SL needs French teams.

But with NRL stars in it.

The new structure has to be accepted.

Ideally, it would be a 14 team Super League, with no loop fixtures and two relegated. Then the team finishing top of the championship would go up plus a 5 team play-off for the second promotion place (just as it will be between League 1 and the Championship).

But, a 12 team SL we have for the forseeable future.

How to get SL up to 14? Whilst keeping the 1 up, 1 down system that will now operate from 2019, the SL/RFL should announce soon that there are two potential new places available in Super League & SL/RFL will consider applications from entirely new franchises (only) to enter straight into Super League as the 13th/14th club.
Such applications would have to be from financial backers with big resources and demonstrate a 5 year, funded business plan, with the ability to sign a SL standard squad, have the right stadium & facilities and off field organisation and with market research done. Such bids would have to have a value of at least say £10m. Might not be likely - but no harm putting the idea out there formally. Who'd go for it? Who knows? A Perth franchise? Bath RU club? New York? Toulon RU club?

I saw that on live TVs and said he dropped it, at live speed did not need the replay, if I can see it on a std tv 24fps how can the ref, in goal judge who was looking straight at it, bear in mind the human eye sees considerably faster than any standard tv camera , how can they not see it from 2.0m away.

I hand on heart agree with you, sadly the posts immediately after yours started the derailing process and it's always the same posters who do it.

Toulouse and London by there own admission say they are not ready for super league. I would love 14 teams but we are not @ that stage. London need a bigger stadium for one.

As for Toronto. They are gonna need some serious recruitment if they do make it into super league

No it doesnt.

Both London and Toulouse would be easy beats in SL, just as Widnes have been.
The advantage that both of them have is that they may be able to strengthen their squads and be sufficiently competitive to survive relegation but, either side, should they gain promotion, would be favourites for the drop.

Widnes have gained the honour of being the worst SL side that we've had in the middle 8's

Toulouse v KR will demonstrate just where they are, mind you, IF they could beat them, things will get very interesting indeed.

I do not go for the argument that Toulose and Toronto should not be let in because they are not good enough. If they earn promotion they will be in no different a position to any promoted club in that they will need to strengthen. Unlike with one up one down they will have already had to prove that they are at least as good as a team going down.
I do think that the change in structure signals a move away from expansionism and is a missed opportunity but I do not have all of the financial arguments. It would be nice to think that TO or TWP would bring new revenue streams but at present the only French team that ever gets shown in TV is The Dragons and there does not seem to be a market in France even for the Elite. The cost of being a world wide sport even in the internet age must be astronomical especially when income from TV deals is under threat. Just look at the Sky Sports pricing policy. It is £18 for the football and £22 for everything. We know what our value is to them.
The return to twelve teams and one up one down seems like a retreat into the past. I doubt that it will be hugely successful but it might slow the rot for a while unless Rugby League becomes more visionary because we are moving out of the era of huge content providers with a single mode of transmission whilst our clubs are still run by people with regional carpet selling franchises.

Every Super League club signs NRL players, the top clubs produce their own as well

London need to require a larger stadium capacity before they need to move grounds again. With their typical crowds they are better suited to a venue like the one they are playing at for the time being. It would be pointless and needlessly more expensive to play out of a larger venue unless they were regularly at close to capacity at Ealing. Should the Broncos win promotion then the moving of the (likely) better attended ties to a larger ground (if needed) with the rest played at Ealing would be a more sensible approach. Yes Trailfinders isn't the best, image wise on tv but better that than forcing them into a larger ground that would be a millstone round the club's neck.

Where are they going to get the fans from?

London used to sell 3500 season tickets....... There's no Reason they can't get back to 4,900 averages if they worked at it..... But under the current owner that'll never happen...... So 1000 a game with maybe 2500 for Leeds saints and Wigan.... No need to move

Like any club they need to attract them from the area surrounding the home venue. It's how they attract and then keep them coming that is the problem, they are far from the only club facing that problem. A move to any larger ground is a waste of time and money though until they have crowds that justify a move to somewhere bigger. They (or any other club) shouldn't be made to move to a bigger stadium that they have even less hope of filling in order to be promoted should they earn it. As long as it is safe, has toilets, floodlights etc they should be allowed to play in it. Insisting on a 10k capacity ground (usually the stated figure) for a club that would likely have crowds of 2-3k at the most (if in SL), or likely even fewer is daft IMO.