True , but what that has to do with Judder man , who knows

Which has always been the case. They haven't devalued it. It's been the same for years and years.


Yet we get more funding from them than ever before...


The Magic Weekend has allowed us to drop a fixture from the season to reduce player fatigue which everyone is always moan about... as well as aid expansion (something you are also whinging about).
Not to mention two pro clubs in Wales that we didn't have before for, a full time French club that is stable, and talks of more.

They've made mistakes, but nowhere near as much as the previous administrations.

You are one of those people that will never be happy unless they're whinging about being unhappy.

Fear the Vee

This has already been discussed on the "The mid-90's compared to now" thread

Nowt do with said poster and...
Twas in jest

Unfortunatley we dont think it's that funny to tell the truth , A nice shiny stadium slowly bleeding us dry and a dwindling fan base with little enthusiasm to watch a team unable to climb the ladder because of our location

Well done Ricky and Nige , they have done some good stuff for the international game and SL , but they are clueless in dealing with the lower tiers , apart from allowing expansion clubs to blatanly flout the rules to promote themselves

We havn,t dropped a fixture we,ve just added a game.............and it hasn't aided expansion.

The first couple of seasons for the magic weekend at cardiff had great novelty value and gave the spectators a day out to a similar experience of being in a cup final.
A welsh club was created and allowed into the franchise system, the very season they compete in superleague Nigel Wood decided to take magic weekend away from wales so that the opportunity is missed of an expansive audience of a welsh team being seen in a rugby league spectacular.

The RFL (Nigel Wood) then decide to take the magic weekend into Scotland. In advance rugby league was promoted around the Glasgow Schools Catchment Area and a few superleague players got involved in promotion. At the same time a future sponsor/promoter (Irn-Bru) who are based in Cumbernauld, Glasgow was introduced to the magic weekend concept. The RFL (Nigel Wood) then decided to hold the event.........................in EDINBURGH, at the same time as.................. the Edinburgh Marathon, we can only assume that this was because Murrayfield sounds a lot better.

Magic Weekends attendances are dropping and have not expanded into local support....... we wait with abated breath whats going to be the response in February.

Perhaps we should drop the magic weekend..........to reduce player fatigue.

I agree that they've done plenty of good, but I also agree that they've let plenty of people down. I don't think clubs should get neverending preferential treatment whether they be in Wales, London, the North East or Lancashire.
I've seen how a lack of relegation has helped clubs and young British players in Super League, but for me there has to be an incentive for Championship clubs. Although I've been dismissed on other threads, I think a playoff between the top Championship team and the bottom placed Super League club for a place in SL is something that should be looked at and discussed at Red Hall.

Why , whats the point ? , unless of course the SL club can only play players that have earned up to 300 K , or are you simply suggesting that FRANCHISING IS FUNDAMENTALEY WRONG ?

This is a positive ?

As an alternative to the closed shop we have now. Fair enough though, forget the playoff and we'll stick to the licence system.

ps Writing in capital letters doesn't make a difference.

I did it by accident , but when I saw it ' I thought I'd leave it for effect , so if we are to keep the licence system , what do you do to keep the fans of the clubs outside interested ?

Personally I can't see any other option but to bring back relegation and promotion. Crowds have dropped and while I think that some clubs (not necessarily Leigh) use the licence system to shift attention away from their own lack of progress and initiatives to bring in spectators, I don't think the sport as a whole can afford to alienate supporters wherever they are.

You honestly couldn't make it up could you? It makes you wonder how the game has lasted so long when this has been the standard of those in charge.

Before it happened, there were plenty of lower league fans whinging that nobody wants to show Championship games on TV and plenty of people saying the RFL should give the rights away.

I bet your sponsors see it as a positive.

Your rose tinted glasses and mine must be from different manufacturers.

Still got a rubbish stadium?

Promise you will definitely get a new one?

"You have a future in the game son but there is an over the hill pension seeking overseas crock who wants a gig so come back later sonny".

We will develop new players but spend more on pension seeking crocks etc., etc........

Perhaps my glasses need cleaning

2006 (no MM) - 28 fixtures.
2007 (with MM) - 27 fixtures.

We've dropped a game. Had there been no MM, there would still be 28 games even with 14 clubs as clubs need the cash.


So you think that Nigel Wood moved it ruin RL in Wales? Or because he felt that we were getting a poor deal from the WRU? He found a better deal, and told 'em to shove it. That shows balls to me. It's part of the negotiation process. If he just bent over and took it, then we would be getting poor deals in the future and you'd no doubt be whinging about that as well.


Err... didn't more Scottish people turn up to Edinburgh than Welsh people to Cardiff? Wasn't that one of the reasons we moved?

The attendances dropped because less people could afford to travel (you know, with the recession and all!) and possibly to do with the change of format (derbies in Cardiff were more attractive).


Yes, and increase the debts our clubs are already in quite considerably. Great plan.

You are whinging that they aren't bringing in enough money. Now you want them to take things away that bring in money. My God, you are a genius!

Good knowledge

You lot that support SL 'only' and support the Franchise need to take your heads out from your backsides, or the sand, or wherever it currently is, otherwise this game is going to be dragged out from under your feet and run into the ground.

Sport is about competition, end of debate, stale clubs stagnating at the foot of SL does no good to anybody, nor does denying the dreams of junior rugby players to play for there hometown club at the very highest level, wake up for crying out loud. Stop thinking of yourselves and your precious licences that your hanging onto, for now!.

Copying NRL, NFL, NFC or AFC is not the way forward.

The difference is? Zero.

When you get as passionate about the (imo correct) lack of straight automatic promotion and relegation between the amateur and semi-pro leagues – where there's not even the chance for lower clubs to apply to join the semi-professional league – I might pay more attention to your bleating about the lack of automatic promotion and relegation between the semi-pro and professional game, where there is a chance for clubs in the lower tier to build themselves and then successfully apply to join the professional ranks.

Until then …

But isn't the application process a waste of time. The reason I say this is, whoever (Widnes) gets the nod next year, does not necessarily have to have a better application than the team getting thrown into administration, sorry the Championships. It is whoever Wood and Lewis and the SL chairmen decide they want, they then bend over backwards to smooth their path.

Wonder if Widnes will try next season once they get the nod.

In hindsight it was probably a mistake to say that at least one SL club was going to be on the way out at the end of 2011, irrespective of the quality of bids from those wanting to come in.

Wonder whether it may have been a reaction to all the "it's a closed shop" whining that has been going on - the RFL going out of their way to show that it isn't?

I know this is slightly OT but this game could and should follow soccer in this country in allowingclubs (if they want to) to progress from the very bottom tier to the very top and back down again.

It is what keeps the game interesting.

As I posted in another subject RL is now going for elitism which is not what the game was founded on and not what it stood for.

RL in this country should be proud of it's heritage that is was always open. It allowed people, teams, players to progress and did not create artificial barriers.

The game has changed and moved on but the central core of openess and fair play should be there all the time.

It isn't, everyone knows it isn't and the fact that people, including myself, are arguing the point shows it isn't.

What is the primary function of RL? I asked a similar question in another post and the answers were limited. Does anyone actually know? Has anyone actually defined it?
There HAS to be a primary function and from that all others are derived to achieve that

If you don't know where you are, how do you know how to get to where you want to be?

Stick your finger in the air and hope for the best?

As mentioned countless times the WHOLE of the game needs revamping from top to bottom.

I doubt if it will happen. There is too much "my club, my club, my club" and blinkered attitudes for it to change for the better.

I have no doubt the game will continue, but how is open to debate.

What makes you think RL doesn't allow that?

F............

just can't put my finger on it

Try the map, there's a couple of places you could put your finger and find teams that have moved from lower tiers to top tiers.