Warm up games
July 25 v Parramatta possibly at Cabramatta
July 28 v NSW u/18 TBA

The two test matches are
August 4 in Canberra @ Canberra Stadium
August 11 in Brisbane TBA

I will try and confirm those venues.

I'll be at all four games.

If you could, Thanks eclipse. Only one I could make would be Parra game.

RB, I just found out the Parramatta game is at Parra Stadium.
The NSW game is at Narrabeen.

I think the fact hull only has one player in general is a sad reflection of how poor jnr development in a hotbed of RL has become compared to the 1980's. Her and UFC are merging their resources to develop better jnr and academy programmes so hopefully that might change in the future.

On a side note I have to smile when people would consider a SL club that has more home grown players but misses the playoffs regularly more of a success compared to a club with fewer homegrown players that regularly makes the finals. Some of you seem to not understand the priority of a sports business!

Narrabeen? Is there even a ground there?

I'll try and make the first 3, doubt I can get up to Brisbane though.

Am gutted. Dependent on kick off I'll be studying.

Narrabeen is where we train Sheldon. It'll be at the Sydney Institute of Sport on the wakehurst parkway.

Just heard that the French will be coming over also and playing the aussie schoolboys straight after.

Is the 6th, the lad from Normanton who's by far and away the best of the lot of them who's Dad somehow managed to get a job scouting for Wigan around the time his lad signed for them?? Hampshire???

Rumblings coming out of Headingley that Stevie Wsard may not go, as he's trying to cement a place in the Leeds first team.

I think I'd agree. I think all clubs realised a while ago that a good youth system was important.

Who is the full back in that squad out if interest?

Lewis Tierney, Luke Briscoe can also play fullback.

Leeds are yet to decide if they will release Stevie Ward.

Hull KR's academy actually went on a tour of Australia this year at a massive expense to the club and with the help of it's supporters who took part in many events to make it happen.
So YES we are investing in youth it just takes time.

I wish people would post things like that on here. I'd want to see our lads over here. I'd also offer to help in anyway possible.

Yeah Hampshire was on Hull FC's books but went to Wigan with his dad

Just when I think the VT can't get more idiotic another one arrives.

Wakefield have won the Academy Championship in the last few years - there are currently over a dozen players playing for other SL clubs who are Wakefield products. Two of them, Westwood and Ellis are current Internationals, and IMHO close to world class which cannot be said for many England players. Wakefield currently field on a regular basis Wood, Cockayne, Trout, Walshaw and occasionally Spiers and Wildie. This of course would have been higher if the club hadn't been forced to part with our best youngsters when we went into admin in 2011.

Huddersfield (your dream club) who to be fair are getting better at producing players still relies heavily on Wakefields talent pool - Brough, Ferguson, Mason and Murphy to name a few. All Wakefield Academy products.

At this exact moment we are in transition hence rightly IMHO no players this time round, by next year I reckon a few of ours will be knocking on the door as they mature - that is how it works.

Cas are also very good at producing players.

So please go away and have a think and come back when you know what you are on about,

His son played for Wakefield - he may have gone to Hull I'm not sure - unless Mopsey has another son. Also had it in my head he went to play down under but may be wrong.

I think it's certain some clubs could and should do more to produce young players, however like Vastman points out there are some doing ok.
I think there might be an issue in clubs like Wakefield & Cas (& others, I'm not just picking on them) who produce plenty of average young players but not many top class players, but is that an issue with their academies or is it just the fact that a good young player at Leeds or Wigan, for example, gets to develop in a (generally) better first team?
It'd be interesting to see how well each club takes advantage of the loan or dual reg system to develop the youngsters too.

Erm I think it was the OP who said the reason for teams finishing outside the top eight was because they weren't producing their own players. My red and white friend was alluding to the fact that since our promotion to SL in 2007, we have only once finished below 8th,

I just explained we produce loads of top quality players - as many as any teams other than Wigan, Leeds and perhaps Saints!!!!!!!

Nothing to do with average or top class!!!

Problem is VERY VERY simple - we can't keep them. There are as many ex Wakey players spread about the SL as any other club bar those mentioned, more than some. Even more who were pinched from our service area who joined Leeds or Bradford for more money than we could ever offer.

Hence there is sod all wrong with our junior set up, but a fair bit wrong with our finances and the system in general.!!!!

Brough, Cockayne, Ellis, Westwood - Wakefield produce some bloody ugly players.

Just Yorkshire deformities in general really, why do you think Sinfield was sent over so early and Jon Wilkin brought the other way?

You would hope the new stadium news would mean you werent so insecure as to continue to make things up you know not to be true. Sadly it seems you cant help yourself.

Realistically, there are similar amounts of players Wakefield have produced playing in SL, as Leeds have players they produced playing only for Leeds, never mind the other academy products we have playing for other sides in SL. Wigan and Saints similar.

I didnt know you spent so much time admiring the male form over the other side of the hills.

and i dont care what you say Sinni iz fit.