about as French as the Tongan RL side are TONGAN

Was the existence of a canadian based team vital for the future of RL, say, 20 years ago? Why now all of a sudden? We wouldn't even be talking about a canadian based team if some rich guy hadn't decided to create one off his own back a couple of years ago.

At least Toronto, Toulouse and London give the game a different dimension and something to talk about. Without their distraction, we would be talking about a sport at the top level dying on its , year on year on year.

Exactly! It’s aimless, headless chicken stuff that illustrates perfectly the total lack of any strategic thinking or planning by the RFL/SL over the last 20 years.
I personally hope that Toronto do well but please don’t anyone mistake them doing well for a development strategy.

Because Rugby league is in terminal decline over here. If Sky pull out, I would say 50% at least of SL clubs would shut their doors tomorrow. Certain clubs over here have done nothing but leach a living off the back of the bigger clubs which is why we are at a crossroads and are facing an existential threat to our game. Exploring new avenues is essential because most of the current SL teams offer nothing to the future of RL and have done nothing to help bring RL out of the sporting gutter. WIll Toronto or Toulouse offer anything? Who knows but they at least deserve a chance as some of the wasters in SL have had a century and still cant get it right

Regards

King James

If you think Toronto's inclusion would stop Sky from pulling the rug, then your deluded.

It would be interesting to know just how much marketing / research the RFL have done into how best to develop the game.
Our sport is renowned for its innovation (which translates to quick fix) and it's short sighted view of what is needed to take the sport forward and comments like the above are just typical of supporters from certain clubs, who like to blame the sports smaller clubs for "holding the game back".
What would be most interesting would be if the magic wand was waved and ALL SL clubs achieved the nadir of a 10,000 average home crowd played in modern stadia, just how much would the TV deal increase.
Equally, IF Toronto and Toulouse were included in SL and became successful, just how much would this increase the TV deal etc and its worth remembering that if SL didnt exist, Toronto would NEVER have a RL side.

Do you know what, in the face of EDIT. DG. CUT OUT THE PERSONAL ABUSE OTHERWISE YOU WILL HAVE POSTING RIGHTS WITHDRAWN. EDIT.who just reply with grr Toronto, this is a very measured response which raises some good points. You are obviously educated whilst the aforementioned aren’t. Except toyboy29 who has a jag

Regards

King James

Folk are interested in a sport, or they are not. Nothing can make them do otherwise. Lebron, you do not deserve my calm/sensible response, you are just a wind up merchant....and you know it.
Nice of you to visit the Leigh forum with your usual type of post. Come on Widnes !!!!

If London gave a different dimension to the game,they would still be in SL. We have Catalans who have been wrapped in cotton wool for a decade,but you fail to mention them. But you think the inclusion of Toulouse will benefit who?

Now Toronto gives a different dimension! In what way? No TV contract, no North Americans included in the squad,no youth developement, no additional teams added for 2019.

Thank goodness for the M62 corridor, as the above will be long gone before Stott Hall Farm.

And yet you havent offered any answer to the post.

Just to simplify the question:
How much will the broadcasting deal increase IF every SL club manages 10k average attendance and ALL SL clubs play in modern "fit for purpose" stadia ?

Any/ all of the expansion brigade feel free to answer.

Just me who thinks (Seriously) Leigh are better for SL then Toulouse. Leigh have a state of the art modern stadium with a strong fan base that could realistically get up to the 5/6k mark in super league (I may be off with that number) and Toulouse play out of some farm in the middle of no where and barely have any fans. Seems to me they're only deemed 'good for the game' because they are French.

Leigh finished 6th in the regular season of the Championship and are on the brink of bankruptcy, even after receiving a massive parachute payment this year. Their owner has said he’s walking away at the end of the season and nobody has shown any interest in taking them over. Yet despite this people still claim they should be in Super League.

Easty *could be a more memorable name* ....

Leigh were the 8th best supported team in SL over all SL games Inc Q8's in 2017 with an average of circa 6,700 ish give or take, better than Salford, Wakey, Widnes
& 1 other.

Leigh should not be in SL until they get their house in order re fiscal management & whimsical decision making regarding coaching & playing staff, I do hope that Leigh return a better structured Club because I feel that even a mid table Leigh with 2 or 3 years in the SL hot seat could attract an average of over 8k !

Totally agree Ste, good post mate.

I honestly believe that Toronto will 'deserve' a place in SL 2019, providing they finish in the top three of the Middle 8's or win the £1Million game. I believe that, because they will have 'jumped through the hoops' they were asked to jump through, from the moment they entered League 1. Likewise with Toulouse.

However, is it just me, or does anyone else struggle with the concept of non-British teams in our league structure? I cannot, for the life of me, get my head around, how it improves French RL, to have had Catalans in SL. The French national team has possibly gone backwards, since their inclusion in SL, and the majority of the best French players are not playing in their national competition, thereby lowering standards in that league. Presumably, the inclusion of Toulouse in SL (or the Championship) is further diluting the talent and standards in the French Elite 1 league.

In the case of Toronto, (or any other North American city) it is the standards in British RL that are being lowered. Inevitably, until they can develop their own talent, North American clubs will be drawing heavily on the British (and Australasian) talent pools, thereby removing many of the talented players in this country. Just imagine a North American club, employing say 20 British players and each new club doing likewise. That would amount to 100 players leaving British clubs, if just five North American clubs were to be set up. I would suggest we can ill-afford to lose 'talent' on that scale.

Now picture the 'dream' scenario of some of our more 'progressive' followers, of a Super League consisting say five British clubs, five North American, and two French. How would the American public buy into seeing say New York v St Helens? ("who?", I hear them say) How much more would they want to see New York v Washington? And, if the game took off over there, how quickly would they ditch the likes of St Helens, Wigan, Warrington, Leeds etc? And, what would have happened to British RL in the years while the game was being established, over the other side of the World?

I guess I am anti-expansion, internationally, but would be much more keen to see the game stabilised in the 'heartlands' and then expand in the UK, before we look farther afield.

Anyway, good luck to Toronto, for the remainder of the Middle 8's. They have, so far, done everything we asked of them - it's just that I think we shouldn't have asked them, in the first place!

Well, London have put the cat among the pigeons. Beaten Salford 11-8.

Well done London, no easy beats Salford atm.

See this is the thing I have a problem with. “We should stable the heartlands first” how? Why? We have been trying for over a century and the game is at its lowest ebb in this country. It’s dying and we can’t resuscitate it. I’m sorry but that is a fact. So what if North American teams don’t have any North American players in the short term. The raptors still don’t have been established for decades. The reason we are trying the North American market is because they are nuts for sports. Whilst our kids would rather take photos on Instagram or play Fifa, their kids are out every night of the week playing sport. Just look at the amateur leagues over here. What is there? About 10 different clubs in the north west counties? Rest of the leagues filled with these 10 clubs a and b teams? Toronto are pulling in 6-7k crowds in a year. That is the kind of market we need to tap into

Regards

King James

That means Widnes will be relegated tonight if they don’t win as 5th spot will be out of reach.

Every game matters in the Qualifiers, dead rubbers in the Super 8s

At half time Toulouse are fighting neck and neck with a Todd Carney-bolstered, Tim Sheens-coached, Hull KR.

This is the first time I've watched Toronto play. Clearly moulded in the image of their head coach - make up for all the shortfalls in talent and ability with cheap tactics and try to injure opponents.

I really want to like Toronto but I just can’t gel with the way they play, much prefer how Toulouse go about their business

Saints win. Warrington get leathered. Toulouse giving hull kr an absolutely lesson. A Toronto win and this would be a great Saturday

Regards

King James