Going back to my earlier post, I heard no advance complaint that matches for the final round hadn't been selected so it seems fair to assume the TV contract provides for a decision after the penultimate round. That being the case it seems to me that a club should certainly expect that this could happen and plan for it. Wouldn't all clubs playing at home in the final round know they may be selected for TV and as such could reasonably expect that would be Friday or Saturday evening? If this results in a financial hit I would simply suggest the root cause is not Sky's decision to televise the game.

I wouldn't argue that this will not be a real pain for salford & their fans, I just don't see Sky as the bad guys in this.

He who pays the piper plays the tune and without sky rugby league and maybe union and football would be dead

Pretty much nail on head, I think also with a fairly healthy following from Wakefield this will be like a home game for them as I fear some of our season ticket holders will turn up (those without other saturday plans) but thats about it.

Also after we sold Smith to Wigan the rest of the team put the cue on the rack, even Vievers has said he only wants players who are with him next term that in itself speaks volumes, so i'd have my money on a Wakey win. This also impacts Bradfords trip to the south of France for mine they may as well not bother.

It doesn't rain for us it just pours....

I'm not saying it's alright, but why is anyone shocked? It's nothing new and has happened for years.

Rugby League, Football, Union, whatever, it's a TV programme in as much as Coronation Street or University Challenge is. The TV company pays a fortune for it so they get the final say on when and what they show.

Do people really walk around, heads in the sand, thinking this game might not have been moved to be on TV? As soon as it was fairly obvious it could decide a play-off place a bit of common sense needs to be used.

Sadly, the money from Sky is probably worth more than that taken through the gate by those who'll walk away from the game. And really, does a few fixtures moves during a season cause people to stop watching, or a poor team on the field/badly run off the field? Fairly sure what the reason was at Wakefield.

While it is a pretty bad situation for Salford fans, there really isn't an alternative solution. SKY effectively fund SL, they pay millions fot the broadcast rights. Rugby league isn't big enough ti say "no you can't show that game at that time"

From SKY's point of view Wigan v.s Saints is the main fixture and gets the Friday night primetime, also as the Saints/Wigan fans mentioned they've sold 17,000 tickets for tha game.

The 8th spot race is the ony meaningful games SKY has left to show. They can't change the Bulls/Catalns fixture as obviously peoples flights and hotels come into that.

They could have maybe just shown the Catalans/Bulls game on Saturday evening and not bothered showing the Salford game, but as said earlier, SKY millions to fund the games they want to and we're not big enough to turn round and say no.

It is incredibly harsh on the Salford fans though.

That's pretty much it in a nutshell.

Someone along the line either at Sky or the RFL has dropped a major clanger, whoever it was ought to dragged into a dark room and be beaten up.

well just been on the sky website and it shows saturday 18:15 at leigh god we are so weak www.skysports.com/rugbyleague/ma ... 46,00.html

well just been on the sky website and it shows saturday 18:15 at leigh god we are so weak www.skysports.com/rugbyleague/ma ... 46,00.html

Cats Game is contracted to al-Jazeera!

from the Grundian "[iThis has been an accident waiting to happen for years, with the RFL making no efforts to insist on the last round of fixtures kicking off simultaneously as in most credible sporting competitions, and the situation has been further complicated by the involvement of another television company, al-Jazeera, who now cover the Catalan Dragons home matches – and have set down a Saturday afternoon slot for their last game against Bradford Bulls."[/i

just another ironic nail in our season really
Sky started us off this season making us play in a bl**din Blizzard against Cas when by all right it should have been abandoned , now they choose the only home ground not available on the kick-off time with the full knowledge of ESPN hosting Sale at the Stadium.

Quote ="salford4life"well just been on the sky website and it shows saturday 18:15 at leigh god we are so weak www.skysports.com/rugbyleague/ma ... 46,00.html'" Bought our tickets today from club shop today and was informed it was at Leigh.

Quote ="salford4life"well just been on the sky website and it shows saturday 18:15 at leigh god we are so weak www.skysports.com/rugbyleague/ma ... 46,00.html'" Bought our tickets today from club shop today and was informed it was at Leigh.

Cant they? I had flights to a Broncos game down there a couple of seasons ago and at the last minute Sky changed the game to Sun night. If I had used my flights I would have been back in my front room just in time to watch it on the box!!

Just a small point, 8th spot is now only possible for Bradford or Wakefield and although there is a theoretical possibility of Wakefield acheiving the same points as Huddersfield, they would still be miles adrift on points difference.
Incidentally, the two games Catalans vs Bradford and Salford vs Wakefield still dont kick off at the same time, so why move the Salford fixture anyway

Yeah I only realised that after. Having not seen the Wakefield win on tv, as I was travelling back from Hull, that fact had missed me by.

Who's footing the bill for the Leigh ground to be used? presumably its not free?

Salford, presumably. Who else could be reasonably expected to pay?

Sky?

Why? All they have done is excercise a contractural right to televise the game. A right they have already paid for once.

Shame for the Salford players and fans, traditionally the last home match of the season is where the players thank the fans for their support for the season by doing the lap of honour, altough they could still do it at Leigh, would you expect the Bulls players to do it in the south of France?

Surely the distance from Salford to Leigh is minimal. If supporters are using this as an excuse not to go to the match then they should be ashamed of themselves.

Well to be honest yes it is their perogative, but I think that it would be reasonable of sky to help out with any costs incurred by the Salford club due to the move seeing as it for Sky's benefit. I mean what can it cost after ticket sales? Whatever it is then it will be a drop in the ocean for sky, but a significant cost to Salford.

Exactly how it should work should the problem arise, but the problem should never arise.

RFL are planning fixtures for Super League. They ask the teams in joint stadia when their ground is unavailable. They don't put them down to play at home.

FA are planning fixtures for football season. They ask when teams in joint stadia can't play at home. They don't play at home.

Basically, it should be treated as though two teams in the same sport are playing at the same ground (like when Crystal Palace and Wimbledon shared, or indeed Saints and Widnes). It isn't rocket science.

I'll be going, but it's going to take me the best part of 2 hours each way on the bus from where I live.

Less distance between FC and KR. I'm sure if you ever had to play a home game on the other side of the city you'd be perfectly happy with that.

Fair play for totally missing the point, if Salford were away to Leigh in a Cup Tie there would not be 4,000 or so Salford fans there so why would you expect everyone who would have gone to the game at Salford to want to go to watch it on another ground???

If no one turns up Sky are to blame not those who decide to stay away for whatever reason and there is only one set of people who should be ashamed of themselves, the decision makers at Sky TV.