For the Uneducated, Wakefield is the 11th largest "City" in the UK, the Wakefield District is made up of the "City" of Wakefield and 5 "Towns" (of Normanton, Pontefract, Featherstone, Castleford and Knottingley) other "Towns" in the district of Wakefield include, Ossett, Hemsworth, Horbury, South Kirkby & Moorthorpe, Hemsworth and South Elmsall HTH

That's amazing!
So again, are Fev going to get in the region of 5k extra regular fans from the area, when the bigger city of Wakefield and town of Castleford have pro teams already? Any glory supporting fans in the area will have got Leeds shirts for Christmas already

Yep, to replace their Bradford shirts.

Exactly, only the most successful, trophy winning sides will attract fans from outside their immediate area

What exacly defines 'do a Leigh' ?

is it :

1 - Actually gaining promotion in 2005 to SL rather than being placed there ?

2 - Average crowds of nearly 5000 once in SL even though we had no time to recruit a competative side (what is Londons average with a competative SL side, never mind one that will get spanked !)

or 3

Thrive and grow in a wooden closet with an environment and facilities London can dream of ?

Oh, I get it, getting only 5 points out of a possible 60 (2 of them being against London !) Halifax a few seasons before won only 1 game. (was that against London too ?)

No promotion should have been an end to the likes of Featherstone, Halifax, Sheffield and Leigh. They deserve to knock on the door because of perseverence, hard work and having fantastic loyal supporters. Well, here they are queuing up waiting to be given the chance they deserve.

The championship is a fantastic division. The dream of getting promoted should never have been taken away in the first place !!

Londons honeymoon period is now coming to a close I'm afraid. I hope this year that London dont do a 'Leigh' !!

The championships are a fantastic division, and they should concentrate on being a fantastic division rather than being a division where the sole reason it exists is for clubs to try and get out of it.

I don't think all clubs see it as being the "sole reason it exists". Promotion provides possibilities, however remote, that they can aspire to improve toward. That some may never get promotion is irrelevant if it can be used as a driver for management, sponsors and fans to improve the club.

Yet P+R removes the necessity for that ‘possibility’ to be based upon management, sponsors and fans improving the club. It is based solely on the first team put out.

There is nothing wrong the clubs in the championships using the improvement of the championships and themselves as their drive for management, sponsors and fans to improve the club. There is no reason for the only driver for management, sponsors and fans to improve the club management, sponsors and fans to improve the club to be getting out of the championships.

Dreamer is right of course.

Wouldn't evny Smokey telling the Championship soccer clubs that they'd never get out of that league because he'd decided it was best to make the Premier League a closed shop with its current constituent clubs and scrap promotion
and relegation arrangements.

Yeah, cos they are comparable. I mean its not like the parachute payment for one Championship club is more than the entire turnover of RL is it.......................Oh.

Moan and moan about not being allowed in SL for years, go on about how good the attendances will be when you get your chance, get promoted, get rubbish crowds, get relegated straight away.

Hull KR averaged less than 2K when they were in National League One....do you recall ?

and without a generous benefactor pouring money in HKR would be bust despite their growth.

Thank you Smokey. Saved me the time.

Its an argument I will never understand why they make.

“look at club A its rubbish and failing, why not promote us, with a bit of luck we could do that as well”

You really don't get it do you ?

Leigh still exist, Leigh are thriving and growing and Leigh deserve the chance to go further considering they have on of the best grounds in the RFL !!

2005 was a dog of a year. As for rubbish crowds ?? I'd check again mate, as our lowest attendace was 3200 v London and we had 3 7k plus crowds in a ground of a limited capacity of 8000.

Franchising has almost killed off some SL clubs as they pay top money to players to remain competative. Its about time that people from the top realise that Franchising is doing no good for the game.

Bring back the dream and embrace new blood. Thats not expansion, thats promotion and relegation !!

As would last seasons ' League Leaders ' in SL

True. But Hull KR and Huddersfield both have said generous benefactors willing to bankroll them.

Does Mr Nahaboo and his pyramid scheme, sorry mutli-level marketing operation, have enough money to be putting in more than Crossland and Davey? (because lets be honest, fev arent getting a 7-9k average)

Super League feels like it has lost its appeal at the moment anyway, gone are the days that me and all my mates where excited when Friday came round so we could all go the pub and watch the match (whoever was playing).

The Championship chases Super League like Super League chases the NRL, the only difference is The Championship has closed the gap whereas the Super League is further away than it ever has been.

Over recent years the Championship has grown IMO, with the TV coverage, sponsors, attendances, competitive teams, stadium developments, club structures & finances, to the point where there is very little between the bottom 4 of Super League and the top 4 in the Championship. im sure somebody will pick holes in this though.

SL needs to be cut, as its just not "Super" enough anymore!

Don't get what?

De ja vu. Give us a chance! we're thriving! we've got 1000s of supporters just waiting to turn up when we get into SL!

Im not sure why you're comparing yourself to the WORST SUPPORTED AND RUN CLUB IN SUPER LEAGUE?? London are not the benchmark, we are absolutely pants and if that's all Leigh and Featherstone plan to offer (better than London) then Im not impressed and neither should the RFL be!!!

While Super league is anything but ' Super ' right now there are no Championship clubs anywhere near the level required to step up

So the main thrust is: leave SL as it is. Can someone tell those running the SL clubs? After all, it's them who are bringing P&R back. What do they know? They're only running the show....... with their money.

Lack of P and R is only part of the reason I stopped attending RL matches, just got bored with it, I stopped enjoying it, but that doesnt mean I am no longer interested in the sport, I am however, less blinded by club loyalty than some others

??

There are several who would make a good a go at it as some 30-50% of the current incumbents.

Fact is (as you've pointed out many times) SL is far from being 'super'.