exactly my thoughts

making an expansion team go through the champiopnship is just a salve to the flatcapper clubs who feel they are being left out

its the RFL being forced into a politically correct solution which isnt good for the game as a whole

so just because he backs an expansionist cause you reply with this?

look widnes will be in SL next time, we all know that

the only issue is who they will replace in there, and whether or not the RFL adds more french SL clubs at the same time

i like pepes idea of granting them entry at a later date and giving them time to prepare. i still prefer toulose over paris.

but if the RFL put in both at once as part of a 16 team SL, imagine the leap forward RL will make in france

it would be on a similar path to the 1933 - 1939 period

Get a frigging grip.

Create a Stade Francais team and throw them straight into SL?? Oh come on, even the most inbred monobrowed web-footed ocker can't really think that's a good idea???

NO youth set-up, NO local players, NO fans, NO RL heritage, NO local knowledge or passion for RL/SL. Yet another team with 2 or 3 sub-standard locals and a truck-load of Aussies no-one's ever heard of.

Bloody fantastic. Another team with <3000 fans per game, no travelling fans resulting in yet another atmosphere-less fixture in the UK. Oh, and considerable additional cost for UK fans (on top of Catalans, 'Magic', Challenge Cup games, etc) if they want to follow their team away. Just great.

If Stade Francais (or anyone else) want to participate in SL they need to demonstrate long-term commitment to building a solid local fan base, a large marketing drive and the creation of a youth and local development set-up. That takes time and money. Any team wanting to join SL needs to serve their time and prove their worth - no short cuts.

Expansion for expansion's sake is not the way forward.

exactly, Dally if some rich Sth African RU team wanted to put a team in the NRL so its stadium could be used all year round would you support them over the CC?

No, thought not. It's the same scenario.

It was a joke Mongo.

Just like every one of your cretinous posts.

sorry i just cant see past the whole bitter old man routine.

my mistake

how is it the same scenario?

not a bad proposal though an nrl team in SA back by them. if they funded it why not?

not ahead of CC, just like paris shouldnt get in ahead of widnes

for the naysers, if the following occured would you support them being thrown into SL :

1. they dont get any sky money at all. the union clubs funds everything
2. they dont cost the best deserving Championship club a spot (widnes)
3. no other SL club is relegated for them

what would the harm be then if the RFL give them an additional SL spot, and dont cost the RFL a thing?

.
if by 2018 there is not atleast five teams from mainland europe & two from wales in SLE then SLE has failed & you might as well forget it after all it will have had over twenty years of SKY money to expand the game & failed miserably.

No problem mate. Fortunately i can see past your bullsh*t though.

The game has to learn from past mistakes. As has been mentioned already, new expansion teams need to be in an area with history of the game. Which is why Stade need to be in the LER NOW and working towards a license in 2015 which gives them time to start building a junior base and win a few titles / Lord Derby cups.

Of course the Stade owners could forget all about this idea leaving this arguement pointless.

They have been told they have to and the Federation has said that they wil do so next seasonl. Personally, not convinced they have the extra money or players to do so. This season they collaborated with St. Gaudens to provide them with reserve players. It may well be that Toulouse in the LER means St. Gaudens have to drop out as they currently struggle with lack of money & players. The line-up for next year's LER is looking even more up in the air than normal - not obvious than 10 clubs will make it to the starting line.

Hope to be proven wrong, but currently all the signs are that SF XIII isn't going to happen.

Would be a joke if SF got in before Toulouse. They're a union team. What image would that send to the media? "We are that desperate for expansion that we'll take on any sister club to a union team that offers".

I doubt the NRL would suddenly drop all expansion plans if say the Wellington Hurricanes from S14 decided they wanted an NRL side.

they probably do need to have a team in the LER first before entry into SL.

the whole idea of having to go into the championship is a waste of time though, as toulose has shown

they shouldve just stayed in the LER and bid from there

The French league would benefit more from a Stade team than Super League right now.

Thomas Bosc said in RLW world the other month that getting a decent domestic competition (their version of the Championship I suppose) would be a good way of preparing the top clubs in France for SL.

The problem is the domestic game in France. Look at Dragons now they are having to use their squad and players from the UTC domestic side.

its more their location rather than whether they are a union club per se.

the fact they have loads of money doesnt hurt either i guess.

if you want to expand into a tough market, what better way than linking up with a club which is already established there?

we dont have the funds for a paris team on our own, thats for sure

At this moment a 2nd french team in superleague is a definite no-no,we have to get our own house in order first.

You are like a cracked record.

Give it a rest. We know that is your position.

As for Stade, Richard Holt once noted that the soccer sections at both Stade Francais and Racing were not followed with the same enthusiasm as the union ones. Why would rugby league be different?

I don't agree with him but it's a fair opinion.
RL in England is in a mess in parts

so if thats the criteria LEs catalans shouldnt have been included in SL?

or was RL healthier before and now regressed to being a "mess"

BS.

Heard of the term 'Recession'?
I know you don't understand it being all the way over in insignificant Australia but it has hit SL (and most British sport) BADLY. Warrington, yes Warrington who are a decently running club with good attendances and their OWN stadium were running at a big loss last year until they got to wembley; god knows about some of the others.

Catalans was a right move, im almost certain Stade or Toulouse will be.. but not '12.
I'll say it again, put one expansion franchise for '14 guaranteed and decided in '12 to the side and give it to one of the expansion clubs to create a 16 team league in '14 but next year is just too soon.

It's all about opinions,if you don't like it fine,we know what your position is as well.

Dico,do you not think we should sort out the game in our country first and if(and it's a big if) we do then we should consider a 2nd team from France.