I am a 17 year old playing in the North West Counties League and our season has just finished. Why ? we had game after game cancelled this last winter cause of snow water frost.
Please can somebody organise our league to change to Summer Rugby. I'm being told the old timers at the head of the leagues don't want to change??

Speak to your club officials, it's being discussed at quite an advanced level at present.

See this press Release from Barla today.

BARLA PRESS RELEASE
“Summer Rugby”

Following a BARLA Board of Management meeting, the Board have issued a statement which they feel offers clear guidance of its views they will be presenting at the Community Board meeting on Friday 30th April.

The Board’s view is that; at this present moment in time, The British Amateur Rugby League Association are committed to providing winter competition for teams at all age groups who wish to remain playing the game, in the present September to May playing season. They would however offer support to any members who wish to make changes to their playing season.

BARLA would support a more detailed study into moving the Youth & Junior from its current window, but believe that there is clear evidence emanating from the open age ranks that there is no desire to move their playing season. There is a groundswell of support to continue playing from September to May.

BARLA does not dismiss the idea of summer rugby, but the Association has to act in the best interests of and on the instructions of its members.

Kind Regards,

Roger Fagge
Administrator
The British Amateur Rugby League Association

If open age did move to Summer Rugby, would that render BARLA as a governing body useless, as the RFL would assume control of the summer rugby?

It's a joke that we have two separate structures, one for Winter, one for Summer; a joke that I had to go training on swamps in the bitter cold, rain, dark; joke that we had 8 games called off due to bad weather! A bludy joke I tell thee!

They already are.

The arguement for Junior summer rugby and open age summer rugby are worlds apart and should not be considered together. We will never improve our young players core skills, pace, tackling, awareness etc playing in freezing temperatures on heavy pitches and in the rain. Simples.

I think that juniors should play in summer so as to improve skills and increase participation, but open age should stay in winter simply due to the pitches being too hard in summer.

Myth, if anything there just about right to play on

Having played both, summer everytime for me

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It's not a myth, I've played in both summer and winter and as a prop/fat lad who cant play anywhere else, I know which I prefer.

So 'pitches too hard' translates to 'I am too unfit to cope in the heat'?

To be fair it is a killer playing in the summer. I don't see why the winter stuff can't have a lengthy break while the weather is at its worst. Maybe start fixtures around late August, play to the end of November. Then restart in February with the remainder of the season.

What is the point in that?

Would never work, you're effectively having 2 pre-seasons, stopping momentum etc.

How summer pitches are at present cannot be judged, as they are currently being played on all winter, if this wasn't the case they'd be much better in the summer.

I agree, having played in both, the pitches are fine in my opinion for summer rugby.

Every time i read something about this subject its always in the same format. i.e.
the players (juniors and a lot of OA as well) want to play in the summer.

The administrators like Mr Roger Fagge from Yorkshire always say stop in winter.

Its so frustrating, that the administrators control what the players want. WE do not want to play in the cold freezing temperatures of winter. Mr Fagge's letter above is very bias to staying in winter- he is very far away from what his members want!!(albeit i'm only a junior member and from North West at that).

I think one concern is how teams will lose players in July/August

And a valid one, but those involved in junior rugby know the numbers drop in Dec/Jan anyone by those that are playing for 'fun'.

The intake would be much more as we're not competing with the football season. Not every family can go away for 2 weeks at the same time, teams would deal with it just like they do when it's half term etc. in the winter.

The proposal as I understand it is to have 2 halves to the year:

Sept - Nov and Mar - July. No fixtures during holidays.

i can see both sides of the situation,has a coach of an u10s team my own personal view is we should be playing from march to october, HOWEVER the rfl and barla need to put together a plan to properly make sure that pitches are fit and safe for a heavy contact sport.

for example my team played last saturday on pitch which only had about 60% of the field with a grass covering,this after only a two week dry period and the pitch was like a car park,i had kids with cut and bruised knees and elbows and grazes on their legs and backs.

there is no doubt that in training kids learn far more in summer than in the winter but again we dont train with any contact in the summer due to the risk of injury to players,imo the rfl and barla need to run a pilot scheme possibly using the conference clubs or clubs mark teams to trial summer rugby and fund the clubs to ensure that pitches are properly maintained and watered to ensure safe ground for kids to play on,that way they can judge the cost of keeping well maintained pitches and asess the affects of school holidays and the numbers playing the game before passing this on to clubs outside the conferance club mark structure.

Players are just as likely to get twisted ankles in the mud, or hypothermia from the cold. If pitches are that hard, then they are obviously poor pitches anyway and not suitable in either summer or winter. The school holidays argument is stupid - some players may miss the odd game or two, but participation rates would double so this wouldn't have any impact at all.

The cost of maintaining pitches would equal or be less than what it costs for teams to pay for winter training facilities. Of course things would need to change regarding the pitches, if rules are put in place they should be adhered to.

No winter rugby on them for starters would make them alot better!