So here we are at the end of the first regular season with the Middle (up/down) 8s and what do we find? Suprise, Suprise an influx of overseas players to shore up the ranks of the worried/aspirational. So spending that some cannot afford and more overseas players to block the UK player pathway. You could never have predicted that eh?

The amount of overseas signings and the number of clubs making them, as the middle 8's approach is disappointing.

We need to bring in an early deadline, say 1st June, after which no more players can be registered for that season.

Deadline is waaaaaaay too late

I debated his point on the Leeds board. When talking about the likes of Wakefield and HKR bringing guys from Down Under. Was their recruitment any different under franchising? Were they throwing in young home grown players then? Not really, HKR go the Aussie route as usual, Wakey make up a squad of misfits and loans really as usual.

Can you honestly point me out a team that's recruiting/promoting differently to what they did for the last few years of licensing?

We went down the English route and signed Bailey we got a great 14 minutes out of that total waste of space

Yes just look at the number of signings over the last month or two and compare to the signings at this time of year last season.

Plus I don't have the numbers but it seems clubs in the bottom half of super league have a higher number of overseas players in their squads than previous years?

Well Wakey who seem to be the major ones bringing in a load of new guys had to bring Brian Smith in and he's been in Aus for god knows how long so he'll be bringing in guys he's seen and watched over there.

Did you predict it?

Smith is well known for shipping out any players he thinks not up to it and bringing in his own men quickly so expect a few more changes yet

Smith is well known for not winning silverware in a lifetime of trying.

Wakefield have signed Walker, Mullaly, Tansey, Howarth who are English.
They swapped Sio, Locke, Tupou for Sammut, Ryan and Collis.

What's the problem.

Boom and Bust, which one will go first?

What else did you expect to happen.

There are 8 clubs playing for 4 SL spots and all of them will be doing everything possible to be in SL next season.
Clearly, under the "franchise" system" there was no need to make short term signings at the end of the season.
Instead, clubs\would be working on their recruitment for the following season.
However, we now have a scramble for safety, which will be followed by the "successful" middle 8 clubs fighting over scraps in order to
put a squad together for next season.
Mind you, these same clubs will get to do the whole thing over again for the middle 8's next season so maybe the answer is to go with an average squad for the first part of next season and wait until the split before bringing in the big guns.

What is crazy, is the fact that at least a third of the clubs in SL & the Championship are affected.

The new structure, whilst offering some end of season excitement, is the most destabilizing act to be seen in our sport since it's inception.

Your last sentence is dead right, it should have been the bottom club face the top club in the championship

The signing deadline should be brought forward one month. It's way too late.

Agreed, it's clear to see.

Not something that can't be amended for next season though.

Yup, deadlines are the key thing. For me the Challenge Cup deadline for Super league clubs should be the first round the club is involved in. The deadline for SL should be a couple of months earlier.

Agree about deadlines, my club is the same with signing players to try to improve for the eights. Put the deadlines in at least two months early.

I don't mind the format so far (i wasn't that impressed when it was announced, but there seems to be some excitement for the 8's and with 9k at Odsal on Sunday the championship has definitely benefited of having some form of P&R) , with Sheffield now going full time hopefully it will make the championship clubs even more competitive, but things do need tweaking and the deadline for signing new players is the main one.

Nothing to stop financially struggling clubs having a small, poor squad for 20 rounds, then signings a load of players on two month contracts and stay in SL.

Agreed. I don't have a big problem with the new system; let's give it a fair chance before we start throwing out hands up in the air. But yes, the deadline needs a tweak. No big deal, though.

Brian Smith has put in place many great setups before leaving clubs, left Hull in 1990 and left a legacy/team that won the premiership the following year with pretty much the same team with a lot of good clubmen & barely an international of note.
He's done the same thing in RU too.
But then you're such a know nowt you wouldn't know stuff like that eh...mets cela dans ta pipe et fume-la

Same people moaning about the system before it came in still moaning about it now shocker.

Saints have also signed 2 overseas fullbacks but are they getting it in the neck for avoiding relegation? It's simple you get the quality where it's available.

The stranger thing is clubs not already spending the cap from the start of the year.

But that's up to chairmen and coaches.

I've certainly not been disappointed with the close competitive nature of the league where until the last week the top 8 was not settled and there is now more to come. Is 4 too many?

Maybe but if it was bottom two that would exclude many teams from 7 games I'm sure those chairmen would be griping about unfairness if they were just simply frozen out of the season.

To be honest, I think it's a sign of middle 8 working well.
The fact that we are coming to the end of the league and clubs are desperate to get every win they possibly can is great news for those wanting to see good competitive games.
Last year Wakefield sent a few players off for early operations rather than wait till off season as we weren't relegated and we weren't really in the race for top 8. That meant what had actually been good form since Webster took over dropped off because we were being "sensible" with the players we had. Good for those individual players probably but not good to watch. This year we are breaking our neck to get every possible advantage going into the middle 8.......while staying within budget (hence the players leaving to fund those coming in)

On dear are the deadwood at the bottom of super league getting nervous? Leigh have been building for 3 seasons now and the only reason we have been allowed to build is the increase in funding over the last 2 seasons from the rfl which as allowed us to increase wages and go full time coupled with the club saying to the youngsters we have a clear path now to promotion by winning matches and not via some stupid franchise nonsense and how many pies you self at halftime.

The standard in the championship as grown this year and now Sheffield going full-time will bring it up and Leigh and Bradford get up it means 2 more stronger teams in the championship next year and the benefits it brings to that league.

It's not the end of the world if your team drops down the funding is there you can bring youngsters through and you get the middle 8 games again.

If your teams could enough you stayup\ go up its in the clubs hands and before the doom and gloomers go on about clubs will go bust... What's was the excuse when franchising was in place......bring on the middle 8's

Franchising was an awful concept, it must have been so demoralising for the championship clubs know there was no light at the end of the tunnel and for the SL clubs once it got to the point that a play off spot was out then they stopped playing. How is that value for money.
The big goal of franchising was financial stability and an improved national game, that worked out as London, Bradford and Wakey almost going bust, falling crowds and a national team that is probably worse than it was except for the inclusion of a few OZ based (in some cases trained) players!!!

I couldn't give a toss about imports, youth, franchising ect I just want to be entertained at meaningful games on a weekly basis. Hopefully there'll be more of those this year than for the last 3