Realistically, can anyone see a big money backer investing his hard earned for 2 or 3 years in a heartland club, when the franchise process is not really a process at all, or at least not one with any discernable fairness.

Of course if that backer is given an assurance he will definitely be in SL and that he can have as many overseas players as he liked to give them a huge advantage in a lower league. They can then justify their flawed decision process by saying the team is successful and ready on the playing field as well. Mr Samuels-he done good.

Come on guys, Gateshead now overflowing with overseas players (how do they pay them on crowds of 400) and Rod Findlay (ex?)RFL employee who headed the franchise committee now working for them too.

Gateshead/Toulouse in. No one out. Closed shop of 16 clubs and only about 14 of the remaining current 19 RFL member clubs left in existence.

...and so my fellow Rugby League fans: ask not what the RFL can do for you - ask what the RFL can do for itself.

Answer: Whatever it likes when the clubs outside Super League are too scared to challenge them. Why won't they, its not as if the RFL can withold funding. What funding there is has so many conditions not many if any will get it.

There will be a few more Donnys and Rochdales over the next 18 months

In all honesty, I can't see us putting 70 past many teams, at the moment!



From what I hear, the rumblings of discontent are beginning, amongst the Championship clubs, but whether they have the (collective) guts to do anything about it, remains to be seen.

Maybe, but they would doubtless concoct some weird and wonderful league system, to decide who would participate in the k-o stages! Personally, while I admire Northern Rail for their sponsorship, I would rather see more 'proper' (Championship) league games, and less 'artificial' (NRC) ones.

Unfortunatly its 12 Months too late Alan.
The minute all the clubs agreed to a no appeals process last July was the minute we signed the fate of Many clubs outside of SL.

I seem to remember nobody gave a stuff about us when we were in trouble in the past and didn't waste any time taking our players.

I wonder how much money the RFL could afford in a monster legal battle?

I agree. I wasn't referring to P&R though - more that it is slowly dawning on some Championship clubs, that they could/should group together and thrash out how things must be made better in the Championship, rather than sit back and wait for the RFL to thrust 'initiatives' on them. (Starbug correctly identifies the many strings attached to the '£100k' SKY money, for example.) I know our club wants to be proactive on achieving change, and I reckon some other clubs do - the big question is whether everyone is willing to join them.

Another very small example - 'Game On' magazine was 'imposed' on the Championship clubs. Many seized on this as an opportunity, either because of cost, or downright laziness. (it takes an effort to produce a programme) Now, the publishers of 'Game On' have said they have had enough, at the end of this season - as predicted by Leigh. What are the clubs going to do about that?

I didn't know the Game On people had said that - lightweights!

It was an ambitious project Game On, but 2 pages on a game does not do it or the clubs justice.

The fact that the clubs aren't paying them may have had something to do with it - or be an indicator of what the clubs think of it!



Also, they are fed up of trying to beg/bully/steal material from the Championship clubs - including those who were in favour of it!

Fully agree with you Alan, next week (Sun 14th June v Gateshead Thunder) will be our first home Sunday match since Batley on 22nd March........12 weeks ago !!!.................little wonder people get out of the "rugby fix" habit, in between we've had just 2 Thursdays and Easter Monday, I will be very surprised if at least one NL club does'nt go to the wall pre 2010 !

A possible solution is to adopt the Scottish Football Lge system (Divisions 1-3) which operate with just 10 clubs in each division but play each other home and away twice...............I can already hear coaches crying that would be too much rugby............but no club can continue to exist in modern stadia on 10 league games in a season that runs from Feb to Sept !!

I remember back in 1991-92 we were in an 8 team 2nd division and we played everyone four times, that seemed to work.

The fact of the matter is that there should be more league games to make the comp more financially viable for teams.

The amount of Sunday games is absolutely ridiculous and i hope the clubs do something about it for next season ,has this happened in SL at all this season ie. 1 Friday home game in 12 weeks for Wigan say .

That's what I think too, Dave. On the eight team league, I think everyone was getting sick of the sight of each other, by the end of the season - didn't London Broncos play Oldham seven times? (four league games, plus Challenge Cup, plus Regal/John Player Trophy plus Lancs. Cup{??}) I know the format of the NRC has changed this year, but for me, the 'Group' stage is still a very artificial way of getting to eight teams for a k-o trophy.

Back in 1998 Leigh played everyone in that league three times.

You mentioned about teams being sick of the sight of each other, what about Leigh and Salford in the 2003 season?

2 Cup games,
2 league games,
1 play off game and one Grand Final.

I think if the NRC is going to continue they need to split it in a East and West format and you play all teams once with the top four making the quarter finals, or even just top 2 qualifying for the semi-finals. Again back in the days of the Trans Pennine Cup in 2000 and 2001 this provided a number of fixtures although thinking about it from memory they were taken from league games as it was the big 18 team division at the time.

And if in addition to the the two cup league games, Leigh and Salford were to have met in the 2003 final at Spotland,it would of resulted in the ridiculous sitution of playing each other on 7 occasions in one season...

Did we finish with 13 men in any of those 7 Salford games? I know we drew the first one and lost the following six

Rowley and Bibey were both sent off in one of those games at the willows by Ian Smith. Was it Phil Kendrick sent off for a head high on Cinch at Spotland? Also didn't Rob Ball get his marching orders in one?

I think the RFL should be applauded by ensuring "Care in the Community" is working in their assistance in this years fixtures....

Think we had a man sin-binned in the league game at the Willows as well, and our best spell of the game was with 10 men



Clinch was the scourge of us last year; was a bit of a swan-dive in the final, wasn't it? Got pelters after that for the next however many games.

Worst Grand Final performance of all-time though, and we've had a few

You are right I forgot the Spotland Cup Final... my therapy was working til that point.... losing 20-5 at halftime and 36-19 overall.... Yes Phil Kendrick did get sent off for a late high tackle on Clinch who milked it for all he was worth. I think that was Phil's last first team game as well...

That dressing room was an interesting place to be...