Nor do we need a freight train to deliver tries and wins.

Best win of the year for Bongser who is also delighted for Powell's rejects, tries aside. Full marks to Adrian Lam.

Agreed, even bigger than Saints

I respect everyones opinions, especially those who have spent so many years supporting our club but,
As long as Derek is in charge, I am 100% certain we will always play in Leigh. Our next move, if there is one, will be when we are filling the LSV every week and losing revenue because it simply isn’t big enough. Will that happen, likely not, but it for me is more likely than Leigh playing regular home games outside of our town.
I also don’t see a merged code game as the way forward or likely at all. The only way that happens is if the rugby world stage goes that route, and that is never going to happen.
As for a brand, it is all about instant recognition based on a visual and, or, a single word/phrase. With that instant recognition comes more fans and a greater revenue from all the various sources. Can a brand be successfully moved, yes, but ours is intrinsically linked to the loyalty of our town/fans, and the most passionate of those fans is our owner.

VL it will happen eventually. The financial situation and TV deals will demand it but as I say, the influence of our RL legends, who have regrettably been lost to our game, is already speeding Union up and over time as more tweaks are made Union will have evolved to the point where there won't be much difference between the 2 codes and the natural progression will be to merge back to one code of Rugby. It isn't going to happen overnight, maybe 10 or 15 years, but it will happen. Both codes are suffering financially and if SKY drop League or cut our funds drastically many League clubs will struggle to survive. And, as I've said, nearly all of the Union clubs are millions of pounds in debt. They've only got 10 clubs in the Premiership next season once London Irish go under.

We will have to agree to disagree on the merge of codes I’m afraid. And no issue with that. If we all had the same opinions the world would be a boring place

Tempted to go even further best display ever at lsv the level we achieved in that first 30 mins the character and togetherness shown to see the game out surpassed all previous

I cut off some lovely cheese from the moon to put on my crackers last night and kids were free with adults paying £1.
RL are not suffering financially as we have cut our clothe at SL level, the pain is getting to SL and that’s why a virtual closed shop will happen soon in both codes.
You have a very limited understanding of debt, most folk go into debt to buy a house, they spend money on it and often extend it hoping it increases in price over time. Other folk think nothing of spending tens of thousands on a night out, they see £400m if debt at a soccer club as nothing.

Rugby League is the game of choice in Australia, PNG, Samoa and Tonga. Rugby Union is the game of choice in the Northern Hemisphere, South Africa and Argentina. Rugby League teams can survive with squads around 30, Rugby Union needs about 50 players. I think they use 15 in the team and about 8 subs. That is a much larger wage bill. Rugby League decided that Flankers were not needed, 2 less mouths to feed and more space on the field.
Rugby Union in the UK will never allow a dilution of their game, even though the biggest issues in the game are Scrums and Line-Outs and 2 extra players. I can't see anyway the two codes could ever find a common ground. It would be like asking Whitehaven and Workington to merge to form a Cumbrian Super League team.

You obviously don't have the vaguest idea of the turmoil League will be in if SKY cut their ties with SL this season, nor of the impending financial collapse on the horizon with the failure already of several large US banks plus Credit Suisse. Not to mention the threat the BRICS countries pose to the US dollar as the reserve currency. With a bit of luck your bank will raid your account in a bail-in and any investments you have will plummet
to zero and you will get a great dose of financial reality most people are facing.

So do us all a favour Maurice and keep your condescending ramblings in your fairytale world of 'I'm Alright Jack'

Why would he move us out of Leigh?
I'll agree to disagree with you on this assumption.

On the point regarding Sky dropping SL tv rights of course it could have a drastic consequence, same could be say for any tv deal with any sport.
Barring Wakey, every SL teams average attendance has gone up from previous years despite the inflation and cost of living etc. The reasons for that I don’t know but it it does bode well for the game.

Well, Ralph Rimmer has been asked by Union to help sort their financial situation out as London Irish are destined to go out of business next week.

It wouldn't surprise me if a fusion of the 2 codes is part of the discussions. It just seems a natural progression to me. It's the only way to make the game a truly National Sport.

So rugby union is going to become rugby league? World game throws its lot in with rugby league - yep. Really do not think that one is happening.

Or are you saying league is going to throw its lot in with the other lot.

The only talk of merger seems to be coming from this thread. I still haven't seen a thread of evidence of this great game merger. I'm sorry but all of this is nothing but speculation.

How do you come to the conclusion that Rimmer's involvement in Union is evidence that a merger of the two games is happening. Please, let's deal with evidence and not pipedreams. Sorry, but this is all getting a bit silly.

WYSIWYG you are like a dog with a bone on this nonsense. What you are actually gnawing on is a previous, bone-gnashing dog's white stool - he pooped the idea out. Do the same!

Ralph Rimmer and the government getting together to solve the issues of Rugby Union. What can possibly go wrong !!!
It might not be a merging of games on the horizon, it may just be Union heading into the sunset.

I see that London Irish have just been served with a winding up petition by HMRC. If they go under then that's 3 Premiership clubs gone in 12 months. And we think our game's finances are in trouble.

With the new Marquee announcements and IMG’s track record, I think we may see a reverse direction of players crossing codes due the money being offered in the not too distant future.

Fully professional rugby union is clearly struggling financially. As has been said previously by others on this thread, by Septi principally, the financial outlay for a Premiership side is absolutely massive.

First team squads are huge and are disproportionate to league squads despite the fact they only have to field 2 extra players. Up to 8 substitutes will be used in the Premiership plus the starting 15 (23 compared to 18 in league). The squads need numbers due to the technicality of some of the positions within their code. Tight head props are usually precisely that and nothing else (yes, I know some players can play loose head as well!)

Most clubs have women's teams attached who are also paid these days and the men's first team squad will have a mirror academy squad with lads on academy contracts. As a result Premiership teams and squads are the size of a veritable army - just check out Sale Sharks website as an example.

To add on to VL's previous comments I would have thought that when both Wasps and Worcester hit the rocks 12 months ago that given players lost their jobs as a consequence that some of them might have looked to league to give it a go and to find paid work. It didn't happen. I'm not aware of anyone who made the move to league from either club. They all seemed to find moves to the remaining Premiership clubs or to French teams.

I was surprised a little by that. Was that the fault of the players or was it reluctance on the part of league clubs to take a punt. Maybe Super League clubs simply cannot match Union Premiership club salaries.

So whilst I agree with VL that I would expect it to happen, it hasn't materialised - so far.

Yet……

Favourite moment of the game was seeing Amone put Mulhern through a gap, for his try. Top prop action from Super Leagues 2 best performing Props Forwards.

According to the Wakey fans forum it was a forward pass, whilst the first try was obstruction, and the third try was .......yawn, yawn, yawn.

At least Mulhern has avoided the end of season nudie run with Tony Clubb

- First try a cracker.
- Second as far forward as most allowed these days (yes it did look a bit didn’t it)
- Charnley robbed of a clear try by a way too quick whistle blower. The video ref basically said that was the only reason he could not give it.
- but the try of the game was the Ipape one. Locky scored two crackers but his pass to his left in the build up to that try was pure magic.
Wakey fans should complain, but not about what we did or did not do.
Bold prediction time. I think they may be a happier bunch next weekend. I think they will beat Leeds !

Don't let any Salford fans see you posting that -


Salford Reds are based in Salford on the edge of Eccles on the way to Irlam which is a big part of their attendance problem, it's so far from central Salford that a lot of their fans from the Willows day's didn't follow them to the new stadium.

Also, Salford is it's own City in the Greater Manchester conurbation & they don't like the two to be confused.

Maybe LiNZ merely meant that Salford are a club in GREATER Manchester. Then again so are Leigh and Wiggin. To be honest a lot of Salfordians accept the former (and the M postcodes). After the Arena atrocity, there were cuddly bees and worker bee posters in many Salford pubs and a lot of the youngsters had WB tattoos. You won't see that sort of thing from Leythers toward the pies though.

Nice to see you post again, Ste

Almost exactly my idea.
Bolton as an area & the Asian community also are the most untapped but largest potential growth area for a club like Leigh (or even Wigan, but us first hopefully)
Take a game to Bolton, make it Wigan & any remaining seats unsold offer to Bolton Wanderers season tickey holders 'for free'. Not sure of the capacity at Bolton but there is potential to get over 20,000 for that game.