So I wasn't the only one who had that initial reaction.

didn't realise CH had a criminal record too !

It wouldn't be for causing an obstruction, that's a certainty.

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55,000 tickets sold for USAP v Toulon at Lluis Companys tomorrow. Contrary to some reports it's not being played at the Camp Nou. I was told this morning by the captain of a local union club that the amount actually sold is more like 30 or 35,000. The Catalan press have been all over it for going on a month now and as I said to my mate, it's a shame they weren't as enthusiastic when Catalans played Warrington at the very same stadium.

Indeed lads, this is true. Gloucester fans do have a reputation, much in the way that Hull FC (unfairly in my opinion) do in RL.

Suggestions on the recent Graun RU blog indicate that there's been a lot of Greater Catalan flag-waving. Lluis Companys can't come cheap so I suspect some local government involvement.

Craig Gower back to rugby league? www.loverugbyleague.com/news_534 ... talks.html Quade Cooper, Gower... who's next?

Craig Gower back to rugby league? www.loverugbyleague.com/news_534 ... talks.html Quade Cooper, Gower... who's next?

Quote ="Catalancs"Craig Gower back to rugby league? www../news_5343-gower-in-parramatta-talks.html Quade Cooper, Gower... who's next?'" When the new NRL TV deal comes in hopefully quite a few more. Union in Aus will be on it's knees.

Quote ="Catalancs"Craig Gower back to rugby league? www../news_5343-gower-in-parramatta-talks.html Quade Cooper, Gower... who's next?'" When the new NRL TV deal comes in hopefully quite a few more. Union in Aus will be on it's knees.

Already is

maybe for getting money under false pretences ?

Exeter Chiefs face Premiership points loss over player registration. m.guardian.co.uk/sport/2011/apr/ ... pe=article

Exeter Chiefs face Premiership points loss over player registration. m.guardian.co.uk/sport/2011/apr/ ... pe=article

Another union International arrested:

Source: [urlhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-13042358[/url

And Mark Cueto of Sale Sharks banned for six weeks by his club in an attempt to gain a more favourable result from the rfu disciplinary panel after being charged with 'making contact with the eyes' of another player.

Last edit (honest

):

Source: [urlhttp://uk.reuters.com/article/2011/04/11/rugby-england-foden-idUKLDE73A26220110411?feedType=RSS&feedName=rugbyNews[/url

Its been a bad couple of weeks for the 'other code', ay.

Foden was never going to get anything more than a warning.

I've just been told Cueto's got nine weeks. Can't find a link yet though.

Nine weeks - back in plenty of time for the World Cup warm up games then, and a nice rest first to go with it.

In case anyone is interested. Currently you can get 3 tickets for the price of 2 to the Premiership Final. Visit the Aviva website.

Sale have not had a sell-out at their Edgeley Park home this season and plans to redevelop the ground have barely advanced beyond the discussion stage because the £8m the work would cost is not in place. Sale are losing around £1.5m a year, which Kennedy takes care of. The two clubs below them in the table, Leeds and Newcastle, are the other two northern sides in the Premiership. The three have the lowest average home attendances in the division and have been bankrolled by millionaire owners while other clubs have increased turnover by developing their grounds and increasing capacity. "The game in the north is dying," Kennedy says. "What we have as a sport is a bust business model. If owners stopped supporting clubs, there would only be three or four left in the Premiership." m.guardian.co.uk/ms/p/gnm/op/sPJ ... ugby-union

Sale have not had a sell-out at their Edgeley Park home this season and plans to redevelop the ground have barely advanced beyond the discussion stage because the £8m the work would cost is not in place. Sale are losing around £1.5m a year, which Kennedy takes care of. The two clubs below them in the table, Leeds and Newcastle, are the other two northern sides in the Premiership. The three have the lowest average home attendances in the division and have been bankrolled by millionaire owners while other clubs have increased turnover by developing their grounds and increasing capacity. "The game in the north is dying," Kennedy says. "What we have as a sport is a bust business model. If owners stopped supporting clubs, there would only be three or four left in the Premiership." m.guardian.co.uk/ms/p/gnm/op/sPJ ... ugby-union

Who was deriding rugby league for its porous defences? Take at look at the scoreline from Leicester yesterday.

If I were a Sale Sharks fan I'd be asking questions of Mick Hogan and his marketing team. Not a sell out but 16k isn't too shabby. One person I spoke to who went said the Reebok didn't look like there were that many in though.

I saw more people in Sale gear in town yesterday that you normally would, I wouldn't doubt that 16k made it over. But there you go- they did bang on about filling it, and nemesis has followed hubris.

On an unrelated note, took my girlfriend, a southerner whose mates play union and tried to get her to watch it more often, to her first ever RL game on Friday night. Her reaction? "Thoroughly converted". Now to work on the rest of the southerners!

I did think that it looked a bit empty at the start, but it was probably just over half full so that figure makes sense.

The West Stand lower tier was pretty full, upper tier about 2/3 and the East Stand lower tier was fairly full. I was in the North Stand which was busy and so 16,428 is about right. They didn't open the other top 3 tiers.

There has been a lot in the press about it this week, about the United and City game impacting ticket sales.

You can be like the toffs on the Planet Rugby forum and say "wendyball should have no impact on Rugby sales" - but it does, and it did. I had to give 3 of my 6 tickets away to somebody off the Sale forum as 3 friends dropped out.

I also kept a keen eye on the online ticket sales. There were a lot of limited and sold out areas that went back on general sale towards the end of the week. So I wouldn't be at all surprised if there were a lot of returns.

Nevertheless it was a good day out and despite the on field performance in the first half I look forward to it again. I am a traditionalist and love old Football grounds, but it was nice to be in a ground with nice facilities for a change and a roof above my seat.

It was also nice to see so many Sale fans around the pubs and on the train on the way back. Made it feel like an away day atmosphere, something which is hard to find in club Union with teams not bringing many away fans, or when they do they are dotted all over the ground and not sat together.

We're planning on doing it for the next 3 seasons, so if they time it right and do it against a team with a big away following - we should be able to get a bigger crowd each year.

All makes sense. Football is this country's biggest sport and anyone who doesn't think that crowds in the North West, one of the traditional hotbeds of the game, will choose the main football event over RU, RL, cricket or whatever is dreaming.

Odd but had Liverpool beaten United in that round, or had Notts County clung on and knocked us out at Meadow Lane, Sale could have probably added on 3k. And Salford wouldn't have had such a low attendance as well.

I think the United v City semi-final is a bit of a red herring. 90,000 capacity at Wembley. 45,000 each for City and United. United get Over 75,000 every week and City over 45,000. 30,000 fans who didn't have tickets to watch their club this weekend. Add in to the equation the 6.8 million people in the North West. Sale Sharks got 16,000 for the only professional game of top flight rugby union in the entire north of England. 16,000 for a game Mick Hogan and his team marketed the hell out of. 16,000 for a game that the club (Brian Kennedy) threw plenty of money at. Maybe Mr Kennedy was right and union really is dying in up north.

It's a shame both Newcastle and Leeds can't go down. Two awful sides with embarrassing defence and monotonously flat attack.

No way was there 16,000 on at Bolton. And the atmos was awful you could hear a pin drop.

Craig Gower to pull on the blue of Italy RL? stevemascord.com/2011/04/15/gowe ... for-italy/

Craig Gower to pull on the blue of Italy RL? stevemascord.com/2011/04/15/gowe ... for-italy/

[url=http://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/sport/rugby/8974230.RUGBY__Refs_halt_violent_clash/"A ruffians game played by gentlemen"

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