I cant see the problem with duel-registering. Though think there needs to be a limit of 2 players from the parent club. Though I dont agree with the amount of Wire players Swinton were allowed to field last week.

Stealth,
Why is it so disgusting how the Club broke this story?

Do you think they should have told you before it was confirmed?

It went in the Towns paper and on Thursday it was tweeted, on youtube, on the Forums and the Cougarmania.

I posted it there myself.

I don't think the delivery was disgusting. Paul March explained how we had been left in this predicament and explained the terms of the partnership in a video. A bit better than in text in my opinion.

I don't don't think you would have liked the news if it had been delivered by Gary Fawcett to your house written across the belly of a lapdancer in cream.

If you think Gary or Paul are doing such a disgusting job then maybe you should go an offer some them the benefit of your knowledge face to face instead of being a keyboard warrior.

Yes some people will not accept change. A few may now accept change and stay away. I think it will be a few.

However staying in the Championship will ensure crowds come from Fax, Fev etc. IE hundereds larger. Also the new offer of season tickets may bring a few down.

You could even try watching it to see if you don't like it before slating off all involved before the first game.

Just because a business is acting in a manner that is considered within the standards of the profession does not mean that it isn't acting unethically. Sometimes, the system is unethical. Take the banking industry or estate agency for example.

Does the club really only appeal to a limited audience? Only 20 years ago there were 5 times the amount of fans coming though the turnstyles. Successive boards of directors have consistently failed to ask the question. Why? Most of those people are still around, why are they not coming? Has anyone bothered to ask or research why? Over the last 10 years the clubs marketing strategy has been terrible. It has constantly targeted only one section of society, young families. This is flawed on a lot of levels. After combat sports, Rugby League is one of the most violent sports there is, the product on the field is hardly conducive for bringing kids down to. Though if you are going to attract kids down you have to align it with a strategy that retains these kids when they become adolescent and have to pay more to get in otherwise it's virtually pointless. But nothing is being done, the whole strategy is flawed and one dimensional. The club seems to have no idea as how to communicate with fans. Here's a money saving idea, shut the clubs website down, it's hardly ever up to date, it is poorly laid out, difficult to navigate and shows the clubs image in a bad light. It is a complete waste of money. Even the clubs social media offerings are amateurish, it should be the most up to date platform the club has. With retweets and sharing club news can be spread quickly even more so than that old fashioned yet ever so effective word of mouth. The biggest news story of the week wasn't even mentioned until 2 days after the local weekly paper and then in a manner that assumed everyone knew. Then there's the customer service. We have kit launches so close to Christmas most have bought all their presents and even then, can you take one away there and then? The shop was a great idea, but folk who weren't regulars were asking me if it was a shop or an office? The game day experience is terrible, the staff that do work there work their backside's off but there isn't enough of them. Try getting a burger and a pint without missing 10 minutes of the second half so I don't bother and the money stays in my pocket. The stewards look like they've been taken off the doors of the 101 and are generally ill mannered and intimidating. Not exactly what you want if you're trying to attract families down.

Keighley RLFC is a business and if we are to survive we have to move with the times.
What we do need to do is get behind the Marchy and the club, we are grief strickon with injury at this present, i do know some of these players are going to be out for at least 6-8 weeks.
It's not ideal to be a feeder club but i do think we should look at the positives at present and any help with the squad can only be a good thing.
As you are all aware the majority of championship clubs are fighting to keep there heads above water and just being ignored by the RFL, what we can do is help our club and fill the terraces and pump some much needed cash back into the club and support our team.
If the we fail off the pitch then we won't have a club.
Lets all get behind the cougars today and hopefully see a much needed victory.

Firstly, I have written to the club and the RFL about this matter.

Secondly, I have seen the video with Paul March and I have no issue with him, in a results orientated job he obviously wants the best 17 players on the field possible and I respect that. My issue is with the board allowing us to become another team's feeder club and less importantly that such an important story was not broken directly through the club, but through the local paper.

Why do you feel the need to use personal insults such as "keyboard warrior" in order to construct your argument? All I am trying to do is put my point across in a constructive manner that I disagree with what is going on. Yes I'm a little angry about it but only because I care about the club and the game of Rugby League. Everyone on here is entitled to their opinion, whether you agree with it or not. The personal stuff is uncalled for and I know you're better than that.

The situation for me is simple. There are those who are totally against the link up and due to that will not be seen on the terraces this season. Others will accept it and hope that it works out. Why people feel the need to slate others for their views baffles me and shows us fans in a bad light. If people want to stay away that is their call and who am I to criticise that.

I hate when people use terms such as "true fans" and such like. It suggests inferiority and whether you have been a fans for 30+ years of 3 weeks does that matter?

Whatever your viewpoint move on.

Good post.

Stealth I agree with what you are saying regarding the lack of spirit shown by the club, the website and the atmosphere. Been there and tried to do something, went to over 50 businesses with hospitality folders and free tickets. The main pull, and you can see that with Bradford City, is a winning team. £14.00 to watch a losing team week in week out will not work.

Stealth,
May i ask what you be gaining if you wrote to the RFL? Do you think they will listen to you above the directors, Marchy etc. Nope I dont think so. You seem to think that if you boycott Keighley Cougars or any other Duel-Reg rugby grounds will make some difference, well it wont!!!
I agree with Goosey with business etc and also your last comment, £14.00 to watch a losing team week in and week out, I dont think I would attend either.

I've written to the RFL not in a way as to undermine the directors of the club, but to highlight my concerns about the feeder club system and how in my opinion it gives paired clubs an unfair advantage over those who choose to remain independent. Also to demonstrate that games in the championship are likely to be decided by the quality of players that parent club chooses to provide any given game week. Also in the hope that like minded fans across all clubs do similar and the RFL take these comments on board.

Just out of interest, does anybody know how badly the clubs league attendances dropped 3 seasons ago when we started on -9 and hardly won a game all season. Or perhaps more relevantly compare them to last season?

If this is whats happening on here with what I think are all good loyal fans and by the sounds of it have followed the club like myself for many years then I hate to think whats going to start happening out on the terraces soon. I have already witnessed fans have little petty arguments because some have different opinions to others. I have to completely agree with the post that stealth put about the state the clubs in, he couldn't have hit the nail on the head any better. For me this 20,000 season ticket was a great idea but can you tell me when all these kids/families come flocking to the ground as our directors are saying what is going to keep them coming week in week out because it's not all about the rugby and I do know a little about this as I have a 2yr old and a 6yr old that is rugby mad and after all these years of him coming from been in a pram I can no longer get him to Cougar Park and the reason he would rather stay at home with his mum is because and his words are "cougars are boring". The only good thing the club had was the Piccolo play group that used to go on before a game, he loved it in their and the girls were great with them but even thats gone now. For me the whole experience has gone from keighley, the music is all wrong, there are no curtain raisers or half time rugby from the junior clubs, no dancers and nothing going on in the entrances. For me the whole dayout at cougar park should be great value for money from the lads on the ptch to the stuff off the pitch.

Yes in this day an age you have to make cutbacks and I fully understand the club must be run like a business and this is where it has goine wrong in the past but come on this regime has stripped the club back to a point where its back to the bare bones and this is a step too far.

My opinion this season will be one of the hardest years we have had for a long time, not a good year ahead. Like I have said on numerous occasions I do not want to see the club fail no matter who is in charge but why should I throw my money at a club when its not giving anything back or helping it self.

Well said , I agree with you 100% on every pointand the only thing to add
is the lack of spirit from the board .... no input at all from them . The atmosphere
has gone and everything has just imploded on itself.

All the good work done in the past has unravelled and is in a heap on the floor.

Hasn`t done Hunslet any good has it??

As your comments what you put above Stealth,
20 years ago correct me if i am wrong!? that you was not even a teenager? so Rugby League must of been so wrong for you to WATCH! as your quote "most violent sport there is, the product on the field is hardly conducive for bringing kids down to" Do they play this sport in schools?? BOXING is one of the most violent sport there is compared to rugby being the most CONTACT sport there is.
Setting rules on children oh lets just frighten them away before any chance of coming to the game and also its for parents to tell their children too! Do you have any? well if you did you would warn them before hand too! not just one person responsible for their behaviour.

Stewards they are there if any trouble, and also to prevent trouble, thats what they are trained for, what do you expect them to do open their arms to give you a cuddle and kiss? Ive not had any problems with the stewards, never ill mannered or intimidating as you say.

I think everyone is severly underestimating what this will do to twinned clubs figures, I know myself and many many others will not travel away to any twinned clubs grounds, will not put a penny towards them, then there are the loyal fans who have had enough who will also walk away from it, Maybe not all at once but wait for next years season ticket numbers, Without being rude or coming accross as arrogant, i would have thought that every penny would count and every single fan that comes through that turnstile would matter, then there is the beer sales etc which would also take a hit. Personally i think this is a Knee jerk reaction at Keighley only 2 games into a 26 game league.

Good luck but i already see the curtain coming down on a disillusioned cougar park.

2 Games into the league campaign and this from Hunslet, as time goes on it will be 5 DR in each team as well as Swintons trick of signing year long loans. Goodbye Identity.

The club stated that our dual registration strategy for 2013 would be an arrangement whereby we would have 4 players from Leeds Rhinos joining the club on long term dual registration agreements. Since that initial announcement, we have always been open and honest about our plans in both our communications to our supporters and the rugby league community in general.

The dual registration agreement has in fact only seen us take 3 players on long term dual registration agreements for the 2013 Kingstone Press Championship, in Jimmy Keinhorst, Jimmy Watson and Liam Hood.

Since our strategy was put in place it has become clear that other Kingstone Press Championship clubs would be using a much wider selection of dual registration options with Workington Town for example dual registering the entire Widnes Vikings squad.

We also note with interest that the high profile option of fielding Kylie Leuluai and Richard Moore in last week’s game at Leigh Centurions drew much attention. When In actual fact Dewsbury, Doncaster, Keighley, Swinton, Whitehaven, Workington and York all fielded dual registration players with over 100 Super League appearances between them at the weekend. Two of these players represented Dewsbury. This is not a criticism by any means, we are simply highlighting that this is happening across the majority of clubs. These clubs are operating within the rules, but it does outline that the change in our approach to dual registration is necessary to remain competitive.

It also outlines a significantly unfair and bias press attitude to the Hunslet and Leeds partnership given that we are operating no differently to a number of other partnerships. In fact we would like to place on record here the very positive way in which Gary Hetherington and his team at Leeds have approached our partnership.

Our key responsibility as a Board of Directors is to react quickly to changing circumstances to ensure we remain competitive and retain our current League status whilst maintaining financial sustainability and viability moving forward. To that end it would be foolish of any business not to maximise the opportunities available within its market place. Accordingly we will now look to do that by working closely with Leeds Rhinos to dual register other players where we feel that will offer a potential benefit to both clubs. It is important to note that all playing decisions at Hunslet Hawks will be the sole remit of our Director of Rugby Darren Williams and our Head Coach Barry Eaton.

In an ideal world of course, ourselves and all Championship clubs would not need to enter into partnerships or dual registration agreements. In our case as a 'supporter owned' club and without a significant benefactor or significant crowd levels we have to look to other means of sustainability to maintain and grow our club and more importantly to make Hunslet Hawks competitive on the field. To that end we make no apologies for acting within the rules.

Dont worry. Some of us can see the bigger picture and the damage this is going to do to the game.

I know I've said this before but I think they've been left with no option, obviously every fan through the turnstyle is important. So the options Cougars have are lose a few away fans who boycott twinned clubs over the next few years, or lose all away fans by playing in a division with very little away support next year. Fax are in a situation where crowd numbers are relativley healthy and squad is in no danger of being in the bottom 2 at the end of the season. Cougars on the other hand have a squad that could well end up in a relagation battle.

4 months ago when championship clubs said they were linking with sl clubs, i made the decision not to buy a season ticket, or any merchandise, or give any other contributions to the leigh club until i could see properly were this was going.Well, the last couple of weeks has proved me right and this league is now a reserve league for sl clubs,not that they are super.

As far as i'm concerned the championship clubs have drawn a line in the sand and they are saying to the fans,if you cross it you are happy to pay your hard earned money to finance reserve grade rugby.It was an easy decision for me to make, and i will now be picking and choosing my games both home and away and i will just keep my fingers crossed that the clubs see sense.

I think cougars need some inspiration on the field and someone who can lead them, Unfortunatly i dont think March is it, Dont like his tacktics or his attitude on the pitch and cant see how he could lead a decent bunch of lads, Team Spirit can over come a hell of a lot, Once that has gone, It doesn't matter what skill is there its too late, this is where i fear the twinning will cost the teams the most, No team spirit and fans turning on themselves and their club.

It is early days and it may pan out ok, I doubt it but it might, I hope the likes of swinton who are clearly abusing this do get relegated to the league of death, it would serve them right, Once one starts the registering of whole teams and taking 6 season long loanees as well as 3 DR players then everyone will be keeping up with the jones's and kill the game more.

Anyway good luck cougars, I'va always had a soft spot for you and hope you can get through the difficult times ahead.

As an ignoramus, tell me isn't this system supposed to work both ways. Your players gain experience with a higher grade of training/game exposure? As I say don't really understand the ins and outs of this system. But on the face of it can't really see any benefits to non sl clubs. According to posts I have read seems to be one way traffic.

The idea of twinning was also for the championship clubs to gain something too. Example is Batley and huddersfield, The Batley players get covered under Huddersfield Medical plan and any injuries and Operations needed will be done straight away as opposed to waiting times and NHS. This is indeed a benefit to their squad. However what has happened and i suppose Swinton started it off is getting around things, Swinton have signed 6 players who were on one year contracts with warrington, Warrington clearly telling these lads that they are being loaned out for a year, this then allows swinton to have a further 5 Dual registered players, this means Swinton could field 11 warrington players. After this everyone else immediatly started registering whole Parent clubs teams, hence the statement from Hunslet and now the mass scramble to link up.

Yet.

From Salfordlad :- "With respect you will end up as a feeder club where Cas will decide who out of their squad they think would benefit from a game at Keighley rather than doing nothing".

Agree with this.

Keighley might be seeing Kirk Dixon and Keith Mason in the red & green soon. Jake Emmitt is back in the Tigers squad for Bulls this weekend.

This has been done to save SL clubs 100k a year.

How many times will the Keighley squad go and train with the Cas team?

On Tue Cas will tell us whcih players we can use. How many times will those players train with Keighley?