I couldn't give exact timelines, but i'm pretty certain Wakefield were looking to build long before SL went for franchises, SWAG has been around for quite some time iirc. As for Cas, we've been working towards a stadium for a long long time. I guess both clubs were actually looking to the future and trying to make themselves bigger. Shame people like you, who think they know everything, sitting comfortably on the bandwagon of a successful side, always seem to want to look at the smaller clubs and their fans and make out like they know nothing about the game. Both Cas and Wakey know exactly what is needed to be successful, but reaching that goal for smaller clubs will always be difficult in a sport where not much money is thrown about, and even more so with recessions and franchise deadlines looming.

Looking and actually building are 2 very separate things.

1998, its been a long time coming

www.casinotimes.co.uk/casino/new ... 90827.html =#8000FFShame that never came off, would have been the best stadium in RL

www.casinotimes.co.uk/casino/new ... 90827.html =#8000FFShame that never came off, would have been the best stadium in RL

Of course they are different. But the point still sands that both clubs have wanted to build new grounds, long before SL went franchise crazy. It takes lots to build a stadium nowadays for any sporting club, especially smaller clubs in a sport that isn't number one in the country. The reason this last week talk of ground shares and mergers have come about is all down to politics. Without going on a political rant, we all can see in the news how money is being taken away from things such as Yorkshire Forward, school rebuilding and much more. Wakey council have also had to rethink their money and have had another look at what they had already promised the clubs. Instead of supporting two sites, they have decided to look into just one site, hence all the drama of mergers.

and what have they done about it? We are nearly 15 years down the line from professionalism and they are still playing in dilapidated grounds, and still dont have one brick laid.

You say they both know what is needed to be successful but what actually are they doing about it? Cas have been relegated twice and Wakefield have lurched from drama to disaster without a sniff of success, and both are still shifting the goalposts, changing the plans and they arent very far forward at all.

Yes it is difficult, but thats elite sport, its supposed to be difficult and i fully understand how much more difficult it is for clubs like Cas and Wakefield, but thats why they need to work together not against each other

the answer is a simple, but adamant; No

Castleford and Wakefield cannot, will not and, in my opinion, should not merge, share or collaberate in any way.

Trinity will only be trinity if they stay in the city of wakefield, locked into the bedrock of the community there

I dont really care what Castleford do....

The secret here is to keep your gob shut if you are ignorant of the facts as to what is going on and not listen to everybody and his dog who think they do like Gaslight

They have certainly got the potential, there were an extra 1,000 stayaway Cas fans turned up on Sunday to boost your attendances probably because you were playing Wakey.

Which is why they sign overseas players!!!!

Every proffesional rl team has overseas players, your point is?

Cas currently have evans, sargent, widders, mcgoldrick and chase with sargent to leave next year, we have exploited no loopholes and have less overseas players than quite a few teams in super league.

So once agin, whats your point?

Smokey I see you’re point about representing the whole district, but the five towns have no affiliation with the city and vice versa. It is, after all, just administrational boundary. There have even been idle chit chat of splitting the district up East and West.

The options the Wakefield has are playing in Glasshoughton with no opportunity to grow or temporarily playing in Barnsley where a new market could be tapped into (Trinity already get a degree of support from the area) before moving back into the Wakefield area into a new facility.

Any which ever club win the race to secure a new stadium will naturally become the dominant force in the area, so there is no need to manufacture a merged team. Although not ideal, I’d much prefer it to happen that way rather than have a fake team forced upon myself to support.

I disagree. There is a massive chance to grow there and I must be the only one to realise it. You'll be playing on your rivals' doorstep? What do you do? Market the hell in schools and give out free tickets and target would be Cas fans = getting more kids/families to your games, no?

Add to that you'd be playing in a good stadium which will bring in money through sponsorship and commercially (bigger and better restaurants than BV) etc.

I cannot for the life of me see Cas and Wakey failing to grow at GH.

Barn Door 50 ft square!!

Target covers entire barn door!

You are 3 ft away with a loaded gun!

You MISS!!!!!





















Re-read your post and then my comment.

I highlighted YOUR key point but you missed that as well!!!

=#8000FFYeah, you posted something (yet again) that makes no sense, are you trying to say Cas & Wakey (and Fev) should field a completely English team of players based out of the local area? if you are, you really are nothing short of a brain dead moron. There's an under 18s & 20s for a reason, to develop these players, not to mention countless others at other clubs.

You seem to be reluctant to to actually commit to making a point.

If its about developing young players for the english game, cas have played 11 academy trained players this year and there are plenty more around sl (and the championship for that matter) such as watts, orr, lunt, lynch, godwin, boyle and gledhill. So is your point that we should develop plenty of local players? if so we already do thanks.

The point he is apparently trying to make is that if the area is such a nursery, then why do they sign overseas players?

Now, the logic is pretty poor even at that. Why just overseas players? Why do they sign any players from outside the district at all? Whether they are Aussie or Lancastrian?

Either way, it's a stupid point. Not all of the talent stays in the area, some want different challenges. They need to replace them, and if there isn't someone good enough yet in the juniors, they will look elsewhere (again, whether that be Australia or Lancashire, etc.). They're a professional sports club, not an academy for England.

there is a huge contradiction in that mindset.

A Wakefield team playing in Barnsley is less of a Wakefield team than a Wakefield team playing Castleford which is in Wakefield. You seem to accept Barnsley as a new area to tap into, where you can get people outside of the city (small C) of Wakefield identifying with a club called Wakefield, but refuse to do the same for the areas in and around the City (big C) of Wakefield!

And yes, whichever team wins the the race will clearly become the dominant force, and will likely cause the demise of the other club. So why not merge them?

i have not read through all the pages so may have missed something.

but

if wakey agreed to go to glasshoughton


what difference would this make to the current situation?
are the builders sat poised waiting to move in?

also if cas agreed to newmarket what difference would it make to the planning process?

ie. if they agree to groundshare wherever that may be, how is the situation improved?

MAybe they can leverage more pounds out of teh council for one shared stadium that will be used more than two? People seem to think that sharing a stadium is the frist step to a merger, it doesn't have to be. At the moment both clubs are actually in a good position to do it as theya re both similiar sized, similair fan base, similiar incomes etc. It's not like one is much bigger than the other and and a chance of consuming the other.

If I was the clubs, and given the impending license renewal I'd sit down and say to the council we will share a stadium as long as A) you contribute th majority amount of pounds B) you develop the land around it to maximise the areas potential for visiting fans C) you offer it to to both cubs at the same minimal lease for a guaranteed x amount of years.

this is a person who has not read or understands the issues at hand....

go and read everything you can find on the subject, see what actually is on offer from the council and then comment again..

we have two clubs who have attracted millions of private investment into two sperate schemes... as I understand it... just need the council to honour a land loan agreement for both schemes to be built.

Infrastructure, roads etc are all covered in the planning of both projects, which include lots of community based schemes for sports facilities....


This is not just about two clubs getting a stadium each... there is so much more at stake in this for the future of sport in the city of Wakefield and the Town of Castleford...

As i understand it the council have said that they will only release the land (against which loans can be drawn) if both clubs chose one venue and share, they have NOT reduced the amount of land in value at all... we had two pieces of land , two offers, land value 2 million pounds each... now the offer is the same land , the same value, to go to one project only!this is not about available funds or cost cutting!... the wakefield scheme doesnt need the combine amount of that offer to continue... it needs the initially agreed amount and council goodwill with regard to the planning application process. The Wakefield scheme includes lots of associated sports facilities, indoor and outdoor, centres of excellence etc, for which sports foundation grants and lottery funding has been agreed, along with some very notable partners in business and education. Allied to this is the buy-in of a willing developer to include the costs of construction in the development of a wider business and retail centre...

I dont see the problem, what are the council playing at?

will someone please explain?

We are already playing on our rivals doorstep, if we go to GH we will be a cuckoo in your nest because it will be your ground and we will just be tenants, whereas at Newmarket everything will be 50-50 as it will be a community stadium, but you already know that. Your post as usual of late smacks of desperation. Richard Wright has had to backtrack about sharing with Wakey because he now knows as well as you that without Wakey you dont have a new stadium because you have insufficient funds to build it. That is why coucillor Box has asked for a feasibility study to see which is the best ground, the trouble with that is it will say what you want it to say if you ask it the right questions, not to mention the fact that the funding is in place to build a new COMMUNITY STADIUM not WTW stadium btw so why on earth does Newmarket need to be subjected to a feasibility study? As a Cas fan nobody would begrudge you wanting a new ground at GH but please dont insult Wakey fans intelligence by implying what is best for us when clearly it is not. But if you can take one crumb of comfort from all this it is the fact that clearly coucillor Box will be batting for the yellow and blacks

In terms of the council surely the 'best ground' will the one farthest along? Or would the council look at what would be best for their coffers in the long term (both in terms of cost and future revenue)?

The council should look at whats best for the community as a whole and from an income for the council point of view.

Do you know all this for certain or is this just your opinion in the Wakefield 'conspiracy' theory?

How do you know the stadium at GH won't be a 50:50 split?
How do you know that the stadium wouldn't be as much Wakey's as Cas?
How do you know the Council won't force Castleford to ensure it is suitable for both clubs rather than their own?

As for desperation: no. I'm just looking at it openly and honestly in all aspects with an unbiased view. Until I see figures proving Wakefield cannot survive there, I will reserve judgement.

From the sounds of it they will be primarily basing their decision on which venue could be started/completed in the shortest possible time and, as planning has been delayed by the council for another 8 weeks or so for NM, that currently is GH.