if they were that good you wouldnt be a mid-table side.

But its not like we have had years of funding handed over to us for our youth development, plus I would guess FC have done better than us out of Leeds youth ranks.

Really? Or just not a full-time contract?

Lets not also forget that you support a club who let a Hull born kid leave after he had worked his way through your system, and played in a Grand Final for you (i think), in favour of bringing in a Tongan "project" with one substitute appearance in the NRL to his name..

All of which (apart from Green who I have yet to see play) contributed more than several overseas signings made at the KC in recent seasons. Dykes, Head, Byrne, Cusack, Sing.....

Fisher made your defence a laughing stock last September IIRC.

Within the rules of the game we did.

You are missing my point on this one completely. Signing Willie Mason is great for Hull KR and Super League in general and as long as this was part of the AGREED reduced quota then this conversation would not be happening.

The fact that loopholes are been actively sought and dispensation granted leaves a bitter taste and certainly goes completely against what the RFL set out to do with the agreement of all SL clubs back in 2008/9.

A lot of clubs do, which simply highlights how important it is some clubs put more effort into youth development and less in to finding loopholes to bring in 10 Australasians

Wheeldon held the club to ransom to an extent, we didn't offer the money he thought he was worth, so he left. It wasn't as though we had Moa lined up before Wheeldon left, it wasn't a case of choosing one over the other.

Perhaps not but ultimately he was Wheeldons replacement. Why wasnt it Paul Shaw or Nathan Freer?
At the minute the Rovers Academy system is in its infancy so we are seeing a heavier than liked reliance on overseas signings. However, as somebody who watches our under 20s and 18s week in week out i am very confident that this will not be the case 3 years from now.
A strong youth structure doesnt happen overnight and Martin Dunn said that it would take 5 years to establish a strong one. We are 2 years into that so lets see where we are in 3 years.

Thats great and I hope it works out for you but in the meantime would you mind abiding by the rules and stop seeking dispensation or finding loopholes?

Evidently not.

you must have missed our 4th place finish

you may have missed your 7th place finish.

RFL clear up Mason transfer fiasco: www.rugbyleaguetoday.co.uk/rfl-c ... er-fiasco/ Makes for an interesting read!

RFL clear up Mason transfer fiasco: www.rugbyleaguetoday.co.uk/rfl-c ... er-fiasco/ Makes for an interesting read!

ah so were only talking one season, my mistake. Still playoff position is better than non play off position, and taking noteable scalps along the way would suggest we are more than competitive which ultimately at a league and club level is what we all keep moaning about, the lack of intensity in SL.

As has been pointed out numerous times, NZ became WC with a little over 100 first grade players, care to explain why England can't get close with more than that?

mid table is mid table. 11th, 7th, 4th, 7th. Who is the one talking only one season?

because New Zealand dont only have 100 players, they have many many more. 100 of which are good enough to play in the NRL or SL. Mostly in the NRL. They are the 100 best NZ players, not the 100 NZ players. The 100 best of those who have gone through the NRL youth systems and are given NRL standard training, coaching and preparation.

How long have you been back in SL? Isn't it longer than two years?

Simplified rules....sort of

Those results put us on par with or better than 3/4 of the league. Not bad at all for Superleague newcomers. Plenty of clubs would have been happy with those results. Thanks for that Kippers



Plus, let's not forget Rovers won exactly the same number of trophies last season as former champions Leeds and if I recall correctly they did the double over the former champions.

no it doesnt, it averages out at an average position of 7th. Mid-table. BTW you arent newcomers anymore.

if only we hadnt put the time and effort into scouting and youth development and instead employed as many mediocre overseas players as Hull KR, we too could have failed to reach the CC final, finished lower in the league, and been knocked out of the play-offs earlier.

Your results are ok but Catalans, probably the most comparable club to you, are a more impressive addition to SL.

Is this another croissant reference? Tell it to the Kipperman, he likes them.

Whilst running up massive losses and playing few homegrown players. The myth that Hull KR don't have a youth set up is absolute guff. The biggest and most difficult part of the youth setup are the amateur clubs that produce the youngsters. They've been there in Hull all along even whilst Hull KR were out of SL. Setting up an academy is a piece of pie. Get a place to train, hire some coaches. Job done.

I can understand KR's approach in signing players instead of producing them in their first few years back in SL, they needed to establish themselves as a mid-table team instead of a bottom of the table team. They've done that, now they need to prove their worth to SL by taking advantage of the popularity of RL in Hull and producing some local players.

Very good post tbf, although I would say that we contribute more then half the teams in SL e.g. the support (and revenue) that we take to away games.

Sorry should have expanded. First year in Super league was 2007. Put an Academy side together in 2008. Martin joined to head up our junior develoment in 2009. We are 2 years into his plan.
To be fair aswell, 4 of our 2008 inaugural side have already played first grade for us.

Quote ="Cooper Crank"RFL clear up Mason transfer fiasco: www.rugbyleaguetoday.co.uk/rfl-c ... er-fiasco/ Makes for an interesting read!'" Eh? So when Nigel Wood says that Mason classes as Federation Trained, what he meant to say was [iNon-[/iFederation Trained? So who are HKR's 5 non-federation players?

Quote ="Cooper Crank"RFL clear up Mason transfer fiasco: www.rugbyleaguetoday.co.uk/rfl-c ... er-fiasco/ Makes for an interesting read!'" Eh? So when Nigel Wood says that Mason classes as Federation Trained, what he meant to say was [iNon-[/iFederation Trained? So who are HKR's 5 non-federation players?