I'd rather we looked at Yank Football as a measuring stick for our domestic competition. Football football shouldn't be looked to at all! It's the worst idea ever to compare ourselves to them and look at what they do, because football is prehistoric in many ways. The set-up they have and what they do as a sport has nothing to do with their dominance. To look at football and say "that's what we need to do", it will be a big mistake.

We need a quality competition, SL cannot be the Premier League, we can't have an uneven competition made up of crap teams and dominated by 2 or 3 teams. Football is already popular, so they have the luxury of being able to get away with having the crappest, least competitive and most boring competitions on the planet - we don't have that luxury.

The only way to have a strong international competition and to in time expand the game is to have strong domestic comps, that's not going to happen if SL embraces every non-English team on a whim in the name of "expansion". People want to expand for the sake of expanding. People want to expand when the expansion is clearly detrimental to the competitiveness and quality of the SL. Already there's too much dead weight in the SL, watering down the talent and devaluing the quality of the competition. Nobody seems to want the competition to be the best it can be, because they have deluded ideals and an inferiority complex that makes them embarrassed to watch a sport that isn't internationally popular, or popular nationwide.

I can say hand on heart that I don't care if Wales or France can compete internationally, I don't care if there's a Southern, Welsh or French domestic team in the SL. It really doesn't bother me. All I want is a good competition that's competitive, financially viable, offering a good spectacle and sells tickets/attracts tv viewers. There's 4, possibly 5, 6 teams too many in the SL. We need less games, more competition and a focus on the quality of the competition and the quality only.

There needs to be something like a 30-50 year plan to develop the SL, grass roots and reach of the code. Ideally I'm sure everyone wants expansion and lots of teams, but it needs to be viable and long-term, it needs to be born of merit while adding something to the SL. I sometimes get the feeling that the people in control of the game, the fans too, are jumping the gun with many expansion and growth ideas. It's running before walking in some ways, SL needs to be strengthened(by reducing teams or splitting into groups - like the NFL) and professionalised/commercialised fully, first and foremost. I would rather a game that's very popular amongst Northern yokels in flat caps than a game that's "meh" across the UK. Already we're in danger of losing some RL hotspots to football.

Expansion and development of grass roots and "feeder" competitions has to continue and is a great thing, we've made many wonderful inroads, but success and development outside of the SL shouldn't be answered with inclusion into the SL. I would like to see RL as a sport and the SL as a competition separated a little more. Too many teams are knocking on the door and the door is being opened up, they're being invited in. I don't agree with that. Teams need to prove themselves, show themselves to be viable franchises with genuine capacity to challenge established SL teams, they need to be able to KICK the door off the bloody hinges. And if teams cannot hold their own, they need to be thrown out on their . I don't want to name names because I can't be d arguing with fans from certain teams but there's at least 4 teams who need removing from the SL as soon as possible.

Unfortunately the sort of people we need involved with the game to first strengthen the SL and return the glory to the heartlands, then strengthen and expand the code, they're financially out of reach. We need great revolutionary people, we need marketers and business moguls, to get those people we need money, how we get the money I don't know! Perhaps the SL should offer the broadcasting rights to oil-rich Middle Eastern theocratic TV stations for free, hoping that some Saudi prince takes a liking to the game. Or give Spike TV in America the broadcasting rights for free, they carried the NRL the other year and made UFC very popular, a few Yank investors could be good value. A few nutters, eccentrics and rich people willing to invest could go a long way. Look at what Russel Crowe did, he single-handedly kept the Rabbitohs afloat. I would like to see the SL identify and involve influential and wealthy fans a little more. I know some PL players are fans of the game, as are some actors and I'm sure some successful business people.

I realise a lot of people will think I'm barking mad and nobody ever agrees on these things, but one thing I'm sure most can agree with is that whether you want to strengthen the game with reach/expansion or quality/competition, there's a stumbling block, that being an absence of money that isn't already tied up.

I can't tell you how you make these things happen, I'm just a drunk with ideas. It would be nice though if we heard from the people running the SL, if they gave us a long term plan and something to hold on to, something to support and involve ourselves with. I would like to see a SL Manifesto.

If all else fails e could perhaps band together and start a political party, voting ourselves into power in RL regions, outlawing rival sports and funneling council money into the game.

Do we need to expand though? I think it would be great if the SL was a big sport in the North with a team in France with major press coverage, big name sponsors and 20,000 + average crowds.

That's a realistic goal. There is no reason for that not to be an achievable reality in 20 years, even 10 years with enough money freed up to invest into the competition. It's not likely, but if that was the focus of the SL it could be.

Even if the SL had all that though, people would complain that there's no teams in the South or in Wales etc, that there's not enough teams, that there's only a handful of internationally competitive countries. People are too open minded, we need to be more insular. We need a Northern, Rugby League answer to US Politician Ron Paul.

Exactly what I said, it is only expansion if you move into other areas and participation remains static. It is growth if participation increases on the back of a move into new areas - glad you have finally accepted the point

American Football: Franchises instead of promotion and relegation. Teams primarily located in big cities far apart from each other. Few away fans. Draft system to ensure best players are spread put evenly. Huge following at college (university) level, with football bursarships seen as a route to a good education. Teams relocated (Cleveland Rams to Los Angeles and then to St. Louis, Chicago Cardinals to Arizona etc).

Comment of the year old son

Im just greedy, i want expansion and growth

But if the game expands to new areas then surely the opportunity for growth is increased?

Classic Nigel Wood syndrome here. Select an American way of running pro sport and do it in a half d bungling way that doesn't work in Britain!

Bluseox, pah!

Certainly grew in Wrexham eh? Would have done for you guys if done properly, but, unfortunately, you're left with the mess you have now!


PS good luck for the coming season!

Absolutely correct, that is why any expansion needs to be done properly, and be properly funded, however an equal amount of thought and attention eeds to be given to growing the game in the heartlands

Doubled edged sword.

Its not just about catchment area for sponsors and fans, its the catchment area for players playing at a level that is suitable for a top quality competition or at bare minimum having the platform to get to it.
If you want the overall quality of the game to improve we have to improve the area from which we get the players which i think you can only do by expanding into new areas with pro teams.

Aye indeed!

He had some good points though. As well as some bad ones.

The fact that he didn't know where the money was going to come from was the downfall of his points though unfortunately. This is the reason we need to expand. If you cover more areas, you get more deals through sponsorship and TV deals not to mention government grants.

When he's receded us to the north of England, he'll be wondering why we aren't getting any cash. A Saudi Prince is not a financial strategy and is akin to a daft blonde woman answering the question of what she wants to do with her life with "I want to be a footballer's wife!"

And yet the ' Sugar Daddy ' principle is an RFL favourite, depending who you are and what day of the month it is, Leigh were criticised for having one, Fax criticised for not having one

Any links to this? (Not come across it).

Interestingly enough it has grown and expanded. I know of people who watch and play the game who previously didn't. Also know of people who have gained coaching quals as a result of the move. Not as much growth as there could've been but some small seeds planted that hopefully will grow. And whilst in no way condoning the shambolic events of Crusaders, Wales now has two semi pro teams.

The question has to be, could we have achieved two semi pro clubs by investing in setting up two semi pro clubs? , or has that happened purely because it was a top tier club that was the catalyst? , if it is the latter then maybe the expansion of the game will have to happen in the haphazard ' stick a pin in and hope ' way it was tried with Bridgend and Wrexham ?

SL should not exand into non heartland areas again unless the RFL has the money to guarantee seed funding for at least 10 years or gets a guarantee of funding from the expansion club with moneys being deposited with the RFL. Crusaders was a farce from day one and followed the same pattern as Gateshead and Paris.

That is exactly what i have suggested in the past, expect Smokey on shortly to explain why you are being completely unreasonable

It would rule many out, just as it has done in football.

No i wont, I have said numerous times a guarantee would be useful, and it would help make the process clear and show anyone interested what they need to do.

I simply said that your demand that they pay this guarantee up front, in a cash bond is stupid, counter-productive and would mean clubs who were otherwise able to function perfectly well as SL clubs, couldnt purely on the basis they didnt have a ridiculously large cash amount up front to leave sitting in a bank account.

Though I do wonder whether you would be demanding that Leigh pay £10m in to an RFL account should they be promoted, and how this stupidly large cash payment they would need to pay, tallys with your constant, unending bleating that the criteria put in place actually stops people investing in to championship clubs? Are you saying that a prospective investor in Leigh is put off by the fact they need to meet some fairly low standards in youth development, attendances, marketing, facilities etc, to be promoted? but would be perfectly fine in having to leave £10m in an account with the RFL for years to be promoted?

Or is this just another example of your 'im not against expansion as long as we make it impossible for expansion to actually happen to anybody but my club' standpoint?

Not that many, thats why football has such better attendances than any other sport.

You get what you pay for. Right now we pay relatively low prices overtime that is translating to relatively low quality, we are getting further away from the NRL and a fair amount of our best players are playing either RU or NRL. If we want a high quality sport, in high quality facilities then we as fans of the game are the only ones who can pay for it.

Some people have other priorities in life rather than paying out all their spare cash just to watch Rugby and line the pockets of players, like paying the gas bill etc. Twenty pounds to watch a game of SL is more than enough in my opinion. If everyone reverted to a part time situation this would help relieve the strain on club finances and you would probably get better crowds by being able to charge more reasonable prices on the gate.

Tah dah! And as if by magic

Just checked the Harlequins RU website and their ticket prices start from £20 for adults.

You can watch Premierleague matches for as little as £17 at Blackburn (adult) or £20 at Wigan. Appreciate prices will be higher at the likes of Man U, Chelsea, Arsenal etc but as you can't buy single match tickets on spec for these grounds not able to readily see what they are.

At Cas you pay £20 to stand up and an additional £5 to upgrade to seating.

Would be interesting to know how much it costs to watch an NRL game - suspect not much if any more than it costs at Superleague.

So it looks like going to Superleague isn't particularly cheaper than the other sports. They just derive more income from other sources such as sponsorship and TV revenue.

£36 cheapest at Chelsea this year. If you can get them - should be easier now!