The franchise system was supposed to stop teams coming up from the championship and getting battered every week. Widnes had 9 months to prepare for SL, we had 3 months. Their record is no better if not worse than ours at the same stage of the season.

Spot on. Although we were the best the Championship had to offer that year, rather than fifth-placed!

I still think that the idiots are paying nothing to them for sponsoring SL as a thankyou for giving them a licience. Pick the bones out of that one.

Problem is the recruitment from the e coach Betts and his lap dog Cullen.They need to be sacked as these recruited the e in the Championship.We have spent 1.4 million on the cap so players are robbing the Widnes fans every week. By the way the Widnes fans prefered Noble,Kear, or Powell over these Clowns, but SOC listened to there Bull.

What do people expect ?

3 seasons and 9 months to prepare before a team can be replaced by another with the same criteria.

Which team from the present Championship have a chance of changing the status quo ?

Franchising/licenscing has done what for the game we support ?

How many times do we see or hear folk saying every game is a friendly ? Footie fans always ask me why I just don't go and watch the Pies as I can get there quicker on the train than I can on the bus to Leigh and at least they can win something that matters.

A moronic mistake by the RFL and until the RFL realise that' where is the professional sport we support going ?

There is a clip on You tube showing our game at Batley when the game had promotion and relegation. We had more fans there than we get at our games now at the LSV.

I know where you `re coming from and I was at that game at Batley ( cheers SR

) But you`re incorrect about the fans at that game compared to our Home att.

Surely the Feath result on the weekend shows what the most consistent championship team over the past few years could achieve in the super league?

I'm not saying they would tear up trees but with the coach they have and the style of rugby they play they couldn't do worse than Widnes!

I think Fev are still better than Widnes now mate.

Something needs to be done, we all know what it is.

We must average a 1000 then as I was there at batley in a crowd of 1500. Our attendances are not that bad. Next weeks game is vital. If we win and get a home draw we will have a 50 percent chance of drawing the big 3. One hell of an incentive

Well I was exaggerating a bit but there is no doubt that since franchising our home attendances have fallen and we take less to away games than we used to.

Having said that our away following as a % of our home gates is still very good.

Before this year for the 3 years previous they had gone up year on year

What did you expect? They had no time to recruit, so they were bound to be a weak side this year.

First year having made the step up, they were always on a hiding to nothing, this is the whole point of the three year exemption from relegation... to give them a base to work from.
Next year will be better for them, the year after hopefully even more so.

IIRC HKR had troubles in their first year too. Now look at them.

It strikes me that RL 'fans' on here have less patience than my ex wife.

Apart from 6 months before even pre-season starts?!


No they didn't. Castleford got relegated, with Wakefield finishing second bottom. I'd even back the Leigh 2005 side against this season's Widnes team.

This season I have been fortunate to see another one of my football teams I support gain a promotion to a higher division and win the Leagues trophy - the fight to see it happen has been brilliant since August, exciting, every game of vital importance, ups and downs, pure drama and excitment with the most important people being the guys on the field - in fact its had everything I started watching sport for.
Our gates have gone up along the way and our ground with each step up is being upgraded, the average age of our support is estimated to be going down 5 years with each promotion step - our future is being built without the need of a governing body nannying us, they help us and give us advice if required - exactly what fans want to see.

I can't say if Widnes fans would swop the thrill of what I've just experienced for being guarenteed 3 years playing in the same division, I do know which one I prefer.

At the end of the day sport is now in the entertainment industry and the competiton for your money is now huge - so I suppose the question is do Widnes fans feel like they are being entertained , only they can answer that but I know I wouldn't like to swop what I've experenced this season watching football for what they are experieincing this season watching RL.

You forgot to mention the one thing that Widnes and said football team have in common though...

I think Jenky means AFC Fylde rather than Fleetwood, Wurzel, unless he's changed teams?

Ooooops apologies, I must remember cider and forums shouldn't be mixed!!!

See this is what people dont understand, we didnt have 6 months extra. We could only speak to players after the september deadline. IIRC the only players we could speak to before this was players over in Aus or players in their final year of a contract (which is hard as most are signed up long term these days). Its been reported we went for big named players with £££ thrown to them but they turned it down for bigger clubs and chance to win trophies, as Scooter Nik pointed out, the 1st year was always going to be hard, but hopefully next year we can turn it round and move up the table.

So what was the point of announcing widnes's elevation to sl months before the end of the season

players can get signed up when there still in contract hence why Widnes were given 6 months notice to prepare

.....and they can only speak to them from the same date, they could last season, so why would there be any difference. They had plenty time to tap up the aussies but failed. Any players seeing the 50+ ave points conceded will just say haha to any offer. New coach needed to help attract anything good IMO

Betts wont be coach soon, if not now but next year they will get someone better in, maybe Basil?

Nonsense. If part of the franchising strategy is to let a team in that will get walloped most weeks, it sums up what is wrong with the running of the game.

He's not exactly putting himself 'in the shop window' with the way Cas are shaping this season!! (and I appreciate this season should not be what he is judged on, for obvious reasons.)....I think he'll want the chance to put his own stamp on the squad next year - something that he wasn't afforded the time to do when he was at W*gan!!

Maybe they'll chuck money at the problem, and entice a top NRL coach over....or go for someone like Powell or Kear from Championship. Is there anyone else - beside Nobby - with a track-record, who's currently out of job? Did Justin Morgan go back to Aus?