They'll tell us Widnes have been accepted in a long winded well though out way.

So lets take another look at things and see how we stand. Lets also say that at present that both Wakey and Cas do not score for their facilities. I know where my money would be going in these last furlongs. It's funny how the worlds political landscape is reflected in this present scenario facing our sport. We have watched as regime changes have been embraced in Egypt and Tunisia, but on the other hand we still have a silly old crackpot spouting off and hanging in there against the will of the people From following BBC link www.bbc.co.uk/dna/606/A27014582 The new Super League club selection process will now be determined by the awarding of a three year license to the successful clubs, to apply for a license each potential licensee or club should firstly meet the current minimum standards expected of them. Each area of prospective clubs will be tested against and should meet set standards as published and issued to all applicants with different definitions and criteria for each league or level on an annual basis. Only clubs that pass that assessment to the Super League standards will be seriously considered for a super league license for the period 2009 to 2011. Areas of applicant clubs assessed Facilities Finance and Business Management Spectator Base, Community Marketing, Media, Club Marketing and Commercial Playing Strength The License application Having passed the initial assessment processes as above, the list of all clubs that have the potential to be in the Super League competition will then be assed further by the RFL Board of directors. It will be the RFL Board of Directors who will finally determine the successful applicants, based on direction from the assessment process and if required “what in their opinion is best for the game” and effectively issue licenses. Time tables Applications will be invited in Jan/Feb 2008 by tender documents issued Interested parties will asked to finalise submissions by March 2008 An initial cut of applications will take place in April 2008 RFL final assessments will be made during May 2008 The RFL Board will determine the successful applicants during June 2008 Announcements will be made of successful franchisees in July 2008

So lets take another look at things and see how we stand. Lets also say that at present that both Wakey and Cas do not score for their facilities. I know where my money would be going in these last furlongs. It's funny how the worlds political landscape is reflected in this present scenario facing our sport. We have watched as regime changes have been embraced in Egypt and Tunisia, but on the other hand we still have a silly old crackpot spouting off and hanging in there against the will of the people From following BBC link www.bbc.co.uk/dna/606/A27014582 The new Super League club selection process will now be determined by the awarding of a three year license to the successful clubs, to apply for a license each potential licensee or club should firstly meet the current minimum standards expected of them. Each area of prospective clubs will be tested against and should meet set standards as published and issued to all applicants with different definitions and criteria for each league or level on an annual basis. Only clubs that pass that assessment to the Super League standards will be seriously considered for a super league license for the period 2009 to 2011. Areas of applicant clubs assessed Facilities Finance and Business Management Spectator Base, Community Marketing, Media, Club Marketing and Commercial Playing Strength The License application Having passed the initial assessment processes as above, the list of all clubs that have the potential to be in the Super League competition will then be assed further by the RFL Board of directors. It will be the RFL Board of Directors who will finally determine the successful applicants, based on direction from the assessment process and if required “what in their opinion is best for the game” and effectively issue licenses. Time tables Applications will be invited in Jan/Feb 2008 by tender documents issued Interested parties will asked to finalise submissions by March 2008 An initial cut of applications will take place in April 2008 RFL final assessments will be made during May 2008 The RFL Board will determine the successful applicants during June 2008 Announcements will be made of successful franchisees in July 2008

They liked him so much, that when we approached them to lend £350k they told him to go shove it (even though at the time they had doled out double to our friends in the principality), knowing full well it would cause us to go into administration and thus be the end of the Richardson era.
With friends like that, who needs enemas?

Below the belt.

Stop being so y!!!

Who in there right mind would be looking forward to this non sporting event.

They knew that the Welsh had something to secure a loan against. They knew that we didn't.

Do you think that justifies favouring one club over another ?.

When it comes to lending several hundred grand of the ruling body's money, paid for by the clubs? Yes, it's reasonable to expect that you can secure the loan.

Is this common knowledge ?? Heard its gone for £50 million to a supermarket chain (Tesco/Asda etc) ... This adds further pressure to our super league franchise bid with Salford also making progress ... We will hear next week also the club that will be promoted to Super League next season i believe ...

Is it actually sold ? Or is this another propaganda exercise from you know who !

Try reading the two or three other threads that dissect this non-news in minute detail; it's all there, for your delight and delectation.

The town of Cas in its entirety is not worth £ 50m. I think this is Richard Wrights plan B because the survey work done at the Glasshoughton site by Leeds Uni Civil Engineering depart reports that the site is so unstable that it needs a massive and very expensive stabilization project to make it safe. The cost of driving hundreds of huge pillars through the tens of feet of muck will be many millions, infact more than the cost of a stadium. So plan B is to find a company to develop the Hicksons site and include The Jungle. This development in total will be a £ 50 million project. If it goes ahead, and good luck to them, then the developer will buy The Jungle for its commercial value, which depends on the state of the market so anywhere between 2 and 6 million. Similar to the Newmarket project the developer will build the stadium. Remember also that on the land register it shows that there are three charges on The Jungle rumoured to be in the region of £ 1.5 m, You would presume that the Jack Fulton will not call his charges in but maybe the brewery will. RW is suggesting 2013 for this new stadium as we know it will be a question of proving to the RL / Savils ( sp ) that their plans are more advanced than ours.

True facts like this are not accepted by Cas supporters they prefer to be gullable and believe tricky dickie

That's an excellent summation BCT,
these facts aren't exactly a secret although the stabilization is a a little new to me, yet if you were to argue the facts you'd be told that you were clutching at straws and being desperate.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, in the short term Richard Wright is playing the franchise winning game and not the stadium building game and he's playing it well. Long term I have no doubt that a new stadium will materialise. I wonder just how thorough Savilles investigations will be, how convincing the depth of Richard Wrights tactics are and how much the RFL are willing to listen to Savilles findings.

I genuinely want Cas & Fev to move forward and remain strong Rugby League player producing areas because our sport would be far worse off without either them or us.

Apart from the fact that to be true facts they have to be y'know true?

And you lot can't say anything about being gullible and believing things been said by the club, remember when you were all adamant that Parkin would buy the club? Or when Newmarket WAS NOT going to public enquiry? And when I told you this I was just trolling etc etc? Just because a Wakey fan says something it does not mean it's true, in fact HOW did he get this info? Exactly, he made it up.

As for "charges" on the ground, the only thing remotely close to that would be Fulton's loan, which wont need to be paid off probably until he dies and his family want the money.



It's an old rumour that got de-bunked being rehashed the stabilisation rubbish, in fact people said the same about Xscape too, and well look how that turned out...false.

As for clutching at straws, the fact it's a 3 year old rumour, 7 if you add in the Xscape rumour - I'd say it's trying to cause bother or clutching at straws.



The thing is, he knows that the stadium counts for 4/10 on the franchise application, and 2 of them the club pass, it's only 10,000 average and 5000 seats they don't have and when you add in the other factors, the club fare well. As he has said, there is no point putting the club in massive debt over the stadium - hence pulling out of the Ben Bailey deal as they tried paying less than agreed, a new deal will mean the club can go into Glasshoughton debt/relatively debt free, which is the most important thing and great running of a club.

And as for calling them tactics, that's just being petty - the fact is he is running the club properly - keeping the club profitable and not running up a debt they can't pay by moving into a stadium short on funds, there's more than just a stadium in a franchise process.



Not sold and not propaganda, it was just a press release stating that the club have entered negotiations to sell the ground for a development worth £50m.



The fact you started off with a petty jibe like this shows you're making stuff up - Xscape & J32 alone would probably cover the 50m.



Proof isn't really hard to find there is it? Full planning permission on April 7th 2011 v public enquiry not while 2012...this shows to everyone, never mind the RFL Cas are over a year in front. Add in all the other criteria which Cas are in front of Wakefield too, it really isn't even close.

Fulton has been really ill and hasn't been involved with, or hasn't put any money in the club for a few years, the last set of accounts also show Cas making a 27k profit. So wanna check your facts again? There's no propping up of the club my friend, they run at a nice profit and one of only 3 teams in SL to do so, along with Hull FC and Leeds.

I don't deal in rumours and there's no need to check my facts. Dearest.

So Richard Wright appearing on site with JCBs behind him wasn't a tactic, the timing, in relation to what was happening with Wakefields stadium prospects, of Castlefords recent application was purely coincidental?

Why would RW spend £200K on a planning application, Castleford aren't particularly cash rich, when he knows that Cas can't build for at least a year?

The answer to these and more examples is he needs to create the impression that Castleford are progressing in order to win a franchise.

In the absence of a new stadium by 2012 he has to create a convincing case to Savilles and the RFL that Castleford are almost ready to build and worth a punt.

These are franchise winning tactics he's attempting.

I'll add that I don't blame him and even say that I think it's clever of him to do it but let's not pretend that it's anything else.

Why would RW jeopardise the future of the club by spending £200k on a planning application?

Dear me.

Fully, let's not be naive, a SL franchise is potentially a £4Million per year T/O business.

When under threat of expulsion the owners would see spending £200K (which needs to be spent at some time anyway) in an attempt to create the impression of being closer to a stadium build as good investment.

If the tactic is successful Castleford gain 3 more years in which to pull the financing together and get the building underway.

That's why RW would spend the £200K NOW rather than later even though Cas could have used that money elsewhere and paid for the FPP at a later date.

If the site was unsuitable, don't you think we wouldn't have wasted the last five years doing sod all? Do you really think a club, that is not cash rich as you stated, in an environment where it has to make ends meet, would go out and blow £200k for planning permission for no reason? Come on, I'm sure you have some common sense.

And again, I refer you to my other comments that things have ALREADY been built on that hillside where the stadium will be!

Hicksons has just submitted Planning Permission to store chemicals on that site so I can't see that going anywhere, anytime soon.

Your conspiracy theory is just that at the moment. Unless you have some substantial evidence to back it up, it just smacks - as some quite rightly mentioned earlier - of desperation.

Mr Fulton did NOT have to pump money into Cas. Thats a fact.

It's not for no reason though is it?

There's two reasons behind spending the £200K;
1, it pays for the FPP that's needed to move on with the stadium build when you pull the financing together

2, it takes Castleford demonstrably one step further in the process of building a stadium which looks good on the franchise application.

I have no problem with No2 but let's not pretend that it was done NOW for any other reason than to help Castleford secure a franchise! It was done even though Cas are not in a position to spend that sort of money without sacrifices.

It was done as a franchise winning tactic and was as calculated as RW donning his hardhat and standing in front of a couple of JCBs whilst proclaiming that building work on the stadium had begun.