[Mild Rover]

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Sat Jun 29, 2019 9:07 pm  

In many ways I enjoy watching games as discrete 80 minutes of entertainment. I’d happily watch a series of challenge matches, without worrying about there being a champion, I imagine.

I see the value of a league structure in providing an ongoing sporting narrative, as well as regular fixtures and income. I prefer having it, but could still enjoy games without it, I think.

sometimes, I think the ongoing narrative distracts us and takes us out of the moment. For example, in football, when they say ‘what does this fixture mean for these teams hopes of qualifying for the Champions League?’, i feel like they’re moving on before we’ve enjoyed what’s in front of us.

So I don’t really get the concept of a meaningless game or dead rubber. Surely each game itself should have meaning - its result matters in of itself. As much as sport matters at all.

But that seems to be a minority view and the sport needs to appeal to the broadest possible audience.

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Sat Jun 29, 2019 10:32 pm  

Halifax1989 wrote:

It's an entertainment industry. The relegation battle is 10 times more exciting than the top this year. If you take away relegation we are left with a much less interesting package.

This one million percent.

You live beyond your means and this is what happened. I see nothing different to suggest Widnes would not be in a better position should we still be licensing. We need all the headlines we can get and relegation gets that. We are seeing teams starting up and entering in the bottom structure and growing nicely.

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Sat Jun 29, 2019 11:33 pm  

Him is obviously $h!tting himself coz Leeds are in the poop.

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Sun Jun 30, 2019 5:18 am  

Him wrote:

The NRL is more entertaining and doesn’t have relegation.

Relegation is forced entertainment and worse than that it actively degrades the quality of the clubs involved in it.

And it's Sinfield who has degraded your club.

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Sun Jun 30, 2019 6:31 am  

Seems to me like relegation is used as a scapegoat for clubs making bad decisions.

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Sun Jun 30, 2019 7:09 am  

Halifax1989 wrote:

Seems to me like relegation is used as a scapegoat for clubs making bad decisions.

Agreed.

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Sun Jun 30, 2019 7:28 am  

Cokey wrote:

Him is obviously $h!tting himself coz Leeds are in the poop.

If you want to discuss the subject do it like a grown up.

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Sun Jun 30, 2019 7:32 am  

Cokey wrote:

And it's Sinfield who has degraded your club.

No it’s not actually. Well not solely. It’s a series of poor decisions that go back a few years involving both Hetherington and Sinfield and possibly McDermott added in with a bit of bad luck.

And that’s not the point.

Clubs make poor decisions all the time. That will never ever end. Poor decisions aren’t always poor decisions at the time they are made.

Stop making this all about Leeds. If London go down, have they made poor decisions? It would seem they’ve made some good ones.

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Sun Jun 30, 2019 7:34 am  

Halifax1989 wrote:

Seems to me like relegation is used as a scapegoat for clubs making bad decisions.

As I said to Cokey. Clubs make bad decisions all the time. They will continue to do so.

When we have only 14 professional clubs can we afford a structure that actively helps reduce that number?

What bad decisions have London made this season?

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Sun Jun 30, 2019 8:38 am  

Him wrote:

The NRL is more entertaining and doesn’t have relegation.

Relegation is forced entertainment and worse than that it actively degrades the quality of the clubs involved in it.

The main point is that, by not having relegation or, more impotently, not having the opportunity of promotion, the game had royally screwed over all of the clubs outside of Super League AND prevented the future inclusion of the N. American wanabe's.

Therefore, after discussion among ALL of the clubs, "we" had the all new 3 x 8 structure, which, despite some of the drama that was created in the "middle 8", was an absolute disaster and thank goodness, this was consigned to history.

However, allowing clubs to gain promotion is the right thing for the game, albeit, it's massively painful and damaging for any relegated club, although, they do of course have the chance to regain their spot should they achieve promotion in future.

The game does need to re visit funding for the Championship, which has to be more evenly spread and let's be honest, this conversation is only taking place because Leeds are in danger.
If the bottom 34 clubs were KR, Trinity, Salford and Huddersfield, nobody (apart from their own fans) would give a toss whether they went down (or out of business).

Our sport is dominated by the needs and wishes of the top 4/.5 clubs and the rest have to fall in behind them, which as they are the main drivers for income / investment, is probably right.
Largely, they (including Leeds) have got what they wanted so, to start moaning that relegation is wrong is just a little sad.
Your argument is not one of principle, more to do with self preservation.