Re: Widnes & Relegation : Tue Jul 02, 2019 8:57 pm  

IR80 wrote:

Interesting, no Wigan?

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Tue Jul 02, 2019 9:22 pm  

Mr Dog wrote:

So your plan isn't actually for 14-16 viable clubs, but merely a bit of deck chair shuffling!

14-16 Viable clubs....have you been at the sherry? I never said it was the "silver bullet", but SL currently only has maybe a half dozen "viable" teams and the best way to get the other 10 or so up to speed is with a competition that will appeal to sponsors and fans alike.
London Playing Wakefield 3 times a year isn't what sports fans want.....they want to see different grounds, not be visiting the same place over and over again.
The system I posted gave the sides 15 home games with a minimum of 11 of those games against different opposition before the play-offs, as well as visiting 11 different grounds as well.
Let's say Halifax are in the same conference as Saints and Wigan....it is 100% the responsibility of the Club to fill the Shay and not just expect fans to flock to the games. As it stands, very few RL clubs market themselves of the game very well and as such, we chop and change the system to suit the bigger clubs who just want more home games, but a conference system would give the "minnows" a chance to grow.....it might take a decade, but you'd see the dominance of the top clubs be challenged and that's what the game needs.....we aren't soccer and we can't keep a system where relegation often means bankruptcy....London went down and were only still in business the following year because of Hughes.....Bradford went with them and plummeted......Widnes went down look at them now.....if HKR were to go down, I'd fear for their chances too and given it's likely that Toronto will buy their way to SL safety, another team faces the "black hole" in 2020.
Bradford, Widnes, Workington, Oldham, Halifax and Leigh have all been relegated and face financial issues as a result. Salford, Huddersfield and London are the only ones who survived with the help of a financial Backer so you could argue that the only team to successfully bounce back are Castleford.....and let's not forget the club such as Crusaders and PSG who fell or vanished, or the "megers" that saved some clubs.....we've chopped and changed and at every turn it's been for short term gain and without a long term strategy, we'll be doing the same in 20 years time....

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Tue Jul 02, 2019 11:47 pm  

I used to hate 'Licensing' & with good reason *because it was corrupt* however the way things are currently I now believe licensing could be the way forward !

FWIW I would admit the following Clubs with notice to be SL ready for 2022 .....

Leigh *my Club*
Bradford
Toulouse
Widnes

In addition I would admit Toronto from 2021 regardless of P&R results

Obviously this would give 17 teams if none are to be relegated or lose a licence place, however the NRL coped with this & for a short period so could SL, that is until a further Canada/U.S.A club is ready !

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Wed Jul 03, 2019 9:26 am  

Ste100Centurions wrote:

I used to hate 'Licensing' & with good reason *because it was corrupt* however the way things are currently I now believe licensing could be the way forward !

FWIW I would admit the following Clubs with notice to be SL ready for 2022 .....

Leigh *my Club*
Bradford
Toulouse
Widnes

In addition I would admit Toronto from 2021 regardless of P&R results

Obviously this would give 17 teams if none are to be relegated or lose a licence place, however the NRL coped with this & for a short period so could SL, that is until a further Canada/U.S.A club is ready !

Leigh, Bradford and Widnes have tried, and failed.

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Wed Jul 03, 2019 9:41 am  

Ste100Centurions wrote:

I used to hate 'Licensing' & with good reason *because it was corrupt* however the way things are currently I now believe licensing could be the way forward !

FWIW I would admit the following Clubs with notice to be SL ready for 2022 .....

Leigh *my Club*
Bradford
Toulouse
Widnes

In addition I would admit Toronto from 2021 regardless of P&R results

Obviously this would give 17 teams if none are to be relegated or lose a licence place, however the NRL coped with this & for a short period so could SL, that is until a further Canada/U.S.A club is ready !

How many games do you want the clubs to play each season ??
Also, with the game "desperate" to expand into N.America, what mechanism would you have for admitting additional clubs and what is your limit for the number of clubs in the top flight.
Remember, the old first division had 16 clubs when it finished and SL used to have 14 clubs, which was deemed too many, hence the cut to 12.
Personally, 14 clubs with a balanced fixture program looks about right and to avoid increasing the number exponentially, there needs to be relegation and promotion from The Championship.
The current format may not be ideal but, at least if your club gets relegated, there is a way back (at least theoretically).
Franchising will create some winners but, it would also preclude some clubs with genuine aspirations to play top flight rugby.

I've said numerous times that we should have moved to 14 clubs when the last change took place and it's mickey poor that those running the sport couldn't sell this idea to Sky, which maybe demonstrates the lack of appeal which is offered by our all new trans-Atlantic game ?

[Pumpetypump]

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Wed Jul 03, 2019 10:44 am  

IR80 wrote:

Leigh, Bradford and Widnes have tried, and failed.

And after all, it's important after a setback to never have another chance. That's a cracking philosophical approach for a misanthrope.

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Wed Jul 03, 2019 11:23 am  

IR80 wrote:

Leigh, Bradford and Widnes have tried, and failed.

No they haven't.

[Pumpetypump]

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Wed Jul 03, 2019 11:42 am  

Binosh wrote:

No they haven't.

Well speaking as a Bradford fan we never won anything in SL as I recall. Utter failure year in year out.

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Wed Jul 03, 2019 11:55 am  

Leigh, Bradford, Toulouse, Widnes would all add something to SL.

There is no middle ground in SL due to not being enough clubs in it, you are either in the playoffs or relegation battle and that in itself is no good for the sport.

If you are unfortunate to be in a relegation spot the target should be aiming for safety and not the playoffs. the target should be realistic and achievable.

Plus, the variety of matches now on Sky is awful and must be affecting viewing figures, if I have to watch Leeds or Castleford again im going to cancel my subscription.

There needs to be more variety and in my opinion 16 teams would be ideal.

Re: Widnes & Relegation : Wed Jul 03, 2019 12:32 pm  

Pumpetypump wrote:

Well speaking as a Bradford fan we never won anything in SL as I recall. Utter failure year in year out.

Maybe not in SL, but Bradford was a class act for years and I for one miss watching the style of rugby the played.