Re: Leigh at home (June 25th) & the middle 8's : Wed Jun 08, 2016 9:45 am  

Don't get too worked up about promotion. I've had a rummage on the RFL website and clubs must meet the facility standards of SL or be granted a dispensation by the Friday of round 23 (22nd. July this year). A request for a dispensation must be submitted in writing with all evidence by the end of June. What's the chance of Trailfinders meeting the required standard or getting a dispensation given that it doesn't even have proper turnstiles at the moment? As far as the middle eights are concerned we'd still take part but if we finished 5th. or higher we'd be dropped to 6th. and the 6th. club would take our place.

Re: Leigh at home (June 25th) & the middle 8's : Wed Jun 08, 2016 9:49 am  

But if a club are happy to "manage" his antics for what he offers them on the pitch so what? If they are willing to cope with the time sat on the sidelines through suspension for what he delivers when he on the park so what? thats the clubs choice. He is not part of our club so why should we worry.
Like I say against players like that you get in there faces get under there skin, get them to react and spend the rest of the game playing against 12!! Actually players like that on the other team can work in your favour.
Actually Bosty like I said I dont like him as a player, funny in past years I didnt like a certain player who now wears our colours who had a reputation certain on the field for playing the game at the edge of the boundaries, actually watching him up close and biased because he is in our kit have taken a totally different view.

Re: Leigh at home (June 25th) & the middle 8's : Wed Jun 08, 2016 9:51 am  

Trailfinders have planning permission for the construction of a temporary stand behind the sticks. Not that it would bring us up to SL standard but you never know what or where the RFL would go with it if we were to do the miraculous.

Re: Leigh at home (June 25th) & the middle 8's : Wed Jun 08, 2016 10:25 am  

The Chronicler of Chiswic wrote:

Don't get too worked up about promotion. I've had a rummage on the RFL website and clubs must meet the facility standards of SL or be granted a dispensation by the Friday of round 23 (22nd. July this year). A request for a dispensation must be submitted in writing with all evidence by the end of June. What's the chance of Trailfinders meeting the required standard or getting a dispensation given that it doesn't even have proper turnstiles at the moment? As far as the middle eights are concerned we'd still take part but if we finished 5th. or higher we'd be dropped to 6th. and the 6th. club would take our place.

Worrying. But surely DH has this in hand?

Joking aside, does the club have a plan B? At last year's fans forum this subject was very much brushed aside by our owner , presumably we weren't expected to be as competitive as we have been? Much as another move would make virtually everyone throw their hands up and think 'not again', is the club even talking to other clubs in SW London (or beyond) about our being able to play home games at their place? Is there an option of keeping ourselves based at Ealing with our academy and training facility and basically hiring a stadium for X number of home games ahead of Trailfinders being brought up to something like SL standard( albeit with temporary stands)? It would be unbearable to get qualified for the 8s and then be denied a place on the grounds of how poor the standard of Trailfinders is!

Re: Leigh at home (June 25th) & the middle 8's : Wed Jun 08, 2016 2:27 pm  

There seems quite a lot if discretion in the rules. If the RFL want London in Superleague then hope a deal could be done. Wigan, Saints, Leeds (if there), and Warrington at the stoop, other 7 at Ealing? Don't think we would have to turn any fans away with an extra temporary stand. If in the middle eights again sure the RFL could rig any big clubs to be away fixtures.

Re: Leigh at home (June 25th) & the middle 8's : Wed Jun 08, 2016 4:32 pm  

Not totally convinced Quins RU would want us back given the way that relationship ended. I guess money talks though. However quite how hiring a big stadium, even if only for a few games, fits in with the plan for David Hughes to reduce his financial input season in season may be a bit of an issue

Re: Leigh at home (June 25th) & the middle 8's : Wed Jun 08, 2016 5:06 pm  

Halfdan of t'wide embrace wrote:

Not totally convinced Quins RU would want us back given the way that relationship ended. I guess money talks though. However quite how hiring a big stadium, even if only for a few games, fits in with the plan for David Hughes to reduce his financial input season in season may be a bit of an issue

The Stoop? I would have thought DH had well and truly burnt any bridges there a few years ago! TBH it was the last place I was thinking of!
Don't know about DH's finances but would he want to be remembered as the owner who, through a number of factors but in this case a lack of investment, saw London's chance of a SL return blown out by an unsuitable home base?

Re: Leigh at home (June 25th) & the middle 8's : Wed Jun 08, 2016 5:31 pm  

To be honest, if David thought that going back up would make the Broncos economically unviable I suspect he'd rather be responsible for them not going up and surviving than going up and failing financially.

If the question arises it may come down to whether he can attract another backer on board or can sell up totally to someone / a consortium. Given he only signed off the current 3 years of funding after a plan was created that saw his financial input reduce year on year, it'll take a major change of heart for him to singlehandedly fund another crack at Superleague.

Re: Leigh at home (June 25th) & the middle 8's : Wed Jun 08, 2016 9:14 pm  

Lets get some perspective here. In 2016 @ Trailfinders we accommodated a crowd of 1524 against Bradford and probably not without issue but ok, and I reckon Leigh will be 2000+

In our final 2 years of Super League @ The Hive, we registered the following crowds, 2015 / 2014

Salford 1246 / 2079
Warrington 1377 / 3041
Wakefield 1017 / 1877
Castleford 1036 / 1810
Catalans 1002 / 1136
Huddersfield 1035 / 1843
Hull 1135 / 1865
Widens 1422 / 2856
Wigan 2013 / 3594
St Helens 1791 / 2839
Hull KR 1084 / 1837
Leeds 1268 / 2377
Bradford 1402 / 1441

17 or 18 crowds on a par with our best of 2016, so with a few tweaks we could cope, although going forward and with a mind on growth might be more of a challenge.

Re: Leigh at home (June 25th) & the middle 8's : Thu Jun 09, 2016 1:08 am  

Bostwick wrote:

I have personally seen some of Hocks nasty little antics, what the guy brings to a club is trouble.
How much game time has he missed due to suspension?
Even desperate to win Salford got fed up with and let him go.

He'll never lose his reputation,simply because he's Hock.As for disciplinary since he's been a player with us.
One suspension (1 game ) last season and this is his first this season matching Naiqama with 3 games.
Not bad for a loose cannon.