Re: This board : Wed Jan 02, 2013 12:49 pm  

we have to be very careful about the 'success' of darts.
despite the size of winning the world championship, there is very little money in the game, and therefore very few full time pros.

darts has been able to increase its profile enormously (although lets wait and see what happens when Taylor retires), but without putting much money into the pot to support full time pros.

RL need a business plan which tales it well above what darts has achieved. And to put it into perspective - if you went onto the street in May and asked the average punter to name a darts player other than Phil Taylor, what do you think the response would be ? let alone ask them to name one under 40 !

Darts is a game still driven by 2 competing organisations, very few full time pro's, good viewing figures for 2 weeks a year and mostly filled with amateurs. That sounds to me like exactly where RL is going, rather than where we need to be aiming.

Re: This board : Wed Jan 02, 2013 12:53 pm  

ShortArse wrote:

we have to be very careful about the 'success' of darts.
despite the size of winning the world championship, there is very little money in the game, and therefore very few full time pros.

darts has been able to increase its profile enormously (although lets wait and see what happens when Taylor retires), but without putting much money into the pot to support full time pros.

RL need a business plan which tales it well above what darts has achieved. And to put it into perspective - if you went onto the street in May and asked the average punter to name a darts player other than Phil Taylor, what do you think the response would be ? let alone ask them to name one under 40 !

Darts is a game still driven by 2 competing organisations, very few full time pro's, good viewing figures for 2 weeks a year and mostly filled with amateurs. That sounds to me like exactly where RL is going, rather than where we need to be aiming.

And it's low cost sport? to televise. You don't need about twenty cameras at a game.

Re: This board : Wed Jan 02, 2013 1:33 pm  

the hedonic calculator wrote:

In our squad we have some absolutely fantastic players - individuals who would be selected for and perform admirably for any team in either code - and we are on the brink of a new season. The forthcoming season will give us moments of triumph and heart-break. We will see exhilerating rugby from our team and from other teams. We will laugh together in the stands and we will grumble over the errors, mistakes and missed opportunities until the bell for last orders rings in our ears. Nothing has changed. I love Wigan and have done since my father took me to my first game back when we were a relegated team. I truly hope we will earn some silverware this year, but if we don't then I will be a happy supporter simply because I will have been thoroughly entertained from start to finish. I'm sorry but I cannot find it within myself to get miserable and jaundiced about the future simply because we might not have recruited to the demands of some supporters. We watch a sport. We love that sport and we love our team. My life would be incomplete without it.
God, I'm excited - bring it on!

Well said. I have been, indeed still am, disappointed in the way the RFL has let our sport become little more than an extended pre-season followed by a four or five round cup competition. That's not what I want for our sport and is, quite frankly, a travesty. That said, it's still the best sport in the world (imo, of course) and we are blessed to be able to claim our town has one of the, if not THE, biggest name in the sport. I live in hope that the powers that be waken up and see the writing on the wall one day but until then I will continue to support and enjoy the greatest club in Rugby League.

Re: This board : Wed Jan 02, 2013 2:01 pm  

Rogues Gallery wrote:

And it's low cost sport? to televise. You don't need about twenty cameras at a game.

nor will it cost much i imagine to play or organise as its all individuals who dont require management, stadia or specialist training facilities.

Re: This board : Wed Jan 02, 2013 4:11 pm  

I agree with the OP's sentiments, its been very quiet on here but then again its been very quiet across the board - RL wise. You go on BBC Sport > Rugby League, theres not much gonig on there either aside from the odd contract renewal here and there and Paul Wood's lone soldier...

It could be said that no news is good news however; i would rather have it quiet than awash with "Blummin rugby union, pinching Josh Charnley", etc.

Re: This board : Wed Jan 02, 2013 7:33 pm  

wire quin wrote:

Did I say SL champions? But hey if thats what you read.......

We may have finished top of the table after the regular rounds but we were not League Champions

Re: This board : Wed Jan 02, 2013 9:03 pm  

What were you if you weren't champions of the league?

Re: This board : Wed Jan 02, 2013 9:57 pm  

wire quin wrote:

What were you if you weren't champions of the league?

Table toppers.

Re: This board : Wed Jan 02, 2013 10:01 pm  

wire quin wrote:

What were you if you weren't champions of the league?

The best team in Super League.

[Wigan6/Leeds1 Andy]

Re: This board : Wed Jan 02, 2013 10:13 pm  

wire quin wrote:

What were you if you weren't champions of the league?

League leaders. Hence why we got the league leaders shield.

14 years of having a Grand Final to determine champions and still people want to put their heads in the sand - only in rugby league, which is why the game gets the profile its fans deserve.