Cougarmania II developing faster than the original : Sat Apr 07, 2012 10:07 am  

SKINDRED wrote: That was fantastic game , Cougar fans turned up in numbers and I believe contributed to the performance on the pitch. VERY VERY vocal from 1st minute til 80th. Not wanting to get giddy but if we perform like that next week Warrington will certainly know theyve been in a game. One slight negative (or maybe it was just me !!!) Not many of the players came to applaud the fans after the game , JD seemed to congregate a fair few of them in the middle of the pitch and then they trooped off. Whether he was hacked off at losing narrowly, just plain knackered or what im not sure .. again purely an observation and not a gripe. Again an awesome display all round .... take notice rugby world ... cougarmania could well be starting to brew again IN JD WE TRUST It was a long time after the re-born Cougars were launched in 1991 before we had such a performance as that at Halifax last night. It took the original Cougarmania until 1995 to get Cougar average home attendances above Bradford's (5,200), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OE2Yk5Rt ... creen&NR=1 JD also inherited a club lacking pride and ambition and has turned things around and, although he started with a slightly better set-up than existed at the start of 1991, I would say he has progressed about twice as fast as when Cougarmania was built up the first time. The key things now:- 1. JD needs 100% backing from everybody who can contribute & help. 2. The Directors and all others behind ther scenes need to work as hard as they can to give JD and the players who are really buying in to what he wants to achivee as solid and professional a foundation as possible. 3. See every match, win or lose, as a progressive step - we can learn something every day and from every match. 4. Dare to be different 5 Don't think of Keighley as a small club. Look at Castleford - pretty consistently in the top division and with the crowds Keighley aspires to - but with a population/catchment area of less than half the size of Keighley. Anything Castleford can achieve is achievable by Keighley. 6. Try to add a new player (with the right experience, ability and ATTITUDE) reasonably consistently. e.g. If Richard Moore doesn't get in the Leeds team after injury, could we consider getting him back home to Keighley as a dual registration player? I know it all depens on contracts etc. (Hetherington got him from us for nothing in the first place). Would also like to see Keith Senior at Cougar Park on a short term deal for rest of season. 7. For Cougarmania to develop there is a need to add such high profile signings now and then. It was at the height of Cougarmania that the failure to land the "nearly" signings of Laurie Daley, Kevin Ward and Bobbie Goulding led to the loss of the upward momentum. Remember in 1996 - we knew we had to finish at least second in the second division - to avoid Hull and Huddersfield finishing 1 and 2 as we knew they would both go up. They did finish 1 and 2 and are now 1 and 2 in Super League! 7 Try to work with the Keighley amateur set up to try to get top young players to move with their families to live and work in the Airedale/Wharfedale area. We need to build up the strength of the local amateurs so they can play at top amateur level. 8. Accept that we won't go into SL unless somehow we can develop a new ground (at Silsden?). But, until then, there's plenty to go at in sweeping all before us at this level.

SKINDRED wrote: That was fantastic game , Cougar fans turned up in numbers and I believe contributed to the performance on the pitch. VERY VERY vocal from 1st minute til 80th. Not wanting to get giddy but if we perform like that next week Warrington will certainly know theyve been in a game. One slight negative (or maybe it was just me !!!) Not many of the players came to applaud the fans after the game , JD seemed to congregate a fair few of them in the middle of the pitch and then they trooped off. Whether he was hacked off at losing narrowly, just plain knackered or what im not sure .. again purely an observation and not a gripe. Again an awesome display all round .... take notice rugby world ... cougarmania could well be starting to brew again IN JD WE TRUST It was a long time after the re-born Cougars were launched in 1991 before we had such a performance as that at Halifax last night. It took the original Cougarmania until 1995 to get Cougar average home attendances above Bradford's (5,200), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OE2Yk5Rt ... creen&NR=1 JD also inherited a club lacking pride and ambition and has turned things around and, although he started with a slightly better set-up than existed at the start of 1991, I would say he has progressed about twice as fast as when Cougarmania was built up the first time. The key things now:- 1. JD needs 100% backing from everybody who can contribute & help. 2. The Directors and all others behind ther scenes need to work as hard as they can to give JD and the players who are really buying in to what he wants to achivee as solid and professional a foundation as possible. 3. See every match, win or lose, as a progressive step - we can learn something every day and from every match. 4. Dare to be different 5 Don't think of Keighley as a small club. Look at Castleford - pretty consistently in the top division and with the crowds Keighley aspires to - but with a population/catchment area of less than half the size of Keighley. Anything Castleford can achieve is achievable by Keighley. 6. Try to add a new player (with the right experience, ability and ATTITUDE) reasonably consistently. e.g. If Richard Moore doesn't get in the Leeds team after injury, could we consider getting him back home to Keighley as a dual registration player? I know it all depens on contracts etc. (Hetherington got him from us for nothing in the first place). Would also like to see Keith Senior at Cougar Park on a short term deal for rest of season. 7. For Cougarmania to develop there is a need to add such high profile signings now and then. It was at the height of Cougarmania that the failure to land the "nearly" signings of Laurie Daley, Kevin Ward and Bobbie Goulding led to the loss of the upward momentum. Remember in 1996 - we knew we had to finish at least second in the second division - to avoid Hull and Huddersfield finishing 1 and 2 as we knew they would both go up. They did finish 1 and 2 and are now 1 and 2 in Super League! 7 Try to work with the Keighley amateur set up to try to get top young players to move with their families to live and work in the Airedale/Wharfedale area. We need to build up the strength of the local amateurs so they can play at top amateur level. 8. Accept that we won't go into SL unless somehow we can develop a new ground (at Silsden?). But, until then, there's plenty to go at in sweeping all before us at this level.

Re: Cougarmania II developing faster than the original : Sat Apr 07, 2012 10:51 am  

Excellent post Wooden Stand ...I think the crucial cog in the Cougar Wheel is JD and he must be kept at ALL costs and i mean ALL costs. When we got him from Wakey I remember their fans telling us on here what a good clubman we had got .... and bloody hell were they right. We cannot afford to let him go to a Super Duper league club , we must keep him here at Keighley but we must convince JD his place is HERE just like he is convincing us to come back to the club. I know that that is easier said than done when the big boys come knocking with their cheque books .... but its paramount ....

Re: Cougarmania II developing faster than the original : Sat Apr 07, 2012 10:53 am  

Why Silsden?

Good post though

Re: Cougarmania II developing faster than the original : Sat Apr 07, 2012 11:05 am  

Cougar Park could be developed at a pinch (if Cricket Club etc could be relocated and the land acquired!) - but realistically, it's a bit hemmed in these days for a 10,000 capacity stadium with parking. There's a lot of flat land just above the flood plain adjacent to the little business park in Silsden (across road from Silsden AFC) that could be used for a new community stadium with EU & Bfd Council & Lottery etc support & funding once finances improve a bit. (Need to get Stephen Ball (ex Batley Chairman who went to Leeds) on board to help with this). But we need to get up to 5,000 gates and winning Championship grand finals first to make it a runner.

Re: Cougarmania II developing faster than the original : Sat Apr 07, 2012 11:06 am  

As an aside, I think the club should be promoting the next home game against Sheffield heavily. I know people will be looking forward to the Warrington game, but that game promotes itself.

We should be using the Warrington game to get people back down the week after; family discounts, kids for a quid etc;

Re: Cougarmania II developing faster than the original : Sat Apr 07, 2012 12:20 pm  

We're Keighley Cougars aren't we? I don't think moving out of Keighley would be right.

I think a pretty revolutionary approach is required. The cost of a new stadium cannot be justified even if it's full for the 12 games a year or so that a Rugby League side uses it for. It has to generate very strong income streams for the other 350 days a year it's not being used. Here's a few ideas I'd like to throw out there.

Location is absolutely vital. Of course in the better locations land values increase. However the knock-on effects are quite harsh. The first one is simple, the harder it is for fans to get to the ground, the less likely they're going to bother to turn up. Then it's also more difficult to raise money from things like function rooms etc. In an ideal world it would be great if the proposed shopping centre development at the end of Coney Lane failed. It's 5 minutes walk from the bus station, 5 minutes walk from the train station. The Cricketers, great as it is, could be replaced with a bigger, better Hall of Fame. Open throughout the week, generating funds through out the week. Incorporate retail units in to a stand running down East Parade to generate rental income.

It must have a synthetic pitch. I can almost see the flatcappers on here cringe but it's the most effective way of getting high usage out the facility. It costs less to maintain, it can be used 24/7 if need be. It can be used for the benefit of the community, charity fun days etc. Hired out as a training field. Concerts, even stick marquees on it and host weddings.

Renewable energy. Improvements in this field meant that even folk in the cold North of England are sticking solar panels on their roofs. We're even sponsored by a solar firm. Stadiums by their design naturally have large surface areas to put panels on, if the roof was designed so was all South facing it could reduce the running costs of the facility, even make a small profit.

Re: Cougarmania II developing faster than the original : Sat Apr 07, 2012 7:45 pm  

Would a synthetic pitch be legal for a league team at any level, even more so for Super league?

Re: Cougarmania II developing faster than the original : Sat Apr 07, 2012 8:15 pm  

Widnes have a synthetic pitch

Re: Cougarmania II developing faster than the original : Sat Apr 07, 2012 9:44 pm  

Thanks for letting me know that, aj

Re: Cougarmania II developing faster than the original : Sat Apr 07, 2012 10:38 pm  

I'm sorry but, with the current set-up, I (unfortunately) can't see this happening (despite the fact that I would); that's why I feel that every Championship club should realise this fact - that the existing Super League clubs don't want to admit any other club from outside 'the priveliged few'?

OK, the RFL have taken-over our lease on Cougar Park, but how much assistance do they provide to the Championship clubs in general?

How much coverage does the Championship get from even local media? Radio Leeds were so obsessed with the Northern game, and recaps of the other Super League games, last night that they completely ignored the Halifax v Cougars game and didn't even give the result! They didn't give any other Championship results!

Then they have the audacity to say:

Our top team of commentators will bring you all the football action from Leeds United, Huddersfield Town, Bradford City, and our local non-league clubs, plus rugby league involving Leeds Rhinos, Bradford Bulls, Huddersfield Giants, Wakefield Trinity Wildcats and Castleford Tigers, plus National League clubs, Leeds Carnegie rugby union and Yorkshire cricket, as well as the best from the rest of the area's sporting action.

BBC Radio Leeds' covers all of West Yorkshire's rugby league action, from Super League to the Championship divisions, from Challenge Cup to the Northern Rail Cup. Join James Deigthon on Friday nights (1900-2200 BST) for commentary on Super League matches involving our West Yorkshire clubs and on Sundays (1500-1800 BST) [size=200][size=150]for all the action from Super League and Championship divisions[/size][/size]. We also broadcast on Saturday evening games and cover Thursday night Championship games where appropriate.

when we are forced to pay their salaries whatever they do, despite what they say!

Don't even mention Tanya Arnold and Gobbie Paul! They make me sick, and James Deighton isn't too far behind!

So where was the coverage last night?

It was all at Sodal and their attempt to retain their Dooper League licence!