1.Why do you keep bringing up how many players each have in the SL at present?!
2. What money did Crusaders have?
3. (sheffield) have said themselves they aren't ready yet, but you've made it out like they never will be. I just don't see why having Sheffield-based SL players at present is ANY sort of indicator to their application.
1. There's a heavy shortage of quality players at the moment. For some years the RFL have required SL entrants to produce players of their own. This is the stated reason London are in SL - for the pro player pool. Their academy creates pro players. One has just travelled up to sign for HKR.
2. Not a lot but then again at the time of their inclusion in SL what money did Halifax, Salford, Wakey, Widnes, Leigh, Fev and Castleford have? What losses are HKR making today?? The RFL took Crusaders into SL clearly knowing it would be a struggle and bent over backwards for them and they may have been here today if Wakey had not found their investor.
The RFL had their eyes on Crusaders being the conduit for welsh players to develop through the junior and academy system, as Swansea Jack? said the clubs inclusion in SL boosted the junior scene. Crusaders may have been a money leaking mess but as usual people jumped on that and declared the RFL fools, but they didn't say anything about the other financial messes up north.
The RFL continue to focus on Wales tying up links between SL clubs and the Scorpions and Crusaders, only on Monday they declared this as creating a clear pathway for players in new areas to see a route to Superleague.
I focus on the production of players because many people say it doesn't matter if your academy is not local born, you can sign quality kids from elsewhere. However that's no good unless "elsewhere" is producing the players and on the whole they are not. Looking at the facts hotbeds of junior RL like Cumbria, Hunslet, Oldham, Halifax produce few SL players
3. And so for me the RFL want clubs to primarily develop their own players. Without any money man Sheffield cannot run in SL with a competitive team and an effective academy. There's few local kids to sign and everyone else i.e. richer clubs will be chasing the same kids outside of Sheffield the Eagles have their eyes on.
South Yorkshire is a heavy soccer area with little rugby anyway, London and wales have bigger "rugby" cultures to tap into and our game has had some success. I see a difference, which is fair enough to suggest.
To answer your point the main indicator to their application is their lack of a rich investor, but they will struggle to produce players - how many years do you think they could last in SL after all HKR have hit buffers after six with a lot of fans and private money?
I'm not having a go here, but if you can set out the "virtuous circle" of how Sheffield can build "bottom up" and one day be ready for Superleague, to counter my suggestion it may never happen (because of circumstance) then I would be very interested in your thoughts.
Of course if it involved someone coming along and committing £2M a year to the club for many years that "top down" could be viable. It has to date seen such as LMS and Caro exported north and London born lads in a Broncos team that put 62 points on Wire.
Edited by The Parksider, 09 October 2012 - 08:51 AM.
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