The 4 of Us

Ask Chat GPT! Interesting if the one that I’ve seen, especially considering current role.

Absolutely get that. I was at the Camp Nou as well and despite 30,000 being there us didn’t really feel like the event it should have been, apart from the apparently very political singing of the Catalan anthem. I made a similar comparison of the Challenge Cup final at Wembley Vs NFL games there were there is 3 hours worth of events before the game and a lot of money spent.

Quite likely, but just symptomatic of the wider issues I think and absence of a “plan” how these games should be taken on the road, if at all. Dublin appears to be planned for next year so we’ll see how that impacts.

https://www.wiganwarriors.com/news/2026/june/11/community-connection---?fbclid=IwdGRleASYDnZleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAo2NjI4NTY4Mzc5AAEenYYvGGXvRAXcrLVMGdV2hsCV2mqPsya7fH1vYPgCGh1bvcu3a79_SjbkRzg_aem_H-LnFQanGsG4dfgXq_QbwA

Don’t need to give you the oxygen of a response to something selected out of the context it was responding to, namely club efforts, but I’m talking big picture, not the fixture per se. There are a lot of good people at the RFL no doubt, but I’m not sure they have the ability to make the sort of high level decisions required, and as the old saying goes, and for the sport generally, Lions lead by donkeys.

There is that. Wigan did well to get half the crowd the the Paris match and you can’t fault the effort but the lack of big event preparation obviously hampered the Wembley final a week before. Even in the gym I go to, I’d heard reference to more than one not going to one capital because they were going to the other. You can’t really blame Wigan as I expect there’s no one to coordinate with at the RFL or who wouldn’t do more than return a blank stare, but it was a bit self-defeating on reflection. There are of course other clubs that simply don’t try or contributing to the collective uncoordinated effort.

Absolutely agree. But I personally think most of the credit should be given to the players on the pitch, their coaches and some of the club administrators and owners in that order. I’m not convinced much of the credit falls at the door of those tasked with overseeing the whole thing and it’s that which holds the sport back from its full potential.

He forgot to caveat it with “players bar”.

We were discussing this at the game on Saturday. Wigan did a good deal signing to him the end of 2028 but I suspect there could be a buy out of that final year, or a release of some sort.

Discussed this yesterday. If nothing else joined up thinking and a governing body with a “plan” would avoid that happening. Can’t blame the clubs for wanting to grow their sport but it doesn’t necessarily take account of anything else going on. At least the date of next years final is known, although I’d assume it was for this year!

The RFL need to start by not opening the top tier at Wembley until it needs to get above 60,000 and then work upwards. There was some spin. put out in the last week or two that sales were above 60,000 and that the lower bowl was close to a sell out, neither was true. Lots of theories being shared above what the reasons are for a drop off, and something very noticeable was the reduced numbers of jerseys from other teams, and that has to be on the RFL for failings in the sales 12 months prior. How many clubs/pubs run a coach trip these days. Much reduced I suspect. The group I go with every year got Club Wembley tickets for £37.50 each. That’s ridiculously cheap compared with other ticket prices later in the day. If the RFL don’t do already, I’d prefer them to offer tickets to profit community clubs for selling so many tickets themselves, much like the RFU do. The format can be tweaked perhaps but the gap between pro and semi-pro is going to limit the finalists to SL teams in any event. The RFL should try to focus on making the whole day a festival of RL without outdoor events around the ground. I’ve attended the NFL there and it’s light years ahead. No chance of anything comparable and suspect it would cost money they just don’t have at the moment, but they can’t carry on doing nothing and expecting it to change. Having seen Nigel Wood going onto the pitch with Shaun Edwards, it did feel a bit Groundhog Day. If only there was another RL organisation waiting in the wings to takeover.

How not to do it?

Not sure that the Mason’s have a RL network, but you really wouldn’t know if they did come to think of it!

Oldham? Featherstone? North Wales?

Blowing smoke up your own ‘arris is quite the feat.