EssexRL

I could be a potential ST holder (I was when they were at Charlton) but I need to see what happens on and off the field before I commit. The club should think about options, such as half season tickets or match bundles. They also need to revisit Wimbledon fans.

I thought the atmosphere was affected by how long it took people to get there but also because a lot of people, me included, were eating and drinking in or around the ground.

I started off by saying I think this match should be moved from Wembley but I was wrong. The venue is iconic and it does feel special going there (whatever the result) so yeah let's keep playing there and build the fixture (but try to work on the atmosphere).

You're right - I saw more Hull and KR shirts than any other clubs (although a fair few Leeds ones). You're also right about the lack of chanting. A few years ago at the CC I got caught with their rug sac rule which makes no sense at all.

Nothing to do with the game on the pitch (which was poor) but my reflections on the day are- There was an interesting number of people with RU tops/caps There were a lot of southern accents More Aus supporters than I recall in past Whilst Wembley makes a statement it is too big - Spurs would have been sold out It was great being able to watch international RL 40mins from my home 61,000 is a very good crowd

This is a rare RL international occasion where I will be leaving my home at 11am, meeting my son for brunch and having a leisurely journey on the Overground to the stadium.

Mine too. I found a fellow southerner at work in London who loved RL and went.

Have signed up to membership and will give the club a chance so long as they stay fixed (or move to east London!)

Building for your current crowds with the ability to grow the stadium makes perfect sense. There are plenty of sports clubs that have over built and it is not a great experience. Possible CC games against a SL opponent aside (and maybe the local derby) it would seem unlikely that the ground would sell out (although great if it did!)

I think we can all agree that outside of a handful of places the sport struggles to have mass appeal (in terms of spectators - I think 'awareness' of RL is reasonable). I mean Championship and L1 crowds, for example, are less than amazing in areas that are meant to be the heartland and not every SL club is packing them in week in week out. We can and should argue about why this state of affairs exists because we need to understand how we have got to where we are in order to move on*, but we should also note other sports (like RU and county cricket) are also struggling. The quirk of RL is that historically it was very northern based, which means - 1. There is a struggle to sustain and grow it in the established areas like other (non football sports) 2. There is an additional task to grow it in new areas (which cricket, for example, does not have to do) If though we agree the sport has merit, the key question is not - 'what has gone wrong in London/Cumbria/Newcastle/South Wales/ or where ever' but rather 'how do we grow it?' and if we want to grow it then London matters (as does Cumbria, Newcastle etc.,) *I realise this sounds like couple counselling although maybe with the sport split between the North and South that isn't inappropriate!

I would happily go back and watch a game in Barcelona.

It is very hard to see what will change in a year. Essentially building a new RL team at any level in London is a hard ask. Perhaps they (I used to think in terms of 'we') need to go back to their origins and see if there are any players in London universities. I hope that club survives. I hope if changes come to Broncos they may benefit Skolars. Any future is probably going to have to be based on a long term plan and engagement with the small band of fans (I've not heard from the club since they went amateur!)

To be fair if the club is a success it won't matter. What matters substantively is how the relaunch is handled. This is an opportunity to reintroduce the club (and sport to London). I will wait with interest to see what is planned.

Totally. That makes no sense. It is, objectively, a very poor choice.

I am not sure what the answer is and clearly things that have been tried in the past have not worked but I am convinced, in principle, if we are not going to have a pyramid structure like football, a three tier league makes sense but it can only make sense if there are enough clubs to avoid these kind of situations.