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This Sunday afternoon 3pm UK time from Stade Albert Domec. Federation planning to stream one game each week. Using 6 cameras and three commentators - led by the French national team coach Aurelien Cologni. This one should be a belter between current Champions Limoux and Cup holders ASC. As well as a derby game there is a special flavour to this 4th round tie with Maxime Greseque returning to his old stamping ground but in the opposite corner this time as the new Limoux coach taking over the reins from Catalans Dragons bound Olivier Janzac. Both sides to date 2 wins and 1 loss. The Canaris are pulling all the stops out. 500 pre-match meals the order of the day already announced with the diners arriving before midday for the customary aperitif. With some Grizzlie fans coming down the valley we may gather the first four figure crowd of the season weather permitting. I plonk myself in the old stand next to the railway line which now has a new look. Those who are familiar with the layout will now find the old terrace running the length of the grandstand now converted into seating. It’s a decent venue these days. For the St Gaudens game there were half a dozen of us perched up there not taking into account the press box. Most regulars now prefer the new stand opposite but I reckon the rake of the seating is better from our view point and seats better quality too. Streaming WebTV FFRXIII here hopefully: http://www.ffr13.fr/ffrxiii-tv/

It seems to be getting a bit fraught on here lately, lots of unnecessary snark going on and virtual gnashing of teeth at each other. Lighten up a bit please, it's only a forum. It's meant to be fun. You know, like when teams bash each other to bits on the field but then shake hands at the end, you can have a good old fashioned debate on here, but there's no need for any of it to get nasty or personal. Neither myself nor ckn are fond of waving red cards about, but a few folk are testing our patience at the moment. Please take five minutes to re-read the T&Cs (via link below) and make sure your posts stay within the spirit of these easy to follow rules of polite engagement. http://www.totalrl.com/forums/index.php?/guidelines/ If you see anyone posting stuff you think is in breach of these T&Cs, just report the post and let us deal with it, don't engage with it in any way. And now, a musical interlude...

Bluntly, I think it is appealing. I said to someone weeks ago on another thread that they might just be surprised how many southern ex public schoolboys they might bump into on the terraces and pubs around the ground (particularly Wakey and Cas) from time to time. I know, because I am one and so are my friends that I go with. But we're not dressed as upper class twits of the year any more than most of the people we meet and talk to are professional northerners. Actually, in both Wakey and Cas there was more general astonishment that we wanted to be there, followed by drink buying, and reciprocating. If anything I would suggest that more people don't go (and I'm not suggesting vast numbers) by the continual atmosphere that "it's not for you, you're southern and you've got RU" that is projected by some people. There's a great sport along the M62, that I'm bloody minded enough to go and watch. But I do know friends who won't go (but do watch on the TV down here in Oxfordshire), and think we're mad to go, because we're/they're not going to be "welcome." That sort of thing is real, damaging, and holding the game back. It's not the *reality*, I know that, most people on here know that, but the perception is *real*. And that not only can be changed but absolutely should be.

I don't know whether it's just me, but a lot of recent topics see to have provoked very polarised standpoints,, with very little tolerance of opposing views displayed. And when the views expressed represent opinion only in many cases, the threads don't seem to go anywhere, And I've not even emphasised the duplication... Others may not of course agree, but I'm finding that I'm becoming loathe to participate in many threads. Put me out of my misery; is it just me or there others sharing a similar view?

Halfway through the 2016 season Amine signed for the All Golds. We (unpaid volunteers) met him at the airport, took him to the supermarket to stock up on supplies and made sure he was comfortable in his apartment. The following morning, his first full day in England, he said he wanted to go back to France. He booked a flight for that very afternoon. It's safe to say he'll struggle to make an impression on the game of rugby league unless he grows up a bit. A terrible shame really cause he looks a very talented player.

Wife just been in to office to collect some merchandise for me and to order the new away top. Having visited the DP offices on many occasions to collect orders for me in the past she couldn't believe the transformation in terms of the welcome, helpfulness and professionalism, (was even offered a coffee). So just thought it deserved a mention on here and to also say Well done to the BOD and all concerned, great to see things behind the scenes are being greatly improved. UTT

Just a month before we pummel Mr's "No TV for you!" Leigh, can't wait to see all the boys in action.

soccer, rugby union, and cricket have just as much a northern heritage as rugby league. the difference is they aren't beholden to it, or defined by it.

So I didn't misread. The 8s (and the structure changes that have had to come with it, such as Salary Cap) HAVE allowed for the foundations to be laid for them though, and for others. You mention about expansion efforts in the past. How many expansion clubs were brought in during 6 years of licensing (with a serious chance of getting in to SL)? Toulouse were brought in and failed immediately because of the restrictions in the Championship. There were no other attempts other than rushing through Celtic Crusaders by granting them a license, which failed; then hastily moving them to Wrexham to try and save face, which failed. After that, no one was interested. The RFL are skint. They do not have the resources to bang another PSG/Gateshead/Crusaders project into SL and fund it adequately for 10 years in hope it won't go bust within 2. They need to create opportunities for other investors to come in. So far, they're getting much more interest than they ever did under licensing. Surely that's a good thing?

Perhaps the off season allows for such warbling and digress

There certainly would in the pubs I go to, but face to face these things can be done with a little more humour and grace. There is also the fact that some people will simply have no respect for some people here - whereas in the pub you have probably had a bit of relationship building outside of out and out disagreement! It will always be a bit more heated on here imho. I do try and keep the pub thing in my head though - if I wouldnt say it to their face there then i wont write it.

Licensing will kill the game in many ways. I've said this before. Clubs like Fev currently know where they stand, what opportunities they have and look to be gradually progressing off-field too with an increase in sponsors and season ticket sales this year. Their aim is at least the middle 8's again and some bigger attendances against the SL clubs. If achieved it goes into next seasons budget t and then snowballs. They are planning this so what happens if the draw bridge is pulled up for no particular reason? York are another but in League 1. Like wise Newcastle. Again as I've stated 100 times before, ANY club must come through the divisions whether it's Hanoi, Katmandu or Manchester. We have to have confidence in our game. If a multi millionaire comes along and says I'll put millions into say RHYL but only if it's in SL we need to say "No Mr Wellsy, League One it is". That's how our game starts to gain respect.

Rugby League's English problem in a nutshell.

For someone who only hires the best, the best, he sure has been unlucky...

But we are struggling to get sponsors and the game is running low on money. We are sport not a political movement. Sky will walk away if we don't address our image problem. My gut feeling is the Super League clubs feel this away as well, which is why they want to control the image of the super league and have invited Toronto to the magic weekend.

I'm just glad that the Leeds club has changed its name to something more appropriate.

I didn't say he was let off because of 'diminished responsibility' but it was the closest comparative example I could think of. If you also read the judgement they do NOT dismiss the case on the basis of any procedural errors either. Whether he was, or indeed wasn't, 'guilty' of having banned substances in his body can never be proven because the test wasn't taken at the time. That fact is also not particularly relevant as the case was brought against him for refusing or failing to submit a sample and as I've already said twice the hearing found that the anti-doping charge (ie that he did refuse to take a test) was established. You really should read the judgement. Quite clearly why he got 'off' (I didn't want to speculate in my replies above as to the exceptional circumstances involved)....and it's probably correct that he should have if that really is the case.

Had exactly the same experience when I went in before Christmas . The two lads were brilliant ... friendly , professional , helpful , couldn’t do enough for you. I went in for two minutes and came out 25 minutes later after a good crack and a with a very good impression of the set up nowadays

I agree Gelling a big miss to the British game, but family always comes first,

Charming, but I guess that's Batley in a Saturday night.

Not this old chestnut again! We do have the ability to control our borders, we choose not to excercise that control fully. We are, and always have been a sovereign nation, the British parliament still exists and makes British law. The B of E controls and issues our currency, there is no EU involvement whatsoever. Identity is what you choose to make it; I feel not the slightest more or less British depending on our relationship with the EU. I'm not that insecure.

I think the obvious problem is how you market it - especially to new audiences. As someone who watches both codes I get the differences between the two. However, 7s is marketed as a faster version of union without the stoppages and the set pieces, leading to higher scores (ie, basically all the RL arguments against RU, but used by the RFU). Outside the heartlands, how do you market 9s - "it's 7s with 2 more people"? Genuine question - I can't see, as a southerner who will happily travel a couple of hundred miles to watch a league game on the M62 once or twice a season, where the gap in the market is for 9s. It doesn't fit in with the northern hemisphere season as stated above, it's not offering anything to the wider public (in the wider public's mind, obviously I know the differences), that they can't already get from 7s, and really I struggle to see it doing anything other than cannibalising the audience that RL has already got, rather than adding to it. If there's sufficient demand from the RL public for a 9s tournament in England then of course there should be a 9s tournament, I just struggle with how it's going to do a T20 and open up new audiences. I'm not trying to be negative, I just don't (as someone who's worked in marketing for years) see where the gap is or what needs it's addressing (other than attempting to deal with diminishing attention spans amongst the fans the code has already got in the bag). 9s comes across as a solution in search of a problem. 7s is a way of taking the ways RU can be criticised, and addressing them. Sort of akin to introducing 9s with a PTB but also proper scrums..... Other than the extra space, 9s is XIII with fewer people. 7s is increasingly a different sport (as, actually, is T20). I'm aware I'm nearly going round in circles with this, I just don't see what 9s is doing other than helping RL join the limited overs bandwagon for the sake of it.

You are dead right, it has gone down like a lead balloon immediately, well with this poster anyway. How can there be two scenarios to relegation depending on who you are in the same division, just for arguments sake we have both Hull and HKR, Hull are protected HKR are not, for obvious reasons like Derby games and big pay days, Hull could manufacture results in favour of HKR, it could happen with Leeds and Cas, Warrington and Widnes. I would/don't have had no/any sympathy whatsoever with any team that looses its SL status in a middle 8's scenario, all the odds are stacked in their favour against the Champjonship clubs, it was no ones fault only their own that HKR and Leigh lost their status, bad recruitment, bad coaching, poor form from the players, and the same would have been labelled against Leeds, Warrington and Catalan. Exactly the same applies if the game decides on a straight swop P&R format. You go on to say "It would make matters a lot simpler if the "A-license" clubs regularly performed like it on the pitch and were never in any danger of being relegated. But, as we saw with Catalans last season and very nearly Leeds the season before, it doesn't seem to pan out this way" Is that not what sport is all about, the uncertanty, if you don't perform you suffer the consequencies, ask the HKR and Leigh fans. Sorry Bramstein, it was used once and dropped when it protected Catalan, complete utterly stupid situation.

We've our own nasty beavers They live in a corral on Batley beck And are let out for exercise once a week On Saturday nights On Bradford Rd.. You can always find a nasty beaver there

Just throwing this in here as it is relevant for India (plus all other teams taking part in the ENWC) All teams entering the ENWC must conform with the following rules: - Squads must have a minimum of 8 local players. - Match Day teams have a point cap of 100 points. Professional players are worth 25 points, Domestic players are worth -5. With scaling in between. - Squads will be limited to either 20 or 22 players. Whilst not perfect at least every team will have a third to 40% domestic players in their squad. Some nations like Hungary are targeting 10 domestic players.

We hurt the ones we love the most.

You time is not yet up. A man aged 65 can now expect to live a further 18.5 years https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/lifeexpectancies/bulletins/nationallifetablesunitedkingdom/2014to2016 In our IAM group we've just had an 84 year old pass his Advanced Motorcyclist test and hes now bought CBR 500

And it feels like as RL fans we love to jump to conclusions based upon a couple of articles and quotes from people who actually don't have power to influence these things. Firstly, it's not the NRL who is against the Denver Test, it is handful of NRL club CEOs who provide the same answer for any representative game involving their players. The sad reality is the most likely reason the Denver match won't go ahead is because of the NZRL review post World Cup, but hey that story isn't as interesting. The reality of it is the NRL clubs can't stop the match and the NRL only could if they raised a motion at an RLIF annual, general or extraordinary meeting and got a majority of Test nations to agree with them. As for the Tonga v Australia Test, firstly it is just one of Mal's ideas. No one from the NRL has come out in support. It's not much different than his other idea for 2018 of having Australia A tour the Pacific. He is trying to generate work for himself as he gets won bonuses on top of his annual salary. Just whilst we also dealing with facts, Moore has said nothing about the Hawaii match. It was John Paul Basile who did. Now his views possibly reflect Moore's, but that is also possibly because the most likely scenario if the Hawaii match goes ahead is it will be rival promoter, Grand Prix Events, who have run the Ohana Cup, who would be involved, versus Moore Sport.

I've noticed a lot of people banging their heads against a wall trying to change people opinions writing paragraph after paragraph. Let it go dudes. State your bit for sure but it isn't that important if some guy you don't know thinks something different to what you think. In the end usually the result is the same outcome and no one thinks any different to what they started with after hours of effort writing books worth of posts. A lot of people have last word syndrome. I've been guilty of it as well. Its good to have passion about what your topic is, but sometimes you just got to let it end and accept people have a different opinion.

Hope you are not basing your season on loan players from Cas, there again it will be an advantage to other championship clubs if you do.

We often went to away matches without knowing where the ground was (pre internet!) and would look for floodlights or follow another car with fans in if we spotted them. I remember following one car with a driver in a red and white shirt for 15 mins before we realised it wasn't an Oldham shirt...

Bit hard for the Championship clubs to sell the TV rights, when the RFL already sold them to Sky? And the Championship's modest central funding comes from that? And pretty hard for them to gain TV exposure for their sponsors, when Sky won't show any games? The only way, as far as I can see, any championship club (excluding any yo-yo clubs like Leigh and HKR) has any real chance of "increasing their funds" is by a wealthy owner pumping money in. As well as enhancing the club directly, such funding facilitates the employment of all the key people you need to actually develop the club - off and on the field. Forget relying on building crowds to do it. Bob8 has answered that few posts above. But, we then come to the Catch-22. Why would any wealthy guy, in his right mind, pour a load of money into a club (and be unlikely to ever see it again) unless it was an investment to get the club into SL? Would anyone on here do that, if they were wealthy enough to be able to? So, as far as I can see the only clubs that are likely to see the sort of investment needed to make the Championship a potent and long-term viable competition in its own right, are those clubs whose owners are prepared to spend in the hope of getting out of the Championship as soon as ever possible? Anyone any answers to the Catch-22?

Forever ago I turned up for a midweek game at Bramley only to find there were houses where the ground used to be. I sat in my car staring in disbelief for a while until some bloke told me to get over to Headingley.

The RLonRY Twitter account says this is in addition to the RLonRY show. Says it’s back next Monday.

Recommend it. Great read and the author seemed to really enjoy his access behind the scenes. Greater respect of kear after the read and lots of insight into the playing squad.

https://www.loverugbyleague.com/post/doncaster-rise-challenge/ Doncaster have sold more than three times as many season tickets for the 2018 season as they did last year. The League 1 club launched the ‘Challenge 1000’ campaign in the off-season, with it coming to an end on Christmas Day. In total, the Dons have sold 607 season tickets for the 2018 campaign, 366 of those being adult and 241 being under the age of 16. As part of the ‘Challenge 1000’ campaign, they capped season tickets at just £60 for adults, with kids going free at the Keepmoat Stadium in 2018. Head of group marketing & communications at Club Doncaster, Shaun Lockwood, said: “We’ve had a great response to the Challenge 1000 campaign, adult season tickets have increased by 99% compared to 2017 and child season ticket number have increased by over 200 year-on-year. “These numbers provide us with a great platform to start growing the Dons fan-base from, our hard work now starts as we look to improve the matchday experience at the club and keep the younger generation of supporters we’ve found with the Challenge 1000 campaign.” Doncaster CEO, Carl Hall, said: “Last season, the Dons sold less than 200 season tickets in total, this year we now have over 600. “It is a great achievement, especially considering the disappointing season we had in 2017. “Even with the reduced prices, our season ticket sales revenue has increased, with the additional funds going straight towards the first team to ensure Richard (Horne) can make us competitive on the pitch.”

We are going to have a 30 foot moose behind the posts at the owl lane end I do hope it's strawberry because chocolate gets a bit sickly after a bucket full

But apparently need the RLIF to provide funds to make it happen!?

Sorry to be churlish but how many of us who are employed will be able to listen to much, if any, of this (except Dave T and Scubby who can do whatever they want to at “work”)?

Eventually you will get sick of saying the same thing over and over and just stop. Then you focus on the threads that you find interesting and ignore the rest. I've been on Brit RL forums for about 8 years and I could go to a new one tomorrow and predict what 90% of the threads will be about. Go to the Any Other Business section and start a thread about something you like - duck breeding, fishing, travel, playing the piano, great sewerage plants of the Western Hemisphere or whatever.

When people believe their club is severely threatened, all reason goes out the window. Then people will argue the most stupid things. We have seen it with different clubs in the past, it tends to rotate. You might be thinking of me as one extremist, yet I was arguing a traditionalist line with Scotchy, but I am not going to pretend that reality does not exist. I can see that for anyone to gain, there will often be an associated loss. Much comes to what you value more. If you believe Super League is to give as many British clubs full time rugby league as possible, then one approach (large Super League with P&R, no foreign clubs unless they clearly contribute directly) is reasonable. If you see Super League as its own entity that it to produce money for rugby league generally and act as a flagship regardless of nation, then the approach will be the opposite. There are not many people who can see both viewpoints though, or admit that there is another valid viewpoint. If that means that people will not admit their own viewpoint, I do not see them as honest. If they are not honest, it is not worthy of respect. Equally, insisting a view point is true only because a poster says so is arrogant and should be ridiculed.

People all over the world would be clamoring to watch Featherstone vs Dewsbury if only we sacked Nigel Wood.

My god, but I don't miss them. One of the joys of stepping off the corporate merry-go-round.

I heard what Gove actually said this morning. He said that post Brexit, subsidies will continue as they are for the duration of this Parliament (which is only as far as any sitting government can promise anything) but instead of subsidies being given for ownership of land (including land that does nothing at all for anyone) he wants to see subsidies for something, so as well as growing food that would also be allowing public access, enabling flood defences, conserving the environment. He didn't say it was an either/or between food production and meadow land but rather both, instead of food production and nothing (unless the farmer voluntarily does something) as is often the case now. I think that is spot on. If farmers are going to get subsidies, personally I want to see the subsidies at work for the benefit of my country, including the countryside.

Well Bob you did not actually answer the question directly but the tone of your answer says that yes you are in favour of ringfencing clubs competing in the same division. What is actually wrong with modern life, everything has to be politically correct, watered down, sanitized and totally molly-coddled in an indulgent and over protective way. Whatever happened to "you pay your money and you take your chances"

If I'm honest with myself I think I'm happy to continue with what we have. People complain that the system is a bit of a mess but ultimately it's reflective of the fact that there is no simple resolution to the issue at hand. Clearly there are some clubs in SL for whom relegation would be a disaster for the competition. It makes sense to try and put safeguards in place to ensure that this doesn't happen. However for all that these clubs exist, the A license clubs shall we say to use SL lingo, there will be clubs in SL who don't really have much more of a compelling case than those who would be shut out by any sort of ringfence. It is therefore only fair that the clubs who might be shut out have a crack at replacing these clubs. However, short of having a straight PR system with only some clubs eligible for relegation (very similar to what India proposed for the much spoke of but rarely seen test cricket championship) I don't really see what you can do. And clearly that idea would go down like a lead balloon. It would make matters a lot simpler if the "A-license" clubs regularly performed like it on the pitch and were never in any danger of being relegated. But, as we saw with Catalans last season and very nearly Leeds the season before, it doesn't seem to pan out this way. One of the reasons I've always felt RU has been able to maintain its promotion and relegation between Prem and Champ levels for so long is that ultimately it's never a flagship club who's involved in the scrap (bar the odd occasion at the end of the 90's to mid naughties when open professionalism was still bedding in). A cursory glance would suggest that RU in England can currently support 14 pro clubs and every year, it seems, two clubs who wouldn't really be considered major planks of the edifice take turns to oscillate between 1st and 2nd division. But even then I recently read that thoughts about ringfencing the league have surfaced again. I can't wait for the season to start so I can just think about the on field rugby league!

It works both ways. There is a point at which I would stop pretending to consider their points wise and earnest, the other difference in a pub is that people might pick up on the bewildered looks of those around them. I fell victim to taking threads more seriously years ago. I would have long tiresom arguments which I could not win. Then the like function came in and I found my posts were getting many likes and the idiot I was arguing with was actually being seen as an idiot. In an actual pub, the idiot would be laughed at if he did not reconsider or change how he argued. On the internet, that awareness will not happen. So he prefers the internet.

Who on here thinks Jeremy Corbyn is a messiah? Most of the 'left-leaning' posters on here poke almost as much fun at him as they poke at Theresa May.