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Just to point out that on the hottest day of the year,against a side well fancied,and well positioned,to get themselves promoted to the Championship,West Wales Raiders only had 16 players.

It made things tad difficult.

Over the weekend there a blowout score in The Championship - at Toronto.

In the NCL there was a blowout score at York Acorn.

Not as bad as West Wales Raiders,nor as regular,but WWR also had both captains missing,they have endured changes behind the scene,and a plethora of injuries which commenced before the season started.

By this time next year the semi-professional club will be much more professional.

Well,I hope so.

The perfect storm that engulfed them doesn't just disappear overnight.

Difficult things take time - Miracles a little longer.

     No reserves,but resilience,persistence and determination are omnipotent.                       

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Sorry to say, but this is our pro/amateur prejudice. Rather ironic don'tcha think?

NCL should be the level for development clubs. We, of all, shouldn't give a monkey's if Skolars or WWR are paying players against amateurs. Win the NCL, get promoted. 

But that relies on finishing bottom. getting relegated.

Just like our dominant sport football.

So. Siddal, St Pat's, Wath Brow, or West Hull go up, and continue getting crowds in the few hundreds.

Skolars, NWC, Hunslet, Whitehaven, Keighley, WWR or whoever can go down, and continue getting crowds in the few hundreds.

Whatever money changes hands is irrelevant. That is why we are not on an RU forum, no?

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58 minutes ago, roughyedspud said:

It's only the bottom 3 teams that are way off the pace,the rest of the league is really competitive...

But I do believe their is scope for a new developmental league 2

Is it ever! Been a real eye-opener! There is still all to play for, and plenty of time yet for major upsets. Just such a tragedy that more folk are not getting down to the games - not least for you guys sat joint 3rd.

The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, and wise people so full of doubts.

Bury your memories; bury your friends. Leave it alone for a year or two.  Till the stories grow hazy, and the legends come true.  Then do it again - some things never end.

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6 hours ago, Anonymouse said:

If Carlisle United had DR with Man City and used 4 players along with 2 loanees from Man utd all season and won the league , would supporters have actually been watching their own team and would Carlisle be in an honest place in the league above next season ?

As a Carlisle fan, I'd take that!

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14 hours ago, scotchy1 said:

I  think the complete opposite. League 1 is screwed up not because of the expansion sides but because of the heartland sides.

Scrap league 1. Take 12 expansion sides, match them with the 12 british SL sides, rebrand it SL2 and make them the reserves for SL.

This is the silliest idea ever, that Superleague clubs whose focus must be to keep the game strong in the heartlands (hence they run foundations and their own development teams who produce pro players) should do something like this, spending time and resources on places that don't produce pro players or fans of any significant number. Really silly.

Remember Newcastle date back nearly 20 years and although they have 900 fans and a small junior game, the dying West Cumbria has two club totalling 1200 fans, a small junior game AND some strong NCL clubs, like Kells Egremont and Wath Brow. Lets not pretend the more heavily populated North East is a roaring success. It maybe could be if the owner at Newcastle actually spent some real big money.

London have been around nearly 40 years and it was always big enough to  run an amateur league via the SARL even when Union apartheid was around. As it stands they have crowds totalling about 1300 between the two clubs there, and again a small amateur game that produces the odd professional now and again.

And that is it, other pins in maps are based on even smaller local games with so called professional clubs only viable due to SKY funding that nearly went until Superleague were fought off. Don't make any plans to welcome all these expansion clubs into SL if the next TV deal does not repeat at £200M which it certainly will not.

I'm all for expansion and I love to see the smallest successes, but to create a fantasy out of it is not for me. It's disingenuous. It's not real world.

We got to the point not long ago clubs were taking ££££thousands to bus players down from the north to be able to put out a team in what the game pretends is a professional third tier. It just isn't that. It was created to keep the championship an even competitive league (ruined eventually by the middle 8's) and then expanded after the collapse of Superleague in London and Wales to give an illusion Rugby League expansion under licensing had not failed.

That was really silly, as is your idea. I'd at least put Newcastle, Skolars and West Cumbria into a bigger championship with a sensible salary cap to sink or swim, their choice, but let's not pretend at a time funding for league one and the clubs themselves us set to go, that all these tiny clubs are somehow growing apace it's just a mattr of time - check the time it's taking Donny and Eagles to "grow" when they are right next to the heartlands. 58 and 35 years to go nowhere.

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If it’s only the bottom three that are way off the pace why did one of them in Coventry Bears beat London Skolars last weekend??

Ive been watching London Skolars for many years and apart from a couple of years ago when we made the top half of the competition when the league split we have really struggled. It seems like the past 2 seasons we had gone worse and most of the players aren’t good enough for this level. Not only are they unfit but some of the so called big name players go missing when the games get tough. 

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Very worrying that WWR are unable to take a full squad to games. Player welfare has to come into it and if teams are unable to field a full team (other than exceptional circumstances) you have to question if they should be part of a semi pro league. 

I feel sorry for them but it has to be the most very basic of requirements that a team can send 17 players to a game. How often have they sent fewer than 17? The one time Swinton played them (as South Wales) it was the same and I think they finished with 11 fit players on the pitch. 

It's no good for anyone seeing games where not only is there already an overwhelming favourite but the underdog cannot even send a full squad.

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5 hours ago, roughyedspud said:

It's only the bottom 3 teams that are way off the pace,the rest of the league is really competitive...

 

1

Bears beat Skolars on Saturday .... just saying like :-) 

(and optimistically  looking at the second half of the season fixtures could just finish above them in the league )

BTW no one read Gareth Walkers Championship column in this week's League Express  regarding the strict financial controls and development plans for the future at the Bears ? Methinks a fair number of 'heartland' clubs could look and learn from them

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9 hours ago, East Coast Tiger said:

Aye git rid of t’ clubs an it’ll be back t’glory days. 

 

Most of the northern clubs outside SL (and some in it) are on the precipice of extinction, or will be in a generation, due to grounds, aging fan bases, falling attendances and general mismanagement. Competitions like League 1 will dwindle and disappear but not because expansion clubs fold..

You’re right. Crowds wise Skolars and Coventry can match many traditional clubs attendances and Newcastle beat them, as North Wales could up to this season. Expansion clubs like London and Bears are much more soundly run financially than many heartland ones although we cannot compete on pitch largely due to the small player pool we have access too. What’s the answer though? Keep the viable clubs across all three divisions and dump the rest. Invest in what’s left? 

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1 hour ago, Londonfan said:

If it’s only the bottom three that are way off the pace why did one of them in Coventry Bears beat London Skolars last weekend??

If ? Look at the bleeding table!

Skolars have won more games than all 3 teams below them combined!

OLDHAM RLFC

the 8TH most successful team in british RL

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18 hours ago, DavidM said:

Simple , your supporting your team and who plays for it . That’s a constant 

Changed your tune over recent years. It was like getting into bed with the devil when Haven did it but now it’s great, forget local lads who can we have from Huddersfield, Leigh etc this week.

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3 minutes ago, Marrafan said:

Changed your tune over recent years. It was like getting into bed with the devil when Haven did it but now it’s great, forget local lads who can we have from Huddersfield, Leigh etc this week.

No not at all . I’ve always said the same thing , go back to when we had it with Wigan . I want the strongest possible side and agree or not with the rules - they’re the rules everyone plays and is playing by . That’s the reality , no ? Wrote something similar on York not so long ago

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Anybody rubbishing league one and wondering what purpose the new clubs play will do well to listen to the BBC podcast from the other week. 30minutes long featuring the Coventry bears. A real upbeat peice that puts many heartland clubs to shame. I'd suggest Coventry are not the only club with great things happening behind the scenes. If league one was to be scrapped all this that you here on the podcast would be lost forever.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p06cnmm2

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18 hours ago, Anonymouse said:

If Carlisle United had DR with Man City and used 4 players along with 2 loanees from Man utd all season and won the league , would supporters have actually been watching their own team and would Carlisle be in an honest place in the league above next season ?

Watford got to the Premier League by doing exactly that with 9 players Serie A club in Italy.

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20 hours ago, Anonymouse said:

It is distorting league 1 , some clubs have 4 DR and 2 loan players , 6 out of 13 who are from championship high flyers or even SL .

Any club can only name upto 5 players in any match day squad. Your point kinda still stands though.

[EDIT] - Should have read the rest of the thread!

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6 hours ago, roughyedspud said:

If ? Look at the bleeding table!

Skolars have won more games than all 3 teams below them combined!

Errr ...look at the rest of the fixtures to come .....

Coventry still have to play West Wales twice as well as Hemel at home plus have Crusaders at home the next lowest club ...Skolars have only Hemel that looks winnable ...

That would give Cov 12 and Skolars 11 ...

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When are people ever happy?

Despite being youngest still :) (41) I've been watching the game regularly home and away since the late 80's.

Then we had 5 countries playing the game. The only non-heartland team was London.

Now we have a world cup of 16 countries - with qualifiers to boot. We are arguing the to$$ over clubs from the far reaches of Wales, Newcastle, (another) London club and a club in Berkshire!! Not to mention the others. Really? Is this is what it has come to. Can't we embrace our game, look forward to watching our game in these places and just get on with it?

Like poor jokes? Thejoketeller@mullymessiah

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As much as I admire Newcastle they are currently only the best of the rest but are a good competitive side with good support. As for west wales I’m tired of people saying that they never give up. What sort of scores constitutes giving up

sometimes you have to take a step backwards to move forward

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10 minutes ago, DEANO said:

As much as I admire Newcastle they are currently only the best of the rest but are a good competitive side with good support. As for west wales I’m tired of people saying that they never give up. What sort of scores constitutes giving up

Giving up would be folding mid-season I guess ?

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2 hours ago, Rach said:

Errr ...look at the rest of the fixtures to come .....

Coventry still have to play West Wales twice as well as Hemel at home plus have Crusaders at home the next lowest club ...Skolars have only Hemel that looks winnable ...

That would give Cov 12 and Skolars 11 ...

 FFS...we're talking about now not what might happen..

I was actually bigging up league 1,yeah the bottom 3 are off the pace,the league table reflects that, but everyone else is competitive!!!

But like a typical RL fan you get hung up on semantics!

OLDHAM RLFC

the 8TH most successful team in british RL

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1 hour ago, DEANO said:

As much as I admire Newcastle they are currently only the best of the rest but are a good competitive side with good support. As for west wales I’m tired of people saying that they never give up. What sort of scores constitutes giving up

  Something along the lines of the mighty York - not so long ago in their glorious 150 years as a club.

  http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/7933275.Stumbling__shame/ful_showing

     No reserves,but resilience,persistence and determination are omnipotent.                       

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