Hopping Mad

To collate what I think we know, as of 12/5 (any help filling the blanks and/or corrections appreciated): Super League/Challenge Cup Printed programme: Leeds (48pp, £4, 250 for sale on matchday, £75 season subscription and £4+P&P individual match copies through Ignition Sports Media), Leigh (68pp, £3.50, individual match copies through MatchDayCreative), Warrington (32pp, £70 season subscription and £3+P&P individual match copies through Ignition Sports Media), Wigan (76pp, £4, individual match copies through MatchDayCreative). Digital programme: Leeds (48pp, free, available only to 2024 club members), Leigh (through MatchDayCreative), London (scan a barcode at the stadium), St Helens ('Saints and Proud', free to download via zeeon.co.uk), Warrington (32pp, free), Wigan (76pp, £3, PDF, through MatchDayCreative). Printed magazine: Castleford ('Roar', £2, monthly, in-season only). Printed teamsheet: Salford (available from the stadium's main reception). Nothing: Huddersfield, Hull FC, Hull KR. To be confirmed: Catalans. Championship/1895 Cup/Challenge Cup Printed programme: Barrow (£2), Sheffield (£3), Swinton (£3), York (40pp, £3, Championship games only, with a 100-copy print run). Digital programme: Bradford (26pp, free to download, from the club's socials), York (Championship and 1895 Cup, free to download, via QR codes at the stadium). Printed teamsheet: Bradford (free, available from the stadium bars), Dewsbury (free, from the club office), Doncaster (free, available, from 2pm, in the stadium restaurant and on the concourse), Featherstone (free). Nothing: Batley (possibly a printed teamsheet available), Halifax, Wakefield, Widnes. To be confirmed: Toulouse, Whitehaven. League One/1895 Cup/Challenge Cup Printed programme: Midlands ('The Eye of the Storm', £3, free with a 2024 Storm Card). Printed magazine: North Wales ('The Crusader', £2, monthly, available from the stadium fanzone). Printed teamsheet: Hunslet (free), Keighley (free, available from the club shop), Rochdale (available only in 'hospitality'). Digital magazine: Keighley ('Pride', monthly, 26pp, free), North Wales ('The Crusader', £2, monthly). Nothing: Cornwall, Newcastle, Oldham, Workington. Note: for the 17/3 League One game with Cornwall, Keighley printed 40 copies of their monthly magazine (a digital version was offered also), but they were available only in 'hospitality'. It seems printed copies of 'Pride' can be reserved, for non-'hospitality' attendees, by emailing the club. Note: for the 24/3 League One game with Hunslet, Rochdale Hornets issued a one-off printed programme (32pp, £3) in memory of their late player, director and chairman, Peter Rush. World Club Challenge @ Wigan Printed programme: £8 (copies through MatchDayCreative). Pre-Season Friendlies Printed programme: Leeds (32pp, £3, copies through Ignition Sports Media). Printed teamsheet: Bradford (free, available from club shop and tea bars), Doncaster (free, available, from 2pm, in stadium restaurant and on the concourse), Featherstone (free). Testimonials Printed programme: James Donaldson, Leeds v Hull KR, 4/2/24 (32pp, £3, through Ignition Sports Media). Printed brochure: Scott Taylor, Hull FC (£5). Amateurs Challenge Cup Printed programme: Clock Face (24pp, £1), Doncaster Toll Bar (8pp, £3, w/a), Fryston (4pp, £1), Leigh MR (£3, w/a), Lock Lane (8pp, 50p), Lowca (4pp, £3, w/a), Orrell St James (8pp, £1), Royal Air Force (4pp, free). Printed teamsheet: Stanningley (£4, w/a), Thatto Heath (free, colour). Digital programme: Royal Navy (7pp, free), Thatto Heath (16pp, free). National Conference League Printed programme: Clock Face (24pp, £1), Dewsbury Celtic, Dewsbury Moor (24pp, £2.50, w/a), Distington (8pp, £3, w/a), Egremont (12pp, £3, w/a), Ellenborough (£3, w/a), Hensingham (£3, w/a), Heworth (£1), Hunslet (26pp, £2), Leigh Miners (£3, w/a), Lock Lane (8pp, 50p), Millom, Pilkington (£3, w/a), Seaton (£3, w/a), Skirlaugh, Stanningley (£1), Thornhill (16pp, £2), Wath Brow (£4, w/a), York Acorn (12pp, £3, w/a). Digital programme: Egremont (free to download, post-match, from the club's socials), Hunslet (available, free, via the club's socials, usually the day before the game), Normanton (20pp, free to download, from the club's socials), Oulton (39pp, free to download, from the club's socials), Thatto Heath (16pp, free to download, from the club's socials), West Bowling (9pp, downloadable, free, via the club's socials or from QR codes at the Horsfall Stadium turnstiles or in the clubhouse), Woolston (33pp, free to download, from the club's socials). Nothing: Barrow Island, Bentley, Beverley, Crosfields, Drighlington, East Leeds, Featherstone Lions, Hull Dockers, Kells, Leigh East, Milford, Myton, Oldham SA, Shaw Cross, Siddal, Wigan St Judes. To be confirmed: Ince, Rochdale Mayfield, Saddleworth, Waterhead, West Hull, Wigan St Patricks. Note: a printed programme was issued, at Boundary Park, Oldham, for the 30/3 final of the Standard Cup. Regional Leagues Printed programme: Askam (8pp), Bramley (28pp, £2), Lowca (4pp). Women Super League Digital programme: York (free to download, via QR codes, at the stadium). To be confirmed: Barrow, Featherstone, Huddersfield, Leeds, St Helens, Warrington, Wigan.

I say that only because one or both of the clubs taking over the running of the Shay is supposed to be one of the council's options. Most likely, the white elephant (the defunct speedway club's former logo!) Shay will become housing (Halifax probably has sufficient supermarkets and retail park-style facilities now). Why would any third party purchaser, in their right mind, want to continue to use it as a sports stadium, with two skint sitting tenants? Goodness knows, though, given Calderdale's unhelpful topography, where either the football or the rugby league club would end up playing. Maybe time to revive that Halifax-Huddersfield merger.

Three figure attendance incoming.

Wales rugby league legend Jim Mills tweets: Great News - the Cardiff Bay Rugby Codebreakers statue of Billy Boston, Clive Sullivan and Gus Risman has won the ‘Celebrating Black Sporting Heritage Award’ category at the Sporting Heritage Awards last night.

Halifax, the forgotten club - who cannot remember to pay their rent. Calderdale Council should kick (or lock) them out of the Shay. I take it, then, when the council offloads (albeit, most likely, to a third party) the loss-making Shay, Halifax aren't seriously thinking about running it, with FC Halifax Town as secondary partners. Mind-boggling! The football club would be foolish to enter into any sort of Shay-operating partnership with Halifax.

No wonder so many FC Halifax Town supporters who, going back to the Thrum Hall days, used also to watch the rugby league club, now refuse to set foot in the Shay when fellow tenants Fax are playing.

Watched a feisty Kirklees derby between Yorkshire League Division Two rivals Moldgreen and Emley Moor Cougars this evening (10/5/24). Decent turnout - say, 235 spectators - at the DRAM (acronym: Dalton, Rawthorpe and Moldgreen) Sports & Community Centre, high above the John Smith's Stadium. Moldgreen won 40-14 after leading 16-10 at half-time. The hosts started and finished the game strongly. Moldgreen, who scored eight tries to three, were 16-0 up after just 12 minutes. To my surprise, Scissett-based Emley Moor then made a real contest of it, trailing 14-22 by the 63rd minute, only for Moldgreen, between the 67th and 79th minutes, to run in four more tries. I suspected, after their early chasing, the visitors might run out of steam. Four conversions for Moldgreen, one for Emley Moor. Excellent facilities: fully railed pitch, permanent dugouts and a large, two-storey clubhouse. Easily good enough for the National Conference League. On a sunny evening, lofty location catching a breeze, there were great views of two Kirklees landmarks: the Emley Moor telecoms mast and the Victoria Tower, topping Castle Hill.

Footballer Viv Busby, 74. A striker, Slough-born Busby is best known for his time at Fulham. He was in the Cottagers side beaten, at Wembley, by West Ham, in the final of the 1975 FA Cup. In 2022, Busby was inducted into the Forever Fulham hall of fame. During a career spanning 1966 to 1983, Busby played also for Wycombe, Luton, Newcastle, Norwich, Stoke, Tulsa, Blackburn and York. He coached at York, Sunderland and Fulham, and managed Hartlepool and York. Before emigrating to Spain, Busby was involved with Gretna (academy manager) and Workington (assistant manager).

The video highlights, shot from the west stand, of yesterday’s game at a sparsely attended LNER, suggest York’s crowds have dropped into three figures. Nobody there!

FT York 16-36 Haven.

York 16-36 Haven. Blimey. A sleeping giant stirs.

York 6-36 Haven.

York 0-36 Haven. York's 'Barnstoneworth United' moment.

York 0-30 Haven.

I did consider getting along to the LNER this afternoon. Figured York-Haven would be a close game - a decent watch for a neutral. Thank goodness I didn't waste twenty quid on that. At this rate, it won't be long before York's crowds are back into the hundreds. Super League?