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Shame there were refs decisions to the fore again , There weren't, really there weren't. What was to the fore were two really committed and motivated teams with a burning desire to win in front of a noisy and passionate crowd. Fast, clean, PTBs, hardly any high shots or lying-on and well-refereed. A great advert for our sport so no sly digs at refs needed, please.

Enjoyable game last night, best team won. The one thing I didn't enjoy, other than the usual terrible rambling commentary, was the way Sky put Rowley under pressure re the Brodie Croft rumours, both before and near the end of the match. I thought these incidents were very unprofessional and showed Sky at their worst.

When England decides to think beyond its next payday.

I thought this was a private thread just for me at one point! But, yeah, I agree.

Here we go again just to make it very clear and not being negative here having been at the coalface for over 25 years a French TV deal for CASH will never happen at best TV will pay for production costs which hasn't happened now for a while. Carcassonne go then we lose a couple of Aude derbies it would be better to simply have a Anglo French Cup every year. P

Yes, I can't remember a single referee from the 80's, they were so anonymous.

Proud of that effort. Not had the quality, and I didn't think we did before the game, but go out with our heads held high after going toe to toe with a decent side.

That and losing hone advantage last week made it highly unlikely as I expected , not watched the replay yet , only got home at twenty to 2 last night , knackered , didn't get chance of some decent food and beer on the way to the game , nearly 3 hours over the hill Shame there were refs decisions to the fore again , couldn't really tell at the game , the screen being at the other end is too far away to get a clear view HKR played well , kept the ball alive in the middle , maybe got away with a couple of forwards which you do if you play it quick enough Best team on the night won , hope they can go on and win it , that might depend if the ref allows Wigan to slow down the ruck as they do , that is crucial to Rovers Also apologies for some of our fans continuing the ' Banter ' outside after the game , they need reminding it's RL , not football , once you leave the stadium that ends , you either shut up or congratulate and wish well

RE the Hall try, regardless of whether we can see all the ball at some point every fan of every team will expect a try given in that situation be it for your own team or not, it's absolutely impossible to be 100% sure either way, it's a try a million times out of a million if we're being honest.

Jack Welsby is the best rugby league player in the world.

Yes they are , how they are only 8 down in this game God only knows , and as much as Saints are great with the ball , they get away with so much it's unbelievable

The kick put them two scores clear, stop talking rubbish!

I sometimes wonder if you ever actually watched RL before this season....

Still bitter then?

Enjoyable match that and a fantastic crowd for a semi final was a welcome sight. I thought the no try call was correct. Ipape should have played the ball and stayed where he was. Instead he played the ball in front of the post and ended up with a defender under him next to the post and the other side of the goal line. Fair obstruction call for me. Congrats Leigh on a great season and good luck HKR next week, I will definitely be rooting for you.

I know we're all sick of conference talk but in all seriousness there has to be scope to have a French section of the game, long term, whatever form that takes. Just to be clear, I'm not advocating any sort of format yet or structure but I think sustainability wise, having French teams in the English comp isn't wise.

I'm just at the Netherlands v Norway game. Norway sub prop has one arm and to be fair is playing a blinder. Just wondering if there's ever been a player at international with only one arm? Also just heard his son is also in the team, is that another first for international rl?

I was jealous that you had a tribute thread.

Kendall packing his case as we speak.

Should be in the international forum, but I've just given up on proper posting procedure these days.

That's the fault of supporters, they demand that their team gets eery penalty they are entitled to, the RFL and refs listen and decide that's how the fans want it.

Yup. And then the point of the ball next to it, between Mellor’s arm and Hall’s hand, touching the floor. The fact that the debate is about such a marginal slice of ”oooo, maybe Mellor had some fingers under the ball” is precisely why it was and is a try. The ref was close to hand, and awarded a try. It can’t be proven conclusively it wasn’t, so it remains a try. In many other sports, and us before, the benefit of any doubt quite rightly goes to the attacker.

Can't agree, the penalty means Wire have to score twice. no brainer.

If Walmsley was a yellow then that’s a red. Thaler bottled it there.

Nicely milked by ratchford...

Well you can have a nice chat with Walmsley whilst you're in there

Lucky bleeder Wrench, if he'd have been tackled he'd have looked a right monkey.

So once again the thread is just talking about refereeing decisions rather than the players or plays.

Clever from Wellsby to lift his standing leg, seen that before in a game against Hull FC.

Flat pass

I think we can put the Hall try debate to bed now. The ref gave it, he was in a good position, I don’t mind him checking it in such an important game but it’s hard to chalk it off when you see this.

I hope there isn't a bald touch judge: AI Camera Ruins Soccer Game For Fans After Mistaking Referee's Bald Head For Ball

Carcassonne have to pay travel for the English teams just like toulouse.

Definitely obstruction, definitely not ground by Hall. Swings and round abouts... I don't think either would of effected the end result. On another note, I've been very impressed by Mikey Lewis this season, love his passion and aggression...

To me the proof is in the pudding, if they can afford a fully pro RL team, then they should be playing in the fully pro top flight league. If not, then their own semi pro domestic set up should be for them. Likewise, Catalans are the example of how to successfully support a new club in our league, its a travesty that successful model hasn't been repeated. The parable of the good samaritan is that it isn't a lost cause and that by giving away you gain far more in return. Perhaps that was just my catholic primary education for you!

C'mon York!!!

Well played Hull KR and Commiserations to Leigh, a great 1st season back but like your floodlights last month it just fizzled out.

A couple of McLaren Field pics, taken before a Division Two game against Whitehaven, on the first day of the 1986-87 season...

Absolutely, nor should it be one side with all the decision making power and everyone else with nothing. That paradox is why we're in the state we are in.

- A town of less than 50,000 people - An existing rugby league heartland - located between two existing clubs Rugby league showing how small time and parochial it is again! No ambition. Joking aside - I'm happy for them to enter. As others have said, this needs to be to the benefit rather than detriment of Elite 1 though. To me the most important thing remains (as it has been since Catalans - or even Paris St Germain - entered) We need to properly define the role of the game's hierarchy and its different levels. Should Super League be a Europe wide competition? A Franco-British competition? or a British (even just English) competition with (or without) overseas guest clubs? If it is an international competition should it still be officiated by RFL or should there be another body established to run it (also involving FFR XIII)? If Super League is international, what about Championship and League 1? Should they be British only with another route into Super League for overseas clubs? As with a lot of RL organisation it all just seems so ad hoc - there needs to be a plan and it needs to be kept to long term.

To the best of my memory 20+ years on: McLaren Field was sold in 1995. I assume either 'too good to refuse' or through financial necessity. We played at Headingley Rugby Union's Clarence Field (now Rhino's training facility) for a season before sharing at Headingley for two. Both being outside West Leeds didn't help. The fact that Clarence Field was a park and clubhouse with no stands, etc meant crowds fell and when we ended up at Headingley a lot of people decided they might as well watch Leeds instead. The club resigned from the league after 1999 with the intention of keeping the Bramley name but effectively becoming Rhino's reserves - I'm not sure what competition that was supposed to be in. When that fell through we tried to re-enter the league, but were told that the grounds we proposed (Throstle Nest, Farsley and Morley RU) were not up to standard - I assume Clarence Field had only been accepted previously for a single season as an emergency stopgap. We retained full RFL membership for a number of years, without playing in any competition, in the hope that a solution could be found. The Bramley Buffaloes were formed by some fans in 2001 and applied to enter the pro-hierarchy but were refused and entered National League 3 instead - amateur but with the stated intention that it may eventually be a route for clubs to enter the pro-divisions. They were regularly league leaders in that competition and won the play-offs a couple of times but promotion of NL3 clubs never materialised. To me there was little attraction to the Buffaloes, although I appreciate recreational RL, my love was in standing on terraces with decentish crowds following a team with a heritage steeped in RL's (semi-)pro culture (rather than on the grass around the perimeter of a field). Without a ground like McLaren Field, the Buffaloes were never going to be that. Once it became clear that NL3 was not going to be a route back to full RFL membership and competition and that they were going to just be a recreational club playing out of other local community clubs'/RU clubs' rented grounds, the drive behind that club disappeared and they now seem to be reasonably happy as a lower level Yorkshire League club.

Boo hoo

They absolutely should go back to the original VR system. But they would still have given that try. Once again, and we seem to have to say this every week, Leigh are not the victims of a conspiracy or error.

The difference in opinion of people who were certain Walmsleys was right but this one being wrong is magnificent

Classic TRL

Walmsley took 4 steps before playing the ball then , what's going on ?

That is the greatest football manager game ever made and being able to upgrade your stadium is one of the reasons why. I'll never forget taking Wigan Athletic to the Premier League and replacing the east stand at the DW with the non-covered east stand from the Nou Camp. Fans in the highest tier of the stand would have panoramic views from Marsh Green to Pem while Wigan got battered having sold all my best players to fund it. Since RL has been played at the Nou Camp, the east stand joins the south stand from central coast stadium. I might have to leave it there otherwise IMG will take too many points away for empty seats.

Might be a controversial choice, but the best south stand is at Central Coast Stadium. Who needs a stand when you can have a row of palm trees and views of Brisbane Water (and a busy road, but we'll ignore that bit). If the away end at Headingley was demolished and replaced with palm trees it would instantly become the best ground in Super League.

12 places, SL teams wont give up their share of the ever dwindling pie. Aim to improve the international game i.e. get England/GB to a level where they can compete with Australia Reduce top level English clubs with funding to support junior development and fanbases to 9. The lowest of all time Introduce another French club that produces average players and doesnt bring a TV deal How very unimaginative.

Have you never seen Walmsley play?