HKR AWAY DAYS

Dunno why you're whinging, I love a bit of blatant plagiarism that was defended by Sadler as completely different, yet when it was run through an anti-plagiarism algorithm it showed to be 80% the same. Ah good old copy and paste.

I mean, obviously we said a company car was out of the question. Got to make it believable haha. Nah, he's going Keighley apparently.

We've started a rumour that Brad Takairangi is going to Hull and the amount of people who believe it is staggering...

I don't know about the worst but the best is Mad Squirrels Vrchlabi hands down.

As a Brit in Australia it is my regret to inform you that I'm hanging up my Akubra and returning to the UK in October undefeated against the old enemy ?

The Wasp Factory. It isn't really doing it for me but I never give up so I'll see it through.

Therapy, my friend. Therapy!

I can't remember the last time I went to Wigan. Obviously the therapy worked!

It seems the RFL are trying to bridge the gap between Super League and the Championship. I've always said that annual out-and-out promotion and relegation between the two division won't be of any benefit to anyone and I stand by that. Nothing changes in respect of the top 8 playoffs, or indeed the bottom 8 but it is the middle end that is quite interesting because that is where the aforementioned 'gap-bridging' seems to be happening. We have seen, albeit on the odd occasion, that a lower-placed SL club can come unstuck against a high-flying Championship club, or that the Championship club have pushed a SL club close. The only time we see this is in the Challenge Cup. From 2015 Championship clubs will now have a chance, on a more regular basis, to compete against Super League clubs. If they succeed we must give them a shot at the top 12 league. This is their opportunity, but it also tells SL clubs that they will no longer be able to fall back on 'buy outs' to avoid 'relegation' or be 'kicked out' like we saw with a couple of clubs during the licencing era. I liked licencing as an idea because the theory was that if you wanted in with the big boys, you had to prove your club as a whole was competitive on the pitch, and sustainable and capable of growth off it. Unfotunately, in practice, with all things considered, it was probably the 'wrong place, wrong time' and that really bugs me. Teams from the lower leagues -perhaps just 3 or 4 however- are capable of growing as a business, building a fan based and developing a squad capable of being a real benefit to the 'Super League' but that takes time and the 3-year licencing period was introduced to do exactly that. Rovers and Widnes have benefited from that because they've both been given time to build on solid ground rather than putting everything together hastily within a few months, overspend and fall into the Wakefield/Bradford catagory. I know the format isn't to everyone's taste. It looks like a quintessential RFL gimmick to me; however, if after a few years of this, the league pyramid is strong enough competitively and supported financially that annual promotion and relegation can return without the risk of teams 'going to the wall' from leftover debt as a result of relegation or overspending leading to debt as a result of promotion, then so be it. Personally, I don't think Promotion and relegation is the be-all and end-all; it seems the majority like it so it has returned. The RFL have listened to the fans in this regard, but they must know that it'll kill teams by just simply introducting it straight out. This format, to me, seems like a 'bedding in' period with the aim of returning to what the majority of supporters want to see.

I met up with Druzik and the President of the Polish RL last year before they went to the council meeting at Wembey last year. Good to see so many countries being represented and long may that continue.

I don't support promotion and relegation in its current form. Very good, mate!

Rovers would have been relegated in their inaugral season in 2007 if it wasn't for Australian lads; this country simply didn't have enough homegrown lads of the necessary standard to keep us up. You're going to be climbing the walls when you find out Rovers have found a way to keep Con Mika...!!

I'm saying Widdop has been an integral cog in the Melbourne machine for the last couple of years. He seldom has a bad game. The reshuffle was necessary but impacted on their structure to the point that they went on a very un-Melbourne like losing streak.

Good signing. Decent top flight experience, grand finalist. Andrew Johns thinks highly of him as well. Goldcaster, you're boring, pack it in. On the subject of Widdop, he deserves more credit for his Storm performances than some are giving him. He's never been in the shadow of the big three in my opinion. When Slater was out for about 5/6 weeks last season, Widdop went to full back and they lost 5/6 games. He has been an important player for Melbourne.

Hudgell hasn't ever said he is leaving, just that he couldn't continue to sustain his financial investment at the level he is/was doing. I believe there has been recent investment to some degree given we're signing the type of player we have done, and that we are going to be spending to the cap limit next year. I don't believe he could ever fully walk away if there wasn't anyone financially able enough to take the club on.