Dave T

Yep, good point! I would suspect this perhaps made the audience smaller too.

Latest figures for last weekend's games: Hull v Hull KR - SS2, Thurs - 151k (1st for the week) Wigan v Wire - SS1, Fri - 167k (3rd for the week) NR Cup Final - SS3, Sun - 76k (2nd for the week) Seems very low, although they are some of the top figures for each channel. Looking last year, the game on the 24th of July was Wigan v Leeds in their last 'Big One' and that got 133k, so it does appear that this is a seasonal dip. Must admit I thought the Wigan v Wire game would have got a higher figure, especially with the 3D novelty. I hope it doesn't put Sky off making the effort.

It looks very nice, will be nice if all the touches are there from day 1, it will be the best dedicated RL stadium in the country by some distance, although I must admit that the conference facilities and reception area look much fancier than the actual seating areas.

Absolutely agree, but there were plenty of League fans who did kick up a stink and talked the game and theWC down due to it. Changing nation is a farce. What next, are we going to put Matt King in the centres for England this year?

Actually, aside from the usual suspects like Jones, Moore etc. who find fault out of nothing then most of the complaints come from RL fans. I remember when the 2008 WC was approaching, there was all sorts of negativity from many RL fans about the fact that the Scotland and Ireland squads were made up of players with English and Aussie accents, yet their local press didn't care less. They are used to interviewing their sports stars and them having an Aussie accent, yet we have a huge chip on our shoulders about it. Don't agree with changing nation mind, IMHO Manu should be nowhere near the squad.

Hmm, think you may be under-estimating the tightness tbh! Most people know that they won't be able to get rid of tickets as there are always plenty knocking around, and if you can't transfer or cancel your train/flights then you are pretty much giving money away. There is no real reason to gamble tbh as it is easy to get tickets. Hotels are well worth booking in advance and then cancelling if you don't make it as there is no cost (my parents have done that as watching neutral teams doesn't do it for them). I think most people who have booked anything you have to pay in advance for will probably be attending either way,.

I thought this tournament this year was being held in France?

To be fair, booking a hotel is hardly being presumptious, as they can be cancelled free of charge. I would suspect that nobody has paid

How many have done that? The only ones I know who have booked are going whether Warrington get there or not.

Could have done without you men getting such a big win today, as it ate into our point diffeence advantage. You need to beat us by 18 to go 2nd.

Why?

Must admit it confused me for a sec. After a few beers I was unsure which thread I was on!

My thoughts on the game. Bradford are seriously lacking in confidence that is clear. At times they looked good, and blew two absolute certain tries which on a normal day would have gone in, and could have been crucial. I thought they did a lot of good stuff and Lynch was excellent IMHO. They aren't as bad as they are currently playing and a little bit of luck and change in fortune will see them get a win or two. I know Worrincey gets stick, but any player who attempts to tacklelike he did on Fox would be getting his P45 if I was anywhere near running a club. That was appalling and he needs shipping out, as that is not acceptable, and not the first time he has done it. Hull KR looked pretty good at times, but then they will also be disappointed with certain parts of the game. Has that Watts always been so good, I was impressed with him tonight? Thought overall it was an okay game, some nice tries and good hits.

No chance! I have so much respect for the little blokes who get knocked around week in week out by players 4 and 5 stone heavier than them.

I don't think I have followed you, or you haven't followed me.

Yup, count me in! At the laughing at Bulls thing, not the extended edition lark

Disappointed, as with any defeat, it worries me that we now need to beat Saints next week to retain 2nd (points difference dependant). That said, if we are going to lose to anyone, I'd rather it be them, and hopefully this will give us a kick up the ###### for the semi final. Didn't listen to it, just got text updates, but we were never winning, so can't complain.

Nope, I agree, I just don't think we are going to see major new initiatives at the top level every single year. BTW, I certainly wouldn't class myself as a Wood fan, my first experience of him at the RFL was him trying to prevent Brent Webb and Leuali (sp)(IIRC) from travelling down under for a mid-season test. I thought that was small-time, and it does worry me slightly. I am just prepared to give him a chance, and haven't seen anything which worries me in the last two years. If this time next year we have had a Magic Weekend in Blackpool and a Test match on a Tuesday night at Oldham, then I will hold my hands up and agree with you!

I think each of the points we were discussing are worthy of their own threads as individual topics, and we have certainly discussed things like the SC before on threads, and will probably have to agree to disagree (not on the points, just around Wood's actions). I'm not sure that Wood is failing to prepare. There are rules in place which will reduce the number of overseas players, there is a new franchising system in place, and we can only assume that the clubs are aware of their requirements, there are clear requirements for youth development based on the quota system (although I agree about the SC incentives). When Wood took over, I don't think the game needed a revolution, it needed a solid leader, much like Lewis had been to deliver steady growth. I would love to see a few more gambles and a bit more radical thinking, but then I'm sure the economic climate is not encouraging that at the moment. Without several high profile decisions being made, it is hard to know exactly what he is doing, but that doesn't mean that he isn;t doing the right things behind the scenes.

To be fair, we actually agree on most actual issues here, we just disagree on at what stage he should be judged on what he delivers on them. No matter who comes in is not going to resolve long-standing issues in 2 years. On the SC point, if the vast majority of clubs vote to keep the SC as is, with the lower division clubs voting for a lowering of the cap, then who are the 4 or 5 richer clubs to say it should be raised? What makes them right? I would expect my club would prefer an increase, but then is that really in the interests of the game? The game can't afford it, and even the Union clubs are making huge losses which league clubs just couldn't sustain, and their income is far greater than ours. I suspect that the list of players you quote is due to the fact that many clubs can't even spend to the current SC limit, as opposed to the attractiveness, and a further increase would only make that worse. In the RLW poll, most people wanted it retaining in some format, and I would expect the results were the same in any survey the RFL did after this one. So whilst it is your opinion, it is probably a minority one, so I'm not sure why Wood gets stick for that. He communicated shortly after the event the full review to be taken and the timescales involved. No issues here.

Yep, you won't get me arguing with that. Despite him being quiet for much of last week's game, Tomkins still popped up at a crucial time to set up the early 2nd half try. I haven't seen enough of him at 1 to really make a judgement on this one, although I do hope he doesn't get moved around too much like Pryce did and he really makes a position his own, whether that is 6,7 or 1. The team should be built around him.

I think that is an unfair criticism which is often thrown at Myler, and tbh he has impressed me in that area as I believed the same before I watched him regularly. I was worried when Briers was injured for this reason, yet we continued to play well, and he has 10 assists to his name. Secondly, whilst he may not be the most creative, if he is in a team with Tomkins at 1, Eastmond and 6 and O'Loughlin at 13, with Sinfield at 9, then I would have him in simply for his finishing ability and his pace around the middle of the park. We would have real pace in the key attacking positions, and that would make a nice change.

As fans, we always think we know best, yet actually the ideas we come up with on here around incentivising youth development in reality may just lead to further financial issues, and my be nigh on impossible to police. I have agreed with you a few times on here around SC incentives etc. but then who is to say that we know best? If most clubs are voting for a status quo, then who are we to say they are wrong? They are voting for that because they can't afford for it to be higher, and if the majority can't afford it, then that would suggest that the game is not ready for it. Union do not have many of the incentives and radical ideas in the cap, they simply have a higher cap, and have more money coming in. The only evidence we have seen of anything happening is the note to the clubs who promised ground developments. I would prefer to wait until the decisions are made on the next franchising round before we accuse him of not making the tough decisions. Two out of three expansion clubs are not filled with foriegners, Crusaders are. Quins and Cats aren't, and both are developing and playing local players. Edinburgh still had a very healthy attendance, and whilst Edinburgh may have had it's day, a new Magic next year looks like its on its way, so again, I'll wait and see what actually comes out in the wash rather than criticise people for not rushing into something.

Probably right, and whilst trying to keep this away from a Briers v Tomkins debate, there are clear similarities between them. Briers often drops back on the latter tackles and is in positions to take high kicks, chips etc. (I think he did one at the DW and jumped forcing himself to be tackled in the air). I feel safer with Briers unde a kick than I do with Mathers, Riley or Hicks tbh. Certain players are so skilfull that they have the transferable skills for most positions, and Tomkins is definitely in this class.

TBH none of us really know the actually work that he has done. Much of a Chief Exec's work will be behind the scenes and leading the organisation into the future. The RFL certainly seem to be weathering the recession well despite not being the most attractive sport for investors. On your individual points: SC review - I was under the impression that this was reviewed and for the last couple of years the clubs have agreed to maintain the cap at it's current level. The Championship clubs went with a lower cap. Just because there haven't been major changes to the SL cap doesn't mean he hasn't instigated a review of it. You may disagree with many parts of it, but clearly the clubs support it, and that is the crucial thing here, not what fans think on this one. Franchising Progress of Clubs - not really sure what your point is here. What should he have done by now? We are in the 2nd year of franchising. Stronger stance against Imports - this has been done to death, and it is going to be a gradual process. I agree with you in principal, but I don't believe any CEO of any calibre would come in and make massive changes in this area. MM - they are doing exactly what you are asking for and reviewing it. That's a tick. Internationals - He has been in charge for two years I believe. In that time there has been a WC and a 4N over here. I would love to see more creativity here and agree with you on this one, but realistically this wasn't going to happen as he was a big part of the Lewis regime which went into the safety first option of Wigan/Hudds/Hull/Doncaster etc. These are the points that youraise as crucial, and in the main, they have been adressed, just maybe not exactly as you would like them to have been. During his time at the RFL they have been recognised as one of the top sports administrators in the country, the list of sponsors is growing during a recession, and I think he is continuing the good work that he and Lewis started all those years ago. Sure I think there are things the RFL could do better, but I have certainly seen nothing that says he is doing a poor job.