Bulletproof

Trolling, obviously. We've got a 300k cap and they have a super league one. Duh. No one could ever make the step up if this was actually something worth considering.

Obviously this is a load of hot air from the guardian, I generally find that the RL community is much more well informed than the national press. Anyway Burt go enjoy your holiday and get buying pasties.

I wasn't having a go at Salford, I was sticking up for Wakefield. When I say you are very lucky, you must admit this is the case. For someone to state that no one deserves to be booted more than wakey it is hardly fair. I don't even support them, I just feel sorry that despite doing several things right they are sailing towards the championship just because they are as they always have been in heavily RL populated West Yorkshire. Salford have got the worst crowds out of the heartlands and are performing worse on the pitch than their main rivals for relegation. They are extremely fortunate that BBC are moving locally because the RFL sees this as an opportunity for greater publicity. Only time will tell whether this is the case but again, this is not at all a slight at Salford, I've just got to question this for a few reasons. I don't mind Salford as a club. First off, I could not tell you who the closest football team to BBC TV centre is, someone informed me in another thread that it was QPR, which is a rather anonymous team all things considered.Aside from being Eddie Hitler's favourite team in Bottom I cannot think how they have ever benefitted from this, although I do think there is a bias towards London clubs in general. Also, our favourite main rival Rugby Union was a few seasons ago a sport with no top flight club in the capital and it didn't seem to stop them from recieving the amounts of publicity they did and continue to enjoy. I think it is the same now isn't it? Or are Harlequins now in the top flight? There are plenty in the area of london but few within the boundaries? This was discussed at length a while back anyway. This being the case, Rugby League has plenty of clubs in the Manchester area, not least our most famous name Wigan. They are just not in Manchester as such. As a lot of the people working at BBC Salford Quays will simply be travelling from elsewhere (all of the presenters so far are going to commute) and not actually living there I don't really see why this is such a boon for the local game. I think the local sporting climate will be dominated by Manchester United. Rugby League might get a little more publicity in general but this will be a matter of whether Auntie decides to keep a look out across the area and doesn't simply carry on doing what they are doing from a salford office. As I've said, it's not a dig at Salford, this is just something I've been pondering. Now you've claimed that our fans are this and your fans are that etc etc. As with a lot of generalisations there is little truth in what you've said. First off, it doesn't matter to the majority of widnes fans who we replace as long as we get to the top flight which is our dream as everyone around here knows. People like Segovia Carpets, or Early Bath as he is known elsewhere, cannot resist having a pop at US which is why you have people discussing Salford in a negative light from my club. He has been running our name down for quite some time and wont let go the fact that several people at the last announcement thought we should have been in at your expense. This is a distant memory to me now, I couldn't care less about last time I'm focussed on next. Any percieved slight I make on Salford might actually not be a dig as such. It was not intended this way. Like I've said, at one point I was defending Wakey. You must understand you're not really in a better position than they are and have a trump card which you are fortunate to have. I recall a strong Salford chant going around the stobarts the year you were relegated in solidarity with you and in sympathy for your position. There is no real animosity between the clubs but I do find people like SC distasteful just because they are not particularly confident of their club's position and we are the ones most likely to be replacing them. And your last paragraph, saying this and doing it are two entirely different things. I've been there, I wasn't having a good time generally and I overreacted badly to Widnes being left out. You can say now you will be grown up and reflective about it but you can't guarantee that at all. Considering what's at stake it's natural.

Don't know where to start with this. We've had our stadium for much longer than recent financial issues, down more to a shady businessman than our club's long term viability or spending. And to be fair, segovia is the one overreacting. There has been absolutely no baiting from widnes fans on this thread, certainly not me which is why his overreaction is more puzzling.

Until very recently we regularly made the final (like in 2007) and have two cup wins and a final under our belt in the northern rail cup competition too.

(EDITED BY CKN to remove quoted post) Aside from the personal abuse, you've got a number of things incredulously wrong. First off, Barrow might have an unopposed area to draw from, but it's a sparse, rural area. You want to play the Barrow is expansion card, but if you do that, I'm obliged to point out that there are a lot of more suitable areas of greater population and influence to expand into, you can't play the tradition card any more because you've criticised others for it so you're argument already looks weak. If you want to go down this route, bringing in the difficulties fans have making it up to you is not something in your favour. Crowds are what they are. Any problems you have now will be the same in super league. If you're in a sparse area with little support from away crowds this will be the same issue in SL so I don't know why you bring it up. I'd like to point out at this stage that away crowds notwithstanding, Widnes have more season ticket holders than the average needed for super league application, let alone your average crowds, so away followings are a minor issue here. No one gets a particularly good away following in this division. we regularly get a handful from yorkshire and it is only leigh who travel particularly well because they are the only team local to us. Secondly, you didn't bring 100 to us, and Widnes' away following is regularly the greatest in the league. I don't think it is advisable for you to bring this or any crowd discussion up because you will lose, again, not only to us but to Halifax and Leigh.

Not as much as the RFL undoubtedly have with this announcement.

We've actually retained a lot of those players but many of them have been injured or in the case of our star scrum half left to coach Hull FC, sort of out of our hands that one. We've not been the best on the pitch this year, a lot down to injuries but we're getting it right all over and we'll be better on the pitch in the future.

What on earth does any of this have to do with your club? You show yourself up there, this has nothing to do with anything. People see fans of all areas putting us forwards and then accuse us of arrogance. Hardly a fair turn of events. It seems other fans are allowed to talk up their bids and even knock us down repeatedly with lies but the second we reply by building up widnes or refuting this B.S. people accuse us of arrogance. Well, this reflects badly only on those small minded people, not us, and I wont shirk from poiting out lies and b.s. whenever I see it. And as for you, you've been shown up as a biased person with preconceptions about people so I can't take you seriously.

If that's all it takes, toss a few quid in its general direction, they should stop talking about it and promising it and just get it done. Hell, give mick wilson a spade. If all 1,500 Barrow fans get stuck in something so obviously easy could be arranged for tomorrow. Seriously, if it was as easy as you're making out, they'd have done it and wouldn't need to talk about it in a future tense full of doubts. The ground in Barrow is simply not up to standard. If anything, this announcement today pretty much puts the nail in the coffin for Barrow's bid because they are like I said a million times behind the pace in a number of areas and not just behind my club. Putting rose tinted spectacles aside Halifax and Leigh and even Featherstone are closer to fulfilling the criteria than Barrow.

Obsessed. Why don't you go away, learn how to use the quote function correctly, take a few long breaths and calm down and then if you think you've got anything interesting to say for a change come back and we'll talk.

Like the ones that always have to be merged for talking about the same thing? Face it, you've got too big an ego for your comedy character to contribute to a thread which isn't all about him.

And there isn't a news event related to this post already discussed on another, active thread? Fail.

Mick was obviously talking about averages although one season they were 5.7k this is still well short of what we've had at our peak and this was a season we were relegated in. And you didn't simply respond to it, you followed it up with the assertion that they have bigger potential for crowds than either Widnes or Barrow. This is nonsensical for the near future given recent history.

No you're not, you're using one of their traditional biggest crowds with no context or reference to their average, or their comparitive average in the championship, or any other factors. I mean, Widnes could cherry pick our fixtures against Wire or Saints. Leigh could do the same with Wigan. Proves nothing. Our previous super league average, which takes into account games against the likes of Harlequins and Huddersfield who traditionally brought few fans to us, was bigger than a few of those crowds. That's our average. That's about as much as Halifax are ever going to get in super league. I can't help but feel you are trolling by being deliberately misleading. It's not even well guarded, you're making yourself look stupid.

Taking only the Bradford crowd? During the super league era? A bit....stupid isn't it?

Considering they are a stones throw away from arguably the world's biggest sports club they will ignore them much the same as the people of Salford do.

As I've said before, I don't think it will make any difference whatsoever. Rugby League has clubs all over the greater manchester area, not least the biggest name in the british game, so what if one is on the doorstep of five live. They'll either warm to us or they wont, Salford wont make one iota of difference.

Your last one got locked for being the pathetic trollbait that it was and so this one can be taken with the intent we all know is there from the start.

I agree with all but the final line. I think Salford can count themselves really lucky, as can Harlequins and Crusaders. Wakefield, if they are the ones to come down, are an unfortunate club in the wrong area, same with Castleford.

Considering they've amended the rule so that foreign teams can be "invited" to join super league it is not such a certainty.

Why though? If there are two failing clubs, why is it any braver to drop them than to get two CC clubs a chance instead of abandoning them for another three years? It seems controversial to stick even failing super league clubs in the championship, but not to keep clubs already down there inside indefinitely. Because I guarantee, as time goes on teams will weaken. The likes of Widnes, Halifax, Leigh, deserve their chance. Certain clubs can count themselves incredibly lucky to have been included in the first place, why should their places at the top be assured forever? Drop one, two or three if it suits as far as I'm concerned. It's the nature of licensing.

Definitely a sock puppet this one. Probably Parksider again.

Aaand we've reached full circle on your tedious and boring little game. If you don't want me responding to you, lay off Widnes. Simple as. Concentrate on the strengths of Barrow. If you have enough, you don't need to bring us up do you? You don't see multiple, snidy people laying into Barrow Halifax or Leigh's license bid, which should tell people everything they need to know about who is the frontrunner in the license race. I suppose its better to be moaned about by countless worried fans than to be largely ignored by everyone not that I'm going to enjoy it getting worse as the time goes on.

Oh and your opinion is lazy because it's a well worn thing to say, and when you've been challenged on it you haven't backed it up with any facts whatsoever or explained it. It's a lazy opinion.