redjonn

well they are showing the games... they don't have too and given the sort of commentary they get from many RL fans I would say to them not bother as all they will get is negative with any positive ignored....

he was certainly a big hit when he first played at Leeds. He was in a relatively poor team and yet still made the dream teams for two years... I am guessing the pickers of the dream team know more and saw more of Hurrell then most on here. Saints will have more opportunity to use him. especially in the last 20 to 40. than Leeds could with a poorer team than was and still is developing. Yet to say again he was selected in the dream teams... I put more faith in Woolf knowledge and hence decision than anyone on here.

Just on these numbers: 200K on average seems quite good. Would need to compare to other sports on Sky I guess. I know Premiership football gets millions peak for the big club games but for other games they average around 650K for say two middle ranking clubs. So a comparison to those lower ranking PL games 200k is not bad. As per PL league and the quite big difference depending on clubs playing is it similar for RL or is it quite consistent no matter whom is playing do you know. I ask as you seem to take a keen interest in viewing numbers.

My best memory was him at Headingley for ages after the game still going around talking and getting pictures taken... he kept going when all the other players had done their bit and gone back into the changing rooms. You could see and hear the appreciation of the fans, especially the youngsters. Don't blame him or anyone ensuring he maximisers his income stream for later life after the professional sport has forgotten him as happens with all players... apart from the odd warm or whatever memory from fans. To be honest I can't grasp why any youngsters play our sport professionally for the often relative salary to get.

well not sure if they would need to worry about tax... as the first 100,000 of testimonial income over a 12month period for a sporting professional is exempt.

At long last our area TV mast has been fixed and we can get all our channels after months. Was able to watch Talking TV again, a real corny film called the Lady on the Pier... but was good to watch the old street scenes and Brighton Pier... with some of the old corny entertainment that use to always be on our Piers...

Too be honest the type of experience is more common than we like to think, in my opinion. At all clubs but speaking at the womens SL final with people on our table the lady mentioned that she had gone to the Saints v Leeds men's play off semi. Her comment was she would not go again to saints because of the behaviour of some of the fans, shouting abusive comments towards them and specifically her elderly friend and daughter. Now I use to live in St Helens and as such a fan so its disappointing to hear. In the above instance it was at saints and I have experienced such as well their when visiting with my wife, whom a Leeds fan, plus I hasten to at other grounds, Hull FC my wife refuses to go anymore, Wigan she also has stories to tell from being verbally abused by drunken people - in those cases by other women. Other ground's too. as well as the club she supports Leeds with regard to hearing some commentary. Now my missus is no shrinking violet being from Toxteth Liverpool and not one I would tangle with but she is respectful of others and for her to be so persuaded says the sport does have a problem which we lock away, if we consider it to be a family sport. I always obviously make the point that they are a very small minority, but it happens at almost every away match we go... their is some drunks that can't stop themselves whilst others we can mingle and chat with. It gets harder to convince her it is a family game to take our grand children too.

well what I'd do is do some research and identify business in the Toulouse area that could be useful to business around your club. Provide good business analysis to both sides of the channel and help to build those links - even if only from a learning and sharing exercise. Also approach government embassy and trade organisations to assist - they are surprising helpful and when I was working we used those organisations a lot even down to using embassy facilities.... you get the idea. Anyway wish RFL with good marketing organisation would be doing this stuff and offer as a service to the clubs... Anyway its what we did in our business.

I agree with you regards the loop fixtures - for me a pain in the proverbial. Lets not forgot with the PL why so many clubs can go onto Europe competition. Its the strength and success of the PL that they gain so entry positions from Eufa (or whomever is the authority nowadays. PL was more like top 2 clubs, then top 3 to 4 and now a top 6 and slowly growing in whom can compete if not make the final step. Although soccer is a different world their are lessons. Not least they could have took different measures to force more competitive scenario's like salary cap, limiting monies to the big clubs, etc etc... I am of the opinion that if they did the PL would not be so successful worldwide. Anyway we are going off thread but to repeat if being top of a league structure means something abut the club being better than the other competition then 7 winners in 9 years tells us the competition is not as lop sided as some think. That's not to say we don't have issues.

I guess depends what you mean main RL trophies... but lets not forget that 7 different clubs have won the leadership/top of the league shield. If we think that it shows competitiveness then that is an achievement. We of course as a sport don't help by down playing it as the hub cap... In the last 4 seasons only 2 clubs have won the Premier League... In the last 16 years only five clubs won PL and if we take away teams that only won once then only 3 clubs won majority of Premier League in those 16 years. It doesn't seem to be a problem in soccer... but we in RL seem to get obsessed and want to level down rather than look to other clubs to improve to match the best.

Can't we just accept ref mistakes happen, but their mistakes are far less than those that commentators or fans suggest are mistake, that is the ref is right more often than fans. Gosh at Old Trafford behind the post with the Catalan flags had people screaming off side at times... now how on earth can you see from high up behind the sticks one wonders. Nowadays every game we have players raising arms constantly for decisions whether high shots or PTB issues, we have coaches moaning at end of games, we get owners bemoaning decisions... the game has descended into constantly moaning about refs. Refs are human, so their will be errors and inconsistencies... the whole sport is weakened by the constant moaning... I just wish ref's would go on strike for a couple of weeks as its going to be the only way things will change.

Its an opinion, nowt wrong with it apart from the type of language I dislike... i may disagree with the person but why should my opinion only to be heard.

As per some other comments I thought it was a great atmosphere and the game being so close as we entered the last quarter added to the intensity of "watching" - that is couldn't take eyes off any of the action. The organises deserve a big pat on the back for how they build up the excitement and atmosphere towards kick off. Considering fewer people in the stadium than normal it was in my opinion one of the best atmosphere for noise prior to kick off. Having the music booming out and with the cascade building with the flames and such, which normally I think naff but this time was really good all added to it. Plus even the singer was good and added to the event. All the provided flags being waved at each end again added to the spectacle. Hats off for making it a good event leading up to kick off. Not having a band in my opinion helped as didn't have to naff non exciting sporting moment music. Although I know some like it but given this year I'd give it a permanent miss. As to the game...

Leeds are planning a statue of Sinfield and Burrows, just mentioned in case not aware: The statue, which would sit in the corner of the stadium looking down on the pitch, would feature Sinfield embracing Burrow at the end of the fundraising match played against Bradford Bulls in January 2020 just weeks after the latter had been diagnosed with motor neurone disease

I guess copying his fellow Hull FC players with regards flop...

when you say work on our kicking game what do you mean. I assume its not about the skill of the person kicking as that's a basic skill for a player as in say the half back doing the kicking. If you want a good field kicking half back then its about recruiting a good skilled half back or scrum half, etc. That is if those players are poor at filed kicking then they are a poor half back. I mean nobody would recruit a full back if he can't catch a high ball.

As a matter of interest how much does the like of Wigan or any other top SL club spend on the coaching and backroom related coaching staff. Plus how does that compare with the salary cap for players.

Mind you chancing that arm doesn't always translate to entertainment... or maybe entertainment because of so many errors enables the opposition to look good scoring tries from easy possession or the poor play of the other team. I like what Hull KR have did this season in getting to play offs and beating wire but some of the earlier games they chanced too much and showed poor quality play - wasn't great entertainment unless we want error strewn games. The first half of the Hull KR v Wire play off was awful skill levels but I guess entertaining as both teams gifted opportunities.

its often about mental tiredness... physically their may not be much difference but when constantly under pressure and the intensity of Saints game that mental fatigue come's to the fore and impacts. As simple as that...

Maybe... who pays for the regional academies as at the moment individual clubs have an incentive. What happens if you remove the incentive, but to get the money surcharge the clubs... do you surcharge the bigger clubs more in which case its one way to punish those more successful clubs for the greater good as you would say.

yep, true of Scottish football. Then again English premiership was a league dominated by Utd originally, a top 3 going to a top 4, now a top 6. With all the other clubs benefiting from the monies that those top clubs attracted from media coverage and huge TV deals. Those TV deals were on the back of the top teams not the rest. Now all those lower clubs have squads full of internationals and thus enhancing the overall level of the premier league. Spanish football dominated by two clubs may be a counter argument to the premier league but nowadays even their you have top 3 now and other clubs. Germany is dominated by few or at least one club but its heathy league with participation and fanbases. Opposite to Scottish soccer. The point being we can pull out alternative examples. Basically it boils down to one's ethos for SL. For one example: Believe in the top clubs being able to compete though no salary cap with bringing in or keeping future stars or minimising salary club to try and force equal competition across the league - with a lower level of players as the bigger stars are attracted away from even those clubs that can otherwise afford to attract better. e.g. Could introduce salary cap in Scottish soccer to force the top two to spend at the level of the lowest clubs. Not sure that would help Scottish football

5 english champions in that decade of the 70's.... Liverpool x5 times Derby x2 times - So 7 out of 10 years only two teams. Maybe not as good an example. Similar in 80's decade... Liverpool 6 or 7 times winners depending if you include 89/90. As likely hood it would be dominated by Liverpool. In fact if we widen it to European cup/champions then only 4 teams won it in the 1970 decade... Ajax, Bayern, Liverpool each x3 times plus Notts Forest

If Prior plays next season like this season then he will be playing well. OK a bad game yesterday in comparison but he has been playing well most of the season. It was a game too far for Leeds, they could not cope with Saints intensity and eventually the tiredness of a disrupted season caught up with them. Personally I think a fully fit Leeds pack is better than most. Another year under the belt for the youngsters and their be fine. Leeds biggest problem has been their creativity or attacking prowess with no fit half backs. Even Lui because of his injury is unable to participate fully in a game, needing to find rest out on the wing. Leeming is not a half back ever but has managed to do well in most of games but different kettle of fish playing a team like Saints.

maybe but lets not forget that 7 different clubs have won the League/shield in the last 9 years. That always seems to be forgotten.

chuckle... sorry if I offended you.