HawkMan

Discuss Wigan vs Huddersfield here.

According to BBC sport this match is on Friday, Wigan vs Huddersfield is Thursday.

Physios and trainers run on the pitch in RL proving even though all the pitch is in play, but not necessarily active. The plays in RL are built up and unfold giving a coach in the stand a bit more time to get his message to players via an intermediary. As I said above it's all too immediate in football, it just wouldn't work, which is why banning a coach from the touchline in football is punishment.

I thought it was blatantly obvious why soccer coaches stand on the touchline and why sitting in the stand wouldn't work. If it did work they'd do it because of the huge pressure and money involved, if it was viable to sit and bark orders via phone it would happen. The difference is the " immediacy " of the plays in football. By the time a coach in the stand tells the other guy at the end of the line what he wants it's too late. Even if that's just 10 seconds, far too late. Antonio Contè on Saturday absolutely masterminded that Spurs win over Man City. He conducted the play, at every play he got the players in position, he saw City's tactics at every play, what they were trying and countered it. Anyone who thinks Contè or Klopp or Pep Guardiola don't contribute anything on the sidelines hasn't watched these guys carefully.

Well it's funny now, hilarious if Man Utd lose this.....I speak from a Spurs perspective.

Levy simply must back Conte in the summer, if not he'll walk. Spurs played well but City weren't quite sharp enough in front of goal. Spurs have big club stadium, big club manager, but do they have a big club mentality. I think probably not.

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No doubt MOTD tonight will reveal swathes of empty seats, the weather of course.

My own personal favourite top 10 from Pertwee to McCoy are , in no particular order. City of Death, Ghostlight , Inferno, Genesis of the Daleks, Warriors' Gate, Caves Of Androzani, Revelation of the Daleks, Mawdryn Undead, Masque Of Mandragora and The Sea Devils.

Huddersball Huddyball Huddball...

That's pretty much what I said above, but the combination would be " qualifier word" Rugby. "New Rugby" would have the connotation of freshness and different and automatically label Union as " old Rugby " with the undesirable ( for them) connotations.

I'm wondering if the problem word is Rugby at all. Looking at other sports no one confuses Gaelic Football with Football ( soccer) , or Aussie Rules Football with Football. Why , because they have a defining word before the sport name which immediately tells you it's something different. Rugby and League both have other connotations, put together it can be confusing to even sports minded people who don't know much about Rugby full stop. I know people who thought RU meant Internationals and RL was the same game but at club level. So something defining before the word Rugby is needed. Remember how the Labour Party added the word New to its name, suddenly it boomed in popularity. It was fresh, new, different, although it wasn't really. So how about New Rugby, immediately people think it's different, fresh, and also tacitly defines Union as old and stale. " I'm watching New Rugby, you still watch the 6 nations stuff? Oh that's old Rugby man, get with it"

Anyone care about the World Club Championship? No , me neither, why FIFA persist with it I don't know. However FTA on E4 at 16.30 Chelsea vs Al - Hilal . Come on you Middle Eastern Gentlemen.!

It's not a mystery why RL or any sport struggles in London, football, there's 13 Pro clubs in London alone, 14 if you count Watford. Plus 5 Pro or semi Pro in tier 5. Arsenal, Tottenham, Chelsea, Brentford, Crystal Palace, West Ham, Watford? , Millwall, QPR, Fulham, Wimbledon, Charlton, Sutton Utd, Orient, and in the National League, Bromley, Dagenham, Barnet, Wealdstone and Boreham Wood possibly though that is like Watford just outside the boundary. All these clubs are active in the community with schools programmes, local business tie ups etc , and have long histories. Even Wealdstone FC goes back to 1877.

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The roller skating tortoise song, if you know what I mean.

Actually the ref got it right on the handball. It's a tricky one, but the rule change this season means that if 1) the player accidentally hand balls and 2) he isn't the one who scores or it leads directly to a goal then it's a goal. So therefore if after touching the hand the ball bounces and someone boots it in it's no goal because the deflection of the hand set up the goal, but in the case last night the player after handling ACCIDENTALLY, then passed it THEN the goal was scored , it stands.

Quiet transfer window for Leeds. They really need more bodies and teams around them are strengthening, I can see Leeds getting dragged in the relegation battle in a big way. I'm assuming Newcastle and Everton will be okay now, so that's 3 from Burnley, Norwich, Watford, Leeds and possibly Brentford and Southampton.

Daniel Levy with his usual deadline day antics, but phew, Antonio Conte won't be walking out now, that'll be for the summer! Two Juventus players , can't be bad.

The match that will probably see the end of Claudio Ranieri, includes Josh Sargent's incredible scorpion kick goal. I can't even place my leg in that high position, behind my head.

Roll on the Omega Variant.

In the light of what you said, no I don't. Do you think therefore that if Leeds United get relegated the Rhinos will get closer to that figure then?

I'll bow to your superior knowledge, that really surprises me , you know , new stand and all that.

I don't believe the waxing and waning of football clubs fortunes have any impact on RL at all. Wigan Athletic were in the PL , now in the third tier, have the Warriors attendances rocketed ? No. Huddersfield also were in PL, have the Giants attendances benefited from their demise, No! Have Leeds United being promoted to PL caused Leeds Rhinos a problem, no. Surely RL can attract fans without a sporting rival going down the Swanee. Also if parents take their kids to say Hull City, having a season ticket, and Hull do well, a great time had by all, then come summer time and the kids missing their Saturday afternoon fun, the parents might say, " well we can still do this in summer kids , there's another code of football we can watch" If though they had a bad time if Hull City got relegated they'll likely say, " never mind always next season," rather than, " stuff them let's watch Hull FC"