Ray Cashmere

Fully expecting the usual negativity, but this has been a decent game where young players (Smithies, Smith and Havard especially) have staked their claim for a big autumn Test Series against Tonga. France have shown signs but are, quite obviously, being let down by 3/4 players who clearly aren't at the level (Marion the hooker, Jullien, Romano as a winger). Mourgue and Rouge are both playing well and have the potential to be the cornerstone of this French side. Throw in Garcia, Seguier, Yaha, Da Costa with Pelissier off the bench (I'm excluding Fages as he clearly doesn't fancy it) and there's a decent team there.

Just a couple of points to address the (perfectly reasonable) cynics in the room: The Community Share Offering has been in the works by the club for a couple of years now, this has not been a sudden reaction to an immediate cashflow issue (which there may or may not be, but which no one on here knows the details); This is not a rejection of a traditional ownership model. The club is, as we speak, approaching Salford businessmen/businesses as potential benefactors (the £10,000+ share option is a not so subtle reflection of this); The club will benefit financially from the new stadium deal whereby F&B and non-matchday revenues will, for the first time, be retained. SRD are in the same position that every other professional rugby league club (save for, I would guess, Leeds and Catalans) in the Northern Hemisphere would be in without a benefactor to underwrite the losses. Super League, and its clubs, do not generate sufficient revenues to sustain successful and ambitious sport. The club is, quite wisely, exploring as many different opportunities as possible to overcome this problem. It may ultimately fail, but it is not a last-ditch attempt to meet the day-to-day running costs of the club. There is far more cause for (pragmatic) optimism than there has been for many years at the club.

At World Cup event tonight, Dave Woods suggested the broadcasting team will be announced next week and that there will be more RLWC games on BBC1 and 2 than FIFA World Cup Games (I think the number he gave was 31 but it sounded like this will be part of a press release/promotional drive).

Young has plenty to work on (high ball and defensive reads particularly) but we don't have an athlete like him, plus his versatility to play centre is crucial given how small the tournament squads are required to be. His kick returns are also as good as anyones, something which will be especially important against Samoa. Makinson is an obvious guaranteed starter Handley would be in but I'm fairly certain he's now ruled out with injury. Tom Davies hasn't hit anything like last year's form. Liam Marshall has been excellent, but I'm concerned he's another 'very good SL, not test level' player. Burgess has been excellent and is more physically suited to test level than Marshall. Murphy looks a superstar but it's probably a year too soon. All in all, Young making at least the squad makes a lot of sense. Not because he's the finished article or because he plays in the NRL. However, he's coming off a good season and has genuinely world class attributes compared with a group of wingers who, bar Makinson, are not bona fide world class.

Don't think it's as simple as that in this instance. As many have pointed out, the mid-tier categories (£45-£65 a ticket generally) have appeared quite broad on the stadium plans creating a disparity between a 'good' Category C seat and a 'bad' Category C seat, for instance. Those who bought early (like me) were able to get the best seats in our respective category. I'd have been a bit miffed paying the same amount for some of the other areas included in my category. Expanding Categories E and D to cover some of these poorer seats seems like a natural correction of the pricing strategy rather than an attempt to give as many tickets as possible away.

Gareth Widdop at fullback, John Bateman at centre and a 33 year old Kevin Brown at scrum half with Chris Heighington off the bench... I think the general standard of international competition will be much higher this year but I also think the best 17-20 players Wane could select this year create a much stronger side on paper

I can't speak for all Salford fans but, for me, whether Gerrard 'buys' SRD pales in significance to whether he buys the AJ Bell. Give me long-term security, a 'home' rather than a letting and the opportunity to retain non-ticket revenues over increased player investment any day of the week. The exact structure (assigning us the freehold, placing it in a trust, peppercorn rent or other) is neither here nor there. Certainty and revenue-generating ability is what we (and all Super League clubs) need right now.

This is exactly right and why owning the ground is the single-most important thing for the club long-term. No level of short-term player investment could match it. Once the area surrounding the ground fulfils its potential the club could finally have a new community and new audience to grow from rather than relying solely on the traditional RL areas of Salford which aren't well connected to the AJ Bell. Given the wider growth of the Manchester & Salford economies that is a very promising thing. However, that is presently nothing more than a medium/long-term vision that hinges upon the recent news coming to fruition. The current directors are the best thing to have happened to this club in a very long time. I hope for their sake as much as anyone else's that they can deliver this and remain in post to reap the rewards of what they've achieved in the post-Koukash years.

Crappy might be an exaggeration but there has always been the feeling that the ground was built without the transport infrastructure and community around it. I'll remain cautious until anything material changes but owning the AJ Bell as a community stadium, retaining all matchday/sponsorship/F&B revenues and personalising the ground to make it a home rather than a tenancy is by far the best option. Personally, I feel this statement is more about putting public pressure on Salford Council. Dismissing an opportunity to sell to a Salford businessman with plans to home 2 Salford clubs (SRD & Swinton) within a community stadium in favour of the Cheshire jetset would be an optics disaster so I'm glad the club are pulling the necessary levers to try and make this happen. If the surrounding brownfield land can actually be developed and begin to feel more like a community of Salford than an out-of-town retail park then there will be real cause for excitement.

Was largely impressed by Young, especially in yardage. Fix up on the high balls and improve his defensive reads/support play and he really could be anything. I do think he's in contention for the world cup but the improvements needed above currently leave him behind Tom Davies for me.

It's frustrating when people cannot separate the Koukash era (and its legacy) from the post-Koukash era. I appreciate it might not be obvious from the outside, but this caricature of Salford being content to take the TV money and focusing on self-preservation does not align with reality. The club is working incredibly hard to regain the academy status that Koukash torpedoed and is thinking innovatively by investing much of its resources in Welsh rugby league through the partnership with WRL, Coleg y Cymoedd & UCLAN. This is already paying dividends with- just last Friday- 4 young welshmen being signed to the reserves. The club has the first Super League partnership in Africa with Ghana RL and has already had coaches over from Ghana in order to aid their development and improve the RL infrastructure in the country. There is a long-term aim to give a pathway for young Ghanaians into professional rugby league. I'd argue few Super League clubs are more engaged in the expansion of the game than SRD right now. The club's womens' team was only established this year yet has already beaten Super League opposition; PDRL sessions have also been launched. The Building The Future game against Leeds last Friday saw schoolkids and grassroots from Stockport to Bolton in attendance. The club has completely rebranded since the Koukash era. This isn't a club just relying on old men from Weaste and Eccles. Ian Blease- just one of a number of shrewd operators at the club who have enabled SRD to punch above its weight and begin to build long-term again after Koukash decimated the club's infrastructure for short-term gain. The value of SRD's sponsorship deal with Selco BW means that, even if SRD were relegated and penalty clauses applied, the club would earn more in the Championship than several SL clubs earn from their main shirt sponsor. The commercial department is growing in size, not standing still or shrinking. This is why the fanbase are largely positive about Moor Lane. The opportunity to control our own destiny and retain sponsorship, f&b and other matchday-associated revenues is a huge positive and what all Super League clubs should be aspiring to. SRD have inherent disadvantages due to poor attendances and the damage Koukash inflicted on the club. The fact that we've been so competitive over the last 5 years highlights the incompetence & complacency of bigger, better resourced and more illustrious competitors. It is not something SRD should apologise for.

What does this even mean? Our 'rent money' is whatever money is mutually agreed between the parties. The original rent agreement was agreed between previous parties and based on incompetent (I'd say negligent) projections. Rent agreements, like any other contract, can be re-negotiated. This applies to SRD as much as any other company in this country.

Without wishing to go into detail, it is a standard part of a commercial property contract for improvements/alterations to a premises to be disregarded in any rent review. Besides, the landlord will be Salford City Council, just as it is now for Salford City FC. It would not be a comparable landlord/tenant relationship to Hull, Wigan or Salford @ AJ Bell. We would 'effectively' own the ground, it wouldn't be like someone renting a house. Commercial property is not residential property. Given your Super League score predictions have proven more accurate than your understanding of commercial property law I'd suggest not taking this further.

AFAIK Salford receive nothing from food and beverage/hospitality on top of the price of the match ticket as it is the stadium management company who control hospitality

Well this is what I said on the Moor Lane thread having just left the Fans' Forum led by our Managing Director Paul King: "Due diligence suggests v feasible/affordable. Discussions ongoing with architects/construction sector about increasing capacity to between 6.5k and 8k (can build up, not out) subject to planning permission (PP not expected to be major obstacle, more dependent on what we are quoted for the work)." Is he deluded? I have no idea where any confirmation of a 15 year lease has come from, it certainly wasn't me. Again, from the Moor Lane thread shortly after the Fans' Forum: "Effectively yes (Salford would own the ground) as it would be a long term leasehold (as Salford City have now) between 21 and 100 years with full control over the stadium's commerciality"