bowes

Depends which wasp, some wasps eat nectar but most eat other insects I think

Look who's top of AA North, Bolton Robots of Doom legendary name. But on topic not sure how this will effect us. Seems a logical merger I was worried when I first heard rumours of Sport England going. We may lose out as a non-Olympic sport but can't see funding restricted to Olympic events as not just us but also cricket would lose out. The Sport England money is doing us a lot of good in the midlands (along with the hard work of volunteers of course) and sure it is elsewhere too.

They have in the past, but can't see it being accepted again especially if they remain as Quins

Also salary cap points deductions got doubled a few years ago

London in name only too, though got the right idea leaving London to better markets elsewhere

Well you'd meet criteria if you make the final this year, but I can't see why they'd chuck 2 clubs out for you unless 2 clubs hit financial trouble (not impossible) or more likely 3 with Halifax getting in. Barrow, Featherstone and Batley have no chance and everyone else will be ineligible

Yeah other than you there's noone really suitable to move up. Maybe Halifax at a push.

Did they go bust or just administration? Gateshead definitely went bust

Even then they're ineligible. If a team goes bust most likely whoever would have gone down will get a reprieve. Nothing short of a big French TV deal allowing expansion of SL would see them in before 2015 and even then it's not looking likely unfortunately

Theoretically would probably be a better word. I meant it should be open to British and Irish clubs even if in practice there won't be any of the latter at least in the immediate future

Actually by Toulouse's biggest proponent

It was mentioned in another thread (next licensing period one) that Toulouse are planning on dropping out of the Championship due to financial problems. Anyone know if this is true or just rumour mongering?

If this game were played in Wrexham you'd have a point, but it wasn't. The game was the equivalent to MK Dons playing an on the road game in London, the Crusaders are hated in South Wales. Parksider has raised an interesting dilemma though as while economic sense would dictate scrapping on the road games, they do need to advertise themselves in South Wales to potential players that they're still a Welsh club. Longer term I could see the possibility of Welsh players playing for the Scorpions and Crusaders being northerners playing in a market that wants to watch RL. The only problem with this is I don't see South Wales ever getting the crowds to support a SL club, though it's not impossible. If Quins moved to say Oxford then that would be much closer than Wrexham for South Wales players (even Twickenham is closer)

Maybe once we have a unified structure it would be better having a setup where clubs can link in with local amateur clubs as already happens with the National Youth League? In the same way it's planned with Super League clubs linking in with Championship clubs? This would strengthen the amateur game rather than Championship clubs trying and often struggling to run reserve sides.

Too small to be allowed in Super League

They got a B last time so no, might go down to a C but won't be last

I'd expect you to get a franchise moving out to Oxford or MK on condition you keep up London player development, though hard to see who to chop. Salford as things are would seem obvious but the new stadium may help things a lot, especially if Cas and Wakey don't.

Toulouse yes at some point, but there's not nearly enough playing talent yet, the one French SL side struggles. They can't apply for 2012 anyway. Marseille no, you may as well go for an English virgin area, RL has shrunk massively there and the latent support from the 70s will be dying off. They just have a poor 3rd French tier side now. Aude has much more potential. We want a SE side so the juniors have a path to SL but London has failed (as happens in most sports that manage fine elsewhere). Very little English virgin territory has been tried as all the eggs have been in the unachievable London basjket.

It's actually 100% impossible for everyone to have alternating home and away games (think about it- how would 2 teams who play at home in odd weeks play each other), but no team should be away more than 2 rounds in a row without requesting it, hard when you've got bye weeks though.

They need to restructure the game and that needs a NCL switch over from winter. Though in the short term surely playing each other thrice would be much better than what we have now (or something along those lines)

I'm man enough to not back down to criticism of my common sense view that Essex Eels were very strongly in the wrong for playing young players in National League 3 and weren't prepared to listed to anyone that pointed out the obvious. I said they were either #### or incredibly naive and I'm inclined to give the benefit of the doubt it was the latter. Unless someone gives me a reasonable explanation (not just wishy washy nonsense) of why they not only felt they had to step up (which could be put down to a mistake) but stay up for a further season against the RFL's wishes (their words not mine that the RFL tried to drop them after 1 season) and common sense then I don't see why I am wrong to say they're at best very naive. It is a truth plain and simple that it is very wrong and in fact immoral to put teenagers new to RL in standards 2-3 divisions above their ability and leave them there when there's a very clear problem. I've been proven right and at the time anyone (not just me) who pointed out the unsustainability and mistake of putting them in NL3 got tons of abuse, even people long involved in the game who made very constructive criticism and yet we've been long since proved very right and Essex Eels very wrong

It was actually 4 games

I'd have 2 National divisions below the Championship and then split into North West, North East and South (as the RFL want), though over time you could move the North/South split further up the pyramid til it reaches a higher level. Though only Skolars and Hemel would currently be southern in those national divisions (if the Championship expands to include South Wales). I'd expand the Championship and have it open to any sides meeting minimum criteria, but no automatic promotion and relegation until you reach the national divisions and then I'd have minimum standards between the national and regional divisions to begin with.