Mid Season Assessment

[Little Lion Man]

3rd and a home playoff with York?

I think the players have at least earned that and probably more.

Back on thread I think the league shows that Newcastle, as we suggested, should have received the easier fixture list (ignoring the RFL geographical allocation) rather than York.

Given the fixtures were, on paper, the most difficult for Swinton, Newcastle and Crusaders. Then I think it really does show how well we have done.....so far.

Now get it over the line.

[Blue Monkey]

As with most things in life there's a reason for everything. So, having said that, can some learned person, please explain in layman's terms why we have played/will play some teams only once in this season's fixtures?

 

London Skolars - played once (home)

Coventry - played once (away)

Hemel - played once (away)

SW Scorpions - to play once (home)

 

Obviously this has happened to all teams in our current league.

Going way, way back when it was one 30-club league (40-50 years ago), we played all Lancashire/Cumberland sides twice but missed out totally on a few Yorkshire sides, thus ending up only facing perhaps 25-26 of the complete league. Any connection I wonder?

[class of 63]

3rd and a home playoff with York?

I think the players have at least earned that and probably more.

Back on thread I think the league shows that Newcastle, as we suggested, should have received the easier fixture list (ignoring the RFL geographical allocation) rather than York.

Given the fixtures were, on paper, the most difficult for Swinton, Newcastle and Crusaders. Then I think it really does show how well we have done.....so far.

Now get it over the line.

True - when I started this thread I highlighted the unbalanced fixture list - this is how it should have ended based on the criteria as shown

 

1 York 34pts                       don't play Keighley home,Oldham home,Rochdale away and Barrow away

2 Keighley  32pts                don't play York away

3 Oldham 32pts                  don't play York away

4 Rochdale 30pts                don't play York home

5 N Wales 30pts

6 Newcastle 30pts

7 Swinton 30pts

8 Barrow 30pts                   don't play York home

[class of 63]

As with most things in life there's a reason for everything. So, having said that, can some learned person, please explain in layman's terms why we have played/will play some teams only once in this season's fixtures?

 

London Skolars - played once (home)

Coventry - played once (away)

Hemel - played once (away)

SW Scorpions - to play once (home)

 

Obviously this has happened to all teams in our current league.

Going way, way back when it was one 30-club league (40-50 years ago), we played all Lancashire/Cumberland sides twice but missed out totally on a few Yorkshire sides, thus ending up only facing perhaps 25-26 of the complete league. Any connection I wonder?

 

Keith I am not that learned person but this is taken from the Kingstone Press website

 

How will the new structure work for League 1?

The 14 League 1 clubs will each play 22 games – 11 home and 11 away, playing each other once and nine teams twice with fixtures scheduled on a geographical basis. At the end of the regular season 1^st will play 2^nd with the winner promoted to the Championship as champions. The loser of that match will join the teams which finished 3^rd, 4^th and 5^th in a play-offs series as follows: loser of the promotion decider v 5^th, and 3^rd v 4^th. The winners of those semi-finals will contest a play-off final to determine the second promotion place.

In addition, a League 1 Cup competition will be reintroduced in 2015 consisting of 16 teams – the 14 League 1 clubs plus the 2014 National Conference League Grand Final winners and the 2014 RFL Conference Challenge Cup winners. The competition will be a straight knockout with the early rounds played at the start of the season. All rounds shall be drawn on an open basis with the first team drawn in each tie at home (up to and including the Semi Finals). The Final will be played at Summer Bash on Saturday May 23^rd 2015.

doesn't really explain why other than the term '​geographical basis'

[Little Lion Man]

On the Rochdale forum someone questioned how the league would be if only games against top 8 teams were included. As this would result in an uneven number of games the average points per game played has been assumed. The present table is:

Oldham - 1.500

Keighley - 1.385

Swinton - 1.308

Crusaders - 0.917

Rochdale - 0.833

York - 0.750

Newcastle - 0.615

Barrow - 0.546

There are however 5 games (between top 8 teams remaining..Keighley have finished at 1.385 and Swinton could only get to 1.357 with a win against Oldham leaving Oldham also on 1.385!

Also York play Cusaders and Barrow, Rochdale also play barrow and crusaders also play Newcastle.

However, still this table is skewed as Oldham and Keighley (coincidence?) have the easier fixtures here as they have 7 home games and 6 away whereas Rochdale and Barrow have 6 home and 7 away.

Certainly shows the skew towards York and one of Crusaders and Rochdale are paying the price as regards playoffs

And now my head hurts!

[FearNothing]

Some very good points and discussion on this thread... I still don't see why there was a L1 cup introduced at the expense of a "normal" league fixture list... I wonder if anyone from the RFL would/could elaborate on this?

 

..and more to the point, have it resolved properly by next season.....

[class of 63]

Some very good points and discussion on this thread... I still don't see why there was a L1 cup introduced at the expense of a "normal" league fixture list... I wonder if anyone from the RFL would/could elaborate on this?

 

..and more to the point, have it resolved properly by next season.....

Totally agree with your view FearNothing - Steve Wild previously posted some interesting points on page 3 of this thread

[class of 63]

RFL announce new look for League 1 for 2016 but hopefully we will be in the Championship- I'm sure these proposals will be discussed on another appropriate thread

[FearNothing]

RFL announce new look for League 1 for 2016 but hopefully we will be in the Championship- I'm sure these proposals will be discussed on another appropriate thread

 

Just read through those proposals, they have a chance of being fairer, one or two points maybe a bit skewed still but could be a step in the right direction.

 

The Tolouse issue needs to be finalised at the earliest opportunity though - and if they're in, then earliest negotiations with Airbus in Broughton (up by us) and the Tolouse factory and airfield should be entered into to ease everyone's travelling to & from France..... (they regularly fly the wings from Broughton to Tolouse so maybe the RFL could have a centrally controlled/funded arrangement...)

 

edit - re-reading the proposal, IF Tolouse come in, that'll probably lead to one of the current top 8 being pushed down into the bottom 7.....just saying.....

[FearNothing]

New Topic started for the proposals in our sub-board...

 

http://www.totalrl.com/forums/index.php/topic/274142-rfl-proposals-for-new-league-1-structure-for-2016/

[FearNothing]

After another weekday away-game with only 16 players, we saw off Skolars tonight at their place, back up to 5th

[class of 63]

This weeks results haven't changed anything so looking like this now but can't rule out this changing by the seasons end

1 Oldham 38pts

2 Keighley 36pts

3 Swinton 33pts

4 York 32pts

5 N Wales 31pts

6 Rochdale 28pts

7 Barrow 26pts

8 Newcastle 24pts

[class of 63]

Lots of opinions/options being discussed elsewhere about the likelihood of the final positions/playoffs but I think the above is going to be the most likely - we can beat Oldham and finish with 35pts but I cannot see Keighley losing any of their games nor see York beating N Wales away - so my prediction is us playing York at home confident we can win then playing Keighley in the final (can't see them beating Oldham away in 1st v 2nd playoff) so then it's us v Keighley in the final at Widnes and again confident we can win that one - but I have got things wrong before

[gogledd]

Lots of opinions/options being discussed elsewhere about the likelihood of the final positions/playoffs but I think the above is going to be the most likely - we can beat Oldham and finish with 35pts but I cannot see Keighley losing any of their games nor see York beating N Wales away - so my prediction is us playing York at home confident we can win then playing Keighley in the final (can't see them beating Oldham away in 1st v 2nd playoff) so then it's us v Keighley in the final at Widnes and again confident we can win that one - but I have got things wrong before

God loves an optimist!!

 

Could be that Cru beat the losers of Oldham/ Keighley and you face us in the final - and you know how well we play in finals!!!

 

as I say - God loves an optimist!

[steve wild]

Could be that York win at Wrexham & Cru end up 6th.

[Little Lion Man]

God loves an optimist!!

 

Could be that Cru beat the losers of Oldham/ Keighley and you face us in the final - and you know how well we play in finals!!!

 

as I say - God loves an optimist!

Suspect that was why Chris Atkin was kicking on Monday not mort.... Swinton v Cru on the cards ...revenge is sweet

[gogledd]

Could be that York win at Wrexham & Cru end up 6th.

Ouch!! Do NOT like!

[FearNothing]

Could be that York win at Wrexham & Cru end up 6th.

 

that could happen if Rochdale beat Barrow away, win their last game, and we lose to either York (H) or Thunder (A)...

 

if Rochdale lose at Barrow, we only need to win one of our last two to hit 5th..

 

..5th is tighter than a tight thing

[class of 63]

God loves an optimist!!

Could be that Cru beat the losers of Oldham/ Keighley and you face us in the final - and you know how well we play in finals!!!

as I say - God loves an optimist![/quote

Thanks gogledd I was an optimist in 1963 when I said 'we only need to win our last 17 games and will be champions of rugby league' - we did and we were - I live in hope

[class of 63]

Yorks win at N Wales could change things - so now look like this for the final table

 

1 Oldham 38pts

2 Keighley 36pts

3 York 34pts

4 Swinton 33pts
5 N Wales 29pts
6 Rochdale 28pts
7 Barrow 26pts

8 Newcastle 24pts 

 

2 crucial games next week could change things - York v Barrow and Newcastle v N Wales

[9102]

Either way we play York in the play-off semis. Just prefer to be at home!

[class of 63]

Either way we play York in the play-off semis. Just prefer to be at home!

 

Correct - the York v Barrow game as stated is the crucial one for us - if that game ended in a draw and a big win for us agains S Wales we will be third - still not over yet

[FearNothing]

Correct - the York v Barrow game as stated is the crucial one for us - if that game ended in a draw and a big win for us agains S Wales we will be third - still not over yet

 

I wouldn't mind if Oldham beat Cougars, you beat York and after we beat Cougars you and us meet up at Widnes for the second promotion place, that would be a game and a half I think

 

..we just need to see off Thunder next week first

 

btw, whoever comes down from Championship, the two relegated teams will be in for a bit of a shock in this division next season...add in Tolouse and it'll be just as tight next season

[class of 63]

I wouldn't mind if Oldham beat Cougars, you beat York and after we beat Cougars you and us meet up at Widnes for the second promotion place, that would be a game and a half I think

 

..we just need to see off Thunder next week first

 

btw, whoever comes down from Championship, the two relegated teams will be in for a bit of a shock in this division next season...add in Tolouse and it'll be just as tight next season

Just wished you'd have  done your stuff against York and then we both would have been happier at the moment - you in the playoffs and us with a home game but its still all to play for

[Hornetto]

 

Yorks win at N Wales could change things - so now look like this for the final table

 

1 Oldham 38pts

2 Keighley 36pts

3 York 34pts

4 Swinton 33pts

5 N Wales 29pts

6 Rochdale 28pts

7 Barrow 26pts

8 Newcastle 24pts 

 

2 crucial games next week could change things - York v Barrow and Newcastle v N Wales

 

But if we win and Crusaders lose - even, potentially, draw - we could nick 5th.

 

This league is tighter than a medium gimp suit.