Boundary Park

[TOSH1960]

I have no doubt he does have plans in place and had them in previous years.For me there is no permanence to anything or any go forward.As if promotion is a thing we have to deal with when or if it happens.

This year CH has been pushed further than ever before to tell where he is headed.So we have gotten to the stage where we know he would rather remain at Limeside and do something there.Yet this is not going to happen soon enough so we may well  have to go on our travels out of a town which has a perfectly good venue sat empty.Should this be the case it cant help revenue streams very much.It would be very difficult to build on promotion and attract new support.While we are on our travels could CH even think of developing Whitebank anyway?.The questions will be answered one way or another so why not now?I think its counter productive and whatever Game CH is playing(dont get me wrong I think CH is geniune and believes he does the right thing) it is the wrong game.

Not aimed at you Tosh but the point you made about the thinking of CH got me at it.

Andy i don't have a clue why he's keeping stum and like everyone else wish he would communicate better. Even those close to him don't have a clue what's going to happen. I totally understand the frustration and hope we hear something sooner rather than later. I got the impression yesterday that he hopes to have one season away from Whitebank and have it fit for purpose the following season. That was during the ORSA Buffet. If anyone else was there, is that how you understood it? 

[eclecticsheep]

It may be Psychological? After so many play off disappointments it must be extremely difficult to make a cast iron decision to go elsewhere, I guess it will be the moment after the final whistle when ORLFC finally get into the Championship, And he deserves that with the team he has helped to assemble this year!

[clifford]

CH has no people skills, it was recommended that he employs a liason officer to field questions

The only reason for not saying is that a lease isn't signed and or he's playing two stadiums off against each other to get the best deal for Oldham Rugby

[andykenny]

Andy i don't have a clue why he's keeping stum and like everyone else wish he would communicate better. Even those close to him don't have a clue what's going to happen. I totally understand the frustration and hope we hear something sooner rather than later. I got the impression yesterday that he hopes to have one season away from Whitebank and have it fit for purpose the following season. That was during the ORSA Buffet. If anyone else was there, is that how you understood it? 

No I wasn't there for that, I bailed at the final whistle.However we can add it to the rest of the nuggets of info I suppose.Oldham Rugby ....its like building a house of cards on top of a house of cards.

[SINGE]

It would seem that if (big if as we all know) we [finally] achieve promotion, that would be a good day to bury bad news of an out of town location for at least a season.

I really hope that it is the negotiations with the Coal Board Pension scheme that have delayed things (perhaps understandably) and that at least the posibility of owning the ground is on the cards.

[clifford]

The issues regarding ownership were supposed to have been resolved so in theory there is nothing stopping the club building temporary stands.

Then filing planning

[mickhornet]

Hornets CEO has e-mailed CH to suggest the ressurection of the Law Cup at BP should you go up.and play there.

It would be a money spinner.

[SINGE]

Hornets CEO has e-mailed CH to suggest the ressurection of the Law Cup at BP should you go up.and play there.

It would be a money spinner.

I think getting into BP might be the issue!

 

Lets hope hope the Hornets CEO knows something we don't .....

[mickhornet]

The Good Friday El Clasico was our biggest gate.The Law Cup has lots of potential to be marketed.

1989 brought in 9000 at Spotland.

It wont be that but on the back of promotion and at BP it could be 3000.

[Dave Naylor]

The Good Friday El Clasico was our biggest gate.The Law Cup has lots of potential to be marketed.

1989 brought in 9000 at Spotland.

 

I was at that game and it has a significant place in my RL memories.  As soon as the game finished I drove back to Oldham to find out the Mrs was in hospital and I had to rush down to Oldham Royal to see my first child being born.  Made up for getting beat  

[moorside roughyed]

The thought of playing the law cup in a proper stadium with proper facilities would be great.Mick Hornet mentioned 1989 at spotland with 9000 croud.I honestly don't think there are that many rugby league fans around.This may have something to do with the running of the game at lower level.The RFL faffing around with things at every turn. Regarding Oldham's current situation, this would be improved greatly by a decent ground and new ownership. I don't know the situation at Rochdale but their crowds haven't set the world on fire have they?.The game just isn't as big in general as it used to be(sadly). No national stadium or anything to show from it in 100 and odd years since its inception. Don't get me wrong I love the game,its the world's best.But how its run in general is discusting. No marketing,no idea!But the thought the A627m El classico in a decent ground with a decent crowd would be great.(rant over).

[MancRL]

The thought of playing the law cup in a proper stadium with proper facilities would be great.Mick Hornet mentioned 1989 at spotland with 9000 croud.I honestly don't think there are that many rugby league fans around.This may have something to do with the running of the game at lower level.The RFL faffing around with things at every turn. Regarding Oldham's current situation, this would be improved greatly by a decent ground and new ownership. I don't know the situation at Rochdale but their crowds haven't set the world on fire have they?.The game just isn't as big in general as it used to be(sadly). No national stadium or anything to show from it in 100 and

odd years since its inception. Don't get me wrong I love the game,its the world's best.But how its run in general is discusting. No marketing,no idea!But the thought the A627m El classico in a decent ground with a decent crowd would be great.(rant over).

Today's Challenge Cup final was an example. A nobody sports minister presenting the cup. I remember when a senior royal would be the guest of honour.

[moorside roughyed]

Well said Mancrl did you notice the amount of empty seats in the stadium.The top and bottom of it is that it's very expensive to go down there.There are stadiums up here that are big enough for the event. And the person who presented the cup gives you an idea of how low down the echelons of sport we've slipped.Who on earth was she,what's her name. Danny Jones wife singing before the game was a nice touch though. I do like to think that in rugby league we are all family.

[roughyed8]

Today's Challenge Cup final was an example. A nobody sports minister presenting the cup. I remember when a senior royal would be the guest of honour.

Senior royals were few and far between as guests of honour I can only recall the queen doing it in 1977 for the silver jubilee and Phillip or Edward once or twice but mostly the Earl of Derby as patron of the R L it was suggested that the royals didn't want to be associated with the beer and cigarette sponsors of the cup .

[HARRYRUBY]

Senior royals were few and far between as guests of honour I can only recall the queen doing it in 1977 for the silver jubilee and Phillip or Edward once or twice but mostly the Earl of Derby as patron of the R L it was suggested that the royals didn't want to be associated with the beer and cigarette sponsors of the cup . 

I believe the Queen presented the cup in the !950's. Rather than a someone nobody knows the RFL should have had Billy Boston and Alex Murphy presenting the cup and medals together as it would have been a nice gesture to honour two greats of the game along with the everyone seeing the statue. 

[Ex-scrumhalf]

I didn't see the cup final due to other commitments but moorside says there were a good few empty seats. This may be indicative of the way Rugby League has been spoiled over the years since SL came into being and money was not handed out evenly to all clubs and the games administrators created an elitist sport, aided and abetted by Sky Sports of course.

In days gone by any team in the league had something of a chance to reach the cup final at Wembley and because of this the competition and the venue held a mystique for ALL fans. Each year you looked forward to watching the draw on TV and to embarking on, hopefully, a successful run to the capital. The competition and the draw were talked about in every pub in towns where Rugby League was played. It was THE cup competition that everyone had an interest in. It had an excitement all of it's own. Not so today where I never hear it mentioned and if I ask someone what the draw was that had been made that evening no one knows and few even care. These days the lower clubs are content to get through to a round where they may just get one of the "big" clubs just so they can make a few bob. Such is the level of expectation. Even if your club didn't make it to the final you could gamble on Wembley being packed to the rafters with supporters from pretty much every team in the league. Compare this with today where, in my opinion, the competition is greatly devalued and consequently the number of people attending the final is reducing. These days you can virtually guarantee, with very few exceptions, that two of only the same half a dozen sides will play in the final every year and I think that because of this interest has waned. I used to go every year for quite a long time but just don't have the interest in either the competition or the trip to London any longer. Long gone are the days when pubs ran savings clubs to pay for a ticket, a seat on a coach and a hotel room in London on a special weekend to see the cup final.  A sad state of affairs really when only a handful of the clubs setting out on the road to the final have a meaningful or realistic chance of getting there. Like me I think a lot of people are fed up of seeing the same teams in the final year in and year out. What I would give to see the likes of Leigh, Featherstone or Doncaster etc in a final, but clearly that would be overshadowed by an Oldham side appearing there. I used to dream of seeing Oldham at Wembley but at my age I know for sure that it will not happen for me.

[moorside roughyed]

Well said Ex scrumhalf the competitions are now elitist. And we used to acuse rugby union of being elitist (haha).The sport and what it represents is slowly being erroded. If you're outside top flight the RFL couldn't give two hoots.Crowds will go down as the competition loses its appeal. The running of our great sport is a joke by people who obviously don't know rugby league.

[HARRYRUBY]

Could not agree more ex scrum half. To anyone new to the sport Wembley makes it look as though its a sport not many people watch. Wembley is a superb stadium but to me it as not got the atmosphere of the old stadium.

 

When a showcase final like the challenge cup is shown on television it needs to be at a stadium that's full or at least looks full.

 

Clubs outside super league have little or no chance of getting to the final and a double headed final should be introduced to give them a dream of playing in a final. Apart from the new teams in League 1 in the last few years Oldham, Rochdale, Swinton, Whitehaven, Batley and Doncaster have never appeared in a final since the first final at Wembley and are not likely to do so.

 

The fixture list needs to be revised to playing home and away in all divisions with the champions being automatically promoted and a play off for a second promotion spot. 

 

In Super league and Division 1 the bottom two should be demoted.

 

The way it is set up now is to unfair throughout all the divisions.

 

Between the two of  them Sky & the RFL have  ruined the game in the UK by their elitist policy of Super league protection at all costs having the cake whilst the rest of the clubs can have the crumbs

 

 

 

Take it back on the road and promote the game better.

 

There are a lot of good stadiums  that could hold the final.

[moorside roughyed]

Your right Harry elitism rules to protect their beloved superleague. All in the name of paying their fatcat salaries.I think the rest of the clubs below elitist level aren't even lucky enough to get the Crumb's.