Another crossroads for the game

[Big Picture]

5 minutes ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

We were at a crossroads many years ago. Then we took the wrong turning down the Murdoch highway. The game as a whole has been downhill ever since.

Wrong turn?  Did you not hear what Maurice Lindsay said about the game's financial state at that time on Back Chat a few weeks ago?

[Loup]

1 hour ago, Scubby said:

This was in L'Equipe today. Anyone who knows French RL (and knows how hostile the national media is to the game in France) will smile at seeing this. We have to capitalise.

 

Can anyone explain Yves Chaumien's comment about "mangeurs de pains au chocolat"? It's clearly a dig, but what does the phrase mean?

 

[TboneFromTO]

17 minutes ago, Loup said:

Can anyone explain Yves Chaumien's comment about "mangeurs de pains au chocolat"? It's clearly a dig, but what does the phrase mean?

 

I think with my terrible french it roughly translates that "despite that he can only order a pains au chocolate in French"

[timtum]

22 minutes ago, Loup said:

Can anyone explain Yves Chaumien's comment about "mangeurs de pains au chocolat"? It's clearly a dig, but what does the phrase mean?

 

Those from not this neck of the woods. 

 

In in the south west of France you eat a chocolatine. In the rest of the country you eat a pain au chocolat. A Gallic version of the perennial barm cake / bap / bread roll or how to pronounce scone debates. 

[Cerulean]

2 hours ago, Scubby said:

Yes I would imagine that clubs such as Coventry, Skolars, Broncos, Crusaders, Toronto, Catalans and Toulouse hardly feel the love on inclusivity from the game right now. Half the game wants them to disappear without a trace and the other half wants them to come with a bag of gold to rescue failing 100 year-old clubs.

I don’t understand this: who are the half of the game who want the above list of teams to disappear? I don’t know of a single person who fits this description. And in what way would a bag of gold from Coventry a rescue a failing 100 year old club? It might clarify your point if you list these failing 100 year old clubs, but then, it might not.

By the way: does treading water  count as failing? It wouldn’t be hard to produce a list of 100 year old “top”clubs who have made no significant progress in the last five years - are they failing?

[Tre Cool]

2 hours ago, Scubby said:

This was in L'Equipe today. Anyone who knows French RL (and knows how hostile the national media is to the game in France) will smile at seeing this. We have to capitalise.

 

Who are the "eaters of chocolate bread"?! 

[Cerulean]

7 hours ago, deluded pom? said:

Some wonderful things are happening that the game’s administrators will be doing their best to ruin.

Do you really think that the administrators of the sport are purposefully attempting to make bad decisions?

It could be that they are working hard to balance the many and varied aspects of the sport, in an extremely challenging environment. Or it could be that they know that any vision they attempt to develop will be thwarted by those few major voices at the top clubs who really control the sport.

Or it could be something else: but it is unlikely to be incompetence. They were probably employed for proven ability and, from somewhere, have been given instructions. It would be interesting to know what their brief is.

[Wakefield Ram]

3 hours ago, Big Picture said:

Wrong turn?  Did you not hear what Maurice Lindsay said about the game's financial state at that time on Back Chat a few weeks ago?

That depends on how much you believe in what Maurice Lindsay says. 

[TboneFromTO]

1 hour ago, Cerulean said:

I don’t understand this: who are the half of the game who want the above list of teams to disappear? I don’t know of a single person who fits this description. And in what way would a bag of gold from Coventry a rescue a failing 100 year old club? It might clarify your point if you list these failing 100 year old clubs, but then, it might not.

By the way: does treading water  count as failing? It wouldn’t be hard to produce a list of 100 year old “top”clubs who have made no significant progress in the last five years - are they failing?

As a Torontonian who lives in UK, and has attended 13 (away) twp matches, I can honestly say there is ALOT of hostility towards Toronto.  I have been villianized (threatened, sworn at and harassed) by groups of people across the uk,  granted their tone sometimes changes when they hear me talk (since I'm from the Toronto area).

Many of these people refuse to engage in discussion about it but the few that have have been honest about that they aren't happy about the expansion and fear their clubs losing their promenance 

Most welcoming place?  Skolars for sure.  Most hostile?  Magic weekend (until i spoke that is) or maybe my first Halifax visit (there was one guy realllly not happy with my presence)

[B rad]

8 hours ago, GeordieSaint said:

That’s my biggest worry... so much self-interest in a sport that desperately needs to diverse and take up every single opportunity it’s presented with in order to remain relevant in an ever-increasingly competitive market for people’s cash. I have no confidence in Rimmer, Wood, Greenberg et al “seizing the opportunity”.

I think Beatie wants to. 

[Kayakman]

29 minutes ago, TboneFromTO said:

As a Torontonian who lives in UK, and has attended 13 (away) twp matches, I can honestly say there is ALOT of hostility towards Toronto.  I have been villianized (threatened, sworn at and harassed) by groups of people across the uk,  granted their tone sometimes changes when they hear me talk (since I'm from the Toronto area).

Many of these people refuse to engage in discussion about it but the few that have have been honest about that they aren't happy about the expansion and fear their clubs losing their promenance 

Most welcoming place?  Skolars for sure.  Most hostile?  Magic weekend (until i spoke that is) or maybe my first Halifax visit (there was one guy realllly not happy with my presence)

I feel for ya buddy...imagine what it is like for the players and coaching staff.  We are the new bad boys thats for sure.

[EssexRL]

35 minutes ago, TboneFromTO said:

As a Torontonian who lives in UK, and has attended 13 (away) twp matches, I can honestly say there is ALOT of hostility towards Toronto.  I have been villianized (threatened, sworn at and harassed) by groups of people across the uk,  granted their tone sometimes changes when they hear me talk (since I'm from the Toronto area).

Many of these people refuse to engage in discussion about it but the few that have have been honest about that they aren't happy about the expansion and fear their clubs losing their promenance 

Most welcoming place?  Skolars for sure.  Most hostile?  Magic weekend (until i spoke that is) or maybe my first Halifax visit (there was one guy realllly not happy with my presence)

While I’m pleased that my club gave you the warmest welcome; i’m sorry to hear about your negative experiences. Generally RL fans are very welcome but unfortunately some people are nobs and a fair few ‘glass half empty’ types. I can’t think why anyone would see TWP as anything be good for the game. 

[Big Picture]

40 minutes ago, TboneFromTO said:

As a Torontonian who lives in UK, and has attended 13 (away) twp matches, I can honestly say there is ALOT of hostility towards Toronto.  I have been villianized (threatened, sworn at and harassed) by groups of people across the uk,  granted their tone sometimes changes when they hear me talk (since I'm from the Toronto area).

Many of these people refuse to engage in discussion about it but the few that have have been honest about that they aren't happy about the expansion and fear their clubs losing their promenance 

Most welcoming place?  Skolars for sure.  Most hostile?  Magic weekend (until i spoke that is) or maybe my first Halifax visit (there was one guy realllly not happy with my presence)

That's not surprising though.  The likes of Toronto being in a league with teams whose management worries about how many visiting fans are going to come and buy their tickets, programs, food and/or drinks is very much a mix of oil and water.

[TboneFromTO]

12 minutes ago, EssexRL said:

While I’m pleased that my club gave you the warmest welcome; i’m sorry to hear about your negative experiences. Generally RL fans are very welcome but unfortunately some people are nobs and a fair few ‘glass half empty’ types. I can’t think why anyone would see TWP as anything be good for the game. 

Generally the fans are great!  It seems to be a less then one percent of people!

[Phil]

1 hour ago, TboneFromTO said:

As a Torontonian who lives in UK, and has attended 13 (away) twp matches, I can honestly say there is ALOT of hostility towards Toronto.  I have been villianized (threatened, sworn at and harassed) by groups of people across the uk,  granted their tone sometimes changes when they hear me talk (since I'm from the Toronto area).

Many of these people refuse to engage in discussion about it but the few that have have been honest about that they aren't happy about the expansion and fear their clubs losing their promenance 

Most welcoming place?  Skolars for sure.  Most hostile?  Magic weekend (until i spoke that is) or maybe my first Halifax visit (there was one guy realllly not happy with my presence)

Sorry for your experience at Halifax, I’m a Fax fan and I welcome what The Wolfpack bring to the table 

[TboneFromTO]

5 minutes ago, Phil said:

Sorry for your experience at Halifax, I’m a Fax fan and I welcome what The Wolfpack bring to the table 

It was really just one. Reaaaaallllly aggressive guy. I went with a work friend who's a fax season ticket holder and when we proclaimed my canadianness the other fax fans cheered

[Phil]

2 minutes ago, TboneFromTO said:

It was really just one. Reaaaaallllly aggressive guy. I went with a work friend who's a fax season ticket holder and when we proclaimed my canadianness the other fax fans cheered

There’s always one

[Chronicler of Chiswick]

The trouble with the crossroads is that they took the signposts out at the start of WW2 and haven't got round to putting them back.

[Kayakman]

19 minutes ago, TboneFromTO said:

It was really just one. Reaaaaallllly aggressive guy. I went with a work friend who's a fax season ticket holder and when we proclaimed my canadianness the other fax fans cheered

Well you think it was fair to show them that monster of Canadianess...I imagine there was shock, then jealousy, then the mass cheering from the womenfolk.  Canada is one big country!

Good work T Bone!

 

[TboneFromTO]

Just now, Kayakman said:

Well you think it was fair to show them that monster of Canadianess...I imagine there was shock, then jealousy, then the mass cheering from the womenfolk.  Canada is one big country!

Good work T Bone!

 

I think I said "I came all this way bud, I just wanna watch some rugby eh?"

[Dunbar]

As a Wigan lad I fell in love with the sport of Rugby League over 30 years ago. I played and watched as much as I could... with a season ticket to Central Park and regularly attending the Friday evening reserve team games as well. I played North West Counties and Student League.

Today Wigan is one of the most famous and historic clubs in the world... probably the most famous in the Northern Hemisphere. 

But it shouldn't be.

If our sport is to succeed and break out of its constraints then we cannot have a small town in Lancashire as our premier club... it will always have the history of course but it needs to be overtaken by teams representing major cities.

We have seen amateur Rugby League expand but we also need premier competitions to expand as well.

I want Rugby League to succeed and if we have a London vs. Toronto and Toulouse vs. Leeds Challenge Cup semi final lone up in 3 or 4 years I will be happy.

If we had a Toronto vs. New York final in 10 years I will be even happier.

[Padge]

7 hours ago, dkw said:

I was thinking more that ridiculous magic roundabout at swinton. 

Swindon perhaps?

[ELBOWSEYE]

22 minutes ago, Dunbar said:

As a Wigan lad I fell in love with the sport of Rugby League over 30 years ago. I played and watched as much as I could... with a season ticket to Central Park and regularly attending the Friday evening reserve team games as well. I played North West Counties and Student League.

Today Wigan is one of the most famous and historic clubs in the world... probably the most famous in the Northern Hemisphere. 

But it shouldn't be.

If our sport is to succeed and break out of its constraints then we cannot have a small town in Lancashire as our premier club... it will always have the history of course but it needs to be overtaken by teams representing major cities.

We have seen amateur Rugby League expand but we also need premier competitions to expand as well.

I want Rugby League to succeed and if we have a London vs. Toronto and Toulouse vs. Leeds Challenge Cup semi final lone up in 3 or 4 years I will be happy.

If we had a Toronto vs. New York final in 10 years I will be even happier.

It's important clubs like Wigan retain their place the game is in the towns blood, but we need new blood as well catalan and Tolouse could reignite France, Toronto could increase the profile and help existing clubs to tap into their local communities. Existing clubs need to change to be part of the bigger picture and lots of clubs can, Leeds, saints, Warrington, Hull and others are capable of being part of the next stage of rugby league's history. 

[jpmc]

42 minutes ago, Dunbar said:

As a Wigan lad I fell in love with the sport of Rugby League over 30 years ago. I played and watched as much as I could... with a season ticket to Central Park and regularly attending the Friday evening reserve team games as well. I played North West Counties and Student League.

Today Wigan is one of the most famous and historic clubs in the world... probably the most famous in the Northern Hemisphere. 

But it shouldn't be.

If our sport is to succeed and break out of its constraints then we cannot have a small town in Lancashire as our premier club... it will always have the history of course but it needs to be overtaken by teams representing major cities.

We have seen amateur Rugby League expand but we also need premier competitions to expand as well.

I want Rugby League to succeed and if we have a London vs. Toronto and Toulouse vs. Leeds Challenge Cup semi final lone up in 3 or 4 years I will be happy.

If we had a Toronto vs. New York final in 10 years I will be even happier.

Its genuinely good to see others starting to recognise this and the fact your club is seen as one of the big clubs gives fans of the sport like me hope that it happens sooner rather than later

[Markos]

3 hours ago, TboneFromTO said:

It was really just one. Reaaaaallllly aggressive guy. I went with a work friend who's a fax season ticket holder and when we proclaimed my canadianness the other fax fans cheered

You should have just thrown your stick down, skated over, pulled his shirt over his head and... enough of the Canada jokes.

Apologies for your experiences, this kind of behaviour repulses and embarrasses me. Whether people agree with the TWP expansion, targeting the fans is not acceptable.

On the thread topic generally, I'm all for expansion. But i'd like to think of expansion to be expansion. What I mean by that is, I think many years down the line we should be using expansion teams to set up competitive French and North American leagues.

All for SL being the catalyst for that in the northern hemisphere.