Post 2021,Where will Non Super League clubs be at

[The Parksider]

On 13/07/2019 at 18:13, redjonn said:

Championship will all be part-time. Those that can go full time will be in a enlarged SL, with no P&R.    

There's no plan to enlarge SL. Not now as they said, and not in the past when they dropped from 14 to 12 and nearly to 10 clubs in 2014 and again in 2018 when they proposed "SL1" & "SL2" (a reduced championship) at 10 clubs each. Remember this anyone?

For years now the evidence is if they change the numbers it goes to 10. You can't just put pins in maps. You have to look at the realities and that means forming a league that can pay salaries as high as possible to attract develop and retain enough quality players. Clubs must develop players, and yes in Hull they will claim a joint academy, but tough...SL needs Hudgell and Crossland. 

You also have to remember if TV money goes down Chairmen's subsidies need to go up and there are one time, and even current SL clubs like Bradford Widnes and Salford who don't have backing from a rich Chairmen.

We can all invent fantasy leagues and clubs all over the world as we do, but the hard facts are the clubs who are professional clubs with player development systems, with Chairmen who have a collective final say are:-

Leeds, Wigan, Wire, Saints, Hull, HKR, Cas Huddersfield and Wakefield.............and along with Catalans this is the most likely make up of any SL 2021 if the TV deal is as most commentators most likely in the know suggest will be a lot less money.   

We tend to have short memories on here and get sidetracked by dreaming of what could be, which no offence is fair enough, but the cold hard reality is a 10 club Super league has been on the cards since they cut from 14 to 12 and including when they tried to get a proposal to reduce to 10 SL clubs and 10 Championship clubs only last year. Just because the Championship voted it down doesn't mean that if that comes back at TV negotiation time it won't go through with maybe some monies to sweeten the deal for SL2.

You can make your own picks for an SL2 of 10 which as we found out last year in the debate on it, would exclude some grand old clubs as well and some budding clubs both hopeful of developing the game in other places like Newcastle, or preserving what's left of it in Cumbria - but do remember this subject was roundly dealt with with the 2x10 proposal that must have been a warning signal the next deal will be lower and will not be split across well over 30 odd clubs.....

The cry on here was "what happens to the other 16"..........time to look at that again.

[redjonn]

44 minutes ago, The Parksider said:

There's no plan to enlarge SL. Not now as they said, and not in the past when they dropped from 14 to 12 and nearly to 10 clubs in 2014 and again in 2018 when they proposed "SL1" & "SL2" (a reduced championship) at 10 clubs each. Remember this anyone?

..etc etc....

I was just speculating as I thought that's what we were being asked to do plus I was assuming that outside investment via private equity happened as briefly discussed on RL Back-chat, plus the so called North American expansion happened.  Not saying that private equity or NA expansion into a Anglo-French league would be the best of sustainable idea's just assuming some form will happen.

[Robthegasman]

On 13/07/2019 at 18:13, redjonn said:

Championship will all be part-time. Those that can go full time will be in a enlarged SL, with no P&R.    Especially once the personal equity people invest and are able to influence fully.

I think”Super League”will be expanded into either 16 or even 20 clubs BUT in 2 divisions of either 8 or 10 clubs.I predict a Super League”Elite”Division with a Super League 1.And there will be some form of Promotion and Relegation.

The rest of the clubs or the ones fortunate enough to survive will I think form a new look”Championship”with however many clubs(might be 16 depends)run by a new governing body and I think clubs like New York,Ottawa and others from North America or Europe will form this type of division.

[iffleyox]

On 12/07/2019 at 23:27, Robthegasman said:

Are some clubs going to change or amend their names ie say my team Swinton Lions adding Manchester into the official title ie Manchester Swinton Lions in order to try and gain a new audience and new sponsors etc?

 

Name changes are one up from pins in a map wishful thinking though - and you don't have to look far for worked examples... Over the fence in t'other code the club of my boyhood play. You may, if you're of a certain age, have heard of Moseley. Once one of the powerhouses of the union game they know ply their trade perfectly sustainably in NL1 (L1 equivalent).

However, still dreaming of the good times and wanting to have another tilt at getting to the top tier a couple of years ago (3 seasons I think, maybe 4 now), a conversation was had in the boardroom:

"we're in the second biggest city in the country, we've got no competition for our code, and no one under the age of about 40 can find us on a map that isn't already a fan"

"hold on lads, I've got a great idea.... er…. [gold bars slide towards the yawning chasm as the bus tilts]...wait for it.... we stick Birmingham in front of the name"

"great idea"

"trebles all round!"

So, how have the 3 seasons or so of Birmingham Moseley treated the club formally known as Moseley FC?

Well, primarily, we've been relegated from the Championship and lost £500,000 per annum in central funding.

--------------

Did the name change suddenly mean we'd got a vast marketing budget to communicate that change around the city?

Are sponsors beating a path to the club's door?

Do any fewer people think the club's somewhere in Surrey?

Fundamentally, if you want to get new sponsors the fastest way is for your existing sponsors to put more money in. Having the best players and winning things brings fans and sponsors, creates awareness, and helps things to become (as relatively as they can be in professional sport) self sustaining.

Tinkering with the club's name while not really changing anything else or having the budgets to communicate your tinkering effectively? Not so much.*

Manchester Swinton will just be Swinton with Manchester written on the kit. 

 

 

*and yes, I did offer my professional opinion to the club at the time.

 

[Wanderer]

I think they will be playing a hybrid sport involving greyhounds on speedway bikes, at decrepit, roped grounds watched by very few people live, but televised on Channel 5 late at night.

A night at the doggies will be all the rage among a particular, small demographic up and down the country 

[Mister Ting]

18 hours ago, Robthegasman said:

I think”Super League”will be expanded into either 16 or even 20 clubs BUT in 2 divisions of either 8 or 10 clubs.I predict a Super League”Elite”Division with a Super League 1.And there will be some form of Promotion and Relegation.

The rest of the clubs or the ones fortunate enough to survive will I think form a new look”Championship”with however many clubs(might be 16 depends)run by a new governing body and I think clubs like New York,Ottawa and others from North America or Europe will form this type of division.

Are there 20 clubs that could constitute a "Super League"?

Why not have: "Super League" and "Below Super League" ?

It's probably the case that we are struggling to to manage more than 10 super league teams.

[ojx]

2 hours ago, Mister Ting said:

Are there 20 clubs that could constitute a "Super League"?

Why not have: "Super League" and "Below Super League" ?

It's probably the case that we are struggling to to manage more than 10 super league teams.

On the BBC RL podcast a couple of weeks ago they were saying that to be a high quality competition, SL should only have 8 english clubs (and maybe 2 french). For the northern market, they were clear that Bradford should be one of them. They were quite dismissive of London.

So the eight english teams might be: Bradford, Saints, Wire, Wigan, Hull, Leeds, ... (2 of Huddersfield, Salford, Wakefield, Castleford, Hull KR)