Long lost defunct semi-professional RL clubs

[Hela Wigmen]

5 minutes ago, Cumbrian Mackem said:

Different clubs based and representing the same city of Coventry 100 years apart.

Exactly. So proper straw clutching there. 

I don’t think we need new clubs at the minute. I’d concentrate on what we have and trying to develop deeper roots in some places before we go dropping clubs in and letting them sink, as has been the practice for “new” clubs over the past 40-50 years. 

[Cumbrian Mackem]

Just now, Hela Wigmen said:

Exactly. So proper straw clutching there. 

I don’t think we need new clubs at the minute. I’d concentrate on what we have and trying to develop deeper roots in some places before we go dropping clubs in and letting them sink, as has been the practice for “new” clubs over the past 40-50 years. 

How is it straw clutching when both teams were/are representing the city of Coventry??

if anything it shows that anything is possible even after so much time has elapsed.

[Cumbrian Mackem]

29 minutes ago, YoungBanno said:

For me, it's about creating Derby matches/rivalries. That is what excites new/current supporters the most. My choices would be:

Scarborough - A good Derby game for York CK. The Football club have a nice little stadium and would be a good start. 

Nottingham - a Derby game for Coventry and there could be a rivalry with Sheffield (the rivalry in Ice Hockey is there, so could work) the City has plenty of stadiums to choose from and would be a great away day. Not too far from Heartlands, but far enough to expand. 

Kent - Rivarly for the London Clubs. Don't know much about the availabile facilties, but surely there are plenty of Union or Football clubs that have something decent. 

Nottingham would be a good choice to bridge the gap between South Yorkshire and Coventry.

Lots of love for Kent too which has a decent sized population of nearly 2 million people spread out over a large area.

[Eddie]

1 hour ago, Cumbrian Mackem said:

For me bramley would be a no-go because of the congested West Yorkshire market and the already 2 existing “Leeds” teams.

Liverpool city are/were prescot at sometime in their existence. No?

Yes they were. This is worth a read if you’re interested in that club CM, I read it a few months back. 
 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Liverpool-City-RLFC-League-Football/dp/190365940X

[Cumbrian Mackem]

18 minutes ago, Eddie said:

Yes they were. This is worth a read if you’re interested in that club CM, I read it a few months back. 
 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Liverpool-City-RLFC-League-Football/dp/190365940X

Thanks eddie. Looks a good read.

[marklaspalmas]

2 hours ago, Cumbrian Mackem said:

Which clubs would you like to see come back?

Which clubs could potentially comeback?

carlisle 

prescot 

blackpool

belle vue

chorley

Scarborough 

kent

nottingham

The full list of towns and cities that hosted professional rugby league clubs but no longer do would be about 60 to 70 places.

Shocking carelessness and neglect by the sport since Day 1.

[Cumbrian Mackem]

3 minutes ago, marklaspalmas said:

The full list of towns and cities that hosted professional rugby league clubs but no longer do would be about 60 to 70 places.

Shocking carelessness and neglect by the sport since Day 1.

Interesting names in that long list include Birkenhead, Plymouth and streatham&mitcham!!!

[Mumby Magic]

2 hours ago, Cumbrian Mackem said:

Which clubs would you like to see come back?

Which clubs could potentially comeback?

carlisle 

prescot 

blackpool

belle vue

chorley

Scarborough 

kent

nottingham

 

 

All of them but that won't happen. Think the only one MAY be possible Blackpool. We missed a trick with Scarborough tbh.

[GUBRATS]

How about Bradford ?

[Wollo Wollo Wayoo]

Would be nice to use this booklet again for Blackpool Borough, Huyton and the like.

[Cumbrian Mackem]

2 minutes ago, Mumby Magic said:

All of them but that won't happen. Think the only one MAY be possible Blackpool. We missed a trick with Scarborough tbh.

I’m absolutely certain I read a piece about Blackpool possibly reforming around the time of Manchester rangers pushing to enter league one around 3-4 years ago?

[Mumby Magic]

19 minutes ago, GUBRATS said:

How about Bradford ?

Yeeeaaahhh. Where's the Gubs lol.

[Mumby Magic]

18 minutes ago, Cumbrian Mackem said:

I’m absolutely certain I read a piece about Blackpool possibly reforming around the time of Manchester rangers pushing to enter league one around 3-4 years ago?

It's the only one that's near a possibility as it's the most recently defunct I think and can have the Summer Bash to build off of. Blackpool game on a Friday with let's say Fev, Bradford and Halifax on the Saturday would boost the crowds and generate interest. 

[Gooleboy]

1 hour ago, Cumbrian Mackem said:

Nottingham would be a good choice to bridge the gap between South Yorkshire and Coventry.

Lots of love for Kent too which has a decent sized population of nearly 2 million people spread out over a large area.

We had Kent Invicta playing at Maidstone who failed to draw any sort of support, so who would invest in setting a team up where it has failed miserably before?

[Cumbrian Mackem]

7 minutes ago, Gooleboy said:

We had Kent Invicta playing at Maidstone who failed to draw any sort of support, so who would invest in setting a team up where it has failed miserably before?

I have no idea but you don’t know what’s around the corner. 
 

who invests in Coventry after they failed miserably 100 years ago?

[Hela Wigmen]

When the bi-monthly threads about structures, structure changes, expansion and licensing arises, many people believe, rightly or wrongly, that an Academy is a pre-requisite of any side that has ambitions for a place in Super League. With this in mind, what would be the point in resurrecting clubs that people are now reminiscing about that barely didn’t make on the sporting landscape in this country , let alone having much of a purpose in Rugby League or sticking pins in maps, seemingly the favourite game for many Rugby League fan, and saying we need clubs in far flung destinations from the M62 or even the continent? 

If there’s that much of a desire for a player pathway and a push for Academy Rugby League having a plan implemented around it, I see no point in the resurrection of Prescot Panthers or Oxford. That said, that would require The RFL and Super League working together, developing a plan and then enforcing it and that’s always been too much work for The RFL, so we may as well just admit the next club ran by someone with a bit of cash and drop them into the sport’s “sea” without any protective gear and let them sink, as we have done with so many clubs before. 

[Bleep1673]

Is this the same regurgitated idea of expansions?

Liverpool should be forgotten, Rugby has no chance in a round ball city like that, we should learn from Liverpool Stanley/Huyton/Runcorn etc.

Blackpool might work, Chorley was a mistake, Nottingham/Mansfield might have a chance, maybe re-try Toronto?

Bristol has a good open mind, but maybe too Union.

Brighton has a large student population, with quite a few northerners who might attend, but where would they play? Certainly not at the Amex.

[Mumby Magic]

I was lucky enough to get to The Pirates as Northern played them in the Challenge Cup. One problem may be stadium as the McCain Stadium is well and truly gone. I'm not aware of the stadiums where they are etc. 

[Eddie]

16 minutes ago, Bleep1673 said:

Is this the same regurgitated idea of expansions?

Liverpool should be forgotten, Rugby has no chance in a round ball city like that, we should learn from Liverpool Stanley/Huyton/Runcorn etc.

Blackpool might work, Chorley was a mistake, Nottingham/Mansfield might have a chance, maybe re-try Toronto?

Bristol has a good open mind, but maybe too Union.

Brighton has a large student population, with quite a few northerners who might attend, but where would they play? Certainly not at the Amex.

It’s basically wherever people are prepared to start a team though isn’t it, rather than strategic locations, it’s not like the RFL have any money to find new teams. So if someone wanted to start a team in Chorley, or develop the existing one, then good luck to them. 
 

Also the All Golds are doing good things in Bristol now, hopefully things will work out for them. 

[Leyther_Matt]

15 minutes ago, Mumby Magic said:

I was lucky enough to get to The Pirates as Northern played them in the Challenge Cup. One problem may be stadium as the McCain Stadium is well and truly gone. I'm not aware of the stadiums where they are etc. 

There’s a new stadium in Scarborough now, complete with 4G pitch. Scarborough Athletic (the re-formed Scarborough FC) got such decent crowds pre-pandemic that they had to build a new stand to increase capacity within a year of moving in. 

[Tommygilf]

2 hours ago, Cumbrian Mackem said:

How is it straw clutching when both teams were/are representing the city of Coventry??

if anything it shows that anything is possible even after so much time has elapsed.

And the current Coventry do claim an ancestry to the original Northern Union club too which adds a bit of legitimacy. They even play in away shirts themed on the OG club's black (and white). 

[Bleep1673]

17 minutes ago, Eddie said:

So if someone wanted to start a team in Chorley, or develop the existing one.

What existing team in Chorley?

[Bleep1673]

Hemel.

[Hela Wigmen]

11 minutes ago, Tommygilf said:

And the current Coventry do claim an ancestry to the original Northern Union club too which adds a bit of legitimacy. They even play in away shirts themed on the OG club's black (and white). 

They can claim it but is it legitimate when there was 85 years between the two?

[Tommygilf]

10 minutes ago, Eddie said:

It’s basically wherever people are prepared to start a team though isn’t it, rather than strategic locations, it’s not like the RFL have any money to find new teams. So if someone wanted to start a team in Chorley, or develop the existing one, then good luck to them. 
 

Also the All Golds are doing good things in Bristol now, hopefully things will work out for them. 

In an ideal world for the RFL you'd have at least 1 club in each of the 8 "regions" of England (thinking the ones formerly used in the European elections) in the "professional leagues" to be the apex of the game in that region. And in fairness, when the All Golds, Hemel Stags and Oxford were in the League they had all the regions of the UK (let alone just England) bar the East of England, East Midlands, Scotland and Northern Ireland covered by at least 1 League club.

Newcastle Thunder seem to be the obvious example of what you'd want these clubs to look like.