West Cumbria

[Eddie]

Well it’s been a while since we had this one. I was listening to the latest Out of Your League podcast earlier and Kyle Amor was the guest. He said that he thought (if the finances were in place) a West Cumbrian team alternating games between Whitehaven and Workington would work.
 

What do you think, could it work? never having been there I imagine p155ing off the fans of the two rival clubs might be a big issue, but it’s been done and worked elsewhere before (in the NRL and Inverness). They certainly have the player pool. 

[Davo5]

3 minutes ago, Eddie said:

Well it’s been a while since we had this one. I was listening to the latest Out of Your League podcast earlier and Kyle Amor was the guest. He said that he thought (if the finances were in place) a West Cumbrian team alternating games between Whitehaven and Workington would work.
 

What do you think, could it work? never having been there I imagine p155ing off the fans of the two rival clubs might be a big issue, but it’s been done and worked elsewhere before (in the NRL and Inverness). They certainly have the player pool. 

Wow a merged West Cumbria club thread part 103.

The finances are not in place

Both grounds are in decay despite the ongoing efforts of the clubs.

The player pool is usually stripped of its best young talent by Superleague clubs and of the ones who aren’t a lot are usually in well paid employment in the nuclear industry and tend to stay in the amateur ranks.

The remaining dwindling support base is largely made up of aging diehards who can’t see past the end of their nose and would rather see their clubs wither & die than merge with the “enemy”

A sad state of affairs not helped by the RFL’s apathy towards what was once a great RL hotbed.

[Chris Taylor]

Do we include Barrow in this too......

[Davo5]

7 minutes ago, Chris Taylor said:

Do we include Barrow in this too......

There in Lancashire

[Chris Taylor]

1 minute ago, Davo5 said:

There in Lancashire

 I know, I was taking the ....! 

[Eddie]

11 minutes ago, Chris Taylor said:

Do we include Barrow in this too......

Bants aside, when people say they should be included they can’t have ever been to Cumbria, you might as well merge Widnes and Hunslet. 

[Davo5]

3 minutes ago, Eddie said:

Bants aside, when people say they should be included they can’t have ever been to Cumbria, you might as well merge Widnes and Hunslet. 

Even if all the obstacles I listed could be overcome,it would only happen if a Superleague place could be secured and that won’t happen,not sure a competitive Championship club would be a big enough carrot for both parties to come together.

The 90 minute drive up & down the goat track to/from Barrow will always rule them out

[Mumby Magic]

I know this isn't relevant to West Cumbria but would like Carlisle to restart.

[gingerjon]

The time to do this was twenty-five years ago and it wouldn't have worked then either

[DavidM]

Before all the other ( many ) obstacles the will just isn’t there to begin with , so we plough on ( or at least up n down on the same spot )

[Gerrumonside ref]

Slow news day.

[Davo5]

47 minutes ago, Mumby Magic said:

I know this isn't relevant to West Cumbria but would like Carlisle to restart.

RL doesn’t exist in any form in Carlisle these days.

[Davo5]

37 minutes ago, gingerjon said:

The time to do this was twenty-five years ago and it wouldn't have worked then either

It really could have though with investment from BNFL (financial) and the RFL (resources)

[RigbyLuger]

Where are Koucash's Cumbrian Lakers? And his Liverpool RLFC for that matter?

[Cumbrian Mackem]

Just now, RigbyLuger said:

Where are Koucash's Cumbrian Lakers? And his Liverpool RLFC for that matter?

Same place as the NRL’s British bulldogs franchise.

[Mumby Magic]

54 minutes ago, Davo5 said:

RL doesn’t exist in any form in Carlisle these days.

Yeah I get that and feel it's a loss. 

[Wanderer]

24 minutes ago, Mumby Magic said:

Yeah I get that and feel it's a loss. 

and for somewhere that used to have it's own league its very sad 

[Mumby Magic]

6 minutes ago, Wanderer said:

and for somewhere that used to have it's own league its very sad 

Didn't know that tbh. 

[Wanderer]

yes up to a 10 or 12 team league during the 80's, others on here will know more or can provide links, St Nicholas Arms were a team in it I think

[JM2010]

9 minutes ago, Wanderer said:

and for somewhere that used to have it's own league its very sad 

Surely somewhere like Carlisle would be a good place to target as a place for new community clubs. I'm surprised Newcastle Thunder haven't tried

[Wanderer]

Our friend Celtic Rooster had previously posted this:

CARLISLE & DISTRICT LEAGUE  FINAL TABLE.

		Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	For	Against	Difference	Points
1	Wigton (Carlisle)	18	17	0	1				34
2	Crown Inn (Carlisle)	18	15	0	3				30
3	Horse & Farrier (Carlisle)	18	12	0	6				24
4	St. Nicholas Arms (Carlisle)	18	8	0	10				16
5	Carlisle Rugby League Supporters Club	18	7	0	11				14
6	Dalston ‘A’ (Carlisle)	18	4	0	14				8
7	Penrith (Cumbria)	18	0	0	18				0

 A Carlisle amateur RL was formed after the new semi-pro Carlisle club created interest in the town and it lasted until the 1988-89 season. This is the 1986-87 season table.

 

on this link 

 

[Hopping Mad]

20 hours ago, Wanderer said:

Our friend Celtic Rooster had previously posted this:

CARLISLE & DISTRICT LEAGUE  FINAL TABLE.

		Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	For	Against	Difference	Points
1	Wigton (Carlisle)	18	17	0	1				34
2	Crown Inn (Carlisle)	18	15	0	3				30
3	Horse & Farrier (Carlisle)	18	12	0	6				24
4	St. Nicholas Arms (Carlisle)	18	8	0	10				16
5	Carlisle Rugby League Supporters Club	18	7	0	11				14
6	Dalston ‘A’ (Carlisle)	18	4	0	14				8
7	Penrith (Cumbria)	18	0	0	18				0

 A Carlisle amateur RL was formed after the new semi-pro Carlisle club created interest in the town and it lasted until the 1988-89 season. This is the 1986-87 season table.

 

on this link 

 

Quite a few other Carlisle & District League clubs listed in the FIM Cumbria Rugby League annuals of 1982-86:

They include Caledonian (Carlisle), Crown & Mitre (Carlisle), Friars Tavern (Carlisle), Morton Manor (Carlisle), Pheasant (Carlisle), Pioneers, Platform One (Carlisle), RAF Carlisle, Royal Scot.

From the same period, a few 'lost' West Cumbria ARL clubs to reminisce over:

Blue Bell (Workington), Frizington, Great Clifton, Mirehouse (Whitehaven), Moss Bay (Workington), St Bees, Shipwrights (Whitehaven), Twinames (Cockermouth).

[Hopping Mad]

23 hours ago, Davo5 said:

There in Lancashire

Ha, ha. As a Whitehaven RLFC director of the 1980s explained it to me, a Yorkshireman: "Barrovians will never be Cumbrians as long as they've got holes in their *****."

[ATLANTISMAN]

I always felt that Barrow could have been a big club.

Workington Town and Whitehaven I think work well as a championship club (As long as they are in the top division) 

 

Paul

[Live after death]

1 hour ago, Hopping Mad said:

Ha, ha. As a Whitehaven RLFC director of the 1980s explained it to me, a Yorkshireman: "Barrovians will never be Cumbrians as long as they've got holes in their *****."

As long as Cumbria as existed, Barrow has been part of Cumbria. Now Cumberland is a different story.