Where could Barrow Raiders end up?

[Davo5]

1 hour ago, SJD said:

Really?  You might want to take a good look at the club's history.

I remember as a teenager watching Barrow playing the touring New Zealand side and coming very close, Barrow were good enough for NZ to add to that tour as a side that could challenge them. Just one example, there are many, many more.

Suggesting never is disrespectful. 

 

I can remember coming down the “goat track”from Cleator Moor with my old lad to watch the 82 Invincibles,Barrow gave them a real tough game before running out of steam with 2 ex Wath Brow players turning out for Barrow in front of nearly 7000,great memories.

Edited November 17, 2022 by Davo5

[sweaty craiq]

11 hours ago, Eddie said:

Leigh are surrounded by other RL clubs though, so people are unlikely to go from those towns to watch Leigh. Barrow have got no others near them, so in theory could draw from all the towns and villages in South Cumbria. If they can get 2k now surely they could average 4-5k if established in SL (which I know would make some people wet the bed as there would be empty seats on tv). 

Leigh’s current catchment is the owd Leyth Bent n Bongs plus Golborne, Culcheth, Westhaughton which is well over 120,000

[GUBRATS]

1 minute ago, sweaty craiq said:

Leigh’s current catchment is the owd Leyth Bent n Bongs plus Golborne, Culcheth, Westhaughton which is well over 120,000

Golborne and Culcheth I'd argue aren't ' Leyth ' area 

[Saint Toppy]

12 hours ago, hw88 said:

You say that the product is pretty good to start with - I don't disagree with you - yet only 4 clubs have 5 figure attendances and a further 4 or 5 have crowds of 5,000 or thereabouts. If the product is that good why aren't they packing them in? What is keeping people away? Does the quality of the stadia affect attendance that much? Have Hull's, Wigan's and St Helens' crowds shot up after they moved to a new ground?

Virtually all sports clubs live on the breadline - think Bury, Derby, Wasps, any number of ice hockey and speedway teams - and RL clubs are no different. They have no money to grow and improve - very few can build a new stadium and a competitive team at the same time. Relying on sponsors or rich owners isn't the way to go - much too fickle. Getting on terrestrial tv like in the old days is the best/only way to market the sport. At the end of the day though you can't force people through the turnstiles.

Why a SL of only 14 teams? Where does that leave the teams on the outside? No chance of promotion = death. What about new teams, who will create a new team in an expansion area if they have zero chance of reaching the top? Cornwall may as well pack up now. Remember how Keighley were shafted because they weren't a big name team? A SL of 18 teams would have room for everybody - the NRL has 16 teams and is expanding. You don't grow by staying with a small elite clique.

Barrow have been able to 'match it' with clubs in the past, why shouldn't they do so again. So have Oldham, Batley, Workington and a whole host of others. You say clubs like Barrow need a wealthy owner to come in and take over - you may well be right - but at the end of the day the people of Barrow are already well aware of the club, what could said billionaire do to increase their awareness of something they are already familiar with.

I used the number '14 team' because thats what IMG used in their launch statement regarding SL changes. They never said it was fixed at 14 in fact they hinted it could grow further if there were more A Grade license teams in the future. The longer term aim is to have a top flight consisting of only A grade license clubs and a 2nd tier of B grade license clubs. IMG believe that this is the best way the sport can market, promote and grow itself going forward and bring in the extra 3rd party revenues the sport needs if it is to continue to compete in the sporting market place. Going forward the division your in will be based on the grade of license you can achieve (and maintain). If Barrow can get themselves to an A grade license then great, they'll fully deserve their seat at the top table, if they can't then they'll have to stay as a Championship club and continue working to improve.

[ivans82]

Don`t believe size of ground or crowds should be raken as vitality important . There should be room for any Club who can remain viable , after all Bournemouth manage to get to the Premier League with a ground capacity of just over 11,000.

[Tim Streets tache]

20 minutes ago, ivans82 said:

Don`t believe size of ground or crowds should be raken as vitality important . There should be room for any Club who can remain viable , after all Bournemouth manage to get to the Premier League with a ground capacity of just over 11,000.

It's absolutely ingrained into Rugby League fans mentality isn't it.

TV, corporate and sponsorship make far more money for the coffers that Dave and his mate standing on the terrace. 

There are plenty on here that would ask what the attendance was for a match than the result.

 

Credit to Barrow though. They are doing really well and long may it continue!!

Edited November 18, 2022 by Tim Streets tache

[Dave W]

21 hours ago, Ovenden Grunt said:

Correct they have that title but everyone knows why. They kept the brass that went with it as well which is what gets me as much as the trophy. Don't get me wrong I love our trips to Barrow, we always stay the night although may try Ulverston this season, it's just this love in at the moment and whilst 2009 was a long time ago under a different regime it still grates. Anyroad we will be up again this season and look forward to what is shaping up to be a great championship season.  

"Everyone knows" apart from the RFL accountants who meticulously through the club's books when we got punished by the RFL. If you check the facts, you'll find that Barrow were penalised for things that happened in 2010/11, not 2009. 

All clubs have dirty laundry: I could go into Halifax's chequered boom and bust history and non-payments to players etc but you'll always have 1986/87. No-one can take that off you whatever happened afterwards.

Best of luck to you for next season as well. Fax went very close last time and were easily one of the best teams we played at home last season.

[Ovenden Grunt]

20 minutes ago, Dave W said:

"Everyone knows" apart from the RFL accountants who meticulously through the club's books when we got punished by the RFL. If you check the facts, you'll find that Barrow were penalised for things that happened in 2010/11, not 2009. 

All clubs have dirty laundry: I could go into Halifax's chequered boom and bust history and non-payments to players etc but you'll always have 1986/87. No-one can take that off you whatever happened afterwards.

Best of luck to you for next season as well. Fax went very close last time and were easily one of the best teams we played at home last season.

That's my point though, they weren't penalised for the things they did in 2009. It's all done and dusted now so here's looking forward to next season.

[Saint Toppy]

1 hour ago, ShropshireBull said:

 

The focus is on top from IMG which is fine but really hope there is someone tasked with working with League 1 clubs or god forbid new teams to try and help them identify a way to become competitive. 

 

I thought IMG announced that the criteria for all 3 grades of license would be agreed next year, so every team in all 3 divisions knew what to aim for ?

[Dave W]

4 hours ago, Ovenden Grunt said:

That's my point though, they weren't penalised for the things they did in 2009. It's all done and dusted now so here's looking forward to next season.

Aye, all in the past now, but it's always the fans that get shafted when a club's custodians break rules. We got left in a dreadful mess, in terms of finance, reputation, on field performance etc that's taken us 10 years to drag ourselves out of. 

My theory is it had a lot to do with our chairman at the time who was a self-aggrandising gob$hite that the RFL wanted to take down a peg or two.

The only thing that irks me is how some bigger clubs got off more or less scot-free or at worst got a mild wrist slap for similar operational breaches.

 

[SJD]

If you all keep discussing us, we might make it to the top of the page.

[SJD]

Sadly, it's gone quiet and so we'll end up on page 2 very soon.  Help me out here I can't manage on my own. 

[GUBRATS]

2 minutes ago, SJD said:

Sadly, it's gone quiet and so we'll end up on page 2 very soon.  Help me out here I can't manage on my own. 

Do a rebrand

[The Blues Ox]

On 18/11/2022 at 10:23, Dave W said:

"Everyone knows" apart from the RFL accountants who meticulously through the club's books when we got punished by the RFL. If you check the facts, you'll find that Barrow were penalised for things that happened in 2010/11, not 2009. 

All clubs have dirty laundry: I could go into Halifax's chequered boom and bust history and non-payments to players etc but you'll always have 1986/87. No-one can take that off you whatever happened afterwards.

Best of luck to you for next season as well. Fax went very close last time and were easily one of the best teams we played at home last season.

Barrow were punished for breaches that happened from 2007-2011.

[The Blues Ox]

On 18/11/2022 at 09:59, Tim Streets tache said:

It's absolutely ingrained into Rugby League fans mentality isn't it.

TV, corporate and sponsorship make far more money for the coffers that Dave and his mate standing on the terrace. 

There are plenty on here that would ask what the attendance was for a match than the result.

 

Credit to Barrow though. They are doing really well and long may it continue!!

This so much.

Fax don't make a penny from the ground, have no money man, and our crowds are average at best yet we still are able to compete at the top end of the Championship year on year despite those handicaps so although it would be nice to see more people through the gate, its actually our sponsorship deals that allow us to be competitive.

[Jughead]

On 18/11/2022 at 09:38, ivans82 said:

Don`t believe size of ground or crowds should be raken as vitality important . There should be room for any Club who can remain viable , after all Bournemouth manage to get to the Premier League with a ground capacity of just over 11,000.

And massive financial doping. Let’s not use them as an example. 

[Dave W]

On 21/11/2022 at 18:47, The Blues Ox said:

Barrow were punished for breaches that happened from 2007-2011.

I can understand why Halifax fans might be upset about 2009 but, although the investigation covered the period where that particular chairman was involved, the punishments were all related to what happened in 2010-11.

Despite the wishful thinking on Fax's Wikipedia page, Barrow were never actually stripped of the 2009 title.  Make of that what you will but it's a fact.

[The Blues Ox]

6 hours ago, Dave W said:

I can understand why Halifax fans might be upset about 2009 but, although the investigation covered the period where that particular chairman was involved, the punishments were all related to what happened in 2010-11.

Despite the wishful thinking on Fax's Wikipedia page, Barrow were never actually stripped of the 2009 title.  Make of that what you will but it's a fact.

It seems it has been reported wrong in multiple places as the RFL said that the breaches took place over a period between 2007-2011.