West Wales

[Blind side johnny]

No doubt irrelevant to the SL obsessives but there is a strong rumour of their demise. If correct lets' hope that it isn't the first domino.

[Henson Park Old Firm]

The writing on the wall has been around for a while... tine for a Scottish club

[Pie tries]

If true - next South Wales club must be in Cardiff…

[DEANO]

18 minutes ago, Pie tries said:

If true - next South Wales club must be in Cardiff…

Already been tried. 

[Whippet13]

1 hour ago, Blind side johnny said:

No doubt irrelevant to the SL obsessives but there is a strong rumour of their demise. If correct lets' hope that it isn't the first domino.

What's it got to do with "SL obsessives"? Whatever and whomever they are.

Hopefully another expansion area picks up their licence, if they do fold.

[Ragingbull]

Sadly its about time.  Nothing more than a pub team that have failed to grow or progress in any way. Year after year its the same.  No where near good enough to be a semi pro team / club

[Llangennech]

Can the RFL stop allowing any old team, well, that's what it looks like to me in any case, to play RL in a league. Stebonheath is not suited for a rugby match, trying to force RL onto ppl in south Wales, it's just silly, really silly. If people around here want to play RL they will, most know that the sport exists. 

[The Future is League]

5 hours ago, Blind side johnny said:

No doubt irrelevant to the SL obsessives but there is a strong rumour of their demise. If correct lets' hope that it isn't the first domino.

Terrible news for the game in Wales if true.

We want as many people from different backgrounds and different parts of the UK playing our game as possible.

[Jughead]

Are there actually any rumours or is it people putting two and two together again because West Wales don’t use social media in any way close to how a North West Counties Football League team does?

[Impartial Observer]

A lot more than a rumour, an owner of another league 1 club told me that WWR were looking for new owners a few weeks ago

[Impartial Observer]

8 hours ago, LlanWests said:

Can the RFL stop allowing any old team, well, that's what it looks like to me in any case, to play RL in a league. Stebonheath is not suited for a rugby match, trying to force RL onto ppl in south Wales, it's just silly, really silly. If people around here want to play RL they will, most know that the sport exists. 

If the team were any good then people would come and watch as they did with Celtic Crusaders but when you are being thumped every week nobody is coming. I didn't think there was any problem with the ground, thought it was a lovely ground to watch rugby

[Jughead]

6 minutes ago, Impartial Observer said:

A lot more than a rumour, an owner of another league 1 club told me that WWR were looking for new owners a few weeks ago

So very different to “a demise”, as per the opening post, then. 

[Impartial Observer]

and with no new owner the club will fold

[David Dockhouse Host]

9 hours ago, LlanWests said:

Can the RFL stop allowing any old team, well, that's what it looks like to me in any case, to play RL in a league. Stebonheath is not suited for a rugby match, trying to force RL onto ppl in south Wales, it's just silly, really silly. If people around here want to play RL they will, most know that the sport exists. 

This is the challenge with expanding, chicken and egg.

Not sure of the answer indeed if there is one

[Blind side johnny]

1 hour ago, Jughead said:

So very different to “a demise”, as per the opening post, then. 

Am I wrong, then?

[Impartial Observer]

31 minutes ago, Blind side johnny said:

Am I wrong, then?

No but I do not think there will be a domino effect

[Jughead]

36 minutes ago, Blind side johnny said:

Am I wrong, then?

Who knows? From the little we know on here, it appears a bit like Chinese whispers about a demise after other rumours of seeking investment. Whether the lack of the latter create the former in the short-term remains to be seen. 

[Midlands hobo]

3 hours ago, Impartial Observer said:

A lot more than a rumour, an owner of another league 1 club told me that WWR were looking for new owners a few weeks ago

Hang on I'll check down the sofa for change

[Angelic Cynic]

2 hours ago, David Dockhouse Host said:

This is the challenge with expanding, chicken and egg.

Not sure of the answer indeed if there is one

Expansion doesn't work without due diligence on the ownership.

It hasn't worked in south/west Wales - with West Wales being allowed in because South Wales Ironmen couldn't complete the fixtures of their first season.

Despite a director being head of participation.

https://caerphilly.observer/sport/961368/rugby-league-scorpions-to-rebrand-as-south-wales-ironmen-and-move-to-merthyr-tydfil/

It could have been worse.

Northampton nearly had a club accepted - https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-WTaAHEnBR8&t=23s

But the owner became subject to a fraud inquiry -

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-northamptonshire-61789483

https://www.ntfc.co.uk/news/2012/august/rebels-withdraw-from-championship-one/

Too many failures in south Wales.

Midland Hurricanes seem to make incremental progress.Hopefully that will continue - https://castlefordtigersfoundation.co.uk/news/tigers-announce-hurricanes-partnership/

Could Hemel make a comeback?  All Golds? 

[Jughead]

6 minutes ago, Angelic Cynic said:

Expansion doesn't work without due diligence on the ownership.

It hasn't worked in south/west Wales - with West Wales being allowed in because South Wales Ironmen couldn't complete the fixtures of their first season.

Despite a director being head of participation.

https://caerphilly.observer/sport/961368/rugby-league-scorpions-to-rebrand-as-south-wales-ironmen-and-move-to-merthyr-tydfil/

It could have been worse.

Northampton nearly had a club accepted - https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-WTaAHEnBR8&t=23s

But the owner became subject to a fraud inquiry -

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-northamptonshire-61789483

https://www.ntfc.co.uk/news/2012/august/rebels-withdraw-from-championship-one/

Too many failures in south Wales.

Midland Hurricanes seem to make incremental progress.Hopefully that will continue - https://castlefordtigersfoundation.co.uk/news/tigers-announce-hurricanes-partnership/

Could Hemel make a comeback?  All Golds? 

Not sure we’d replace. IMG have said something along the lines of no new clubs to be admitted, though I don’t know if you could buy a licence, as per Hemel/Ottawa/Cornwall. 

I think League One would just run with ten clubs and nineteen games if a team pulled out. 

[Gomersall]

AFAIA there isn’t a licence to run out or to be sold. The people behind Cornwall bought Hemel’s membership of the RFL didn’t they?

[Toby Chopra]

1 minute ago, Gomersall said:

AFAIA there isn’t a licence to run out or to be sold. The people behind Cornwall bought Hemel’s membership of the RFL didn’t they?

Yes, we don't have licenses despite that phrase often being used, club are just members (or guests) of the RFL. And if a club is sold, continuation of that membership is subject to approval the RFL, which ultimately is the other clubs. The RFL approved the transfer of Hemel's membership to the new ownership of the putative Ottawa club, and then onto Cornwall. 

So if WWR do call it a day and sell up (although what do they really have to sell?) the RFL will have to approve someone else getting a go elsewhere. Which is as it should be, they just need to do a better job in future of vetting the owners and the business plans.

[RLNewbie]

1pm today announcement 

[OriginalMrC]

If this is true its nothing to do with whether South/West Wales can support a RL club. This club have been run very badly for a number of years and were never going to succeed when getting hammered week in week out and not making any progress at all. Had they been a well run club they'd have built year on year but instead they continued to be a shambles year on year. 

[Jughead]

They’re gone. Statement on Facebook. 

Many have called for it before and it’s finally happened. They’ve been run abysmally under this ownership, it’s a shame that proper owners couldn’t be found. 

I feel for the players who have been messed around over the years and the fans that have stuck by this circus led operation. 

Edited December 22, 2022 by Jughead