Rugby League back at Lamport Stadium

[bbfaz]

6 minutes ago, Leyther_Matt said:

Appreciated, cheers. 3 quid seems more than fair to me!

Contrary to how it may seen, I genuinely hope they can finally make a go of it. British Columbia has had a bit of an amateur RL niche and managed to sustain something resembling an actual league.  I hope they can get to a critical mass in Ontario.

[EggFace]

1 hour ago, Eddie said:

Yes he turned up with cash and a golden goose, yet as Toronto is more than 5 miles of an M62 junction the clubs couldn’t handle the idea. 

Silly idea just like the expansion of the CFL into USA in the 1980's and the NFL European League in the 90s.

[Big Picture]

27 minutes ago, bbfaz said:

One of the few people I've ever blocked on this forum was insistent that Canadian Football players in U Sports are the greatest athletes in the world.  Bear in mind that even though they're playing basically the same sport, the NFL doesn't scout Canada and there are only 25 Canadians in the NFL, almost of whom either played in the CFL or went to college in the US.  You can't deal with that level of delusion.

There's not one shred of evidence that Toronto was a Golden Goose.  Seemed more like the Canada geese in my local park who just s*** all over the place.

I knew that followers of so-called "Canadian football" are deluded in thinking that a game dominated by foreigners thanks to a century of rule changes turning that sport into a quirky second-rate variant of the US game, but I'm gobsmacked to think that even one of them would claim that players in U Sports gridiron are the greatest athletes in the world.

Re the Wolfpack, both you and @Eddiemake good points.  The reaction to the Wolfpack exposed just how small time English RL is, but in truth having them in the English game was never going to work given the severe constraints which hold it back.

[bbfaz]

3 minutes ago, EggFace said:

Silly idea just like the expansion of the CFL into USA in the 1980's and the NFL European League in the 90s.

The European part of the World League of American Football actually worked.  They just couldn't get anybody to watch it in the US.  However, when they came back as NFL Europe, the bloom was most definitely off the rose and nobody outside Germany really got into it.

That actually spurred on the CFL USA project because the owners of the WLAF Sacramento and San Antonio teams became the CFL franchises, eventhough San Antonio pulled out and never took the field.  That created a pattern of taking on these undercapitalised owners because they thought they needed to expand to pull the whole league out of financial trouble.  They announced new franchises and then there would be issues with the ownership.

Even then, Baltimore were very successful, on and off the field, and Birmingham drew decent crowds, though you wouldn't have known it because they played in the cavernous Legion Field.  Problem was, just as the project was in serious trouble, the Cleveland Browns moved to Baltimore. So they moved Baltimore to Montreal and we had the new Alouettes.

The CFL didn't learn their lesson until the 2000s where they were much stricter on ownership groups and accepted they needed a strict salary cap.  Still, the best paid CFLer earns more than anybody in British RL for instance.

[bbfaz]

7 minutes ago, Big Picture said:

I knew that followers of so-called "Canadian football" are deluded in thinking that a game dominated by foreigners thanks to a century of rule changes turning that sport into a quirky second-rate variant of the US game, but I'm gobsmacked to think that even one of them would claim that players in U Sports gridiron are the greatest athletes in the world.

I genuinely left the forum for a long time because of how crazy that guy was.  He's still around and will likely be here soon.

[The Masked Poster]

Super League is absolutely better off without Wolfpack in. It's TTG

And yet....I can't seem to find an equivalent generating headlines elsewhere. 

Which, is quite right. If outsiders aren't interested in Rugby League, by some sort of birthright or  psychic phenomena then they don't deserve to be RL fans. F*** them. 

[Big Picture]

7 minutes ago, bbfaz said:

The European part of the World League of American Football actually worked.  They just couldn't get anybody to watch it in the US.  However, when they came back as NFL Europe, the bloom was most definitely off the rose and nobody outside Germany really got into it.

That actually spurred on the CFL USA project because the owners of the WLAF Sacramento and San Antonio teams became the CFL franchises, eventhough San Antonio pulled out and never took the field.  That created a pattern of taking on these undercapitalised owners because they thought they needed to expand to pull the whole league out of financial trouble.  They announced new franchises and then there would be issues with the ownership.

Even then, Baltimore were very successful, on and off the field, and Birmingham drew decent crowds, though you wouldn't have known it because they played in the cavernous Legion Field.  Problem was, just as the project was in serious trouble, the Cleveland Browns moved to Baltimore. So they moved Baltimore to Montreal and we had the new Alouettes.

The CFL didn't learn their lesson until the 2000s where they were much stricter on ownership groups and accepted they needed a strict salary cap.  Still, the best paid CFLer earns more than anybody in British RL for instance.

And just so all the Brits here understand, the CFL is a minor league, not a major league.  It has minor-league revenues, pays minor-league money to players and its franchises are worth values far below those of even the most valuable minor league franchises over here, which in turn are well below the values of franchises in the major leagues which would cost someone 325 million US$ and up to buy into.

[Big Picture]

4 minutes ago, The Masked Poster said:

Super League is absolutely better off without Wolfpack in. It's TTG

And yet....I can't seem to find an equivalent generating headlines elsewhere. 

Which, is quite right. If outsiders aren't interested in Rugby League, by some sort of birthright or  psychic phenomena then they don't deserve to be RL fans. F*** them. 

Like it or not RL needs a way reach those outsiders and expand its fanbase if it's going to have a future.

[GUBRATS]

I'd have loved TW to be a success , but the shear logistics of it made it highly unlikely, if you have a sport awash with cash you've got an outside chance , hopefully the game in Canada can grow 

[GUBRATS]

1 minute ago, Big Picture said:

Like it or not RL needs a way reach those outsiders and expand its fanbase if it's going to have a future.

Yes , but it's not a simple science 

[The Masked Poster]

3 minutes ago, GUBRATS said:

I'd have loved TW to be a success , but the shear logistics of it made it highly unlikely, if you have a sport awash with cash you've got an outside chance , hopefully the game in Canada can grow 

The game in Canada might grow...it probably won't, but it might. 

However that ship has sailed because a guy called Elstone or something decided that they added to nothing to SL. You can probably ask him as I'm sure he's still involved with RL because he had it's best interests at heart. Definitely. 

[The Rocket]

2 hours ago, bbfaz said:

Ontario Rugby League; Toronto City, Brampton and Brantford playing a 3-team round robin.  Details are in the International forum.  $5 for an amateur game seems steep but hopefully they get a programme for that.

Only a Yorkshireman could say that.

[Omott91]

4 hours ago, Wigan Riversider said:

Pity SL chairman were so narrow minded when Toronto were in SL.

Check out the latest Instagram post from Twp this morning.

[Pigeon Lofter]

25 minutes ago, Omott91 said:

Check out the latest Instagram post from Twp this morning.

That's a great howl.

[Eddie]

6 hours ago, Omott91 said:

Check out the latest Instagram post from Twp this morning.

Any chance of a link? 

[Madrileño]

7 hours ago, bbfaz said:

 

However, what we had was a racist Australian who stiffed players for money and a city where you can't play a home game until May in a broken-down CFL practice field.  

 

 

That didn't stop them pulling in 9.5k for a game against Swinton in the Championship.

That's right... the Championship. There are clubs who have had 100 years of practice and none of them can pull that sort of crowd in the Championship.

Their broken down practice field is more modern than castleford or wakefield's ramshackle "stadia" and remember that neither Salford, Wakefield or Hudds are capable of pulling in 9.5k supporters in Super League, never mind the championship.

Toronto embarrassed a number of established floater clubs by being more professional in 24 months than the floaters could manage in 90 years. 

[Oxford]

Well I was correct about the total space needed for the biff to start but how wrong can you be about the lack of motivation for getting stuck in. Who says RL fans don't hold grudges, bury the hatchets and let sleeping dogs lie?

God, we even got right down to the tired and over used  some clubs haven't cut mustard in all those  blah, blah blah and the thread page count hadn't even reached a number that could be rounded up!

Does every argument in RL have to be a Brexit kind of either or choice or is that just the way we enjoy our virtual biff? I suppose it makes it easier to choose sides and recognise who's with or against you.

 

 

 

[Gomersall]

9 hours ago, GUBRATS said:

As faz said , leave the ' platitudes ' 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

WTFs a platitude ?

An Australian animal. HTH

[Jughead]

Toronto Wolfpack were a shambles, owing money to many well before covid was a tasty looking bat in a Wuhan market, covid may have seen them off but they were careering towards the abyss well before then and a snake oil salesman unwilling to prove his finances but wanting to put Tom Olbison’s face on some face wash wasn’t enough to blag the chairmen of Super League. 

Anyway, it’s not about David Argyle or the Wolfpack and it’s about the City Saints, who appear to be doing things the right way. 

[Wellsy4HullFC]

11 hours ago, Man of Kent said:

There’s a Masters game there next month. 19 May. Canada XIII vs GB Police.

Aye, one of my mates is playing for GB Police. Makes me sad that I'm "Masters" age now! When did everyone get so old

[The Masked Poster]

30 minutes ago, Jughead said:

Toronto Wolfpack were a shambles, owing money to many well before covid was a tasty looking bat in a Wuhan market, covid may have seen them off but they were careering towards the abyss well before then and a snake oil salesman unwilling to prove his finances but wanting to put Tom Olbison’s face on some face wash wasn’t enough to blag the chairmen of Super League. 

Anyway, it’s not about David Argyle or the Wolfpack and it’s about the City Saints, who appear to be doing things the right way. 

That’s great. But let’s hope for their sakes that they don’t start doing well or even end up attracting spectators. A noble struggle before folding is the ideal scenario. Otherwise they might get ideas above their station. 
 

We can not afford to have financially unstable clubs in RL, not on our watch. 

[The Masked Poster]

3 minutes ago, Wellsy4HullFC said:

Aye, one of my mates is playing for GB Police. Makes me sad that I'm "Masters" age now! When did everyone get so old

Wait until you get old. Then a bit older. You’ll realise you weren’t actually old when you thought you were. 

[sam4731]

9 hours ago, Big Picture said:

Like it or not RL needs a way reach those outsiders and expand its fanbase if it's going to have a future.

Really what the RFL should have done was to focus efforts on creating a north American league, with a view to one day being competitive enough to take on super league's best. When I say 'one day' I mean not overnight with a proper long term strategy in place.

[Man of Kent]

1 hour ago, Wellsy4HullFC said:

Aye, one of my mates is playing for GB Police. Makes me sad that I'm "Masters" age now! When did everyone get so old

35 is Masters age. Spring chicken!

Masters is great. Playing this afternoon vs Cardiff.  

[Wellsy4HullFC]

8 minutes ago, Man of Kent said:

35 is Masters age. Spring chicken!

Masters is great. Playing this afternoon vs Cardiff.  

Aye, hopefully playing my first masters have in July for the Akkies 20th Anniversary! Not played any rugby in over 10 years