The IMG Gradings Thread - Post all your IMG Gradings related questions or comments here

[Gerrumonside ref]

I think one positive thing is there’s a golden opportunity to share best practice here between clubs and for administrators to learn.

[Tommygilf]

3 minutes ago, Leonard said:

At the same time SL is won via a play off system 

What a ridiculous statement.

[Dave T]

Just now, phiggins said:

I've never been a fan of play offs full stop to be honest, but the SL grand final has grown into a showpiece event, and it isn't being used to determine who will play at a higher level next season.

To be fair, it's been resolved moving forward to an extent. 

[GUBRATS]

6 minutes ago, Tommygilf said:

Because that would also be stupid harry, as you well know.

Any catchment grading is stupid 

[gingerjon]

1 minute ago, Tommygilf said:

I don't know why everyone is worried about London being rubbish.

Because many rugby league fans - the only people who consistently refer to matches as dead rubbers - have a cringe reflex every time either the game or a competition falls short of complete perfection, or is perceived by them to have done so.

[Tommygilf]

Just now, GUBRATS said:

Any catchment grading is stupid 

It isn't though.

[Chrispmartha]

5 minutes ago, Harry Stottle said:

Just as a point to illustrate to me Chris, if I am paying £22,50 entrance fee x 13 = £292.50 how many clicks is that worth?

Nothing to do with SM being aimed at me or not, each must have a value to the club.

You are just demonstrating that you don't know how SM works, or how marketing through that channel works.

Some SM marketing can be measured on a ROI basis they will be able to track who went to the ticketing site/merchandising site and from what platform, other types of SM marketing is simply to raise awareness.

You have said you don't use social media, it might might surprise you to learn that that will be the the clubs biggest route to market for tickets and merchandise etc, not sure why you are glibly passing it off as an irrelevance.

[Dave T]

1 minute ago, Martyn Sadler said:

I agree completely with the criteria and process, although as i've said on here several times, I would like to see more transparency.

I'm the one who has been saying for as long as I can remember that conventional P & R doesn't work in Rugby League.

And when we get to the 2025 season and beyond, I'm sure the new system will work well.

But if we implement it without modification for next season, the grading system will lose credibility.

You only have to read through this thread to see how many people don't like it.

The system won't work in 2025 if you don't take the pain in 2024. You just defer the pain. 

Unless you are just hoping the anaomoly gets relegated, which is a weird way of running the sport. 

[Tommygilf]

Just now, gingerjon said:

Because many rugby league fans - the only people who consistently refer to matches as dead rubbers - have a cringe reflex every time either the game or a competition falls short of complete perfection, or is perceived by them to have done so.

The culture around this in the game is really weird its an unwarranted hyper sensitivity.

[Toby Chopra]

43 minutes ago, Martyn Sadler said:

If you want one club to be a passenger in Super League from the opening game next season, then it isn't needed.

The obvious thing for the Broncos to do now is to continue with a part-time squad and accept the inevitable.

I think that would be a PR disaster for the game, particularly in London.

We will look ridiculous.

We've had teams get battered all season before, as have teams in other sports. It's not great but it happens and it won't be that big a deal. And if it does, sadly no-one in London or the South East will notice because unfortunately the sport has almost zero visibility these days down here beyond the scattering of existing fans.     

[Archie Gordon]

I'm just not convinced that a SL comprised of 7 grade A clubs and the grade B clubs ranked 8-12 is very much different to 7 grade A clubs and 5 other Bs selected from 8-16 (or even 24). We can still have the carrot of grade A providing guaranteed SL status for every club without losing the excitement of P&R. Seems win-win to me - and it gives London something to aim for on and off the field in 2024.

[The Future is League]

2 minutes ago, Tommygilf said:

I don't know why everyone is worried about London being rubbish.

They were terrible in 2014 when they went down (1 win all season was it?). How many games was it last year before Wakefield got a win?

Them getting promoted like this despite being utterly incapable of functioning as a Super League club is exactly why the grading system will be introduced. They've proved the point comprehensively.

That's P & R for you.

Of course I'm sure nobody would moan if Super League was a closed shop would they?

[Chrispmartha]

3 minutes ago, Martyn Sadler said:

I agree completely with the criteria and process, although as i've said on here several times, I would like to see more transparency.

I'm the one who has been saying for as long as I can remember that conventional P & R doesn't work in Rugby League.

And when we get to the 2025 season and beyond, I'm sure the new system will work well.

But if we implement it without modification for next season, the grading system will lose credibility.

You only have to read through this thread to see how many people don't like it.

But weren't you calling for standard P&R between the leagues? sorry if Ive got that wrong but that's what I inferred from your posts.

Or are you saying P&R needs to remain leading into the 2025 season? if so that's daft because what happens if we get another London next year, and the year after that? at some point there has to be a cutoff

[GUBRATS]

4 minutes ago, Gerrumonside ref said:

I think one positive thing is there’s a golden opportunity to share best practice here between clubs and for administrators to learn.

You are joking 

[Dave T]

I would suggest that if London don't try this year, it sort of hampers their aims to grow into a bigger club. 

And if they take that approach, it suggests their ranking may actually be a bit generous. 

[Gerrumonside ref]

Just now, GUBRATS said:

You are joking 

No, why do you think that of a benchmarking exercise like this?

[Chrispmartha]

1 minute ago, Dave T said:

I would suggest that if London don't try this year, it sort of hampers their aims to grow into a bigger club. 

And if they take that approach, it suggests their ranking may actually be a bit generous. 

Well quite, London need to get as many grading points as they can get, and that means trying to get the highest League position and look like a club that is progressing

[GUBRATS]

5 minutes ago, Martyn Sadler said:

I agree completely with the criteria and process, although as i've said on here several times, I would like to see more transparency.

I'm the one who has been saying for as long as I can remember that conventional P & R doesn't work in Rugby League.

And when we get to the 2025 season and beyond, I'm sure the new system will work well.

But if we implement it without modification for next season, the grading system will lose credibility.

You only have to read through this thread to see how many people don't like it.

If you modify it Martyn , then somebody else won't be happy , that modification could relegate somebody , you only get one shot at this , and it's been done

[Tommygilf]

1 minute ago, Dave T said:

I would suggest that if London don't try this year, it sort of hampers their aims to grow into a bigger club. 

And if they take that approach, it suggests their ranking may actually be a bit generous. 

Exactly, they have an opportunity no other club in their position will likely get to boost their position. If they don't take it, that is entirely indicative of why they shouldn't be there.

[Toby Chopra]

30 minutes ago, Martyn Sadler said:

Tony Sutton needs to realise that he is the CEO of the RFL and make a decision.

If next season is a disaster, it will be him who carries the can.

Whether London gets battered all year, or don't finish bottom and are removed, it won't be a disaster. By the start of the next season it will be forgotten and for most people not even noticed at all.

 

[Dave T]

Just now, Tommygilf said:

Exactly, they have an opportunity no other club in their position will likely get to boost their position. If they don't take it, that is entirely indicative of why they shouldn't be there.

With the new TV deal hopefully they can make a decent stab at it and raise their profile, financial position, fandom etc. 

[Derwent]

1 minute ago, Chrispmartha said:

Well quite, London need to get as many grading points as they can get, and that means trying to get the highest League position and look like a club that is progressing

Which gets more points - finishing 11th in SL or showing a million pounds profit for the year in their financials ?

[Dave T]

Just now, Toby Chopra said:

Whether London gets battered all year, or don't finish bottom and are removed, it won't be a disaster. By the start of the next season it will be forgotten and for most people not even noticed at all.

 

This. We can all be guilty of thinking that things we don't like are a disaster or similar. In reality, life goes on. 

[GUBRATS]

6 minutes ago, Tommygilf said:

It isn't though.

If you were starting from scratch , then it's fine , and desirable , but to punish clubs for decisions made over a century earlier is ridiculous  

 

[Toby Chopra]

23 minutes ago, DI Keith Fowler said:

We're probably going to look ridiculous yes. But it's a matter of sporting integrity. The clubs have bought into this system and whenever it was brought in there was going to be this 1 transitional season where everything's in flux.

However, the fates have conspired to throw up the most ridiculous possible scenario. We have a team who are simultaneously a basket case in 24th place but also a key strategic target for growth. Through an unlikely series of events they find themselves an incumbent in SL at the time of this great realignment, and will find themselves relegated next season whatever they do.

This is not a reason to start tinkering, either the system is right or it isn't. This scenario will never happen again because in future years a woefully undercooked club wouldn't be in SL in the first place. If Toulouse had won that game there's be no issue. We can't come up with a system, agree on it and then abandon it immediately because we have to live with undesirable consequences for a maximum of 1 season.

great post. Calm and considered.