League Structure still undecided.

[creditwhereitsdews]

I can't say I like or have a firm grasp of what IMG are currently trying to do but I get the feeling that any results are not going to be immediate.
However IMG are involved with some of the most successful sports brands in the world so it's fair to assume that they must know what they are doing, and they deserve a chance (though I don't think we are going to like what they will do).
Rugby league, in the UK at least, is not a successful sports brand. Very far from it. Compare rugby league to other sports and we are in the dark ages, even when compared to the likes of darts and snooker.
Someone said earlier in this thread that we now get £40k a season from TV funding (the mind boggles to think we used to get six-figure sums – just where did it all go, and how much better could we have spent it?). And what exactly do we do for that?
If I ran a TV company, I'm not sure I'd want to show lower division rugby league. Personally, I love it and matchdays are  the highlight of my week – but if I'm brutally honest it can often feel a bit tinpot at times, and to people who aren't anoraks like me I can imagine why people wouldn't pay large sums to watch it.
Sparse crowds, shabby old stadiums or largely empty new areas, elderly speccies hurling abuse at the refs, naff 90s club nicknames, bog-standard beer and food in the ground served in soulless bars. What happens on the field is brilliant of course, but in this day and age it has to be showcased in a way in which it will have the same appeal as darts, American Football, pyjama cricket and Kentucky fried wrestling or whatever it's called.
If having flashy advertising boards, targeted audiences and better social media is going to raise the profile of RL then I'm all for it, and clubs now have a very strong incentive to fulfil these criteria.
I get the feeling that Mr Sawyer, like many other people in RL, doesn't like what IMG are doing and prefers to bide his time to see what happens with it all, rather than chuck a load of cash at the team only to see a lot of clubs crumble and all the clubs outside Super League get lumped into one division.
My worry for Dewsbury is that I don't think the club in its current form has a very long shelf life. Whatever happens, we need young, vibrant and ambitious people involved with the club.
 

Edited February 8 by creditwhereitsdews

[Blind side johnny]

17 hours ago, creditwhereitsdews said:

I can't say I like or have a firm grasp of what IMG are currently trying to do but I get the feeling that any results are not going to be immediate.
However IMG are involved with some of the most successful sports brands in the world so it's fair to assume that they must know what they are doing, and they deserve a chance (though I don't think we are going to like what they will do).
Rugby league, in the UK at least, is not a successful sports brand. Very far from it. Compare rugby league to other sports and we are in the dark ages, even when compared to the likes of darts and snooker.
Someone said earlier in this thread that we now get £40k a season from TV funding (the mind boggles to think we used to get six-figure sums – just where did it all go, and how much better could we have spent it?). And what exactly do we do for that?
If I ran a TV company, I'm not sure I'd want to show lower division rugby league. Personally, I love it and matchdays are  the highlight of my week – but if I'm brutally honest it can often feel a bit tinpot at times, and to people who aren't anoraks like me I can imagine why people wouldn't pay large sums to watch it.
Sparse crowds, shabby old stadiums or largely empty new areas, elderly speccies hurling abuse at the refs, naff 90s club nicknames, bog-standard beer and food in the ground served in soulless bars. What happens on the field is brilliant of course, but in this day and age it has to be showcased in a way in which it will have the same appeal as darts, American Football, pyjama cricket and Kentucky fried wrestling or whatever it's called.
If having flashy advertising boards, targeted audiences and better social media is going to raise the profile of RL then I'm all for it, and clubs now have a very strong incentive to fulfil these criteria.
I get the feeling that Mr Sawyer, like many other people in RL, doesn't like what IMG are doing and prefers to bide his time to see what happens with it all, rather than chuck a load of cash at the team only to see a lot of clubs crumble and all the clubs outside Super League get lumped into one division.
My worry for Dewsbury is that I don't think the club in its current form has a very long shelf life. Whatever happens, we need young, vibrant and ambitious people involved with the club.
 

Good post. The perception of the product of RL has to be raised substantially. I don't like RU at all but have to grudgingly admire what they have achieved, at least in terms of image, since their move to professionalism. If you can't learn lessons form your competitors then you are a fool.

I believe that you are correct in that clubs such as ours can only watch and wait to see what happens. Vibrancy and ambition count for little if there is no real interest from the general public in the sport - maybe a 20 increase could be achieved but even that might be temporary.

Just for some clarity: Sky don't fund individual clubs, their agreement and payments go to the RFL which "agrees" the distribution between themselves, SL clubs and the rest. How this distribution is arrived at is a very contentious subject.

[coolie]

On 05/02/2024 at 22:05, creditwhereitsdews said:

Hard to see us being anything but a League One/basement club for the foreseeable future, and that's nothing to do with IMG.

Other clubs seem to be grasping the nettle whether in terms of the IMG demands, running a club or just playing rugby league in 2024, where as we seem to just be doing the bare minimum with everything.

I know people have complained about the club's lack of ambition in recent years and last year's on-field success was a strong response to that, but walking around the ground on Sunday the gloom had never been as palpable. Nobody is talking the club up.

I talked to four or five fans who plan to give next week's match a miss, the Royal Suite was almost half as busy after the match than it was for the friendlies, there are no longer any teamsheets available – just A4 printouts taped to the wall with a QR code (not great for our older, less techy fans – which let's face it is most of us) – and while it was great to be back in the South Stand, the bar has been reduced to cans of John Smiths being doled out of boxes. Even when you take away what's happening on the field, it's hard to find reasons to stay positive.

The volunteers in the shop, turnstiles and those selling raffle tickets and working behind the scenes are true heroes at the club.

But fans need reasons to go to matches – my only two now are loyalty and blind hope, and I have to admit those are starting to dwindle. 

You just wonder where it's all heading.  Merger with Batley? New owner? Fan-owned community club with small ambitions (but ambitions nonetheless)? Or becoming the next club to be tossed into RL's dustbin of history?

Sorry for the rant, had to get it off my chest and I'll try and perk up soon.

A printed team sheet is always available before games, simply come to the office and collect one.. Countless people do, The QR codes are for tech savvy supporters, printed for the older generation fan

[Blind side johnny]

3 hours ago, coolie said:

A printed team sheet is always available before games, simply come to the office and collect one.. Countless people do, The QR codes are for tech savvy supporters, printed for the older generation fan

That's well and good for you posh lot in the North Stand but a bit of a traipse round for we rough-houses who use the South Stand.

As a moderately tech-savvy old gimmer I could cope with a team sheet on Twitter.

Edited February 9 by Blind side johnny

[coolie]

10 minutes ago, Blind side johnny said:

That's well and good for you posh lot in the North Stand but a bit of a traipse round for we rough-houses who use the South Stand.

As a moderately tech-savvy old gimmer I could cope with a team sheet on Twitter.

I'll ask Jordan if a sheet can be put on twitter (X) 

And that's not a kiss before you get any ideas of hanky panky young man

[Wakefield Ram]

1 hour ago, coolie said:

I'll ask Jordan if a sheet can be put on twitter (X) 

And that's not a kiss before you get any ideas of hanky panky young man

That's be a really good

[NickD]

6 hours ago, coolie said:

I'll ask Jordan if a sheet can be put on twitter (X) 

And that's not a kiss before you get any ideas of hanky panky young man

Team has frequently been on Twitter over the last year or so.  Usually pops up around 15-30 mins before KO.

[RugbyPowelly]

On 08/02/2024 at 14:04, Wakefield Ram said:

So what part of IMG strategy will generate new supporters? 

All SL games being shown live on Tv is a strategy. Kill or cure in my opinion.

It could raise the whole profile of the sport and bring in hundreds of thousands of new followers who would then perhaps also go to the games and enjoy the atmosphere etc. Or it could just stop people turning up in the stands and the sport fizzles away.

Australia proves rugby league is a sport where a country can completely back it and fully enjoy all aspects of it - bringing it to the mainstream. So god hope IMG works.

[coolie]

10 hours ago, NickD said:

Team has frequently been on Twitter over the last year or so.  Usually pops up around 15-30 mins before KO.

Jordan our media guy is really busy on match days

[Blind side johnny]

13 hours ago, NickD said:

Team has frequently been on Twitter over the last year or so.  Usually pops up around 15-30 mins before KO.

Only our team though Nick. I also like to know who "that number X" is for the other team as they run in their next try.

[Blind side johnny]

4 hours ago, RugbyPowelly said:

All SL games being shown live on Tv is a strategy. Kill or cure in my opinion.

It could raise the whole profile of the sport and bring in hundreds of thousands of new followers who would then perhaps also go to the games and enjoy the atmosphere etc. Or it could just stop people turning up in the stands and the sport fizzles away.

Australia proves rugby league is a sport where a country can completely back it and fully enjoy all aspects of it - bringing it to the mainstream. So god hope IMG works.

Australia is frequently cited as an example but, on examination is also quite deficient. Attendances for many of their games, particularly in Sydney, are quite poor and the real money-spinner is broadcasting, which attracts many more eyeballs. The Australian public don't flock to many games except the "big" ones that are fashionable to attend. There are many other attractions.

Aussie Rules draws much bigger crowds but is an entirely parochial sport (so far).

[RugbyPowelly]

36 minutes ago, Blind side johnny said:

Australia is frequently cited as an example but, on examination is also quite deficient. Attendances for many of their games, particularly in Sydney, are quite poor and the real money-spinner is broadcasting, which attracts many more eyeballs. The Australian public don't flock to many games except the "big" ones that are fashionable to attend. There are many other attractions.

Aussie Rules draws much bigger crowds but is an entirely parochial sport (so far).

It was declining but has been on the up especially since Covid times. It’s bigger than ever and take a slice from Rugby Union.
 

2023 recorded the highest total NRL attendances of all time.

[Crown Flatter]

12 hours ago, RugbyPowelly said:

All SL games being shown live on Tv is a strategy. Kill or cure in my opinion.

It could raise the whole profile of the sport and bring in hundreds of thousands of new followers who would then perhaps also go to the games and enjoy the atmosphere etc. Or it could just stop people turning up in the stands and the sport fizzles away.

Australia proves rugby league is a sport where a country can completely back it and fully enjoy all aspects of it - bringing it to the mainstream. So god hope IMG works.

Ah, but some games are on SkySports SL+, which I think is a (further) subscription streaming service.