Bradford Bulls coach James Lowes thinks that the first Summer Bash this weekend should be the last, and has called for it to be scrapped.
Lowes believes that with Rugby League’s long and extensive history of taking games on the road “neglecting what what’s on our doorstep”, the events such as Summer Bash and Magic Weekend are not needed.
He told the Telegraph and Argus that the concept has lost its “value and worth”, and says that the money would be better spent on investing in what we already have.
“I think so because I don’t think there is a need for it,” he told the T&A.
“We’ve had games on the road since Super League started and we’ve been all over trying to promote the game – but I think sometimes we neglect what’s on our doorstep.
“At Bradford we played a game at Edinburgh in 1998 and the amount of extra fans we picked up from that game was zero.
“Let’s use the money that it’s costing to go to Blackpool and invest it in the week-to-week games.
“All we are doing is taking our fans to Blackpool or Cardiff. Let’s help clubs develop their local game and improve the marketing side.
“Cardiff was a nice stadium and we were trying to promote the game in South Wales – but we’re not trying to promote the game in Blackpool because we’re already up here.
“I think the concept has lost its value and its worth.”
