YESTERDAY, Keighley Cougars presented quite an opposition to IMG’s plans to ‘re-imagine’ Super League, the Championship and League One.
A dossier was handed out to each representative club as well as the media, emblazoned with the title: “Retain Promotion and Relegation in Rugby League.”
Owners Mick O’Neill and Kaue Garcia came out of the meeting with IMG “dispirited” at the attempts to bring a Grade A, B and C licensing system into the sport.
“I feel it’s worse than I expected,” owner Ryan O’Neill said.
“You’ve got to have a PHD in astrophysics to understand the grading system they’ve put in place.
“It’s not sport. It’s so technical that it’s going to turn the fans away in droves.
“What you are creating is an elite cartel, it’s elitist and they are protecting the few. They want to get to 12 Category A’s and once they get there, that’s it.
Managing Director of RL Commercial, Rhodri Jones, however, has responded to Keighley’s strong views.
“Everyone is entitled to their view so I’m not going to say they aren’t allowed to have their own view,” Jones said.
“They’ve come with an already-presented view without actually understanding and listening what we had to say. It was already fait accompli on what their position would be.
“From our perspective, we are not saying there isn’t movement between leagues but we have to avoid that six of the last seven promotions have all gone back to the Championship.
“What this grading process will do will still reflect on-field performances but you will have to be good or very good in other areas that provide a sporting entertainment landscape.
“They are entitled to their opinion and we now have six weeks of consultation with all the clubs.”
Jones believes that these proposals from IMG are a way of changing the sport for the better.
“We will undoubtedly talk to Keighley through that process and make sure they understand the criteria. Ultimately we get to April 19 and they are entitled to their view, but hopefully it won’t derail the positivity.
“We could carry on promotion and relegation and still end up in the same result in three years time.
“This is our attempt to do something differently without taking away the totality of the on-field element but we have to be better all round.”
