THE promotion and relegation question from the Championship into Super League is not dead and buried.
That’s according to Featherstone Rovers chief executive Martin Vickers, who has revealed that although a proposal put forward by Batley Bulldogs and Dewsbury Rams to alter the current IMG system was rejected by clubs at an RL Council last week, the debate has not ended.
The motion, put forward by Kevin Nicholas (Batley) and Mark Sawyer (Dewsbury), proposed: “that IMG Grading is amended such that if the winner of the Championship Grand Final is a Grade B club it shall be promoted to Super League either to replace the lowest ranked Grade B club in Super League or as an additional club if all clubs in Super League are Grade A.”
The current system is that the top 12 graded clubs will make up Super League in 2026, regardless of their finishing positions in 2025.
14 clubs voted in favour, with 16 against and ten abstentions, meaning the current IMG structure for 2025 remains.
However, Vickers believes that more talks will come as a result.
“There were some anomalies in there. You could have a Grade B team playing in the play-offs as the lower team that would get relegated. It wasn’t clear cut and we could play devil’s advocate,” Vickers told the Featherstone website.
“It was probably the best debate I’ve participated in a RL Council for several years. I felt that, although it was reported that it failed, my take on it was that the debate will prompt more dialogue and discussion.
“Many clubs, including top clubs, are worried about the integrity of the sport without promotion and relegation and we are trying to find the right balance.
“There was a real commitment from the RL Board that this matter hasn’t gone away and that there would be a return to it with different options.
“There is still a door there with clubs investing in infrastructure and matchday experience as well as not losing the spirit of the game with promotion and relegation.
“There is still a debate about how many teams should be in the top league and how it will sit amongst a standards-led structure.”
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