Why is it the RFL's fault?

Clubs living beyond their means to try and appease fans who demand success. Where as we will soon have the Million Pound Game, the Fev V Bradford game could have been classed as the Belly Up Game. Whichever of those 2 teams lost that game was going to go pop.

It isn,t the Rugby Football Leagues fault, but they are the equivilent directors of the sport, if you don,t supervise the sport it goes bust.So they need to get a grip of these clubs and tell them to get their house in order or face a penalty

The clubs are limited companies, if they go bust then they will be "reborn", if nobody will reserect them they die.....was ever so.

Fax, in our present form, only exists as it was saved by Pierson, Posner. Steele, bucket collections and other BOD members who gave their money and time. With only half a million debt we look quite strong compared to some others....until it's our turn not to pay our bills again, which could be soon.

Our Next accounts made up to 30 November 2015 due to be sent to Companies House by 31 August 2016, so then we, not just the BOD will know our true position....unless they tell us first.

Hmm thats a sobering thought.How on earth are these clubs surviving on 150 crowds springs to mind ? Such as Gloucester,Hemel & South Wales

All club Directors are custodians of their respective clubs and as such should run them accordingly. More importantly to me the RFL Board are custodians of the actual game. I see no drive to protect the grass roots area of the game and indeed manipulation of the attendances to claim that they are on the increase within the game. In actual fact SL attendances, with certain clubs, are higher but the lower echelons of the game find themselves trying to survive on diminishing crowds.
Millions of £'s over the years have gone into expanding the game away from the heartlands but we still fail to grab national media's attention and sponsorship from the major companies.
Union, which is no where near as entertaining as league on the field, has huge success off it with clever marketing and investment in all levels of the game.
I would be very interested to see the 5 /10/15 year strategy plan from the RFL for the game and see where the grass roots are positioned in that.

The RFL have stepped in before to save Bradford Bulls - they only wnet out and bought Odsal for a tidy sum which for me was wrong, a governing body of a sport should never own a clubs ground, football would never do it and quite right.

You raise an interesting point, however now I have moved 300 miles away and help run Devon Sharks RL - there are different goals you have to hit first in so many ways.

For one, the RFL have been hugely supportive to us and we are building our grassroots through the schools. Actually taking the time to teach kids, "What is RL?" - we (Northern folk) take it for granted but it is (to some extent) a new sport.

We are creating a "product" through children and adults - selling that concept to sponsors (which is growing) - then the supporters are coming.

Very slow process but we are getting there.

Did they buy Odslum or did they they buy the current lease, how ever long that may be?

Tell the RFL that you get crowds of 75 and you sell french fries, not chips, and they'll throw brass at you! Seriously though, all the best in your venture.

At amateur level the sport is a shambles. No where near as many youngsters playing the sport and many clubs no longer exist. I really do fear for the future of the sport.

Well, really the RFL cannot win. If they let clubs do what they want, they're criticised for allowing clubs to go bust. If they set salary caps, folk moan why should clubs with "ambition " (ie a supporter with too much money) be prevented from spending what they want ?

The fact is, I have no real objection to folk donating money to sports clubs. Folk can spend their money as they wish. What I do object to is folk lending money to clubs - with an expectation of getting it back when the good times roll in. The good times never arrive. Get promoted and that's when your financial problems really start.

Just how it is, I'm afraid.

Games at amateur level get missed as groups of lads are on holiday or families are away, look at most clubs and I bet below 1st team level they hardly ever have the same team out weeks in a row.

Thats not a problem confined to RL.