I think what winds people up is that the RFL seem to intervene at the Home Office to get work permits for some clubs and not others.

But how on earth can you afford them when you only get a few hundred at your games???
Are they full time at your club? Otherwise what do they do all week???
Your support compares with Doncaster and look at them, I smell something,?

I'd hazard a guess that they do community development work

Exactly, the sad thing is we get slated for telling the truth and painted as dinosaurs.
Hey I know that the clubs outside the 'heartlands' need an allowance so they can get any RL players but how do they manage to get all these Aussies whether they are EU passport holders or not when other clubs can't???

Oh they do do they , so thats how you do it

I'd guess the N,East are similar to South Wales , ie there will be considerable RFL central funding for community development officers

These conspiracy theories make great reading, we get the additional quota and nothing else - everybody has their views on the rights and wrongs of this, so not really worth going over old ground.

I fully respect that everybody has an opinion, but if you are going to enter the debate at least get your facts right.

As has been stated, a lot of the Aussies are on EU passports and these players are available to all to sign - we just happened to get in first - there is nothing to stop any other club doing the same.

We have also suffered with the UKBA rules - we have been blocked from signing 3 players who played in this country last year (two for us and one at Skolars) - no bending of the criteria.

The cost of these players is also often misunderstood - quite simply, it is cheaper and easier to get overseas players to base themselves in the North East, than it is to get UK players to uproot homes and jobs.

Since receiving the additional quota, Thunder have always made enquiries about UK based players, but some of the figures they ask for are ridiculous.

We had the same quota earlier in the season when you stuck 70 on us and nobody said a word.

Unless people can back up their conspiracy claims - the claims have no credence.

It is a shame that a great game yesterday is ignored because losing fans can not take defeat at the hands of "the likes of Gateshead".

Gateshead fans will continue to hold their heads up at every game and wish fans of opposition clubs the best for the future in the greatest game - even if that clearly not reciprocated.

Therin lies the problem , much easier to get Aussies on a holiday for a few months who can be employed cheaply quite often on community work than getting people to give up hard to find real jobs and then start again up in the North East

other clubs can. Fax and Fev can sign as many aussies on Kolpak ruling as they like. So long as they have a current Eu passport, they qualify to play in this country. Fax, should they wish and finances available, can have 17 Aussies playing for them next sunday!

The fact that this is not the norm in the championship would suggest that they'd come at a premium.