One current Championship club is guaranteed a place in the 14 team SL (2012-2015) providing they tick all the relevant boxes.

The interesting thing that came out of the red button forum on the BBC yesterday was that that would still be the case even if all the current SL clubs can also tick all the boxes at the time of their assessment. A Championship team (should there be a suitable candidate) will be informed in March 2011 (I think they said) and the remaining 13 franchises allocated some months after. The team deemed the 14th best of the current SL will be the one to go in that scenario regardless.

Don't see how that can happen if all the right boxes are ticked.
I thought the idea of the franchise system was to tick all the right boxes?????

Do away with the Welsh folly.

That is what was said yesterday by John Ledger on behalf of the RFL.

1) SL is fixed for the next round of franchises at 14.
2) A suitable Championship side (if there is one) will be promoted.
3) An existing SL club will have to make way in that scenario.
4) That club will be the 14th best of the current SL even if they all make the criteria.

Of course the RFL are highly likely to have a safety net of multiple clubs struggling to meet their stadia deadlines having been warned of consequences in 2008, 2009 and 2010.

I agree re-stadia criteria but i don't get how a club could effectively meet all criteria set out and still lose a place the work and money invested to meet the criteria would mean f#ok all and be worthless!

is it possibole for various SL teams to be dropped? therefore going back to say a 12 team league for example?

at least 1 team will be dropped but SL will stay at 14 teams. Personally I think they should expand to 16 teams and a 30 game season, and include Widnes & Halifax in the new season, drop Trinity and bring Barrow in.

About time someone smelled the coffee, well said

the merger idea is the refuge of the feeble minded and will happen 1 week after you merge with bradford.
I have stated before , I would sooner watch Cas in the Yorkshire league than lose the club to a stupid idea such as the M word, and a few Wakey supporters I have spoken to feel the same about trinity.

Would you sooner have a home game against Cas, with all the rivalry that comes with it, or another meaningless fixture against Toulouse with no away supporters to take the out of, and get a bit back now and again.
Having rival supporters at the game is the essence of sport and makes the experience more enjoyable, It appears to me that the RFL dont want that rivalry but would prefer empty stadia as last week with the gallant 1122 at the crusaders game.
They are killing this sport

Look, I am not doing this with you again on this board as well as the Wakey one. You know that, as I live in Stanley, I have been actively supporting the Newmarket Development and debunking some of the NIMBY rubbish, to be fair I fully support the Glasshoughton one but don't I live near that one, but my professional opinion and gut feeling is telling me that Newmarket is looking like it will get moving before the end of this year. The Cas development might have outline and RW might have appointed an Architects practise to work on a detailed planning application BUT there are some significant hurdles in the way of the Cas new ground development, the least of which is not having a large part of the money!

I think Newmarket will get outline planning in September, and despite the NIMBY's trying to convince people otherwise I also think that the likelihood of it getting called in are getting slimmer and slimmer and that will be that, the NIMBY's might launch an appeal but in the meantime Yorkcourt can start the enabling works and when they lose the appeal a detailed application will be submitted immediately (it also having been prepared during the appeal) and Wakefield (well the community trust) can wave a signed contract in the RFL's face and possibly even show them the new road and foundations being put down for the actual stadium by them!

I might be wrong, it happens, but not that often!

I am not putting Cas down, they are trying their best but I can't help feeling they are fighting the clock a little more than Wakey but both their current positions are dodgy!

Sorry meant to add, you are placing too much emphasis on the Newmarket development only going for outline planning. Outline planning on a large development like this one is the key, the detailed is (and I over simplify a little) all about deciding on final layouts, fire escapes, disabled toilets, landscaping and what colour the cladding is going to be! Also, on a development of this size they will be many detailed applications probably one for each of the new units as, and when Yorkcourt find people willing to buy/lease the proposed units, exactly as happened at Glasshoughton over the last 5+ years.

When you have outlining planning to build a new stadium and lots of industrial units over a 10 year period, detailed planning applications for each 'bit' of the development is something you have to get and will get as and when required.

I think if you recap I have always wished Wakey well with their stadium (apart from falling into the odd tit for tat with a few of their less bright posters),

I only asked about the outline because some on the wakey board are saying that both can be applied for at the same time, I think they are wrong and have to go in seperately.

How can a council ignore the green belt issues, or is that part of the phased development that will be reclassified in 2 years and is not the stadium footprint ?

TBH I am ed off with the whole matter of trying to stay in this bent league and for clubs like mine and Wakey the championship offers more chance of siverware than staying as filler in superleague, I actually enjoyed the championship the last times we were in, it seems that there are more genuine Rugby League supporters there than in the s/l.

In fact i go to Hunslet whenever I can for the craic and the footys not too bad either.

My initial post asked , how long the existing traditional clubs can go on, having 3 or four games a season without the revenue from visiting fans , and used the fact that cas take 2000+ to headingly, at £20 a ticket = £40000 + beer and food sales that will be lost for 20 or thirty frenchmen if they are lucky, this applies also if Wakey get the bullet


The RFL are killing this game

I understand the operational rules were amended in Jan of this year to also include 'any team the RFL board invites to apply', as well as the standard criteria.

Hence the Toulouse talk ...

Thanks for that.

Earning the right to apply through on field performance is still for me quite important. I have little confidence in any club's ability to compete in SL who haven't first been competitive in the Championship and the thought of losing decent SL sides to accommodate such a team in the process I'd find galling.