Were you drunk when you wrote this ?

I agree which is partly why I suspect it will require some determined and obsessed rugby league fans from the likes of Cas and Wakey going elsewhere and taking the game to kids in pe lessons and having them play. Kids are impressionable and do what they see. If people can infiltrate schools or youth clubs and introduce kids to it and get them playing young it will rub off.

It isn't the same but I taught in two French schools and kept banging on to students about my favourite bands, one of whom had never been there or had any CDs in any shops available to by.

My passion (and lending CDs to them to "get them into it"icon_wink.gif meant that about 12 or 15 of them liked these bands by the end. I appreciate lending a cd is a lot more practical than having kids playing RL but I do think the passion if the "teacher" is a massive influence.

I have wanted to get involved in learning to play RL but have only picked a ball up a few times following a rogue supply teacher who made us play in pe at school. I live in Leeds city centre and have not had much joy so far. After the world cup I was getting emails about "touch rugby" being "set up near you" and initially it listed the Leeds Rhinos foundation in Headingley as a place to go but that never got started so I think there is a league around Seacroft way or I go to Wakey or Bradford. Which seems daft when Leeds is best positioned to teach people and develop a league.

As I say I think passion at low level and influencing kids with yours is probably the way it will happen. It is just a slow process and in the lap of the gods!

Nobody is going to like to read this but you are correct in your assertions that you need to be introducing Primary School children into tag rugby and I hope you find the support you need within the RL community.

However the bare truth is that if you wanted to do the same for kids playing RU, and at tag level it is no different at all to RL, then you would easily find the support from centrally funded local RU clubs either at the club itself or (as in the case at my daughters Primary school some years ago) via a funded supply sports teacher for one lesson a week.

There may well be a similar provision made by the RFL and I hope if there is then someone will point you in the right direction but if you want to be involved in junior tag rugby (and you don't need to have played the game) then you will be made most welcome at most amateur clubs of either code.

Ovenden 46 - 46 Oldham St Annes

The above result is from last Saturday . I am guessing it was a rather exciting game to watch .
92 points scored in one game and resulting in a draw has to be entertaining .


Am now sat waiting for the inevitable ... Both teams to be accused of having great attack and terrible defence .


EDIT : Just out of curiosity would you have rather watched : Oulton Raiders 78 - 0 Saddleworth Rangers ?

It's impossible to overestimate the effort and scale of the RU's direct involvement in the mini and junior game. The set up, the funding, the number of volunteers, the opportunities to play, the access to quality coaching is all on the money. It's a cheap sport as we'll for kids. We charge 35 quid a season, we have free second hand kit for those that need it and the club pays for all festival entries.

Just as an aside. The scooper dooper rugby union premiership in the last three seasons, the same three clubs have being in the top four each season.

By contrast in Super League, only Warrington have being in the top four for all of last three seasons.

If we have a problem, what does Union have at club level?

The difference is club level RU is the sideshow, club level RL is the shop window - simple really

The Heineken Cup, in England a 4.25 million salary cap, countrywide professional game, a junior club in practically very town, development officers and RFU coaches in every district of England, a thriving junior game (Rosslyn Park played us this year and they have 100 kids to pick from just in their under 11's). They also have a top 4 playoff rather than an embarrassing top 8 system and last year Quins pulled in 82,000 spectators to a league game with London Irish at Twickenham.

That's just off the top of my head.

West Park Bramhope (although they don't call themselves that now).

No further evidence needed as to the development investment made into their game from 8 years old upwards, there isn't anything comparable in RL, nothing.

Yep. It's the same in York. There are more kids playing at York RUFC than there are at Heworth, Acorn & New Earswick combined.
And that's without adding the schools in. The majority of whom play Union and not League.
I've said it before on here, but around 6 of my school mates make at least 1 trip to Twickers per year to watch England RU. Only 1 of them was interested in Union due to parents, the rest were introduced to it at school and then played on and off for York RUFC for a bit. But that interest was generated, so they go to Twickers and put money into the game.

If they'd been introduced to League at school, and the local amateurs were as friendly and welcoming as York RUFC are (which sadly a lot of them aren't) then they'd be interested in League and not Union.

Yeah we've probably not missed out on another Sam Burgess but we've missed out on a decent amount of money and lots of word of mouth publicity.

Don't get me started on the over 16's side of it. There's no comparison. York RUFC have 3 full adults teams and a Seniors team. Plus a full u19's and u17's.

Most RL clubs are struggling to find a 2nd team let alone 3rd, 4th and u19's.

Amateur RL & schools RL is an entry point to the sport for people and it's failing. Schools because they're not getting into enough schools, and amateur because it turns people away from the sport.

So what you are saying is that despite a predictable league, the same teams at the top each year, and a product that produces no excitement, there is still a lot of interest and crowds unaffected.

So what's the point of this thread again? A lot of nonsense from the doomsayers. League has nothing to worry about.

Swings n round abouts. Castleford knottingley and pontefract union clubs don't have much junior rugby if any at all. Fev don't have a union club at all. But league at junior level in Those towns is huge. In north Leeds there are a few union clubs but nothing in South, east, west Leeds or Wakefield and dewsbury at any age group.

Couldn't say about the other areas but i know West Leeds has a union club and its quite established.

Apart from burley which can't think of any other union teams. League has stanningley, Milford, queens