Quote: Frank Whitcombe "I wasn't having a pop at the Crusaders persay or the people trying hard to run the club on thin air! I guess I was really having a go at this obsessive need the RFL have to 'expand' the game!
After so many failed attempts why don't we just admit defeat and concentrate on the core geographical area of the game, notably Yorkshire, Lancashire, and Cumbria (who really do deserve a team in the big league), where the game is loved, understood, and part of life!
We could drop a team into Fleet Street and we still wouldn't get anymore column inches, so who cares?
I never thought I'd agree with the parochial views enjoyed by a lot of our West Yorkshire cousins, but it's time to bring this folly to an end and develop a strong regional sport giving opportunities to local lads to play a game that's in there blood, no other 'minority' sport shares this obsession or arrogance (this game is great we're going to impose it on you, and you'll bloody well like it) that Rugby League does!
As I said what is the point of the Crusaders or Quins?'"
Your mad if you think that the game can stay successful whilst remaining static, the entire argument seems to be hinged on the idea that other sports will just leave us alone and not infringe on our territory. Were not living in the 1950's, Union are spending serious money trying to convince people in the North that it is the superior code and that it's the one that northerners should watch and play. In April Sale will be playing London Irish at the Reebok in front of what is likely to be a 20,000 plus crowd. Fair enough it's a one off but there are signs that they are starting to succeed, Rugby Union players are getting tonnes of coverage in the national papers, it's apparently having an effect on our best young players because some of them are opting to switch codes before they even reach their peak in Rugby League (Eastmond, Ashton). Were in serious danger of becoming 'that regional sport whose best players switch to Rugby Union when they are 21 if they can make the grade".
As for other minority sports expanding, the AFL are making serious efforts to expand into traditional League territory in Australia, because they think they have a good product that people will want to watch. But never-mind, we should just know our place and stick to Yorkshire and Lancashire, how arrogant of us to think that people outside of this geographic region might enjoy watching our sport. As someone else suggested, we should play all the games underground in a coal mine just in case anybody accidentally sees it and enjoys watching it.
As for Quins and Crusaders, it's already been stated by an RFL official that 'without London, I don't think we'd have Sky'. Crusaders actually had an average attendance of over 5,000 last year minus the two Neath games. I'm concerned about their owners, but I think the interest is there in Wrexham.
