Gloucester were developing nicely. Never did dual reg with anyone. Then binned off. Complete wasted all that effort of spreading the game there.

It'll be interesting to see if IMG decide to pull up the drawbridge so that the SL clubs can have more money.

I'm not against a re-structure but I don't like the idea of binning clubs arbitrarily. If they did it now it would be curtains for Widnes, Newcastle, London, Whitehaven, Dewsbury and Workington along with the whole of League 1. That's madness.

Anyway, if we're going to have to get into the top 8 next year we're going to need a top coach. We can't afford to take a punt on another McBanana type gamble if next year is make or break.

I still feel like the game started it’s slide when SL went from 14 to 12. I’m biased about Bradford, obviously but dropping 2x large city clubs at the same time seemed mad from a marketing & tv rights point of view. But there we go, 12 becomes 2x 10

I agree completely. Its back to the self-fulfilling prophecy that people claim there aren't enough top level players to go around X number of clubs. When you then reduce the number you cause the loss of pathways, shrink the wider appeal of the game, decrease the reach etc.

There not gonna do that , they’ll just recruit players from Bradfords academy and siddal to the places you mentioned and call it expansion .

It is baffling to think some people, actually high ranking officials in the game, can think that by binning off clubs we can somehow expand the game and make it stronger.

Utter madness. How can we discourage anyone from picking up a ball and playing the game.

SL1 will be reduced by 2 teams and SL2 will just be a rebranded championship. Everyone else cast into the cold to become amateur outfits?

As a forum idea its bonkers, never mind the fact its probably a reality

Bringing in external consultants, partners, whatever you want to call them is an admission of failure and should bring immediate resignation from the top strata of the RFL.

Rather than fixate over structure, and tell us that were we to have a league of French teams, cool middle class progressives would start watching the game, they need to find out why wealthy individuals are not prepared to invest in traditional rugby league clubs. Non league, lower division football attracts wealthy owners, similarly national hunt horse racing in the north. The stock car people clearly had more resources than the Bulls. You simply cannot give away rugby league clubs as Hudgell and I think Pearson have found out.

What is the structural reason, apparent across the whole game that turns wealthy individuals off? Is it the salary cap which stops a wealthy individual genuinely taking a mid level team to the point of deposing Saints? Or, in our case, a bizarre series of events which culminated in potential investors revealing that they had been turned away while the club was handed to a penniless man from New Zealand?

A good Giants team with an English coach took less than 2k to a CC final little more than 12 miles away. It's a death spiral.

I'll be controversial...

It's the same reason masses of people vote Tory. Most of the media is aimed that endeavour and it starts with making it aspirational 'ah you are one of us not one of them!'.

The number of folk at work who blindly follow Union because of a sponsorship deal is astronomical and when you tell them you don't watch it you watch League the 'Oh flat caps and whippets brigade' comes flying out of their mouth, regardless of the fact they've come from bloody Bradford!!!

Maybe over reacting but it's in most peoples psyche at the minute. No-ones happy with what they have and are constantly striving to make themselves look better than they are and League, I'm afraid, is working class, grimy and something quaint to laugh at...

I hope Nige and Co identified that John Kear wasn't the man to get us top 20, so have parted ways to give us time to bring in a new SL quality coach with time to do a 95 style Smith and Elliot rebuild.
while holding funding back this year in order to do so..
Imagine Professional Rugby League in Bradford coming to an end... wowsers.

An excellent analogy. People vote Tory because on the surface they appear to hate them marginally less than the modern Labour Party. Similarly British rugby league has so internalised whatever prejudice exists ( I suggest outright disinterest) and are so acutely embarrassed by itself and us (it's fanbase) it has brought in French teams from a moribund league to make it more palatable to people who historically loathe us. It actually means it's not about the game at all. It's pathetic and offensive in equal measure.

very silent on the new coach front, think they are leaving Dunning in Charge and see if anyone notices / cares anymore?

Someone at the game on Sunday mentioned to me that they heard from within the club It's Dunning for the rest of this season with Noble supporting.
They also said 99% sure it's Tony Smith next year(can't see it but we can hope)

Tony Smith would be a dream if he is given the resources he requires.
and The club changes its whole culture from top to bottom accordingly.

If I was them I would hurry up and announce something as it feels like the Bulls are on the way down the pan at the moment and the support is dying off quickly.

Indeed.

I did have a sinking feeling we would stick with Dunning at least until the end of the season and limp along under the excuse that most teams are ‘also rans’ this year. Fev and leigh still strengthening their squads only hammers that home.

However most teams are still putting up decent performances and trying to play rugby whereas we really seem to have grounded to a halt and it’s really hurting what’s left of the fan base.

If the plan really is to limp along with Dunning and get in Tony Smith for next year (unlikely IMO but I hope it’s true) then they really do need to announce it as soon as the deal is done or there might not be anything left for anyone to pick up next year

If my dream of Tony Smith becoming head coach becomes a reality I expect full credit for picking him as the appointment early doors!!

Sadly I don't expect we have the budget to attract somebody like Tony who can really start rebuilding the club with a little bit of finance. I read somewhere that we are still the best supported club in the Championship, well I expect that will also be a thing of the past before too long unless the club can produce something for people to believe in.