Two solutions:

1. Whitehaven and Workington amalgamate as Cumbria and share fixtures between their grounds

2. Barrow make progress

Regarding transport links; has there ever been any discussion of a bridge/tunnel linking Morecambe and Barrow or are we more likely to see hover cars first?

My view is theres a big enough population and lack of competition for attention for a Copeland SL franchise. A cumbria club that tries to also draw support from barrow and carlisle is a non starter. It would be great if it ever happened but seems unlikely sadly.

yeah, great idea so why not put a team from the Bradford area in SL ?

oh, ehhrr .... wait a minute !

Barrow were certainly looking like the strongest of the teams/clubs up until recently and logistically its now easily the easier of the three areas to get to from the rest of the RL clubs in the north. Spreading the fixtures out between the clubs might work but its down to all the stadia being improved and the transport links greatly improved as well.

Sadly, the chance of a Morcambe bay bridge is nill given the state of the UK finances at present and for the foreseable future.

And your point is??????????



Bradfords problems are nothing at all to do with the discussion of a SL club in Cumbria.

my point is very clear

Bradford IS in a so called RL heartland,with good transport links and a large population within it's catchment area to attract the fans and make a very viable business - all the ingredients are there

if THEY can't make a go of it what chance has a Cumbria based club have FFS ?

there's not one heartland really, its 2 seperated by nearly 50 miles and a long road journey - i could get from hull to leeds quicker for example, until the duddon channel is bridged, ulverston and barrow will be too far from whitehaven and workington to be viable. you would almost have to build a stadium halfway, in sellafield, or at the foot of hardknott pass

plus in my lifetime i can never remember any of these teams posting consistent crowds in excess of 4000, so i can't believe they will now

Good post and very true and in line with what i Posted earlier. Unless transport logistics are improved in the West Cumbrian Coastal area its a complete non starter.

Between the three clubs Barrow have the best chance of making it on their own because it has the biggest population to draw on support, but I sadly can't see a club from Cumbria in SL any time soon.

It frustrates me to see such a heartland of rugby league going to waste, with support dwindling. Just a few years ago Whitehaven were drawing 2,000 - 4,000 every game but now struggle to muster 1,000 for even the Cumbrian derbies. The problem is that the clubs are so stubborn in their hatred of each other, Haven, Workington, Barrow etc. could never join up to form one club because there is rivalry between the towns. It's frustrating that Barrow don't have a reasonably sized stadium because they are still drawing crowds of around 1,500 despite being in Championship 1 and the recent 'problems' with the running of the club. Remember they applied for a license not so long ago and drew about 5,000 I think? vs Wigan in the Challenge Cup. They would easily get that every week if they were in SL.