Quote: wrencat1873 "League 1 is a graveyard for RL clubs.
For those that were dropped form the championship a few seasons back its been an absolute disaster.
There does need to be a gateway for new clubs but the likes of Hemel, Coventry, Oxford ans the Ironmen are not ready for that level and the effect that dropping down to such a level for clubs like Whitehaven, Barrow, York etc is shocking.
By trying to increase competitiveness in the Championship, we have all but cast certain clubs into the wilderness.'"
So now the next step is to increase competitiveness in League 1. It's not going to happen instantly. At this level, some clubs will be duds because they have no where to go when they fail and no where to build from to prepare. They come in cold.
The likes of Gloucestershire, London Skolars and Crusaders are proving competitive and are bringing through their own players.
Coventry have a solid base and good crowds for their level. With some investment, they could really take off.
Oxford have shown some glimpses, but don't have the foundations of the others yet.
South Wales have had a nomadic existence and no one has been able to get behind them because of this. Of financial issue to the next. Hopefully now that they have a proper base (having been taken over by an established club stepping up rather than being a new club trying to make it big) they'll be able to kick on.
Hemel have been a huge let down. They're one of the clubs I thought would kick on at this level but they chairman then made a ridiculous decision to basically turn the club into Dewsbury B team and base them up north. They took the club from the community and are now just a fixture filler.
If we want clubs to step up, they've got to be given the chance to. And they've got to be given the time to.