Quote: bramleyrhino "You could so easily apply this criticism to those who believe that we can address the game's challenges by "focusing on the heartlands".
My fear is that unless something happens to inject finance into the sport, the sport is going to find it harder and harder to deliver what you and I think most supporters want - an entertaining, competitive sport played to a high standard. In order to do that, the game needs the funds to address issues such as grass roots development, the real-terms cut in the salary cap that we've seen over the last 20 years, and the ability to develop, retain and attract players.
But from your posts on this issue, you don't seem comfortable with that injection of finance coming from trying to court commercial partners (it will make the sport sterile), you appear to think that the opportunity cost of exploring opportunities overseas is too great (and despite your "dreamers" swipe, I haven't seen any pro-expansion comment that doesn't ackowledge the risks), and your view is simply that we should focus on the heartlands even though there is enough evidence already to suggest that the heartlands aren't exactly fertile soil for new supporters, new players and new sources of funding.
The last few years we have seen a trend of games becoming less competitive (the average winning margin has increased for each of the last three years, and the number of games won by a margin or one score less has decreased in the same period) and, whilst the standard and entertainment value is subjective, I'd argue that those have fallen. In other words, you aren't getting what you want to see but at the same time, you're coming across as resistant to any change in the sport despite the fact that every other sport around us has changed to reflect changes in the modern sports environment.
I don't believe that Toronto and North America are the panacea to these problems, but I think that they're the best option at this point in time. The heartlands clubs, with very few exceptions, have demonstrated that they aren't capable of taking the sport forward.'"
The problem is, that it shouldn't be about heartlands versus expansion, it should be both together. How they can work and move the sport onwards side by side. Progressing the sport. There are people on here who think it should be Toronto or Wakefield for example,When what it really should be is Toronto AND Wakefield.
Your right, the finances into the sport need to be improved. And as much as clubs are to be blamed for just hoping rather than promoting. The RFL can also be blamed, for a lack of a media push, a lack of getting the sport out there. The Eddie stobart deal so devalued the sport. They set it back years. In my opinion (and I know other won't agree), the franchise system did nothing to help. A league were nothing happens doesn't push a sport forward. The consent arguing for who gets the money, makes the sport seem petty. We don't do enough to make the sport come across in a good light. And until there's a proper international calender we will be seen as a small club sport. Which makes the whole sport harder to market.
We're always going to struggle to retain players. We all know that the Nrl is the best league, so of course we're always going to lose players to there. If you want to be the best, you have to play the best. And the fact that RU has such an international calender, means that players who want more than just a small club game, are going to go there.
Your totally right about the grass roots. The lack of funding and help we give them compared to say football is disgusting. But we also need to give young players a clear route to success. And that to me is academy, reserves 1st team. Who wants to play for 4 clubs on DR, or play in a sport were you might not get a game for weeks on end. To bring the best you have to show them how they're going to succeed and become one of your best.
You could argue that the standards aren't falling, but the players are getting better. But to me the games becoming boring. More sides are going for the 5 drives and a kick approach. Trying to win/milk penalties to move them down the pitch. Scoring off kicks, rather than spontaneous play. This isn't helped by coache's constantly going on about completing sets, doing the basics etc. If the product on the pitch isn't great, crowds aren't going to come flocking in. And long term fans get bored and choose there games to go to.
Plus the changes in society don't help our sport. The fact that there's so much football, and things to do without leaving the house. So little money avaliable to the average person, less time to relax. We're a working class sport predominantly and if they can't come there's no one to fill that void. Add in the money and Domination of football, the age group going to RL gets older. And we're doing very little to attract a younger denigration to the sport.
And if crowds don't come flocking in, then advertising and sponsorship falls. What the answer is I don't know, but something needs to be done.
HOW MANY TIMES?????
£20 a ticket and £15 on beer and merchandise.....so an away fan is worth £35. At best, 1,000 is the average away support split across 11 rounds and I am being really generous here, so Toronto, replacing say Wakefield will cost a SL club £35,000.
The minimum turnover of a SL club is £4,000,000 so Toronto instead of Widnes is worth less than 1% of a SL clubs turnover.
There are many valid reasons for and against expansion into America, but "AWAY FANS" isn't one of them. 
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