Something else to go on Nigel's CV.

At least the money is staying in RL. I guess Sport England are effectively saying that the RFL have failed so they are going to run alternative programmes.

In which case, we'll look forward to announcements in the near future from Sport England about exactly what they are doing with this money.

The report on Sky sports says that Rugby league has lost over half a million pounds worth of funding earmarked for community projects designed to tempt new players and staff to the sport.

Yeah it's the Whole Sport Plan money that's been docked, the money for growing the game at community level, employing development officers, growing schools competitions and so on.

The RFL were awarded £17m in March 2013 for their Whole Sport Plan, this is the half-way stage of the 4-year process. RL was awarded £30m for 2009-20013, which was chopped in 2011 for poor performance at the half-way stage of that process. It was then reduced to £17m for 2013, and has now been docked again for underperformance against targets. There's a pattern here.

I'm very interested to see what Sport England propose to do; I expect it will be nothing and it's just carefully-worded press release language to avoid a backlash from fans, volunteers, coaches and so on of the sports in question. The obvious response being 'how can you grow a sport when the funding is continually pulled?'

Sport England will also only recognise one national governing body per sport as the lead administrative body, so they have no alternatives in the market to go to if the RFL aren't delivering. All they can do is penalise the one NGB for being rubbish, and give them less money to be even more rubbish.

Let's hope we do but wouldn't hold your breath.

Basically a vote of no confidence in the development being undertaken by the RFL, and giving the power and money to the clubs to invest in their own communitiesWorking alongside the RFL, the projects will be delivered by Super League or larger professional club foundations which can demonstrate a good track record of grassroots delivery.

Discussions with the clubs will start immediately.

I'm more interested in the announcement from the RFL as to why Sport England has taken this action against them, and what they are going to do improve the situation in future.

I think they need to tell us where the money is going simply to reassure us fans if nothing else, that the money is still gonna go to worthwhile projects.

Some of us mentioned this a couple of years ago that the RFL model for the grass roots and community was on a downward spiral and sports funding could drop every valuated year. I think it was a couple of weeks ago in a sports development programme they came up with a stat that there will be more FEMALE Rugby Union Participants than there is Male Rugby League in a couple of years.

When we lost the funding from SE a few years back the RFL saw fit to cut all the Development officers yet still gave the Directors a wage rise. No suprise then that participation targets have now been missed again and more funding lost.

Brewery's and drunken party's springs to mind

I didnt realise that Alastair Campbell was working at Red Hall now: "The RFL has welcomed the news that Rugby League will continue to receive the agreed levels of central Government funding for projects designed to increase participation across the sport." www.therfl.co.uk/news/article/31 ... rt-england

I didnt realise that Alastair Campbell was working at Red Hall now: "The RFL has welcomed the news that Rugby League will continue to receive the agreed levels of central Government funding for projects designed to increase participation across the sport." www.therfl.co.uk/news/article/31 ... rt-england

since Richard Lewis secured a record sum from sport England, it has been cut at pretty much every opportunity. That response from Ralph Rimmer is embarrassing.

Sport England have basically told the RFL that they can't be trusted to spend that money well so they have had to take it from them and give it to someone who wont waste it. The brass neck required for the top of the RFL to stay in their jobs after such a clear vote of no confidence is pretty bad, for them to try and spin it as a positive is unbelievably delusional.

is there a part of the RFL's remit where we can look at it and say yes, here they are doing a good job?

Anyone need a 2nd rate aussie? Cheap at twice the price of development funds to help the game.

The worst aspect is that it isn't April 1st!