Not happy with that score for Cas Tigers . Thought we would get a 2.

oh dear.

Surely the measure of a good academy should be the number of players that go on to play regular SL rugby, not whether the "students" are happy.
Results are everything.
Its like judging a good university by the colour of the walls and number of desks that they have, rather than the grades that are achieved.
Of course a happy environment helps but some of the modern measures are not from the real world !

Couldn't agree less.

Welfare of these young lads counts for so much. An academy is about teaching these guys not only on the field, but in off the field behavior and helping them make the right decisions for their career.

Ok then let me ask you this question. If you were to choose only one, which one would it be?

1. Have a good youth setup which looks after the kids but languish in the bottom of SL
2. Have a successful first team, with a poor to average youth setup

Not all teams can have what the likes of Leeds and Wigan have. They have many income streams which allow for both which aren't available to all clubs.

if you have 1, you will earn 2.

Its no coincidence that the clubs with the best youth development are the most successful

And vice versa.

Chicken. Egg. Money.

The two shouldn't be mutually exclusive.

Struggling to see how Wakefield have earned the same score as Castleford.

That is not necessarily the case. If you are languishing in the bottom of SL, any decent player you try and bring through will be tempted by the big bucks and success of a top team. Rovers and Cas have seen this happen to them recently. In theory it would work but SL isn't theory is it? The only way it will work is if you have the money to invest in your youth structures as well as money to keep you competitive and challenging for honours until the youth structures bare fruit.

Which players from HKR or Cas are now real game changers, real difference makers at a big club? Which players have come through the youth development structures at HKR or Cas and are now in the top 5/6/7 players at a big club? Which players have they lost who would take them from where they are now, to the next level?

Its silly to say that HKR and Cas are losing these players, they just aren’t producing them. Those two clubs keep all of their products, they aren’t putting together a squad challenging for trophies.

This ^^

Cas Tigers have and still invest heavily in our youth development. It hurts us when players like Jordan Thompson leave us. He will sign for Hull FC in November when he turns 23 and CT will not receive one penny for him. It sometimes makes me wonder why we bother.

But we are not talking about game changers and top class players are we? We are talking about good players who would create a good competitive squad in SL.

Recently Scott Taylor has moved to Wigan from Hull KR. Cas have a lot more. They have had quite a few of their youngsters leave to clubs like Hull FC. We will never know until a few years time whether these players would be top class. How many sides have developed a player who has become a top player straight away? It takes time for players to become top players at their clubs baring a few exceptions (Sam Tomkins etc). The problem Cas have had is that their promising talent have left as soon as the lure of a better pay day has arisen.


Its no good having a good academy if you just sign the best from other clubs.