I read that it was a 7-6 vote in favour but I thought that at least 10 votes have to be required for any changes to be voted through.

It is interesting.

I've had a go at running the numbers on that middle 8 sections of the league.
I did it where a team (Bradford). Won the opening 4 games. They hit 8 points.

Then they rest thinking they are safe with 8 points. Turns out that in my senario Cas finish above them on 12, Wakey on 10. And 2 other teams Featherstone and Fax get 8. Meaning you can't hit 4 wins and relax. You have to play into the 5th week and try to win that week.

It would take someone with a proper simulator to run all the possibilities. But if I change one result a Cas win over Featherstone, into a Featherstone win over Cas. Suddenly Cas are equal top on 10 points with Wakey and Featherstone. Bradford and Fax are in a playoff.

I can make it so Fax finish in 4th and Bradford 5th after relaxing in week 4. But basically you need 5 wins to be certain of safety. Any thing less and then other teams results matter.

I'm not going to do it again though as it takes an age, but anyone can do with with an excel spreadsheet.

I'm sure the votes will come out in due course.

But the 7-6 came from someone who said they heard it was 7-6. Nothing official posted yet that I have seen.

It will make or break the game. Time will tell.....

boo effing hoo. can't have it all your own way anymore

I don't think this will be a huge shift. But I do think it will open the game to expansion. Which for me is a good thing.

For others maybe not.

In the end it's all unknown. If you asked me what I would want in 3 years.

Less clubs financial troubles than the past 3 years.
More FT players.
A growth in the geographical spread of the game.

Before people say well it won't because x y or z. Or it wil because x,y or z.

We don't know! If you say you do, you are guessing. You maybe right, you maybe wrong. But saying it does not make it so.

Sounds like a Socialist Super League IMHO. Little clubs getting the benefit from those who have been doing all the hard work....

Hardly, as others opposed to the system have pointed out. The top clubs will get more games against each other and the benefits that that brings them.

It can't be argued both ways either the tail is wagging the dog, or the top clubs will go out of site of the tail.

for me the fundamental problem is most SL clubs need an extra 1/2 million pounds revenue, give or take, a year to be sustainable and be able to reach full salary cap, invest in jnrs and do marketing properly etc. That is the biggest and in many ways only issue facing SL. If someone can explain to me how making the , probably, 4 poorest clubs play low drawing small clubs for part of the season is going to turn that situation around I'd love to hear it?

Attendances were dropping like a stone due to the mundane world of franchising and pointless games.

This should be the pick me up, the game needed.

There will be vital games played throughout the season !!

Where they? We had a bad year last year but so did most sports. Maybe more to do with the financial state of the supporter base than any mythical mundaness?

Given the evidence that when fans have to pay outside of their season tickets ie CC and playoffs, crowds are well below expectations how do you envisage the selling of shorter season tickets and then asking fans to pay for 7 games at the gate is going to pick up these crowds?

I don't disagree it does give clubs more to play for but I am not sure threatening clubs will financial oblivion is exactly the right way to motivate them!

I can see the trumpeting of the RFL on how SL's crowds are up in this new structure for the 22 games and then conveniantly ignoring the disaster that will befall the crwods of the bottom 4 teams and probably the 6th-8th placed teams who will get tonked by the top 5 teams for the third time in the season.

Agreed.

The new structure is fantastic news for the game.

I expect clubs like Oxford and Bristol will really rev up their enthusiasm, sponsorship backing and player development now there is a clear and pretty short route to the top of the Rugby League pyramid in this country.

The other factor that I haven't heard discussed yet is how points will be awarded in matches at each stage...obviously currently 3 points for win,2 for a draw plus the bonus point rule in the Championships...will these be retained for the first part of the season and then scrapped in the Middle 8? Or will they go back to 2 points for a win etc and no bonus point from the outset? Or will everyone adopt the current Championship system?

Personally I would prefer the last option...don't think that will happen though...bonus point rule might add some more uncertainty to the play-offs..

These are the same clubs before franchising that could get in super league or even stay in super league we just had a yo-yo effect. FANS ASSUMING( Beware of the shadows) that now a silly promotion system is in place clubs will start gaining enough fans to generate enough revenue, Which they never could before franchising, Sponsors miraculously will never be interested and that super league actually has enough money to support 24 teams.

"you can't have it all your own way now" halifax fan, tell me about it the RFL will keep trying to provide to the needy. Its like a Sporting Branch of Labour.

For the "needy" do you mean the bail out clubs like Bradford and Wakefield? You know, those SL clubs that have done all the hard work?