I dont think that TWP are going to cover the cost of visiting clubs for too much longer. Does their "deal" not stop at the end of this season ?
And could you explain the rationale behind planting new clubs in N .America, to the detriment of existing clubs in the UK (assuming that the league will not be expanded).

Ultimately, we will swap a new untried/untested club for clubs with a long history in the sport and more importantly, with far reaching community work, which would diminish significantly if they were forced to ply their trade in the Championship.
This would also add substantial costs to an already cash strapped sport, which is a pretty bizarre "plan".

As for fans not having a "right" to attend every game, of course you are correct.
However, they do have a right to spend their brass how they chose and if RL makes it impossible to attend games and support their club, they may just choose to spend their hard earned somewhere else.

For most of us, attending games is a habit and if enough fans start to get out of the habit of attending games, already made harder by ever changing fixtures, you end up with no fans.

There is a very fine line here and if "we" get it wrong, there will be nothing left.

They do say to "be careful what you wish for".

That's all he will ever give you Wayne. He'll take any good point off at an irrelevant tangent. Catalans don't develop players - Mikal Simon has just retired so they are more English/Aussie than ever. They don't have a paying TV deal. Both are required for SL, but he'll tell you how great Catalans crowds are instead.

I totally understand what your saying about NA and have said it for years since TWP started, but then I'm the troll according to you

Which is why I said the North Americans should play in the Championship to prove there is any mileage in expansion there, but you appeared to disagree with that??

The USARL are a 2011 grass roots competition attempting to build bottom up.

Perez and Wilby are using the "top down" model. They just need to find Argyles for Ottawa and NY.......

If super league bosses were concerned that additional clubs could affect existing clubs chances of success, the game would never grow, would it?

It's about spreading the game, not about worrying whether existing clubs chances of success are slightly reduced.

I think that a large percentage of posters who criticise North American clubs do so out of fear.

This isn't about "affecting the SL clubs chance of success", it's about not destroying SL with an untried, untested "raft" of new clubs.
Even IF an influx of N . American clubs is somehow going to take the sport to the "next level" (which is one hell of a long shot), why risk the whols sport on a gamble.
The whole thing smacks of a brown envelope being passed under the table.
Without any underpinning of the game over there and significant time and money invested to create "junior" clubs etc, N. America is lost without English and Aussie players.
Are you really suggesting that splitting the comp, having half N. American and half European clubs, making up a 12 club SL is real progress ?

We may swap unfashionable "pit town" names, like Wigan, Castleford, Wakefield, for New York and Montreal etc, which does sound more glamorous.
However, just how long could they (N. American clubs) rely on recruiting from over here, not to mention the huge costs in getting clubs accross the Atlantic every other week - it's absolute madness.

This isn't about fear, it's about the game being gambled away on a maybe.

How exactly is super league going to be destroyed? Possibly 10+ players next year and perhaps the year after.

English teams are not going to disappear. Case in point Widnes. Their crowds haven't nosedived and still run an academy iirc, therefore developing players whilst in the Championship.

There goes the bait Fishing again?

There's no evidence at all that Superleague intend taking any such gamble, there is no evidence of any gamble to take. All I have seen is a determination to get back to our English roots 2022.

Nobody from North America wants to make big investments in Rugby league even less so since the Aussie Argylle blew countless $$Milions on ending up at the bottom of SL with no wins and players not interested going there unless it's a last resort. No "fans" come here and nobody in NATV sports wants to pay a penny. The Silent one will take you round in circles on this so enjoy the ride.

The more interesting aspect of this is Ottawa and New York being floated for north American investors to get on board with. This is the actual gamble, people paying good money to set up an opportunity for rich Americans to sweep in. However I can only think you have to be an absolute Rugby league nut and worth countless £Millions to want to do so.

Time is ticking towards the new season 2021 start of March.... This could be the "Final countdown" to an end of this nonsesnse, unless any real major North American investors come forward. There weren't any at the launch of Ottawa and New York. Time yet

Is that POSSIBLY 10+ players next year and then how many will we possibly lose the year after if you got your way and the north Americans' came into super league.

Quite right, Widnes are doing quite nicely now and I'm sure they have aspirations of getting back into super league as soon as, I'm also sure though that they don't see themselves as a feeder club for any future north American invasion which would make it even harder to achieve their goal of getting back where they feel they belong.

Widnes may be ok for now but, of course, they harbour ambitions for a return to SL.
IF / when there are 4 N. American clubs in SL and possibly Catalan and Toulouse, what will happen to the chances of promotion for Widnes and any other "relegated" clubs ?
What will happen to supporter numbers, especially for the so called big events and most importantly, where are the players going to come from.
If you lop off 4/5 clubs from SL, they will reduce their investment in junior/academy players.
This isn't fear, it's simple economics

It's worth remembering that Toronto were going to convert Gridiron players and tap into the Union market for their recruitment.
How many players have they managed to poach from these sports so far ?
They haven't been overly successful in attracting English players either and you want to add another how many N. American clubs ??

I'm absolutely against chucking ANY club from the comp but, Donny did make some valid points.(dont tell him that I said so )

Haven't Widnes been there and done that?

As a Superleague club they didn't really add much to the competition with exception of a few interesting Cheshire derbies. Even as World Champions in the 80s they struggled to get crowds above the 7k mark.

Leigh and Halifax can be added to the pile. They are good part time teams that want to be more but fail financially whenever they get up to Superleague.

Bradford, depressingly, seem to be joining this group of teams that are unsustainable as full time clubs. You would also fear for HKR if Hudgell gets fed up and takes his ball home. London are the same.

The only hope is for new blood is in other teams and investors wanting to back them. Now if North America is too exotic for our pastry loving palates then we need to find more local projects that need backing. South Yorkshire, Newcastle, Cumbria, South France, The Midlands, Rochdale/Oldham all sound interesting but have never been able to get significant backing.

So until we can find a millionaire that believes in Cumbrian Rugby League then the clubs are were people are prepared to spend the money and at the moment that is North America.
So we either have to find some backers to fund some new blood or we keep on sending our medium sized clubs into Superleague like lemmings over a cliff.

I dont disagree with what you are saying.
However, has anyone stopped to think what will happen to RL in the UK IF we go down the N. American route.
RL has never been good at looking around the corner or, in seeing through a project that has started well (or not so well), we jump about, desperately looking for some kind of miracle cure.
Unfortunately, with this "experiment", it could end very, very badly indeed.
Although there may be a few wealthy backers over the pond but, would the 50/50 (half English / half N. American) league structure actually work ?
For a start, you would decimate the UK game, turn away 1000's of regular supporters, who wouldn't just walk away from their club but, would likely walk away from the game - believe me, I saw this when Trinity were jettisoned for the old first division.
Some will eventually come back but, others do not and their kid's dont go to the local club etc, etc, it's one hell of a downward spiral and for what ??

Toronto are Canadian in name only. Will the other newbies be the same ?? I know that the talk has been of involving the locals and going a little more "from the ground up" but, you will remember Toronto saying that they would convert Gridiron players and sign RU players - these things just haven't happened, which would indicate that they either dont want to play RL or just aren't good enough. 2 x 0 =0