Why do you not think they Championship clubs are viable, well-financed or well supported?

I'm an expansionist, I have no issues with the expansionist doctrine and actually quite like it. I agree with it logically, that for the business model of the sport to succeed it needs to expand, and I also like the thought that I could one day be watching a cracking away match between Wakefield Trinity and FC Barca. I also like the idea that Icould be seeing teams from the less glamourous, smaller towns around Wales/Scotland/Ireland, even, dare I say it, down South!

For all that I think expansion is a good idea I do think that the RFL have to walk a tightrope to do this. As well as spread the RL gospel they also have to appease the heartland clubs,which is a very delicate political situation. Finance is obviously a major issue, particularly for Championship clubs. It seems tobe that part ofthe problem at the moment with the Championship is that fans don't think there ismuch to play for if they are not going to get promoted at the end of the season. Surely, then expanding the NRC into other nations adds a bit more glamour and prestige to the comp? It surely adds a bit of purpose.

If you're talking finance as well is a good idea tohave teams play other home and away in the League, home and away in the NRC and then potentially play each other again in the play offs, knock out stages of NRC and CC? Throwing some foreign teams in their mixes it up a little, adds a little interest rather than spending a third of the season watching the same match. Also, if the teams play good rugby that will surely bring the punters in.

If this goes through it will be done as a very small step with one team from each nation making it through, notall of them, but its a positive one and one I find exciting.

" the sport " being what ?

Sorry but the Championship clubs are more concerned with Survival than expansion

Finance is the main issue if you are on the verge of bancruptcy as most of the Championships clubs are

Glamour and " prestige " dont pay the bills , fans through the gates do

i hope oldham get that ground up to date soon with a 5thou+ capacity.
a competitive oldham would be great for the cc

I thought that was the plan, one pool of French teams, probably TO, Pia, FCL Limoux and Carcassone (e.g. the playoff teams from the LER, minus UTC/Catalans and adding in TO).
Spreading the French clubs across the pools would be stupid and expensive.

Disagree with that comment completely. It's got better every year, the weekend in Blackpool is one of the championship clubs no 1 goals at the beginning of the season. When it was the 'Buddies Cup' it was awful, so I can't see how you think the standard gets worse.

Expansion has to be tried somehow and people who don't like 'expansion' clubs like Celtic Crusaders, PSG, Catalans Dragons and Gateshead Thunder being put straight into SL surely agree that this is an easier, cheaper and less risky way to test the water.

And where are these fans going to come from?

Certainly not from France,Wales or Ireland , or from locals just because we are battering a team from France,Wales or Ireland

Maybe from proper localised marketing to the people of the towns were clubs are already playing

Local people? Thats it?

Taken from Lezignan XIII


The Northern Rail Cup is a tournament which brings together English Championship clubs ( eg national league one) and Championship One ( former national league two) with the exception of Toulouse and the new Olympic team Scorpio South Wales who will compete in this 2011 .

This year the 20 teams who are opposed . First phase The English Rugby League ( RFL ) has decided to open the competition for clubs Welsh , Scottish and French in 2011 .

For now the project is not yet completely fixed but would move towards a system of 2 groups of 5 clubs LER with a final between the top two in order to designate the team qualified for the famous Northern Rail Cup .

As Champion of France , the FCL that already has a ticket to play the famous Challenge Cup played could " also " the competition by the federation . '"

Has there been anything released in the English press?

At least this piece states that only 1 team from the LER will be involved,so the cost thing that some forumers were worried about isn't there.

It doesn’t matter if it’s just one French club or not. I’d say that 80% of the clubs below SL are dicing with death. Any additional costs, for games which will probably lose money, could be the straw which breaks the camels’ back for many clubs.

This is how perilous it now is below SL.

Interesting. The Scottish RL site posted something about a club joining the National Leagues a couple of years ago but obviously this came to nothing.

Edinburgh Eagles we unbeaten in all but one game last season and I've heard that they were the club looking to join National Leagues. Paddy Coupar joined Town from the Eagles, so they have produced at least one player able to hack it at Championship 1 level.

Where they would play is another matter. When I went to see them at Corstophine it was a field and an RU club house. Certainly not suitable to the NRC.

And your solution? Keep doing the same thing that we've done for the past 50 years and hope for the best?

Mind you - I agree there needs to be external money available for the travelling costs of the French team (and Irish if its still applicable).

That's not what we have now though, is it?



Then we'd have to try and get people excited enough about coming to watch a French/Scottish/Welsh club in order to try and make some sort of a profit. Some of these clubs operate on less than 500 fans. I have no idea how they do it. Local rivalries are far more important to keeping these clubs afloat than French/Scottish/Welsh clubs. I know that doesn’t fit well with you, but it is the sad fact.

I believe Whitehaven are struggling badly to stay afloat at the moment. Do you really think that including French, Scottish and Welsh clubs in the NRC would help that?

Playing games that few would want to watch with traveling costs thrown in could only make things worse. We have the Challenge Cup for that. That’s enough imo.