Forward

...that is one of the things I DON'T miss about Superleague....the mass ranks of home fans at certain grounds all shouting that in unison


..reading the BBC report he either played very well or has a sideline job penning match reports

Absolutely, can't disagree with any of that. Our crowds are 3-4 times what they were say in 2005, something we could only have dreamed of back then.

All I meant was that it's still kinda frustrating that we (and Hull) contribute a lot of revenue to other clubs that we rarely get back in return.

Anyway, re Big Willie, like I've said on our board, at that moment I have been wrong to doubt him - great first performance overall, some fantastic offloads and looked to still have plenty of strength as a ball runner, can't fault his showing today.

Mickles and Muckles roofs......we don't get many away fans at all when compared to the the following that other northern teams get.
Wigan, Leeds, Saints and Bradford are the top 4 "Draw" teams for games in the south......with a fair few of their "fans" actually living down in the south and only rolling up for the 1 fixture a year. These are the people that Quins need to identify and to get to adopt us as a second club......we have a fair few already, wire-quin is an example.

Huddersfield, Salford, the cottage burners and the dirty french are the least "draw" teams in the south although to be fair to the Giants, they have started to bring more down......

...but as I said, it is not the fault of these clubs that we have bad attendances.....it's the same for you with the game v crusaders....your marketing department/club are the people responsible for filling the ground. I reckon you will average over 9k this year......and if Mason can play that well against "better' teams then maybe even higher....and your club has already made 40k more in ticket sales than it did for the corresponding fixtures last year....all good.

Ouch I think I touched a nerve



We have a tent for Obst and Phelps

We won't crack 10k until the extensions to the ground are done, walk ups are put off by the prospect of having to go into the Sth stand.

As said if we had the travelling support that many clubs get at games then we would be much closer to 10k, hopefully that will come with the Nth stand providing much better facilities for away fans.

I'll take a 1000 fan increase on the corresponding fixture last year, that is a great increase.

I feel genuinely embarrassed reading that.

Still not nibbling on the crusaders boards then

I think there must be a shortage of computers in the Wrexham area.

There is never anyone on that board to point out the clubs shortcomings to

Are you feeling okay GF?!!

fine matey......never better.
Still not chuffed you've got 10 overseas (well, 9 with one other making the tea for a week or so), but can't knock the big fellas performance or the crowd......not many mid table type teams will get 8.6k for the visit of the cottage burners.....

The overseas thing was only ever going to be short-term GF (if you look back through the years you will find most clubs new to SL have a large overseas contingent for a few years whilst they stabilise themselves), slowly but surely though our youth will come through.



Aye, and sorry to bring this up, but 8600 is only 400 less then what you guys took to Wembley if you remember.



Imagine what The Kings would take there....

Oh, and credit to the Crusaders fans who travelled, but I have to say I think "Cru cru Crusaders..." has taken over "Wigan Wigan" as the most annoying chant ever.

Hmmm....I don't think that had any effect on our payment for finishing runners up.....so it's a pointless point.....if not one fan had turned up, the record books show us as getting spanked by leeds and finishing as runners up.
as for new teams to SL needing overseas players, I agree...it's good to have a balance of overseas players and british talent.....just like we did a couple of years into our existance in SL when we went to wembley....HKA been there recently

Never mind.....maybe this year eh.
...OH, well done for sneaking into the top 8

Of course the more accurate indicator would be the corresponding fixture from the previous season, but if those figures don't match your agenda, well, you just have to be more creative.

Why is it then ok for football teams to field a full side with only ONE Englishman in it (if you're lucky), the national football side isn't any good and hasn't been for around half a centuary so why do the powers that be in that sport not feel the need to only allow 5 overseas stars?

What it should be about is having the best possible product on the pitch and I do not honestly see an Englishman ready to replace any one of our 10.

good point...unfortunately, the people who run the game have made the rules as they are and the clubs, including yours agreed to abide by them......just it's taking some others longer than others to wean themselves off the overseas players.

Surely then you are saying we have BROKEN the rules? If that is so then why are the RFL happy to let it go on?

The RFL have not stopped anyone else doing what we have done because it is within the rules. "the people who run the game have made the rules as they are and the clubs, including yours agreed to abide by them" so by that statement is it your club not using the rules to it's advantage or Rovers fault for being smarter?

Don't get me wrong with 10 overseas players I would have expected us to be a bit more of a complete package and Castleford are really showing you don't need that many overseas players to compete at a mid table standard (yes I know they are top but don't see it lasting, sorry Cas just my opinion). I would like to think when all our players are fit we are capable of troubling the top 5 and being in the mix for the CC and a GF appearance however this is a rough tough sport so cant expect to go a full season injury free.

Never said that? ...........you aren't breaking any rules.....but you are leaving yourselves open to a bit of banter......


I too applaud castleford...and my own club for that matter and Hudds.....all doing pretty well with teams full of british talent.......5 games into the season.....nearly 20% gone.........bet hey, you're in the 8 so it's not all bad

Why are we open to banter if no rules are being broken or even bent for that matter? The club would never have done what they did if the RFL hadn't have already given assurances that we could re-register Dobson as long as we didnt break any rules in doing so. I do not see why HKR should be given a hard time by anyone for any of this, if the rules need changing or making the current ones stricter then so be it but while these are the rules imposed by our governing body why shouldn't any club be allowed to use the full extent of them?

As the RFL have also pointed out, ALL clubs have at some stage been given dispensation so HKR are no different to anyone else it is just because it is in the lime light with who the signing is and who's been deregistered to allow him to come in.

come on you have to admit your club are taking this dispenation a bit further than other clubs.

Did Catalans not do it to bring in Dobson?

Did the Crusaders, Harlequins and Catalans not recieve massive dispensation on overseas players?

Did Hull FC not get off lightly when fielding an ineligable player because the rules were not stringent enough?

It is NOT ROVERS that are giving the dispensation, the RFL only had to say no and it wouldn't have happened but if you do not as you do not get! Why should anyone at Rovers feel bad about a decision made by the powers that run our game?

The fact is with Dobson and Mason playing the sport is a lot more attractive and surely that is what everyone should want? As said it would be great to have a team full of home grown talent but for the clubs view on this watch our chairman on Hull KR TV who openly admits he thinks it is disapointing and would like that area of the club to grow faster than it is and doesn't see us producing a conveyor belt of talent for around another 5 years. This is a shame but Cas, Quins, Hudds, Leeds, Wigan...etc did not start their youth machines overnight, it took time and to be honest it wasn't long ago we didnt even have a youth team.

What dispensation has been given so far to KR? As far as I can see, they've deregistered a player who was on quota, to allow anther quota player in. Any dispensation must surely only occur when they look to re-register the first player?

Think it's more that the RFL have already given Rovers permission to re-register him.

Also some have problems with Lovegrove being given dispensation even though he could just as easily have an English passport and I'd like to see the RFL argue a case at a tribunal refusing an English citizen the right to work!

pathetic isnt it, dispensation after dispensation.

Why not just a give British players a shot