Carlisle is not a RL area, the football club's attendances are 5 times what the RL club ever got at its peak. There is also very little in the way of amateur RL in Carlisle.

Even in Barrow, which people would consider to be a RL town, the non-league football club gets attendances that are almost on a par with that of the RL club and until the last 3 years when Barrow RL have been successful the soccer crowds were well in excess of the RL ones.

too true mate tho' TO should have taken the points at Toulouse but lost it in the last ten minutes (just like in 2009) with the usual french indiscipline and a certain Carlos Mendez Varela who successfully managed to drop every high ball put to him...

Simply not true. The only time Barrow AFC have had crowds larger than Barrow RL for any kind of prolonged spell, probably in its' history, was in the 90's when the rugby club was a total shambles and rebuilding. Even when AFC were a league team, the rugby surpassed their attendances on most occasions - barring the odd bank holiday match or cup match.
This season, even after winning the FA Trophy in May, AFC still struggle to get 1,200 at home. In 2010 the Raiders averaged 1,900 which was classed as disappointing after averaging 2,400 in 2009.

Barrow IS a RL hotbed and there is a dis-proportionate number of Amateur clubs in the area.

the point I was trying to make was that an earlier contributor (who still hasn't replied) suggested RL crowds in the northwest will suffer because of competition (quite rightly imo) from the other sporting venues in the area ie Man U,City,L'Pool ,Everton etc etc thus the reduced interest in RL - in Barrow & Workington for example,this shouldn't be a great factor cos ' you are what,100 miles or so from these big football teams and only have Carlisle Utd as 'serious' football competition