Maybe and I agree with you on some points, but you also seem to think Sale coming in will help Salford in some way, which it won't.

Then, as a consequence, it appears to me that there's one desirable outcome. I.e, the management at Salford must make this arrangement work for Salford.

Whether the present management, with what many believe to be a mediocre track record when it come to advancing the club can succeed is perhaps unlikely. But with no apparent changes due to be made, besides collectively putting pressure on JAW to make changes, we, the people who make a sizeable financial contribution to the club, may have to stand back, hope and observe. What a bl00dy awfully powerless position to be in...

I'm not stating whether Sale's arrival is inherently beneficial or detrimental; what I am saying is that we can derive some positive outcomes from their arrival if we choose to.

Is that the sound of stamping feet I can hear?

I've been giving this some thought and I do think there's at least some scope for the fans to take the initiative here to help shape the future of the club at the new stadium.

Apparently, there's some silly talk on Facebook about forming an FC United-style splinter club back in Weaste (obviously a non-starter for several dozen reasons). IMO it's important for those fans of a more rational disposition to make their voices heard. Personally, I'm in favour of working with the Sale fans to try to ensure that we end up with two clubs and one shared stadium that we can all be proud of.

Just to add my two penneth..I tried watching the Sale Bath game on Friday night. I was totally against Sale sharing the new ground , but after viewing that game maybe there is a slight positive!,a glimmer of hope,but only if the people who run Salford can get their act together. I tried to view the game subjectively in terms of entertainment,excitement and passion, but sadly I found none of these.People will accuse me of bias but I have tried to watch Union on a few occasions but every time it comes up short compared to our game.The Super Rugby from down under is fast and exciting so I am not totally pro Super league..It was like watching paint dry!! ,forward passes ,end to end kicking ,the funniest bit was when a Bath player intercepted a pass and then fell over his own feet.In my opinion how anyone can pay good money to sit through that garbage is beyond me. Eddie and Stevo come in for some flak but even they look good compared to the commentry and analysis provided by the Sky union team,which is dour and boring.My biggest concern is what will the state of the pitch be like after a winter of Union?,all that stupid rolling around on the floor etc
What we need is to some how build on the positives from this season,try and get some investment in and more strength in depth {a bigger pack}that can compete with the teams higher up the League and just maybe we could convert a few of the floating Sale contingent into following the better code.As Early Bath has stated Sale are here.. there is nothing we can do about it ..we need to get our own house in order.

I'm glad to see someone else is taking a rational view of all this. I think we have to be careful of falling into the trap of believing that anyone who watches a game of league is instantly converted, as it simply isn't true.

Some folks prefer league, some prefer union and, on the whole, that's unlikely to change. What we may be able to do though is persuade some of the Sharks fans to adopt us as a second club - even if it's just for the bigger games. Plenty of my Rhinos supporting mates in Leeds have been to watch Tykes/Carnegie when they've had a big game, so why can't Sale and Salford benefit in the same way?


Footnote: The Sharks held their open day at the stadium today and it sounds as though there was a higher than anticipated turnout and that their East Stand tickets have sold very quickly.

It was the floating/casual supporter I was referring to not the die hards.I cant see many Salford fans watching union especially as the weather and traffic will be worse. At the end of the day the potential for increasing gates is a distinct possibility...theres 2 problems..every time Salford have had a decent gate they always shoot themselves in the foot and get hammered .Warrington and Catalans last season are good examples and secondly a lot of curious people have a glory hunter attitude,they only want to invest in a winning side...they happily spend more money at UTD and City .To reiterate my earlier point...its easier said than done but if we could just get further up the Salary cap and improve the squad we could well suprise a few people.

There is no guarantee that there will be any positives though, people are just assuming/hoping that there will be.



I agree that there should be some sort of increased fans voice but don't think it should be linked in with Sale fans.

It's not an either/or situation though is it. Both sides will always have their own supporters clubs but it makes absolute sense to work together on some issues.

Having a 'never the twain' approach to two clubs sharing the same facility will inevitably lead to conflict.

The Student, it's a shame you didn't enjoy the game on Friday - I was pretty dissapointed too - but would you care to comment, subjectively, on the state of the pitch at Edgeley Park ??
That pitch has been played on every week this winter, whether it be kickleg or yawnion. It looks in pretty good condition to me, although I'll grant it hasn't been an especially harsh or wet winter. Sharing between Salford and Sale the pitch will get approximately half the use that the Edgeley Park pitch has had, for the majority of the winter.

What is the union position on artificial surfaces ? After watching the interview last night the ipitch at Widnes was discussed.I read that Sharks had trained at Burnage on an artificial turf.Would Brian Kennedy fund an ipitch
at the SCS ? I ask because that would enable the SCS to make further use of the stadium;invite more community groups to use it.
I have no idea if marriages,gigs,or anything else is permitted at the stadium therefore further use of the pitch may be the way the stadium company make some money/profit.

I am not too keen on the artificial pitch,personally,but a union perspective may let me know which way it could go.

SCR-SeaDiver, as it happens I've been a member at Burnage for many a year.
We have a 3G pitch which is fully approved (at National 3 level) by the RFU.
The pitch is in use almost all day with school soccer, hockey, etc.
Sharks have trained on it when poor weather, etc. has kept them off their training complex at Carrington. SCR also used the pitch a couple of times prior to playing Widnes, to get a feel for the surface. I've heard that Broncos and Catalans have inquired about "calling in" prior to games at Widnes.
Sararcens (last year's premiership final winners) are moving to a new home in London (Barnet IIRC) which is due to have an artificial pitch installed.

Not sure why Sale or Salford would instal an artificial pitch, sure they might fund it jointly with the stadium owners. Certain to bring in plenty of community interest.

rlhttp://www.pitchero.com/clubs/burnage/rl

Having played on Leeds Rhinos' I pitch at Kirkstall last year (the pitch Milford Marlins use in the NCL), I have to say that although it's a great facility/surface, there doesn't seem as much 'give' as there is on grass. Consequently, I wouldn't fancy playing a full-blooded game of league on it and I'd be even more concerned about the prospect of collapsed scrums in union. Doubt it'd be RFU/IRB approved anyway (the RLIF won't sanction games at Widnes for the same reason).