Yeah, because the travelling is more or a concern than having a career. Ryan clearly didn't think so when he turned his back on his home town club some time ago.

Seriously, don't make the mistake of thinking RU can't offer something very enticing. The overwhelming evidence thus far is that they can and do. Imagine the advantage we'd give them if our star kids were getting palmed off to bottom-feeder clubs with zero facilities or ambitions so they could play 'first grade' in a team facing defeat most weeks.

Until all SL clubs offer equivalent opps for youngsters to play at the highest level, in front of good sized crowds, in top quality stadia, earning proper money, and with at least a reasonable chance of winning something each season - you can forget the draft.

Yes they did. Everyone knew Ellis was a good player before he left Wakefield, otherwise they wouldn't have been in for him

Ryan Hampshire was not going to go to union if Wigan weren't in for him. It isn't Wigan keeping him in RL.

Wigan or Wakefield is a massively different choice to Wakefield or RU, the fact he chose Wigan is in now way whatsoever an indication he would have chosen RU. Talent distribution such as the draft is an effort to get all teams in with a chance of winning, increasing crowds, and getting more playing at a high-level. If all teams were in with a chance of winning every year, if they were all equal at the beginning of every year we wouldn't need a draft because whatever we were doing was already working, the talent would already be distributed.

And he wouldn't be being palmed off to a club getting beaten every week because pretty much by definition, giving Wakefield better players would make Wakefield better.

I didnt say good I said progress...

But what if Hampshire didn't want to go to Wakefield even if his brother was playing there?

Ellis was at least very big for a centre. A small, young half would have no chance

Time was when we all laughed at the thought of Joel Tomkins going to RU. He apparently had everything to stay in RL for - family connections, home town club, international recognition, regular first grade rugby for one of the top sides in the country, and a very fat pay packet. But somehow someone still managed to convince him the grass was greener.

It's naive to think that attempts aren't constantly being made to lure our top players. In fact, it's ridiculous that we're even having this conversation. We all know that's exactly what is happening. (It happens at amateur level too, particularly among juniors).

Contriving some nonsense like a draft system, where you send an ambitious young lad to a wooden spoon club because it's not fair on that club to do otherwise would only make it more likely they'd look further afield.

But even if it didn't, where is all this incredible talent going to come from that will suddenly, overnight, make Wakey into a much better side? God help the British game if the likes of the Wigan, Leeds and Saints academies were taken out of commission and we suddenly had to rely on the RFL to organise some kind of central talent pool. But even if by some miracle they managed that, how would that improve the lower clubs' declining stadia, their cash problems, their poor crowds. their -poor management? How would it make them overall into a much more attractive package than, say, Saracens or Gloucester or Sale, especially if those clubs are pulling their usual stunt of offering built-in 'play for England' deals?

Wigan youngsters dream of playing for Wigan. The same with lads in Leeds, Saints, Warrington etc. They might, when they're older and more savy, be willing to go to a rival RL club if it's offering equivalent opportunities. But they're not going to go happily off into the twilight realms of the lower reaches, having no say in it whatsoever - especially if a more golden future is promised elsewhere.

And of course, if the RU don't entice them, maybe the NRL will do a better job. You want to ensure that all our best young talent leaves us, or simply want to reduce it from the outset - you hand the job of developing it to the RFL.

So you think Gareth Ellis just turned up at 16 in the Wakefield academy as a Great Britain player?

another club would need to trade for him or he wouldnt play.

The draft wouldnt solve all the games problems, nobody is pretending it would, it isnt supposed to. It would address one of them.

Plenty of young kids dont play for the team they support, very very very few at 17,18, 19 are in complete control of their career choosing when and where they play.

In your example of Ryan Hampshire, he would be going in to the draft now, There wouldn’t be a whole lot of difference between what he is doing now, and what he would do. The only real difference would be where he played next year. The idea that if Wigan didn’t offer him a contract and only Wakefield did then he would walk away from the game is frankly nonsense.

no but he progressed into a regular after he left and his progressed into a better player

Well yes, as he got older he improved until he hit his peak and has then declined. Thats what happens with every player. Even Tomkins. If Tomkins wins the Golden Boot in two years is that because he improved once he left Wigans sub-par coaching?

unfortunately it comes down to money which will be needed to fund a central academy system, which the RFL hasn't got in abundance. Some clubs now are spending little on academies and not even paying up to the salary cap, so the RFL can't take funding away from the clubs making some even weaker than they are now.

I am sure clubs like Leeds, Saints, Wigan would be really glad to give money back to the RFL to fund an academy and draft that they dont get the benefit of whereas other clubs pay nothing towards funding it and get the pick of the best talent coming through.

Without the funding the RFL can't implement anything.......

How can we sell the game when the we don't even have a sponsor for SL. It would be great to have TV companies fighting for the rights to televise us and having a bidding war .I have watched RL for 60 years and I fear for the future of the game at professional level amateur and world wide the game is being played in a lot more countries and is booming. I think it was mentioned in commentary in one of the USA matches that there was 130,000 registered players in the US.
Bring the A teams back open age level will benefit the game better all round for the game .

Yet again, it would be a mechanism which would in effect punish those clubs who've brought most to the game and benefit those who've brought least.

If we think Lenagan, Moran and co are up in arms now, wait until the RFL try to impose a draft system.