Jeez, one club goes to the wall and suddenly we should all merge? Nothing like a knee jerk reaction.
The problems at Wakey, Bradford and Crusaders are all down to incompetent ownership. It doesn't take a genius to work out that the bank will ask questions when you sell the only asset and security you had on your overdraft, which in turn means they can't meet their tax liabilities. The taxman, although generally disliked will come to an arrangement with them, anybody that deals with them will tell you they're understanding if you approach them, it's when they have to approach you when the problems start.
Once the RFL start pulling their fingers out and marketing the game properly we'll be in a whole different position. Getting rid of Lewis & Wood would be to the game what it was for us getting rid of Kath. Incompetence, incompetence, incompetence.

The game is strong in Oz, but that has been more to do with successful expansion rather than mergers imo.

There was a spate of mergers around 11/12 years ago in Australia with only the Wests Tigers one being successful. The Northern Eagles only lasted 3 or 4 seasons before Manly were reborn and the final dagger but into the North Sydney Bears. Other than playing a few games at Win Stadium the Dragons/Steelers merger was more like ours with Gateshead and the Hudds/Sheff one over here.

Bradford’s current issues are simply down to mis-management and feck all to do with the recession or missing out on the play offs for the past three seasons as their club statement suggests. Proposing mergers again is a knee jerk reaction and would not prevent mis-management of this scale at any club in the future.

Hull KFC

Sounds good to me, finger lickin good in fact.


Seriously though, it takes away something from the game that you wouldn't get with other games, everyone no matter who they are always look for their derby fixtures, they are special and a merger should only ever be an option if the only other option is complete demise.

I agree to a certain extent, the game IMO is not ready to spread out and try new areas that have little or no interest in RL. I think we should concentrate on the heartland clubs, create a strong base and provide more support to the lower league clubs.

most of the clubs have lasted over 100 years so everyone predicting the demise of every club are well off the mark .the only clubs to have folded in recent years are the newest ones that were nevergoing to suceed anyway and if hull and rovers merged it would just become a team playing in front of 10;000 fans because you cant just add the 2 teams attendances together and assume thats what you will get it wont happen

Being an Hull FC fan ,if Hull and the dobbins ever did merge,that would be the end for me,i do not want anything red and white anywere near my beloved FC

Imagine mergers between

Saints/Wigan
Wire/Widnes
Leeds/Bradford
Cas/Wakey
FC/KR

The game would be dreadful

Agree completely, I just think that the RFL in its present guise, may well pressurise some of this to happen

The only one i could realistically see is Cas and Wakey, not that i agree with it.

And if FC and the dobbins ever merged that would end my attendance at any professional match in the future. History has shown that the "merger" idea in England didnt work and in my opinion never will. Too many people who watch the game are too loyal to their teams for a start.

Its tough e for bradford and the rest of them i remember when hull had to sell all their best players and the sharks came in took them without a thought whether we would exist or not, vaikona, radford mcnamara just a few to mention it wont hurt bradford to spend a few years in the lower leagues just like us and dare i say it the dobbins lets jump on the band wagon and sign whitehead and there centre who,s been playing out his skin we,ll get them for a pittance, thats what happens when you gamble with paying players out of the next years sky money. personally i dont care less whether they survive or not swings and roundabouts come to mind

before anybody spots the mistake i have posted it in the wrong place

Wakefield wouldn't even agree to a feasibility study to see which ground would be the best to share at, never mind merge.