Its stated now that Superleague is going from 14 teams this year to 12 teams next year with a split of 3 leagues of 8 after 23 rounds.

If we make the playofffs then brilliant, but if we finish 9th we could still be relegated? For me, its absolute madness but thats just my opinion

Will part time championship clubs be able to deal with the bottom 4 of superleague, for me the gap is ridiculously big so even if Widnes where in the second tier of 8, I would feel comfortable retaining SL status for the following season.

If obviously gives the teams like Leigh, Fev, Halifax and Sheffield hope of getting promoted, but is it just false hope? Remember the season we went into administration, we chucked all of our eggs into one basket and never got promoted and went bust. It's looking more and more likely that the teams at the top of the championship will do the exact same thing causing financial difficulty.

Is it the bottom 2 relegated next year also? Not sure if this has been confirmed

VLV

It means Denis B wont be happy . .

12 clubs with P and R would seem ideal. Widnes were in the championship for 6 years and we know how hard it is to get out unless you have a team a strong team or financial backing. Going to 3 leagues of 8 is a bit much for me.

It's good for Leigh and although nobody knows the answer, how do you think the top 4 of the championship will cope with the bottom 4 Superleague teams for a solid 7 rounds? I'm gebually interested as a rugby league fan of how fans in the lower division see it

Personally I'd enjoy the fight at the end of the season against the old Championship enemies from our time there.

Fighting it out with Leigh, KR, Cas, Fax, Wakey, and Fev to get in the top 12 will mean better atmosphere at the games than trying not to lose by as much as London or Salford in order to avoid a "wooden spoon".

I think it is a idea.

I think its doable, the 9th and 10th teams may be a too good, though you never know.

I think teams would be looking to beat the fellow championship opponents and maybe 1 or 2 scalps of the bottom 2 SL teams.

I do actually think it may be closer than everyone thinks. I have read on Cas forum a fan saying it would be a chance to blood younsters for the SL the next year. Think that approach could end in tears

though the original proposal stated that this league would have a 4 v 5 playoff to determined the final place. So anything could happen there

Not sure there have ever been 7 teams relegated from one division in the same season but that is what faces the Championship clubs in 2014. I guess it makes every point vital but you have to fear for some of the clubs who miss out but I guess a 16 team Championship 1 in 2015 is a godsend for teams at that level though there will be a massive gulf in class at that level too I'd imagine.

Only the RFL could think of something as stupid.

I wonder why they didn't try the halfbacks being tied together and doing it three legged?

SL clubs voted for this, there were 2 proposals so they could have voted for a straight up and down.

IMHO, the reason why straight up and down was not voted for was because some SL clubs would see that as the real end for them.

2 teams are being relegated in 2014 and with straight up and down that means in 2 years 3 teams from the current batch would be down in the championship.
Now with just a plain championship, they can foresee a decline in crowds and money.

Those 3 teams could be any of London/Salford/Widnes/Wakey/Cas even Hull KR.

Suddenly the massive drop from SL looks frighteningly likely for them.

However with this middle way, those going down in 2014 can put it that it's a halfway house as they will still get some games against SL clubs, also the chance to be promoted is well within your grasp. Whether it's likely or not, is not the point. Sport is build on hope, the hope that your team will progress, play exciting game etc etc.

This middle way builds in lots of hope. The question is whether the clubs get their finger out and market the thing. So rather than looking at it as a championship, they sell it as a halfway stop between SL and championship. I would not expect Widnes to struggle in 2014, but once the chaff has been cut away so to speak, they could be with in danger of being that 12th team. Now would you rather be relegated and loose all contact with SL, which could cripple a currently FT club. Or just take a slight step backwards and rebuild with some FT players.

For me the middle way will see a far less of a drop off in fans and sponsors, than a complete cut off from SL.

Time will tell, but in the end clubs need to market to their fans.

Other sports manage to sell their 2nd tier comps much better. When clubs drop down from the Heineken cup to the challenge cup, they still see it as something to play for and the fans buy into this.
Same for clubs dropping from champions league to UEFA cup. Yes it's initially a disappointment, but then it's a new target to aim for and the fans buy into that.

Call it the race for SL, or what ever you want, but sell it well and the people will come.

Don't forget that this 3 x 8's sytem doesn't start until the 2015 season and that at the end of the 2014 season two of the current SL clubs will drop in to the 2015 Championship with handouts of £900k and £850k parachute payments. It is therefore more likely that the 2015 middle 8 teams would be the bottom 4 SL clubs and the four Championship teams containing these two relegated teams.