Quote: Beverley red "Beat me to it, I agree 100%. each year around 50 young kids go into the youth setup at both our clubs very few make it & the clubs only require one or two of the very best if they actually need any at all (they only need so many to make a up team numbers) . Most of the youth players are lost to the local sides as they don't for various reasons go back to the local league. To my way of thinking the clubs should run a reserve grade & put a lot more effort into the local sides by the way of coaching & assisting with promotion of the game through schools using their star players to draw the kids in to the game, this will benefit everyone reduce cost's a little.'" That bit at the end is probably what they should b merging, if anything is to be merged. Investment in grassroots & participation numbers. I'm involved in junior RL in Leeds, so I'm not fully clued up on the junior setup in Hull, and the Rhinos have it spot on. The Leeds Foundation over the past 18 months or so have been supporting local sides in setting up U7's teams. From none, they now have around 7 clubs with an U7's, and they're setting up a new one tonight: https://twitter.com/farnley_falcons. They regularly run master classes with Brian Mac for local coaches, offer a great support network, and also help with fundraising. This is what both clubs should be putting their efforts into, not some ridiculous merged academy.

Quote: Beverley red "Beat me to it, I agree 100%. each year around 50 young kids go into the youth setup at both our clubs very few make it & the clubs only require one or two of the very best if they actually need any at all (they only need so many to make a up team numbers) . Most of the youth players are lost to the local sides as they don't for various reasons go back to the local league. To my way of thinking the clubs should run a reserve grade & put a lot more effort into the local sides by the way of coaching & assisting with promotion of the game through schools using their star players to draw the kids in to the game, this will benefit everyone reduce cost's a little.'" That bit at the end is probably what they should b merging, if anything is to be merged. Investment in grassroots & participation numbers. I'm involved in junior RL in Leeds, so I'm not fully clued up on the junior setup in Hull, and the Rhinos have it spot on. The Leeds Foundation over the past 18 months or so have been supporting local sides in setting up U7's teams. From none, they now have around 7 clubs with an U7's, and they're setting up a new one tonight: https://twitter.com/farnley_falcons. They regularly run master classes with Brian Mac for local coaches, offer a great support network, and also help with fundraising. This is what both clubs should be putting their efforts into, not some ridiculous merged academy.

I have grave doubts about this and I worry that hull kr will get shafted by hull fc over talent

The academies at both Hull and Rovers are full of a large number of slightly better than average players who have to be signed on to 19s level in order for the clubs to field sides. Very few of those playing at the 16s or 19s will ever really be good enough to push for a place in a SL team's starting line up. If this combined academy means that it is made of the absolute cream of Hull amateur RL then competition for places and playing with the best players of your age group can only make young players better IMO. That is the big benefit as far as I can see.

Tbf I can't see hudgel allowing that can you ?

Jamie peacock gave a interview saying he will do his best to get the best young local talent to hull kr how will that work now? If he finds say 2 good lads from Leeds and brings them into the set up are they half ours half hulls?

I've felt for a while that regional academies offering better (rather than more) opportunities was a good idea, in a competition played at a higher standard.

5 or 6 stepping up each year to full-time training from ~50 players across both squads currently. It might just be 5 or 6 from one squad of 25 in the future, but tbf but that's still a fair bit of wastage.

Be interesting to see how it turns out. If anybody else wants to do it differently, they just need a few hundred thousand £s to keep their club afloat in SL each year.

Wigan and Leeds invest heavily, not so much because they're wiser, but mostly because they're richer.

Clubs current academy players that move to the new club are ring fenced to that club for four years.

A few years ago the Newcastle Knights had a local billionaire running the team and he made the decision to set up the best possible junior development.
He put Wayne Bennett on to the task, and Wayne hired ex Australian coach Graham Murray to design the programme.
What they did was decide to put all the money into identifying talent at the earliest possible age and train about 10 kids across the age groups at the sort of level you would expect young Olympic hopefuls to train. They set up what is called the High Performance Unit with a skills coach (former firstgrade halfback Troy Pezet) and a Phd qualified trainer (Englishman Colin Sanctuary). The first guy to "graduate" from the high performance unit is Sione Mataútia who last year became the youngest ever player for Australia. The next two to come through will be halves pairing Jack Cogger and Brock Lamb. Those two have represented NSW and Australia in every team since they were 14 and were the halves for Australian Schoolboys earlier this year, where Lamb was MOTM in 2 games, playing against boys up to 2 years older than himself. Lamb is the most skilful 17 year old player I've ever seen. He has kicking and playmaking skills that any firstgrade half would envy.

The point is, smaller numbers of elite juniors getting a lot of time and money spent on them seems to be working for the Knights. I suppose time will tell if these guys go on with it, but I can name you 10 Knights juniors who have skills like 10 year NRL veterans, because they got firstgrade level coaching and training from age 13 or 14.

As a side note, the first choice to run the High Performance Unit at the Knights was a guy named Graig Sandercock, but he turned the job down because he got a head coaching job instead.

Look who have the best academy's and who are top of the table?

Look who have the most academy trained players in there first team and where are they in the league?

Investing in youth is the only way to support the first team and merging will help but is doomed for failure when the other team take a rising star?

I have read this now 3 or 4 times but can not get my head round it the first time i read it i thought no way but now if and its a big if its done right it might be the start of something good for both teams until it does i will keep my fingers crossed and hope

I must admit, yesterday it seemed like chaos would be the only outcome, but having slept on it and reading various bits and pieces including the bit from Roopy as you say, if its done in the right way it could work. we aren't talking about 20 players making the first team squads every year because that just isnt happening now we are lucky to get one a year, but if we can ( and its a big can) produce 4 or 5 S/L class players between us each season it is absolutely massive. If both KR & FC could introduce 2 new SL quality home grown players each season, as are the wigans, saints and leeds of this world, imo it could be a risk worth taking. There is the concern over a lack of identity for the players, but on the other hand Scott Taylor, an FC fan came through our ranks, because we gave him the opportunity. Now I know he is back there next season, but thats his choice. It will be a bitter pill to swallow for the current crop of players, but if the joint academy can scout around the local sides correctly, from U9/10 upwards it could be massive for both clubs......or it could fall flat on it's , but at least we have tried something different and new rather than waiting for somebody else to take the lead. could you imagine if salford and widnes or cas and wakie had done it first and left us behind. We would call our clubs backwards and stuck in the dark ages.

Well that's my head above the parapit!

Adam Pearson & Mike Smith stated they will adopt a NFL type draft system with FC & KR having first choice alternate years. If that system is adopted a player can refuse to join that team but will then have to sit the season out and join the following year's draft or the team in question can claim compensation.

Craig Murdock is spot on if a player is good enough to play first team rugby at 17 which team does he play for www.hulldailymail.co.uk/Combined ... story.html

Craig Murdock is spot on if a player is good enough to play first team rugby at 17 which team does he play for www.hulldailymail.co.uk/Combined ... story.html

Not a fan by any stretch but will wait until more details are unveiled before further criticism.