I think you we see us strengthen our ties with York, and you with Donny

I am not keen on ties with any body the RFL should sort it out all teams in the super league and championship should have one maybe that is why a lot of young player disappear some don't come into their own till in to there 20s but buy then they have gone and maybe not play any more

I believe that no pro club should run anything but the first team! To explain, The game is bleeding players from amateur clubs for 16 year olds onwards most of who never return to the game after they are discarded by the pro clubs. Lads of average ability are loosing out as they are finding teams to play for shrinking in numbers.
My solution, by all means encourage pro clubs to invest in youth coaches but get them into the clubs to coach kids (ex pro players would be ideal) Let pro clubs have scholarship's & play a small number of games & run coaching camps to monitor young prospects but they should play most of their games for local clubs & schools which should play in winter as the summer game is having a disastrous impact on a lot of clubs as they struggle to get sides together (Work, holidays, family events ect). Get the grass roots thriving, it increases the player pool, keeps young men in the game (the odd late bloomer ala Chris Hill will turn up) get fringe players & youngsters signed up but out on loan (minimum one month). I know this will not find universal approval but it would save money & give the base of our sport a much needed boost as I am afraid at the moment it is on its arris.

Quote: Dave K. "Don't expect the reserves to be run next year, not enough teams have taken it up, which means it hasn't really worked. Might see the odd friendly, but more clubs and the RFL should have got involved and set up a proper league.'" There's a good article here on Keighley & Fax running reserve sides, how they're able to do so on a tight budget and the benefits they believe they get from it. Difficult to disagree with the points made. Edit, link added: www.totalrl.com/column-keighley- ... rve-myths/

Quote: Dave K. "Don't expect the reserves to be run next year, not enough teams have taken it up, which means it hasn't really worked. Might see the odd friendly, but more clubs and the RFL should have got involved and set up a proper league.'" There's a good article here on Keighley & Fax running reserve sides, how they're able to do so on a tight budget and the benefits they believe they get from it. Difficult to disagree with the points made. Edit, link added: www.totalrl.com/column-keighley- ... rve-myths/

I do not know whether Ben would make a good coach or not. I would definitely not see him being appointed on the strength of his enthusiasm. That quality is important but a coach at any level needs far more than that. His record as a role model is not great and during the recent home match with Fax he was still showing his immaturity. A coach has to develop and mentor younger players it is difficult to see how someone who cannot even control his own emotions would fit into that role. He could maybe assist a coach who could monitor his development and so make use of the strengths you see in him.

Totally agree, I think it should be sent to all clubs, and have them drive forward an U23/Reserve Comp rather than the RFL.

The U23/Reserves should be made up of senior players coming back from injury, youngsters/squad players on the fringes of the side, occasionally some U19's who need a step up, and any gaps plugged with some top local amateur players. It shouldn't cost a fortune as most players will already be on the payroll, kit, travel, coach.

Those called in to the team from local clubs would I presume be their best players? a sure fire way to ruin the local clubs & destroy an already struggling set up.

"Ruin & destroy"? Calm yourself down mate, we're talking a handful of local players to plug gaps in the side in relevant positions for a few weekends a season.

Their best players when their coach & club might need them for their league fixtures, The local clubs are struggling to raise teams as it is. The player pool is just not big enough with all the changes to working patterns that now confront todays young players. Back in the day we had it a lot simpler with employers a lot more sympathetic to players, now some risk their livelihood by playing or are called in to work with little or no warning & face sanctions for not turning in to work. I love this game of ours & our club but I fear that as in the 1960's the pro game is taking to much out of the amateur game with very little being put back. That is main reason BARLA came into existence & the clubs & RFL have done their best to undermine them. I still think the pro clubs would be better served by supporting the local youth at their amateur club by providing top quality youth coaches & training for the coaches & officials of those clubs & schools while scouting out & monitoring the best players coming through.

every thing you say is true but why do we not go down the road like Australia I believe that they have all the teams from about 10 yrs old and upwards It works well for them so why cant we if clubs are running now it cant cost that much or they would fold with all clubs been in charge they can keep an eye on the young players and get the first team player help out has well in their free time they get paid enough

The numbers don't add up - that is why it didn't work. It is a nice idea (if not a good one), and shooting it down makes better people than me feel bad, so it didn't get challenged much. But plenty of people could see it, I imagine, and that was why there was very limited buy-in.

Did you read the article I linked to MR?

If Keighley & Fax can manage it, and make it financially viable, I'm sure SL clubs can too. Fawcett quite clearly talks about sponsorship & gate receipts offsetting any additional cost, and that the "numbers not adding up" is a lazy excuse for clubs that can't really be bothered to do it properly.

I completely agree on your point on clubs not putting enough back into the communities. The first block of your reply I don't agree with, it's way over the top for what would be a handful of local lads getting the chance to pull on an FC/KR shirt a few weeks a year.

I'm based in Leeds, playing for an amateur club and I'm on the committee, so I have some insight into how the grassroots game works here at least. The Rhinos have been excellent for us, instrumental in helping us attract new juniors, holding coaching masterclasses & touchline manager courses, sending players & coaches down when we ask etc.

Basically, they're really engaged in driving participation levels up in the area, and in recent years we've gone from two junior sides to nine. That's nearly 100 more kids playing RL that wouldn't have been playing 3/4 years ago. We're seeing this at clubs all over the city too, and they now have 34 affiliated community clubs (Hull as a city I think have around 12?).

From what I understand, neither Hull or Rovers do enough in the city to really drive participation, and that's why I disagree with the merger of the academies. I understood that it was a response to the shallowing of the player pool in Hull, but it was a reactive action, rather than both clubs being proactive to actually address and fix the problem.

With all due respect to Fax and Keighley, they're semi-pro clubs for whom there is potential value in running what I assume is a nearly amateur second team. The step up from amateur to SL is too big in one step, so for super league teams they'd have to run bigger squads with more fringe players, many of whom would be better off at a Championship club, IMO.

The problem is that we see players who go to York or Doncaster from their SL 19s not as stepping up to the senior game, but as dropping down a league. Again IMO.