Quote: FevGrinder "I agree with Griff Don't see how anyone can make money out of this. For example you get beat in the L16 and you now have 3 blank weekends when you could have organised 3 friendlies.
Then what happens when you find out it is freezing for 3 weeks in January and can't play the L16, L8 & semis and already have a venue booked for the final?
Don't get me wrong, I quite like the idea of the rail trophy, more cups to be played for potentially gives clubs things to aim for and a second great day out for our league. However this would need to fit into the standard league fixtures, which would be difficult with the current 26 games plus 2, 3 or 4 CC games plus 4 weekends for the playoff series means we already have around 32-34 games to fit in. The only way of doing this with the rail trophy as well would be to start the season a month earlier which leaves you to the issues with the weather and means that the players off season gets curtailed even more.
For me the only way of doing this (including a "rail trophy"icon_wink.gif would be to reduce the league to 12 teams, which I think there is a chance of in 2015. reduce SL to 12 teams, have SL2 with 12 teams (2 relegated SL teams, maybe Tolouse, top 8/9 from CC1 and GF winners from CC2) with the remaining 13/14 clubs forming the 3rd teir.'"
Divisions of 10, 18 league games, four weeks for the Rail Cup, four weeks set aside for the Challenge Cup, four week play-off series, March to September season, job's a good 'un.
Last season, each division had, in effect, it's own Cup competition which its clubs could realistically win whilst - theroetically at least - being able to win the Cups for higher divisions. I liked that structure and I'm disappointed that it's been abandoned for the sake of fourteen team divisions which it looks like we'll be abandoning at the end of 2014 anyway.
Absolute madness !
