Cone of silence lifted on American League

Siva Samoa, Does the ARU pay you to leave your anti-rugby league sentiments on internet forums such as this one?

J Signed the petition, how long has it been running? Needs more support only 500+ signatures to date, would Roarers qualify?

No 'was'. Its a permanent group: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm/cmallparty/register/memi492.htm

http://www.supporters-direct.org/home.asp?cat=engwal

WCR Nigel Melville in his inital statement when appointed CEO of American Rugby wanted to target the fall out of American Football players from the college system. These American football players are class athletes and he felt that some could switch to rugby, obviously rugby union in his case. Part of his game plan was to introduce a professional league to attract some of these players. I suspect that has gone by the board as the emphasis appears to be on building from the bottom with "rookie rugby" and funding to increase the number of coaches at junior level.

J There was an all party group of MPs from Lancs and Yorks who got together and lobbied for the CC final to remain on FTA. No doubt they are making their voices heard again. However circumstances are a little different in that the RL is now primarily a summer sport with the final in August and the present viewing figures on FTA (BBC) have been so disappointing. If the viewing figures were better then their case would be stronger.

J Is there a web site for Supporters Direct?

Your points are relevant but its not some entity called RL doing anything. All the initiative is from Niu and his colleagues, the rest of the rl world is saying good luck but not spending a penny. Most RL fans look at Spinner Howland and the Jacksonville Axemen as the model that they will follow to any kind of long lasting success. The nature of the sport however is that we dont get to tell or direct Niu in anyway really.

No idea about wrexham although the owners seem confident enough and are running things at a better level then before and in a better stadium. Its a calculated gamble that might not work, which is fine not the end of the world. I suppose it depends how you define retrenching but the upward curve on attendances for all rugby league suggests to me that it has. (a high in of over 2 million in the 1960s, down to near a million , now back up to 1.87 million). Clubs like hull fc going from basketcases to well run clubs suggests it has. Not sure what else would qualify. You might be right on the full time thing, i'll ask around.

I've said this many times before but here goes again. Setting up a out of the blue and frankly low quality Pro League is just madness. Look at what it has to compete with in terms of professional competitors. Yes, it won't go head to head with the NFL but there is still MLB, the NBA and the growing presence of the MLS. All of which offer a better product than any RL Comp in the States could. Some will say, ah but if we show the NRL that will help. Umm.. No. Show them the best then give them rubbish really isn't the basis of a viable business plan let alone growing a sport in a relatively new market. What needs to be done is development. Somethhing of a taboo word for RL posters in regards to the US. For RL to gain any real foothold in the States they have to organically grow the game. That means put in the hard yards. It sucks but it is absolutley necessary. Listen Rugby will soon have over 100,000 registered players in the US. But are they running to set up a Pro Comp. No. Why?. Viability. They simply do not have the supporter base to sustain such a competition. Would they like their own Comp, of course but only when they have built the market for it. RL must go down the same path. Rugby is focusing building its junior(and High School) and Collegiate structures which are working. Plus they have developed there own introductory program which has over 130,000 participants this year alone and is likely to expand significantly with USOC funding. RL needs to take these lessons learnt the hard way by Rugby , Lacrosse and the greater extent Soccer not just come out and say where here now love us. The interesting thing is that the US could be a good place for a Rugby alliance. Forget the NFL, there the biggest game in town and don't care about anyone else( proven by the active recruitment of other College athletes from Basketball and Athletics).

By the sounds of things. The ESL need their own version of the Independent Commission. Maybe if the NRL version works well, they can copy the structure so the game can move forward in the UK.

I thought it was wet. I think with the right promotion (the best promotion would be England winning a few games) we can get tests back at Wembley. We don't have to sell it out, there was 41,000 at the opening game of the 1995 WC. If we can get 45-50,000 at the opening ceremony then it will be a success. Australia only got 34,000 at the 2008 WC.

J Do you think RL will take off in Wrexham? Perhaps Harris might have more of chance in Newport .I was brought up in Lancs and from what I recall St Helens, Bradford were fully professional but I stand to be corrected. Do you really think the retrenching has been done, there is a strong lobby for the Welsh experiment to be dropped and even some talk about Quins, pals of Widnes and Halifax have been very vocal, not forgetting Leigh before their poor season.

I agree with you that the strength of tradition is the heart and soul of british sport, but football post 1990, cricket post 2005 and rugby union in the last 10 years have all shown that sports are capable of expanding well beyond their traditional horizons. Not that they will but its not precluded by the importance of tradition.

http://www.gopetition.com/online/32754.html

Instead of repeating myself i will quote: "Who are we? Supporters Direct is the umbrella organisation in the UK for supporters’ trusts across rugby league, football and a number of other sports. We speak for fans on issues we believe are critical to the future of the game of rugby league. What exactly is delisting? Following recommendations from the recent Government commissioned Davies Report (ITC Code on Listed Sports), which suggested that the Rugby League Challenge Cup should be removed from the list of protected free-to-air events (like the FA Cup and Olympics), Supporters Direct is working together with fans from across the Rugby League pyramid and alongside the All Party Parliamentary Rugby League Group (APPRLG) to campaign to Keep the Challenge Cup Free for All. As a sport, we believe Rugby League needs to be exposed to the widest audience possible. If the Challenge Cup is delisted, the rights to show the competition can be bought by the highest bidder, which puts that at risk." It is a proposal, it hasnt actually happened yet.

As ive said elsewhere the delisting is proposed and not final with a lot of work going on in the background. I had read that this has happened before and in the end the proposal of delisting was defeated with the help of the parliamentary group, although i cant find the reference.

Springs It was very wet, it probably rained for nearly two days before the game. Pity because it spoilt the game. I can't see the point of having a test at Wembley, because unfortunately impetus has been lost. Yes the CC final is off the FTA list, but some of the local MPs are trying to get it reinstated.

Towser Eddie Waring "hes' off for an early bath""its an up and under" catch pharses that are national treasures. In those days RL was a major sport on the BBC with a big national following. Ok it had a Northern Flavour but many union stars switched , particularly from Wales and in hindsight that was the time to expand the game. There was no competition, there was national awareness. To do it now is probably too late, why because the growth of professional rugby union has taken many by surprise and the levels of income generated by the union code, league can't compete. I was brought up in Lancashire and clubs such as Rochdale Hornets and Oldham are shadows of their previous existence. They are the big losers in the ESL revolution. Frankly to detriment of the RL ranks. On the union front in Lancs and Yorkshire there is only Sale and Leeds in the GP, but below that there is a thriving amateur structure which is the back bone of union in L and Y. Yorkshire were county champions last year and together with Lancashire are among the most succesful county teams. Who would ever have thought that Wigan of all places would be better known nationally as football town, how things have changed. RL has slipped in the national pecking order and will have to work hard to recover.

Ian Noble I too remember Grandstand,in particular Eddie Waring.A colourful character. But on reflection provided an image of a Northern game that has forever stymied its progress nationally. I also remember the Challenge cup,traditionally on the week before the FA cup. So although I grew up in a football town Sheffield, RL was always part of the General sports scene I grew up with. What folk do today is grossly underestimate the power of tradition & nowhere is that greater reflected than in the North of England. Football towns live next to RL towns & the reality is "Never the twain shall meet". Unlike here no real animosity between different sports just the way it is. Sheffield with the lack of success of the Sheffield Eagles is a classic example of trying to implement your sporting tradition into another sporting tradition. Its not that Sheffield folk like or dislike the game ,they dont care. Same for the ice hockey ,basketball & other teams in the modern era. RL has been seen in England consistently in my lifetime. It evolved from a different era 100 odd years ago. That tradition remains in those origonal RL towns. Unfortunately the downside is that as far as National reach goes,the ghost of Eddie Waring remains.