Is Super League that bad?

You were spot on, mate. The NRL need to employ someone with vision before making anymore rule changes.

This article comes out 3 days later. http://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl-premiership/for-every-action-theres-an-equal-and-opposite-reaction-says-nrl-boss-david-smith/story-fn2mcuj6-1227142423544

Sorry chibimatty I should also have said that many are there simply because they're not good enough. Making that step up is a million miles away for many of them. SL itself is weak compared to NRL because the numbers playing in England are much smaller than in Oz to begin with and by all accounts falling but this may just be the truth of most sports in England at the moment.

Like any 2nd tier it's a mixed bag of could've should've and why the .......... haven;t they been given a go. The feeder bit was tried indirectly by getting rid of relegation and promotion but this is such a sacred cow in UK sport they had to bring it back. Next season's different league structure is supposed to be more competitive and therefore more interesting though I only say supposed cos it hasn't been seen in action yet. There is supposed to be more protection for relegated club because of the financial disaster it has been in the past but that has yet to be proven also. The RFL asked the fans what they thought, then tried to make everyone happy, but being UK RL fans happiness and positivity are largely out of the question.

So sorry Sleiman I've only just understood this one! LOL!

I'm curious as to how the RL Championship (the 2nd Division) in England compares to the 2nd tiers in Australia? Seeing as the clubs in those competitions are independent entities trying advance to the top-flight, whereas the Aussie clubs are feeders; does that mean that they spend more money to retain better players at that level, with the intention of gaining promotion, than clubs do here? If that is the case, could that mean that Super League may be weaker because a lot of good players who should be in it, are instead playing a division below on good pay? Does this happen in the English game?

I should also have said don't be abusive cos they like that sort of caper. " Of Human Bondage" was their favourite title until they read and found no mention of whips! My gran always said that we should never mock the afflicted but this is the one place and reason where we should always make an exception.

This is a very reasoned argument accentuating the nub of yawnionist inability to understand that we don't like Vichy, we never have like Vichy and we never will like Vichy! But you're wasting your time and keyboard efforts on people (term used loosely) like this. If they make you angry at all be ironic, derisory and dismissive works for me every time!

If you were going to drop into union, why would you play in the Aviva Premiership? That's one of the most boring competitions in the world and even English players are leaving it for France. Also, Super League clubs are traditionally bigger than their union rivals; teams the size of Leeds, Wigan, Huddersfield, Hull or Saints would be better off in a competition which features peers of similar size like Clermont-Auvergne, Toulouse, Montpellier or Toulon. If Bradford Bulls played in the Top 14, you watch how quickly they would prosper with a bit of French TV money. The British pound is stronger than the Euro, but the Aviva Premiership still loses players to France. RL fans don't like the culture of English union; soccer fans don't like the culture of English union, the rest of the rugby union world doesn't like the culture of English union. It's seen as an over-privileged group of self-entitled class-affected toss-pots who have no respect for the rugby traditions of other countries and look down their noses at other English people who are "not of our class." RL's Challenge Cup final is still a greater occasion than either of English union's finals. The rush to union will never happen in England, unless something drastically changes within the culture of the game and the people who play and run it.

It is true that the sense of belonging to a place and owning a place have been in decline, that and the "creation" of RL as "unfashionable" are among the root causes of RL's general lack of limelight. And if you add this to the overall negativity which is evident on UK RL forums and the picture becomes very gloomy at times. Also, so few teams, the same teams at the top all the time, and seemingly little to be done about it because so many efforts are blocked deliberately, not unlike the total dominance of the Kangaroos, can have a hugely detrimental affect on outlook and motivation. There is no simple reason like soccer becoming king that explains this and in truth we've only touched upon a few here. I don't believe the Aussies have truly appreciated these problems because they can't imagine a world that doesn't prefer league and if you're going to have a saving grace this would be top of my list to have!

Glenn, the 50's were still strong for RL in England, although the cracks were beginning, and the decline really started in the 70's, although the changing face of Northern England, with increased immigration played a role, as you allude to - most of the immigrants came from Soccer areas and therefore led to Soccer taking over in once strong RL areas. I never thought the difference was as large as you have said, but it makes for gloomy reading to see a 5 million decline in attendance.

Doom gloom and misrepresentation! Soccer doesn't and hasn't been killing off RL. The reasons for the decline and this is a debatable notion in itself. The notion has more to do with media attitudes to RL which they regard as dispensable because of its geographical, its economic fan basis status, and because of the media's preference for ru. Lack of media coverage = lack of credibility = lack of an ability to market your product! The ru loving media in England see RL as the impediment to ru superiority and therefore as the enemy, this is not a conspiracy theory just a realistic summing up of attitudes and their affects.

The gap in salary cap is only going to get bigger.Rugby League is the number one spectator sport in Australia biggest city, out biggest state and our third biggest city and state.In New Zealand it may be a minority sport but has the advantage of being popular and having a long history in Auckland the nations only large city where nearly a third of the population live. Rugby League is the biggest sport in England in well... Snt Helens with a population of about 200,000, maybe Wigan with about 300.000, Warrington with about hundred and fifty thousand and that about it for towns with six figure populations.Everywhere else at the elite level it is usually non existent or if it does exist it is the poor cousin of soccer Also soccer has been slowly killing it off in England for fifty years now.1948- 1949 was the high water mark for English Rugby League when 6.8 million paying customers attended League games.Super League do not provide aggregate figures the last year I can find was 2006 when aggregate attendance was 1,516.342.... nothing more to say really.

Appealing, but with a higher level of skill involved wouldn't remain the way it is.

The "Miracle Try" is what we wan't to see more of. However, i think the NRL are barking up the wrong tree.Last years rule changes and the proposed new interchange from 10 to 6 rotation will encourage more individual brilliance from the explosive speedsters but we will see more fatigue(like the fatigue that has players knocking back Kangaroo jerseys).Also, more penalties around the ruck for lazy and tactical play by forwards to slow down this area. The players have a lot more skill than what is being showcased.However, teams playing systems are heavily influenced by repetitive structured play ie 5 hit ups then kick to the corners,building pressure,completion rates, high percentage plays etc. To change this,you need to either reward expansive play, eg - extra 2 points for a try that starts in your own half or remove the kicking option unless your in the red zone. My 2 cents worth on a sunny Sunday arvo.

Especially when you consider the fact that the salary cap has pretty much doubled in the last 5 years in Australia.