Re: IMG Podcast : Sat Oct 01, 2022 1:31 pm  

TheWarringtonWolve69 wrote:

Widnes got promoted around 2012 ish? And stayed in SL for about 5 seasons? Apart from that, they seem to just yoyo

Widnes got promoted because of off-field reasons - and remained there while no relegation was happening.

2 legged game for round 6 of the Challenge cup.

Cant wait until St Helens put 70 points on Keighley in the away leg first before welcoming Keighley to TWS for the second leg.......

Getting your excuses in before future potential fixtures because a club with all that broadcast money,and success over recent years still cannot sell out either their home stadium,or Old Trafford for a Grand Final.
Give that club a Category A!
Standard of Super League declined while St Helens won a bit of silverware....as for improving the national side...

Re: IMG Podcast : Sun Oct 02, 2022 1:54 pm  

FlexWheeler wrote:

With rugby league it always feels like a get-rich-quick scheme. Looking for the next magic bullet, the next shortcut to make it big. A new playoff format, a new competition structure, more teams, less teams, more loop fixtures, less loop fixtures, more games against the top teams (remember super 8's? why did we get rid of that?) The list just goes on and on. Remember club call? It's sad looking back at all these numerous different schemes, ultimately fruitless but never destined to make any difference anyway. I've lost count of the different playoff formats, and it starts to eat away at the integrity of the competition after a while.

If it isn't a 'get-rich-quick-scheme' it's like someone putting in place a 6-month phased training plan to get in shape but quitting it after a month. Supposed long-term plans will be made only to be scrapped after short-term implementation.

I feel like Rugby league had a boost from the introduction of super league for 10-15 years, but then it's gradually started to return to it's pre-super league condition, exacerbated by external socio-economic factors.

It's worth remembering that for the last major shakeup, the third party came up with the 3 x 8 structure, when, every minute was supposed to matter.
Unfortunately, the relegation issues had a massive destabilising effect on the lower end of SL and the top end of The Championship and guess what, here we go again.

It looks like that in a bid to spread the game nationally, there will be some more "forced promotion and relegation", always a sure-fire way to keep old fans interested and gain new viewers and spectators. Oops.

Also, despite the questionnaire, will they actually listen to the fans or, was this just window dressing, something to make fans believe that they'd been thought about.

You can already hear the opening of their presentation, "after consulting with ........."

It doesn't matter unless they actually listen !

Re: IMG Podcast : Thu Oct 13, 2022 3:33 pm  

The proposals have been approved by all but 5 clubs, and will be introduced from 2024

[Pemps]

Re: IMG Podcast : Thu Oct 13, 2022 5:47 pm  

https://www.examinerlive.co.uk/sport/ru ... e-25256694 However, one of the key pieces of information to be clarified was around the mechanics of promotion and relegation. We now know that clubs will all be graded on unspecified criteria, with clubs to eventually be graded from A through to C. But what was unclear was what happens if a Grade B club finished bottom of Super League and a Grade B club won the Championship. Crucially, that has now been confirmed and, if that were to happen, the team finishing bottom of Super League will be relegated, and the team who wins the Championship will be promoted. In essence, promotion and relegation from Super League will still exist in its current guise on the basis the club coming up is the same grade as the clubs going down. Grade A clubs will be exempt from Super League relegation.

https://www.examinerlive.co.uk/sport/ru ... e-25256694 However, one of the key pieces of information to be clarified was around the mechanics of promotion and relegation. We now know that clubs will all be graded on unspecified criteria, with clubs to eventually be graded from A through to C. But what was unclear was what happens if a Grade B club finished bottom of Super League and a Grade B club won the Championship. Crucially, that has now been confirmed and, if that were to happen, the team finishing bottom of Super League will be relegated, and the team who wins the Championship will be promoted. In essence, promotion and relegation from Super League will still exist in its current guise on the basis the club coming up is the same grade as the clubs going down. Grade A clubs will be exempt from Super League relegation.

[Mild Rover]

Re: IMG Podcast : Thu Oct 13, 2022 8:30 pm  

Pemps wrote:

https://www.examinerlive.co.uk/sport/rugby-league/key-details-imgs-rugby-league-25256694

However, one of the key pieces of information to be clarified was around the mechanics of promotion and relegation. We now know that clubs will all be graded on unspecified criteria, with clubs to eventually be graded from A through to C. But what was unclear was what happens if a Grade B club finished bottom of Super League and a Grade B club won the Championship. Crucially, that has now been confirmed and, if that were to happen, the team finishing bottom of Super League will be relegated, and the team who wins the Championship will be promoted. In essence, promotion and relegation from Super League will still exist in its current guise on the basis the club coming up is the same grade as the clubs going down. Grade A clubs will be exempt from Super League relegation.

Hopefully whoever wrote that article has misunderstood. If not, it is enormously worrying and suggests that it has been really poorly thought through, and it’ll be a neither one thing or another, worst of both worlds calamity. Why does nobody associated with RL ever seem to ask ‘what if…?’. The initial announcement seemed pretty coherent. Please, please, please let it be the journalist having grabbed the wrong end of the stick.

Re: IMG Podcast : Thu Oct 13, 2022 8:52 pm  

Mild Rover wrote:

Hopefully whoever wrote that article has misunderstood. If not, it is enormously worrying and suggests that it has been really poorly thought through, and it’ll be a neither one thing or another, worst of both worlds calamity. Why does nobody associated with RL ever seem to ask ‘what if…?’. The initial announcement seemed pretty coherent. Please, please, please let it be the journalist having grabbed the wrong end of the stick.

It wont be, destined to fail.

Not even surprised.

[Mild Rover]

Re: IMG Podcast : Thu Oct 13, 2022 9:33 pm  

pmarrow wrote:

It wont be, destined to fail.

Not even surprised.

While there’s no direct quote from an IMG representative, I’m holding out hope. Even then, I’ll be hoping new parent, sleep deprived and confused or something like that.

If it is true, at least it should fail swiftly. I think I’d find something else to do until it passed.

[Mild Rover]

Re: IMG Podcast : Fri Oct 14, 2022 5:27 am  

This sounds a lot less like they’ve suddenly lost the plot. https://www.skysports.com/rugby-league/ ... relegation As a minor quibble, I don’t see why all clubs shouldn’t be re-assessed annually (or, rather, on an ongoing basis to inform an annual decision). Tbf, they might mean that but only the assessments of those currently rated B are relevant to who is in Tier 1 and Tier 2. I know the focus is on improvement and growth, but ‘A’ has to be a standard to maintain as well as reach.

This sounds a lot less like they’ve suddenly lost the plot. https://www.skysports.com/rugby-league/ ... relegation As a minor quibble, I don’t see why all clubs shouldn’t be re-assessed annually (or, rather, on an ongoing basis to inform an annual decision). Tbf, they might mean that but only the assessments of those currently rated B are relevant to who is in Tier 1 and Tier 2. I know the focus is on improvement and growth, but ‘A’ has to be a standard to maintain as well as reach.

Re: IMG Podcast : Fri Oct 14, 2022 6:25 am  

Ornery Optimist wrote:

Widnes got promoted because of off-field reasons - and remained there while no relegation was happening.

Getting your excuses in before future potential fixtures because a club with all that broadcast money,and success over recent years still cannot sell out either their home stadium,or Old Trafford for a Grand Final.
Give that club a Category A!
Standard of Super League declined while St Helens won a bit of silverware....as for improving the national side...

St Helen’s. Still living rent free in your head lmao

[Wildthing]

Re: IMG Podcast : Fri Oct 14, 2022 7:56 am  

TheWarringtonWolve69 wrote:

St Helen’s. Still living rent free in your head lmao

St Helens.