<t>Agreed. I just hope the RFL has a long term plan to support the expansion of the game beyond western Europe. Rugby League is thriving in Russia, for example, where the target audience is massive, and evidence to date shows that this could be a real stronghold for the game. <br/> <br/> I had a con...

<t>Just thought, though, that if the system was that no one goes down unless Cats finish off the bottom, then that is actually less fair on NL teams than the current system is on SL teams. At least other SL teams have the opportunity to play Cats and win points off them, thus increasing the likeliho...

<t>I agree that on balance this system would be much better. <br/> <br/> My back-of-an-envelope maths (which could well be wrong, and which doesn't take account of the 2 or 3 games issue, the match yet to be played, or the points f/a) says that taking away the points won or lost against Les Cats, Sa...

<t>I take all your points. I'm sure they are very disappointed to finish bottom or next to bottom given the season they have had. Neither am I averse to the kind of special measures the RFL takes to support development clubs, such as the enhanced overseas quota Quins RL had for a while when they wer...

<t>True. But I can't think of another way to prevent what we nearly had when they beat Saints a few weeks ago. Under the rules, clubs should field the best team they have available, but I agree with you that it's difficult to police this (c/f that same Saints game). Weakened SL sides would also hurt...

<t>As I understand it, Les Cats are protected from relegation again next year. Given the controversy surrounding the relegation battle this year, does anyone agree with me that while Les Cats are welcome in SL, the points won/lost in playing against them should not count for the other SL teams? <br/...

<t>Yes, it was an under-par performance, but I think under the circumstances entirely understandable. <br/> <br/> At a general level, if you consider the season these guys have had, with the debacle of Millward, being adrift at the bottom of the table, then the pressure of avoiding relegation despit...

Was at SJR 1990-92 - in the same Maths class as Andy Johnson!

<t>Absolutely right. A while ago when we were points adrift at the bottom of the table BBC Radio 5 had a "dual code rugby weekend" prize giveaway. The prizes were tickets for whatever RU game there was that weekend, and a rugby ball signed by guess which RL side? One clue: it wasn't table-topping Sa...

Thanks for that!