At least one Super League club to lose licence in 2011

[UnsungPanapa]

Don't think Tolouse currently pass the criteria for coming up i believe at this present time only Halifax,Widnes,Batley and Dewsbury pass that criteria, so you would think Widnes have the all round package.

[ancientnloyal]

Catalans - have been to a wembley final and finished =3rd last year... stadium improvements with a great strong crowd following them... hey have no problems at all, perhaps financially which i am sure a lot of clubs have... they are bringing in quite a few french youngsters (albeit from local clubs)

Crusaders - New club where the RFL want a 'welsh club'... I don't think the RFL noticed when they went to the welsh heartlands and Crusaders got the lowest EVER attendance at a SL game... it doesn't matter... they could play in Port Talbot, Wednesday morning with 30 fans nobody would bat an eye-lid at Red Hall... RFL have had to be seen to be 'strict' with them regarding their finances... the visa farce was a joke (as well as a farce)... I cant see RFL pulling the plug on them. Their gates are poor... only propped up by Thomas/ Leeds first game, nobody has been near that 10,000 gate... only wigan and wire have sent a mass of fans down the road... agaimnst other clubs (bradford, quins, hull's, hudds etc...) their gate is the same... sh***... a 3000 crowd base with no improvement through the year.

Wakefield & Cas - we all know... similar clubs in every way... ground, attendances, on field performance, finances... Cas may edge them on player development but apart from that they have no firepower.

Salford - I reckon their new ground will safeguard their stay although everything else is on a par with wakefield and cas, possibly worse.

[medlocke]

Get Barrow in before Widnes

[ancientnloyal]

Barrow's only downfall would be their stadium. I reckon they could get in 5,000 regular crowd if ran well enough... more than salford, crusaders, quins, wakey

[exile in Tiger country]

I'm sure I remember the Barrow Chairman saying he wasn't interested in SL franchise last year.
Huddersfiled don't get anywhere near the required attendances, but have a decent ground.
Widnes should be in because they were shafted twice, once being relegated despite not being bottom, to allow Caltalans in and last time to allow Crusaders in. The reasons for them being kept out (financial reasons/administration) more than likely would not have happened if they hadn't been turfed out to allow the Dragons in in the first place.

[GeoffN]

Widnes are the only realistic one to come up, they far outscore the other Championship clubs on all the criteria.

Best ground, best attendance by far, excellent youth system (they currently top the U18s table, ahead of us, Saints & Leeds!).

Going down, as most have said already, is between Wakey & Cas, with not much to choose between them.

[DaveO]

I read somewhere (in the press I think) only Widnes meet all the criteria which include things like not having been in administration for 3 seasons amongst others. They are not the same criteria an SL must meet as they also include different performance criteria such as being in the Northern Rail cup final recently and so on.

I think Widnes are therefore nailed on for a SL place.

My bet is Wakefield to go down. One of their directors is fighting an RFL rule that says a someone who has had certain financial difficulties (can't remember what) can't be on the board any more and I think the man in question is their major backer. It's all to do with being a "fit and proper person" to be on the board.

Add that to failing to get a ground sorted I think they are in trouble.

My only problem with the process is the promise a NL side will go up come what may. In theory it's possible for all the SL sides to meet the criteria to become a grade A or B rated side. If that were to happen then one of those sides would face the chop for a side who might finish quite low down NL1 and also might not reach grade B status.

Fortunately for the RFL neither Wakefield, Cas or Salford are likely to get grade B status so they will have a team to sacrifice but I don't think making a promise a side will get promoted is a good idea. They could replace a side who scores higher on the SL criteria with one that scores lower.

Dave

[GeoffN]

Fortunately for the RFL neither Wakefield, Cas or Salford are likely to get grade B status so they will have a team to sacrifice but I don't think making a promise a side will get promoted is a good idea. They could replace a side who scores higher on the SL criteria with one that scores lower.

Dave

I see your point, Dave, but to judge Championship sides by the same criteria as SL sides would always favour the SL club, no matter what, so there would never be any changes.

Examples: Championship attendance criterion is 2.5k, rather than 10k to score a point. Turnover point is £1m rather than £4m. That seems realistic to me.

At present, the clubs who qualify are Widnes, Barrow & Halifax, and Leigh could if they get to the GF.

[cpwigan]

I agree with Dave O. Why should it be automatic that a Championship club receives a franchise and an existing franchise holder in SL loses their franchise? If Widnes have a better franchise than say Wakefield fine they have earned the right to a franchise but if say for sake of argument Wakefield and every existing franchise puts a superior franchise on the table than Widnes or any other Championship club then surely the system becomes a farce. I thought the whole idea of frasnchising was to move away from automatic promotion and relegation.

[DaveO]

I agree with Dave O. Why should it be automatic that a Championship club receives a franchise and an existing franchise holder in SL loses their franchise? If Widnes have a better franchise than say Wakefield fine they have earned the right to a franchise but if say for sake of argument Wakefield and every existing franchise puts a superior franchise on the table than Widnes or any other Championship club then surely the system becomes a farce. I thought the whole idea of frasnchising was to move away from automatic promotion and relegation.

This is the point I was making. As it happens Wakefield and several other sides all scored grade C last time so are vulnerable to a superior bid from an NL1 side but when it comes to the crunch if the bids from Wakefield and the other grade C SL sides are all better than the NL1 applicants, then the SL sides should keep there places.

It should work the other way as well. If for example three NL1 sides out did Wakey, Cas and Salford then all three SL sides should lose their place.

I don't agree with Geoff that NL1 sides can't outscore their SL counterparts. For example a well supported NL1 side could easily turnover more than a poorly supported SL side, Widnes have a better ground than several sides and from hat I hear a very good youth set up.

I don't think Widnes need a promise to get promoted but if they did because they didn't outscore the grade C SL sides I think the whole system breaks down as a fair process.

Dave