Our biggest failing : Sun Jan 13, 2019 10:36 am  

During the last twenty years I'm fairly confident that our club has the best win ratio in pro RL in the world , that fact has been wasted IMO with regards our attempts , or more precisely our lack of attempts to build our fan base

This combined with the move into the LSV should have been exploited to build a new young support base to take us into the future be that as a top tier club or a 2 nd tier club , and also to remove the sort of current issues we are now seeing

To achieve this requires investment , and until we decide to make this investment a priority we will continue to see the potential instability we are having to deal with

Re: Our biggest failing : Sun Jan 13, 2019 12:18 pm  

It’s not just our biggest failure it is the sport of rugby league in the UK as a whole. The short termism of the sport has lead to the sport focusing on the 12 teams in Super League, Even they are now struggling to attract and retain fans. The challenge cup is on its booty, spectator numbers are down in all leagues. Participants are down in the ametuer game. We are losing the games best players to NRL and rugby union because we can’t afford to pay players the going rate. The salary cap hasn’t risen in years so the top clubs have had to reduce their playing roster to increase contracts. We just can’t attract money to the game in this country. We need someone at the top of the game who can change this.

Re: Our biggest failing : Sun Jan 13, 2019 8:15 pm  

Our biggest failing of recent times was in 2006, when appointing an Under 7's coach from New Zealand to head coach of the best FT side outside of SL, better than some in SL. The second mistake was to proclaim him as the worlds best.

That one poor decision set our club back a decade. Make no mistake.

Re: Our biggest failing : Sun Jan 13, 2019 8:28 pm  

The problems the RFL are experiencing are down to one aspect. People.

Like Leigh in 2006, and to a degree in 2018. You have to appoint the right calibre of people. Big Nige was never the man to grow the sport and neither is Rimmer or Elstone at SL. He is only taking money out of the sport.

Everton are a huge association football club, who have under achieved and have gone backwards under Elstone.

Poor recruitment, poor performance.

Re: Our biggest failing : Sun Jan 13, 2019 8:38 pm  

Harold Rigby Jnr wrote:

Our biggest failing of recent times was in 2006, when appointing an Under 7's coach from New Zealand to head coach of the best FT side outside of SL, better than some in SL. The second mistake was to proclaim him as the worlds best.

That one poor decision set our club back a decade. Make no mistake.

U 7s is a bit harsh Harold , we advertised the post and conducted interviews , there was one person who might have got the job ahead of Tony but he refused to be interviewed and one other who when interviewed requested we get rid of a certain player we had contracted , when we refused to terminate that players contract at considerable cost the interview was terminated

Tony was the best of the rest who applied , again Hindsight is a wonderful thing

Personally as I've highlighted we really haven't built on our on field success in winning ratio and the LSV

Re: Our biggest failing : Sun Jan 13, 2019 9:27 pm  

THECherry&Whites wrote:

It’s not just our biggest failure it is the sport of rugby league in the UK as a whole. The short termism of the sport has lead to the sport focusing on the 12 teams in Super League, Even they are now struggling to attract and retain fans. The challenge cup is on its booty, spectator numbers are down in all leagues. Participants are down in the ametuer game. We are losing the games best players to NRL and rugby union because we can’t afford to pay players the going rate. The salary cap hasn’t risen in years so the top clubs have had to reduce their playing roster to increase contracts. We just can’t attract money to the game in this country. We need someone at the top of the game who can change this.

I don't see how we can blame our own failings to build on the sport as a whole , yes RL is struggling and does need strong leadership , but our lack of growth is down to ourselves IMO

Re: Our biggest failing : Sun Jan 13, 2019 10:53 pm  

GUBRATS wrote:

U 7s is a bit harsh Harold , we advertised the post and conducted interviews , there was one person who might have got the job ahead of Tony but he refused to be interviewed and one other who when interviewed requested we get rid of a certain player we had contracted , when we refused to terminate that players contract at considerable cost the interview was terminated

Tony was the best of the rest who applied , again Hindsight is a wonderful thing

Personally as I've highlighted we really haven't built on our on field success in winning ratio and the LSV

About 4 games into that season, I was invited into the corporate and was a member of a party dining under the old Hilton Park main stand by a good friend and sponsor.

After the match Benson was invited to our table. Discussion turned to the current team and Benson claimed Warren Stevens should be playing in the NRL, he was that good. To be honest I thought that was a proper good joke and I along with the rest of the table laughed. Benson had though delivered it with a straight face but no one was laughing a few seconds later when he claimed he was being deadly serious.

I said there and then that the fool had to go and he had to go quick.

Re: Our biggest failing : Sun Jan 13, 2019 11:03 pm  

Could be worse, we could be Salford !

Re: Our biggest failing : Sun Jan 13, 2019 11:11 pm  

Harold Rigby Jnr wrote:

About 4 games into that season, I was invited into the corporate and was a member of a party dining under the old Hilton Park main stand by a good friend and sponsor.

After the match Benson was invited to our table. Discussion turned to the current team and Benson claimed Warren Stevens should be playing in the NRL, he was that good. To be honest I thought that was a proper good joke and I along with the rest of the table laughed. Benson had though delivered it with a straight face but no one was laughing a few seconds later when he claimed he was being deadly serious.

I said there and then that the fool had to go and he had to go quick.

Warren Stevens was a pudding, an out of date green mouldy pudding at that !

Is it correct Harold *as was suggested at the time* that Benson didn't have the requisite coaching badges ?

Re: Our biggest failing : Sun Jan 13, 2019 11:14 pm  

Harold Rigby Jnr wrote:

About 4 games into that season, I was invited into the corporate and was a member of a party dining under the old Hilton Park main stand by a good friend and sponsor.

After the match Benson was invited to our table. Discussion turned to the current team and Benson claimed Warren Stevens should be playing in the NRL, he was that good. To be honest I thought that was a proper good joke and I along with the rest of the table laughed. Benson had though delivered it with a straight face but no one was laughing a few seconds later when he claimed he was being deadly serious.

I said there and then that the fool had to go and he had to go quick.

Hindsight Harold