It deserves nothing. No sport does. Each sport is responsible for its own development.
RFL cut funding for development officers. I have some sympathy with the RFL here as ideally it wouldnt want to do that. It's a money issue.
You seem to believe Rugby league has a divine right to be massive. Islamists think that way about their religion in the West.
Neither is the other rugby code. Both are niche sports, one - RU - slightly less niche. Both are played in outposts of the British Commonwealth, and but for this cultural link they wouldn't be played much at all outside England. In terms of shenanigans both are fighting over the scraps, the same small playing pool and people who are interested in watching the oval ball game. They are two codes of the same sport and will always be in conflict with each other.
Collision based sports have always had far lower participation numbers. Running into another human being is an acquired taste. Disclosing my own position I far more enjoy watching it than playing it, and among my friends im one of few that watches it. Other collision sports such as American football, Aussie rules, Gaelic football, they are popular in terms of participation in their own countries as its cultural - it's beyond just sport. In other places where there isn't a cultural tie they are barely played at all, while the viewing numbers are miniscule in comparison to their home country.
As was mentioned on this thread RL was most popular in Scotland in Aberdeen, where many men from RL heartlands in the north of England work offshore, so there is a cultural tie. Take away this cultural tie it would be like much of the rest of Scotland.
It's up to RL - and any other sport - to create a culture in a location, and that's done by doing it themselves. Spending money on clubs and academies for the locals to join. Cutting development officers won't exactly do it. Like any collision sport don't expect large numbers though, as unless it is embedded in the fabric of the place - NFL in the US, Aussie rules in Aus, Gaelic football in Ireland - it won't get significant numbers.
