2015 - a new era

[roughyedspud]

http://www.superleague.co.uk/2015_a_new_era



all "explained" here

 

[hutch]

I am excited by the new system, just dismayed that there are absolutely no plans for France that have been published. Do they consult the French federation? Are there any plans for a second French team in super league ever? I couldn't care less about upsetting supporters of English clubs, Toulouse should be given a spot in super league and Catalans should be exempt from relegation.

 

[miguel de cervantes]

Someone get back to me when they release some sort of a graphic to explain it all. My god that is complicated.

Which group are Toulouse supposedly going to play in?

 

[langpark]

I am excited by the new system, just dismayed that there are absolutely no plans for France that have been published. Do they consult the French federation? Are there any plans for a second French team in super league ever? I couldn't care less about upsetting supporters of English clubs, Toulouse should be given a spot in super league and Catalans should be exempt from relegation.

I agree with you about bringing Toulouse in, but they should NOT be exempt from relegation, no team ever should be...

And to enter they should have to beat the winners of the championship that year, a one-off match at a neutral venue...

 

[bowes]

I agree with you about bringing Toulouse in, but they should NOT be exempt from relegation, no team ever should be...

And to enter they should have to beat the winners of the championship that year, a one-off match at a neutral venue...

That wouldn't work as the Championship winners don't go up. They have a qualifying pool of the bottom 4 of SL and top 4 of the Championship. I think a lot of the problem is that France plays a different season so couldn't enter teams in the playoffs in any conceivable way. I think they're still hoping to bring Toulouse into the Championship in 2016 but this time the league is better funded with a higher salary cap (plus the French Elite 1 is a weaker league so less competition). At the very least they'd have a good chance of getting to play the bottom SL sides in the qualifying competition

They may have to make Toulouse exempt from relegation from the Championship though as doubt League 1 could sustainably have a French team

 

[Rodney]

it'd be an extension on the million pound game.
Or instead of having 4 v 5 in the million pound game they could have 4 v Toulouse to decide who goes up.

 

[bowes]

Wouldn't work as the new French season would be about 2 months in by that point

 

[Gambass]

If you're serious about expanding the game (and expanding the game overseas on top of that), you don't bring P&R wich is simply the worst way possible to achieve it.

The RFL doesn't want to expand the game, Toulouse will never be in SL and Catalans will ultimately be kicked out one way or another. That's really as simple as that.

Stop kidding yourself.

 

[roughyedspud]

oh shut up dickhead...




as for the new structure,i hate the super 8 format...but league1 looks fantastic

 

[ucantseeme]

I guess more "meaningful" games potentially means more tv viewers and more attendees at matches. Focusing on Superleague, the playoffs involve the top 8 out 12 teams in the comp. Okay, that's easy.

Team finishing 9th + 10th in Superleague play in "qualifiers" tournament against the teams finishing 1st + 2nd from the 2nd tier comp. And the top 3 of those teams play Superleague the following year.

So every year the 2 bottom teams in Superleague are relegated and potentially the 9th or 10th ranked team relegated too depending on how they go in the Qualifier tournament. The Million Pound game structure is too confusing so I won't even try.

Wouldn't having 2-3 Superleague teams be relegated each year be detrimental to the competition? To quote the ESL website " To compete in Super League, a club needs to have a squad of exclusively full-time players backed up by a fully professional coaching and administrative staff". So do these 2nd tier clubs being promoted to top tier in 2016 have this in place?

 

[CC_Roosters]

I guess more "meaningful" games potentially means more tv viewers and more attendees at matches. Focusing on Superleague, the playoffs involve the top 8 out 12 teams in the comp. Okay, that's easy.

Team finishing 9th + 10th in Superleague play in "qualifiers" tournament against the teams finishing 1st + 2nd from the 2nd tier comp. And the top 3 of those teams play Superleague the following year.

So every year the 2 bottom teams in Superleague are relegated and potentially the 9th or 10th ranked team relegated too depending on how they go in the Qualifier tournament. The Million Pound game structure is too confusing so I won't even try.

Wouldn't having 2-3 Superleague teams be relegated each year be detrimental to the competition? To quote the ESL website " To compete in Super League, a club needs to have a squad of exclusively full-time players backed up by a fully professional coaching and administrative staff". So do these 2nd tier clubs being promoted to top tier in 2016 have this in place?

I have heard the likes of leigh are already moving towards being fulltime and I would say a number of other clubs are capable of it in the Second tier with a million pound cap

 

[Wilson1]

The Good Points:

- Promotion/relegation is back. This is absolutely essential to ensure that club's below the top teir do not die and it creates more meaningful games all season long.
- The top tier will only feature 12 teams. This is also essential - there is not the quality of players to have 14 teams. This also means that the Championship will be a stronger competition.
- The split is generally a good idea. I like the idea because it means that Championship clubs can get experience playing Super League clubs and see how good they really need to be before getting promoted. The worst thing would be if a club gets promoted automatically but is not used to that level and gets thrashed that season.
- The League Cup for the lower divisions returns.
- Coventry Bears.

The Bad Points:

- A team making the Super League final and the Challenge Cup final would, by my reckoning, play 30 regular season games, 2 playoff games and 4 Challenge cup games. How do you fit all 36 fixtures into a season and still leave time for international rugby league? It seems there will be an earlier start (in winter) or mid week games. Both options leave players and fans jaded.
- Rivalries could become diluted. Leeds and Wigan could play each other twice during the regular season, once during magic weekend, once post split, once in the super league playoffs and once in the Challenge Cup. This would get very boring for the fans.
- I do not believe Toulouse should just be placed in the Super League or be exempt from relegation but I think there should be some mechanism for them to enter the competition.
- I would rather see the magic weekend replaced with a 9's competition.

 

[roughyedspud]

ideally the championship would mirror super league and would have 1 french team in it

 

[CC_Roosters]

Now that its all out in the open to be honest I quite like it. Every club can find its level while ambitious clubs can aim higher with a clear pathway. The post split matches will be intense and edgy with consequences with every game. The Rfl can continue to admit new teams like Coventry with the knowledge that they can be upwardly mobile

I hope toulouse come into the structure but neither them nor Catalans should be immune to relegation for the sake of the competitions integrity. Anyway I think should Catalans get relegated which I think is unlikely in any given season I couldnt see them staying down long. Also we are seeing more French players at English clubs which will hopefully continue and shield the French side from the Catalans fortunes.

Only draw back I can see is the number of games still being too high in super league. The current nrl finals format for the top 8 would have been suffice imo

 

[deal.with.it]

Couple of questions:

1. For the Championship "Central funding starting at £750,000 for the 2 relegated Super League teams and subsequently on a sliding scale down to £150,000 (?) for the other Champs teams."
How would this work? What determines the central funding you receive?

2. What is the salary cap for League 1? Central funding?

3. 50% rule for SL clubs? Why not all clubs? If Central funding is £1.7M, what is the salary cap? What budget do the top teams currently work on? Is there a case study of success?

 

[Eddie Rattlehead]

Someone get back to me when they release some sort of a graphic to explain it all. My god that is complicated.

Gotta agree there, lost me at super 8's and what not .

 

[Big Sam]

- A team making the Super League final and the Challenge Cup final would, by my reckoning, play 30 regular season games, 2 playoff games and 4 Challenge cup games. How do you fit all 36 fixtures into a season and still leave time for international rugby league? It seems there will be an earlier start (in winter) or mid week games. Both options leave players and fans jaded.
- Rivalries could become diluted. Leeds and Wigan could play each other twice during the regular season, once during magic weekend, once post split, once in the super league playoffs and once in the Challenge Cup. This would get very boring for the fans.

1. The new structure is only one round longer than the current format - 23+7+2 (32) vs 27+4 (31)

2. Under the current format teams can likewise meet each other 6 times in a season - 2 H&A games, Magic Weekend, Challenge Cup, and 2 matches in the playoffs.

Also does anyone know which points system will be adopted? I hope the lower leagues just go back to the non-bonus point method.

 

[CC_Roosters]

1. The new structure is only one round longer than the current format - 23+7+2 (32) vs 27+4 (31)

2. Under the current format teams can likewise meet each other 6 times in a season - 2 H&A games, Magic Weekend, Challenge Cup, and 2 matches in the playoffs.

Also does anyone know which points system will be adopted? I hope the lower leagues just go back to the non-bonus point method.

I read somewhere the bonus point system currently in the championships was being considered across the board. Mixed feelings on it, may make teams play for 80 instead of some of the defensive implosions we see if a point is on the line for keeping it close

 

[roughyedspud]

1.i think its where they finish in the league.

2. god knows....one could assume its £1m as theres no distinction between championship or league 1 in the briefing?

and league 1 clubs get just £75,000..

 

[Rodney]

Why is the championship cap only raised to 1mil?
Forgive me if its a stupid question, but as they're going to be splitting into 8s with the middle 8 having Super League and Championship teams surely it would be ideal for Championship clubs to have the potential to match those Super League clubs in the value of players on the pitch.
As it stands you could have Championship sides trotting out against teams worth almost double they are.