Welsh club Celtic Crusaders have defeated Featherstone; NL1 and Super League beckon.

[AlbertRosenfeld]

Last night Bridgend-based Welsh club Celtic Crusaders upset the English bookies odds when they defeated Featherstone Rovers comfortably at Featherstone 32-12, before a crowd of 2,993, and a television audience probably in excess of 100,000 on Sky Sports. It was an impressive victory against the competition leaders, putting the Welsh club in second place with a game in hand over first placed Featherstone (2 points ahead of CC) and third placed Barrow. It gives the Crusaders a chance to come first in the regular season, and thus qualify for the NL1 promotion automatically, if they can win their remaining six games. Otherwise they will have to enter the playoffs to fight for a second place promotion.

It is very good that CC won by 20 points, because this denied Featherstone the chance to earn a bonus point (for a 12 points or less loss) and thus perhaps winning the regular competition on for and against. The National Leagues are on a results grading system of three points for a win, two points for a draw, and one point for a loss of 12 points or less.

Promotion to NL1 is a precondition for applying to the RFL for a Super League franchise. But with a talented team, and strong financial backing from multi millionaire owner Leighton Samuels, the Welsh club are not only now favorites for promotion to NL1, but also a good chance of making the professional big time of Super League in 2009.

 

[Coastbloke]

Yeh, I saw a match thread on TRL..

Very good stuff.

A core team of Celtic Crusaders and some SL players like Harris and Cunningham could surely do fairly well at the WC...??

 

[t-ba]

Great Crowd. Imagine what these guys can do in Super League?

As important as clubs in Manchester and London are, Salford and Harlequin would have trouble breaking 1000 in NL1, let alone NL2.

 

[AlbertRosenfeld]

Before you all get too carried away:

This match was played at Featherstone, not in Wales. So while this fact gives great credit to the visitors for winning, you can bet that there were overwhelmingly local Yorkshiremen there.

Also I am told Sky gives away free tickets for its week night NL telecasts, to ensure a good crowd.

 

[t-ba]

My Mistake for lacking basic reading functions. Continue...

 

[langpark]

Yeh, I saw a match thread on TRL..

Very good stuff.

A core team of Celtic Crusaders and some SL players like Harris and Cunningham could surely do fairly well at the WC...??

<untingham has quit international footy (not that he ever even played)

 

[In-goal]

I think piggy cunningham is still available for wales just not gb

 

[AlbertRosenfeld]

I think His Excellency Keiron Cunningham is still available for Wales, just not for Great Britain

That is correct. His Excellency has said as much.

But that will not do Celtic Crusaders any good. He is staying at St Helens.

The importance of the rise of Celtic Crusaders is the boost it will give to rugby league's popularity -- among spectators and players -- throughout Wales. Eventually, many years from now, a home nations contest which would include England could become a reality.

 

[hutch]

where abouts in yorkshire is featherstone?

 

[roughyedspud]

near wakefield

 

[S.S.T.I.D]

Top stuff, I'll be keeping my fingers crosses that they can maintain their form. Can anyone tell me the difference in funding between NL1 and NL2 if there is?

 

[bowes]

A core team of Celtic Crusaders and some SL players like Harris and Cunningham could surely do fairly well at the WC...??

Apart from the fact that most of their players are overseas players

 

[bowes]

Top stuff, I'll be keeping my fingers crosses that they can maintain their form. Can anyone tell me the difference in funding between NL1 and NL2 if there is?

None directly, you get £15000 in either division, BUT playing in NL1 means you get more televised matches, and the league sponsorship gives money to teams each time that are televised, not to mention extra exposure. However, this is irrelevent to Celtic Crusaders as they get matches shown anyway, the only NL2 matches (playoff final aside) that are shown include the Crusaders and they've got a few matches (plus some on S4C)

 

[bartman]

Good win makes for a competitive fight for the promotion spots.

I still expect CC to have to fight through the play offs for it. And as they know only too well, anything can happen in play-offs...

 

[ParraEelsNRL]

Apart from the fact that most of their players are overseas players

Yeah, where they are born makes that much of a difference :roll:

Give it up, the CC team is playing better than the other teams in NL2, maybe you could give them credit instead of complaining.

 

[crimpo]

There are always Welsh guys in the Crusaders team - as standards progress hopefully there will be more.

As for having NL2 sewed up - not yet they haven't especially given that they are a bit inconsistent away from home. Ties at Barrow and at Oldham are going to be very tricky.

As for Super League - those usual attendances need to push from 8-900 up to 1,500 in my view before they can really be considered. However, the progress is all in the right direction

 

[bowes]

Yeah, where they are born makes that much of a difference :roll:

Give it up, the CC team is playing better than the other teams in NL2, maybe you could give them credit instead of complaining.

Why did you not read the context. He said their players would be good for the World Cup squad, so of course where they were born makes a difference for the world cup team, they can't play their overseas players:roll: ](*,)

 

[ParraEelsNRL]

I'm not talking about the WC, I thought this thread was about CC and their players. :roll:

 

[bowes]

I'm not talking about the WC, I thought this thread was about CC and their players. :roll:

:roll:
YEAH BUT THE PERSON I WAS MAKING THE POST ABOUT THEIR PLAYERS IN REPLY TO WAS TALKING ABOUT THEM USING THEIR TEAM AS A SQUAD FOR THE WORLD CUP SO OF COURSE IT IS IMPORTANT. IF YOU'D CHOSEN TO READ THE CONTEXT OF THE POST RATHER THAN CHOOSING TO PRETEND IT IS AN ATTACK ON CELTIC CRUSADERS USE OF OVERSEAS PLAYERS THEN YOU'D KNOW HOW RIDICULOUS YOU ARE BEING AND WHY SHOULD IT MATTER WHAT YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT AS MY POST WAS IN REPLY TO SOMEONE OTHER THAN YOU (COASTBLOKE) WHO WAS TALKING ABOUT THE WORLD CUP
](*,) ](*,)

 

[ali]

Another win today, this time away to Barrow who are running third and played some good footy last week when I saw them at Skolars. Barrow is a big side, with Michael Smith in the front row and another guy as big as him coming off the bench. Pat Wiesner played a blinder against Skolars, so this was definately going to be a tough one for the Crusaders. But they have got home 26-24 and if they can keep their consistency, should be going up to NL1 for 2008.