I agree with the thread title- change IS needed. Yesterday a championship club had a decent chance to secure promotion. We failed albeit narrowly. I believe if this system is retained it will be much harder for championship clubs in future years as the gap between the leagues will widen .
Take away the raw emotion in Jimmy Lowes comments and address the basic points he was making. He does not believe that the system helps develop players or improve our international chances - quite the reverse. Add to that the comments by Brian Smith who was clear that outside the elite clubs , the game over here is struggling. He said that Wakefield have been unable to recruit quality players for next year . As a consequence they will struggle again next year.
Of the top 4 Leeds Saints and Wigan have always been in that elite. Huddersfield has developed gradually in the years when there was no relegation. 3 of the next 4 are in a similar position to the Giants - Catalans Warrington and Hull . The team which finished 5th is the exception. Cas' achievements in the past 2 seasons make them my club of the year.
Most successful sporting competitions have far more even playing fields than UK rugby league. The NFL,the AFL, and in the USA Baseball, Ice Hockey, Basketball and the NFL all have stable finances and the vast majority of the competing teams in those leagues go into a new season believing they have a chance of success.
But of course we have soccer's example with a promotion / relegation system operating. I'd argue that you can accurately predict 6 teams who will be in the top 8 in each years Premier League and it's the same equation in most countries. So for me soccer is the exception rather than the model.
Cricket has a promotion/ relegation structure. The last team to enter that competition was Durham and there are no structural barriers which prevent a team in the second tier recruiting and competing for promotion. There are a host of international cricketers playing at teams such as Lancashire, Surrey and Essex.
I have always favoured a franchising/ licensing system not because I am a Bradford fan but Because I genuinely believe it would be better for our sport. I realise that I am in a minority. However one possible compromise would be to ask clubs outside the Super League to state whether they aspire to become full time or not. Ask them to provide business plans. I honestly believe that some of the clubs in the Championship harbour no such ambition . Obviously Leigh Halifax Sheffield and London would probably answer yes.There may be some more. Perform due diligence on those plans. If the figures add up , construct a 2 division structure which has full promotion / relegation. It could be one up one down, 2 up 2 down ( as in cricket) , a system including play offs ( as in soccer) or even something similar to a Middle 8 league.Make the funding and salary cap differentials much narrower between the 2 divisions.
