Discuss Rugby League HERE!

[Lee]

Hello,

I have created this thread to be the home of all Rugby League discussion at HxF. My aims for this are to increase Rugby League discussion and encourage others to take an interest in the sport

So, who supports who and what matches are you going this week end?

[Mathew]

Woooo, someone else who likes Rugby League - at last!

I've been a supporter of Batley Bulldogs since I was old enough to attend the matches with my Dad. We go to most home and away games each weekend and really look forward to it all week. It's only been the past couple of years that I've actually understood the game (I always used to just go along for the fun of it), but I absolutely love the sport now. I'm actually constantly amazed by the amount of thinking that they have to do; the coordination, speed, strength and dedication is expected each and every week and I find it quite mind-blowing just how much practice and thought it must take.

It's only been in the past couple of years that we've really started to push ourselves up the league and playing with the more advanced teams. Despite only being at Championship level (one under Superleague), we've put up some really good fights against Wakefield, Castleford and even Huddersfield in the past couple of years. We managed to win the Northern Rail Cup in 2010 against Widnes Vikings after an extremely tense ending over at Blackpool. You could have cut the stadium with a knife, it was crazy! Sadly, we didn't win any silverware last year, but we finished near the top of the league.

Leigh and Featherstone were tough teams to beat last year, but Batley have signed loads of good players this year including Ben Black and Gareth Moore. We even had Ben Fisher up until a couple of weeks ago, but his contract stated that he'd be able to leave if a Superleague team wanted him: so he's gone now. We're playing Featherstone on Sunday so we'll be going over to Post Office Road to watch that. We'll probably go over to Leigh on Thursday night to watch that too. Both games should be good tests to predict how well we'll do in the upcoming season. Whatever happens, I'm sure it will be an eventful one!

http://www.batleybulldogs.co.uk/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batley_Bulldogs

[Lee]

Woooo, someone else who likes Rugby League - at last!

I've been a supporter of Batley Bulldogs since I was old enough to attend the matches. We go to most home and away games each weekend and really look forward to it all week.

Exactly the same, except im a Viking Go every week, such as sunday ill be driving to Hull

It's only been the past couple of years that I've actually understood the game (I always used to just go along for the fun of it), but I absolutely love the sport now. I'm actually constantly amazed by the amount of thinking that they have to do; the coordination, speed, strength and dedication is expected each and every week and I find it quite mind-blowing just how much practice and thought it must take.

Yeah that's just a few of the many pro's of Rugby League compared to other sports, Ive been a fan nearly all my life and I think I will be until I die if I'm honest.

It's only been in the past couple of years that we've really started to push ourselves up the league and playing with the more advanced teams. Despite only being at Championship level (one under Superleague), we've put up some really good fights against Wakefield, Castleford and even Huddersfield in the past couple of years. We managed to win the Northern Rail Cup in 2010 against Widnes Vikings after an extremely tense ending over at Blackpool. You could have cut the stadium with a knife, it was crazy! Sadly, we didn't win any silverware last year, but we finished near the top of the league.

Your right, and I think the future looks promising for Batley, however it wont be easy getting a Super Leaguelicencein 3 years time (Nor will it for us) with the contenders your facing! I was at the match in question and your right it was a terrific game! I was not happy with the result of course :L Just make sure you stick with your team that's the most important thing!

Leigh and Featherstone were tough teams to beat last year, but Batley have signed loads of good players this year including Ben Black and Gareth Moore. We even had Ben Fisher up until a couple of weeks ago, but his contract stated that he'd be able to leave if a Superleague team wanted him: so he's gone now. We're playing Featherstone on Sunday so we'll be going over to Post Office Road to watch that. We'll probably go over to Leigh on Thursday night to watch that too. Both games should be good tests to predict how well we'll do in the upcoming season. Whatever happens, I'm sure it will be an eventful one!

Aha, you better hope Ben Black doesn't drop the ball whilst about to win the game for use You have a couple of key names in your squad which is great, Im gutted that Premier have the Champ now because I don't have it but I'll be closely following the league.

Best of luck for the season, it should be an interesting discussion on a sunday night

[Mathew]

Exactly the same, except im a Viking Go every week, such as sunday ill be driving to Hull

Ooooo! We drove over to Widnes a couple of years ago to watch Vikings vs. Bulldogs during the run up to the NRC final. It was brilliant claiming victory over at Blackpool, haha!

The issue I have with RFL is that they award the franchising to one specific team which pretty much gives them automatic access to the Superleague, regardless of the amount of wins. Widnes, like Leigh, has a pretty impressive stadium whereas Batley would probably be unable to support the crowds that are drawn from Superleague matches. This makes it highly unlikely that teams such as Batley and Featherstone will make it into Superleague, just because the ground is unable to support it. I was really hoping for Leigh to make it into Superleague because they were simply too good for everyone last year. They thrashed pretty much every single game and it just wasn't all that fair. It was a shock to see Widnes get the promotion when Leigh had won many more games! It all depends on who they decide to award the franchise to.

Yeah that's just a few of the many pro's of Rugby League compared to other sports, Ive been a fan nearly all my life and I think I will be until I die if I'm honest.

I watched the highlights after the Superbowl this year, and I actually thought I could get quite into American Football. It seems similar to Rugby League in a couple of respects, so perhaps that's another one I'd enjoy.

Your right, and I think the future looks promising for Batley, however it wont be easy getting a Super Leaguelicencein 3 years time (Nor will it for us) with the contenders your facing! I was at the match in question and your right it was a terrific game! I was not happy with the result of course :L Just make sure you stick with your team that's the most important thing!

The ending was sooooo tense and it felt so good when Alex Brown got the ball over the try line in the last few minutes. It must have been fate - I remember that Gareth Moore scored a drop-goal half-way through the game - it would have only been a draw if it wasn't for that! It was quite nice to make a day out of the event though. My Dad and I went over for the afternoon and had lunch in McDonalds... it was raining on the sea-front so went into a pub with a bunch of other Batley fans. It was brilliant.

Aha, you better hope Ben Black doesn't drop the ball whilst about to win the game for use You have a couple of key names in your squad which is great, Im gutted that Premier have the Champ now because I don't have it but I'll be closely following the league.

LOL, they were dropping the ball all over the place at a recent game against Keighley. Naturally, their fans took pride in our lack of control! Thankfully we haven't lost a game yet this year, so I really hope it stays that way. We lost the annual Boxing Day match against Dewsbury Rams which was shameful, but they seem to gelled together as a team now and they're performing a lot better.

Best of luck for the season, it should be an interesting discussion on a sunday night

You too! I look forward to it!

[Lee]

Ooooo! We drove over to Widnes a couple of years ago to watch Vikings vs. Bulldogs during the run up to the NRC final. It was brilliant claiming victory over at Blackpool, haha!

Haha yeah it's always a good day out, particularly on the nice days when you can make the most out of the games in Blackpool!

The issue I have with RFL is that they award the franchising to one specific team which pretty much gives them automatic access to the Superleague, regardless of the amount of wins. Widnes, like Leigh, has a pretty impressive stadium whereas Batley would probably be unable to support the crowds that are drawn from Superleague matches. This makes it highly unlikely that teams such as Batley and Featherstone will make it into Superleague, just because the ground is unable to support it. I was really hoping for Leigh to make it into Superleague because they were simply too good for everyone last year. They thrashed pretty much every single game and it just wasn't all that fair. It was a shock to see Widnes get the promotion when Leigh had won many more games! It all depends on who they decide to award the franchise to.

It's a verycontroversialissue which has it's pro's and con's. What you need to remember is many clubs - including us - are deeply effected financially by the promotion system by overspending to the extend where we go too far relying on going up, then don't go up or get a less-serious knockback that lands you in a whole load of debt until you are sent into administration. Teams didn't have enough time to get teams together from the end of the season to the start of the season which made a very similar promotion/demotion pattern Of course the negatives are that the whole decision is influenced by Richard Lewis (Despised) and his team of monkeys who lately don't seem to know what they're doing!

I watched the highlights after the Superbowl this year, and I actually thought I could get quite into American Football. It seems similar to Rugby League in a couple of respects, so perhaps that's another one I'd enjoy.

Not something I've looked into personally, I can see what your saying and might watch it next time I have a late one - like now

The ending was sooooo tense and it felt so good when Alex Brown got the ball over the try line in the last few minutes. It must have been fate - I remember that Gareth Moore scored a drop-goal half-way through the game - it would have only been a draw if it wasn't for that! It was quite nice to make a day out of the event though. My Dad and I went over for the afternoon and had lunch in McDonalds... it was raining on the sea-front so went into a pub with a bunch of other Batley fans. It was brilliant.

Yeah those experiences are priceless, a family day out to the rugby, supporting the team with pride, pie at the ready and insults to the referee noted - lets face it he isalways to blame I can admit our weaknesses to be fair so I don't always rely on the referee's poor match skills to back me up


Leigh didn't qualify, unfortunately their up rise was not soon enough so they didn't have the criteria met in time which was a shame because if they qualified they where going up without a doubt I think.

[Mathew]

Haha yeah it's always a good day out, particularly on the nice days when you can make the most out of the games in Blackpool!

I've only ever been to Blackpool a few times but it's actually quite nice now they've redone the front. It must have cost millions but it's quite impressive to say it's in the UK! P

It's a verycontroversialissue which has it's pro's and con's. What you need to remember is many clubs - including us - are deeply effected financially by the promotion system by overspending to the extend where we go too far relying on going up, then don't go up or get a less-serious knockback that lands you in a whole load of debt until you are sent into administration. Teams didn't have enough time to get teams together from the end of the season to the start of the season which made a very similar promotion/demotion pattern Of course the negatives are that the whole decision is influenced by Richard Lewis (Despised) and his team of monkeys who lately don't seem to know what they're doing!

Yeah I guess that's a point. If you rely on being promoted too heavily then it's gonna be a huge loss if you don't actually make it. On the face of it, it's a shame that the most successful clubs don't make it... but then I suppose that's the drawbacks and influence of money.

Not something I've looked into personally, I can see what your saying and might watch it next time I have a late one - like now

Hehe, I'm hoping to study in North Carolina in a couple of years on a Study Abroad scheme. I have a friend who lives a couple of hours away and he's wanting to take me to some games, LOL!

Yeah those experiences are priceless, a family day out to the rugby, supporting the team with pride, pie at the ready and insults to the referee noted - lets face it he isalways to blame I can admit our weaknesses to be fair so I don't always rely on the referee's poor match skills to back me up

Oh my... Batley do the best Cheesy Chips, hahaha! I used to go to the rugby just for the food but then I found out the game actually was pretty decent! Ughhhh, we never seem to get a good referee... there's a couple which just make you angry when you hear their name announced at the start of the game!

Leigh didn't qualify, unfortunately their up rise was not soon enough so they didn't have the criteria met in time which was a shame because if they qualified they where going up without a doubt I think.

I wish they'd just go and leave the rest of us to battle it out... Batley might have a chance at coming top then! Hey, I have faith in them this year though... tomorrow's game is going to be vital to decide where we'll end up.

[Lee]

I've only ever been to Blackpool a few times but it's actually quite nice now they've redone the front. It must have cost millions but it's quite impressive to say it's in the UK! P


Yeah I guess that's a point. If you rely on being promoted too heavily then it's gonna be a huge loss if you don't actually make it. On the face of it, it's a shame that the most successful clubs don't make it... but then I suppose that's the drawbacks and influence of money.


Hehe, I'm hoping to study in North Carolina in a couple of years on a Study Abroad scheme. I have a friend who lives a couple of hours away and he's wanting to take me to some games, LOL!


Oh my... Batley do the best Cheesy Chips, hahaha! I used to go to the rugby just for the food but then I found out the game actually was pretty decent! Ughhhh, we never seem to get a good referee... there's a couple which just make you angry when you hear their name announced at the start of the game!


I wish they'd just go and leave the rest of us to battle it out... Batley might have a chance at coming top then! Hey, I have faith in them this year though... tomorrow's game is going to be vital to decide where we'll end up.

haha yeah I'll get tomorrows live scores up Im in work tonight from 12:00am get in at 5am get up at 10:30am ready to leave at 12:00pm and drive to Hull for a 3pm kick off. Our two new faces have arrived but are not named in the squad unfortunately but I am not writing ourselves off at all!

[Mathew]

haha yeah I'll get tomorrows live scores up Im in work tonight from 12:00am get in at 5am get up at 10:30am ready to leave at 12:00pm and drive to Hull for a 3pm kick off. Our two new faces have arrived but are not named in the squad unfortunately but I am not writing ourselves off at all!

I hope today wasn't too tiring for you! That is a crazy shift, haha!

Batley had a fantastic game today. It wasn't looking too bright in the first 10 minutes or so - Featherstone managed to score two tries quite early on and I thought it was going to be a shambles. The Bulldogs just kept on scoring though and it was 24-8 to Batley at half time. The second half was slightly worse but we still ended up winning 34-22. Obviously I'm going to be a bit biased but we really did think the referee was up to something dodgy - there were several instances where he "didn't see" the knock-on and others where he gave penalties to them for something and not us. An ex-referee in the crowd (Batley supporter) even commented that it was pretty bad.

I think both Batley and Featherstone were resting some of their better players - both of us are through to the next stage so there wasn't really anything to win or lose. We didn't play Ben Black, Danny Maun, Alex Brown, Jason Walton, etc so I'm guessing he's saving some of them for the game against Leigh on Thursday night. That said, even though he didn't play the regular players, we still performed really well indeed - it seems we have about two full teams of decent players for once.. It's absolutely amazing that we managed to get John Kear, haha.

Can't wait for Thursday night against Leigh now - that should be an interesting game and will really determine how far we can go this season.

How did today play out for you?

[Lee]

I hope today wasn't too tiring for you! That is a crazy shift, haha!

Batley had a fantastic game today. It wasn't looking too bright in the first 10 minutes or so - Featherstone managed to score two tries quite early on and I thought it was going to be a shambles. The Bulldogs just kept on scoring though and it was 24-8 to Batley at half time. The second half was slightly worse but we still ended up winning 34-22. Obviously I'm going to be a bit biased but we really did think the referee was up to something dodgy - there were several instances where he "didn't see" the knock-on and others where he gave penalties to them for something and not us. An ex-referee in the crowd (Batley supporter) even commented that it was pretty bad.

I think both Batley and Featherstone were resting some of their better players - both of us are through to the next stage so there wasn't really anything to win or lose. We didn't play Ben Black, Danny Maun, Alex Brown, Jason Walton, etc so I'm guessing he's saving some of them for the game against Leigh on Thursday night. That said, even though he didn't play the regular players, we still performed really well indeed - it seems we have about two full teams of decent players for once.. It's absolutely amazing that we managed to get John Kear, haha.

Can't wait for Thursday night against Leigh now - that should be an interesting game and will really determine how far we can go this season.

How did today play out for you?

Glad to hear you enjoyed your day. My day however was nothing more than a nightmare. Drove 2.5hrs to Hull to get caught in a snow storm which lasted throughout the match. We where shoved in a stand which was barely acceptable to meet Amature Rugby League requirements never mind Super League. So putting that aside - it might not have been a poor day if we managed to perform.

We come out, did the same old crap we have been doing for the last god knows how long (with exception of leeds) flat lines blah blah so we got beat 36-0 in the end. Poor result, poor game and I call for Denis Betts to go :L

I'll be watching on Thursday good luck

[Mathew]

Glad to hear you enjoyed your day. My day however was nothing more than a nightmare. Drove 2.5hrs to Hull to get caught in a snow storm which lasted throughout the match. We where shoved in a stand which was barely acceptable to meet Amature Rugby League requirements never mind Super League. So putting that aside - it might not have been a poor day if we managed to perform.

We come out, did the same old crap we have been doing for the last god knows how long (with exception of leeds) flat lines blah blah so we got beat 36-0 in the end. Poor result, poor game and I call for Denis Betts to go :L

I'll be watching on Thursday good luck

Oh wow! There's nothing worse than driving in the snow, but then having it last throughout the game too! We didn't have any snow up here, thankfully, but it was terribly cold outside. It doesn't help that I have a cold either though; even my thermal socks, scarf, hat, gloves and four layers didn't keep me that warm! I remember the old days when rugby was a winter sport - it's much better now that it's slightly warmer!

That said, Mount Pleasant is cold all year round, so it doesn't really make much difference! My hands and toes are absolutely freezing every week... I just can't walk afterwards! Hull don't have a decent ground then? Castleford's wasn't much good when we visited there a couple of years ago either... although I'm pretty sure Wakefield's is the worst! Batley are having a couple of rennovations this year I think (starting with an electronic scoreboard and then a new stand later)... some members of club management have been sponsored to walk to Leigh ahead of the game next week. That should make for an interesting news article..

Was Denis Betts the coach whilst you guys were still in the lower division? Perhaps the stress of Superleague has gotten too much!