It doesn't , but unfortunatley that is the required criteria

Unfortunatley some people seem to be more bothered about people who dont give a stuff about RL than the people who do actually love the sport for what it is

RL can be a strong vibrant sport that enriches it's communities and the people in them

But some seem to want more than that

Maybe one day they will get it , I await with glee the day that the USA find a major sponsor/benefactor for RL and we see a mass exodus of players from the big clubs to America

That will really help us beat the Aussies

Exactly.

There are people on here who would pi55 themselves with excitement at the prospect of a game being played in front of 3 men and a dead goat in Mongolia, but would criticise a 4-5k crowd in Northern England.

As I have said earlier there is roughly a population of 170,000 within 40 minutes of the mid-point between Whitehaven and Workington. There is a very strong amateur set-up that stands up well to Yorkshire and Lancashire in the County Championships and are the current champions.

Scouts from the top clubs are often seen watching young Cumbrians who have to leave the county if they want to make it at SL level. Why do all the expansionists insist on expansion clubs being given a chance over a number of years to develop their own players and yet deny an area that does produce them the right to be in SL.

Neither of the two west Cumbrian clubs would be strong enough to survive SL on their own but together they could be quite a force. Five figure crowds are not part of the criteria for a licence. A stadium having a 12,000 capacity gets you one tick in the boxes and 40% of your capacity also gets you a tick. So, a team averaging 3,200 in an 8,000 stadium would get one of the two ticks available.

Criticise, no.

Accept that one represents progress whilst the other represents the status quo, yes.

Major growth for rugby league is not going to happen in towns or villages that have had professional or senior amateur sides for 100+ years. Re-gaining fans that have stopped attending matches will happen, getting into schools and developing new generations of fans will happen - but neither will change the perception of a sport that the business and social elites have derided for being parochial and northern since its inception.

I hear a lot of fine words about the 'Energy Coast' and the input from nuclear companies to fund Cumbrian sport. What is in it for them? West Cumbria has little chance of attracting 20000 jobs to replace the nuclear industry if they upped and left, so beyond contractual obligations why should they fund any sporting developments?

Neither the Cloffocks nor the Recre have moved on much since they were first mooted though, so perhaps the dream of a super-stadium is still there.

So you agree , it's never going to happen

So lets stop keep trying to think of ways to make it happen and instead just concentrate on improving all RL clubs , no matter where they are

To be fair I think you will find that it is a subject that is more often than not brought up by people from outside of west Cumbria. I have no doubt that if Cumbria was in Scotland there would have been a major involvement from the RFL to establish a SL team here. It is the perception that we need to have clubs here there and everywhere, no matter what.

There is a way for Cumbria to get a SL team. Will it happen? No.

Well Whitehaven don't do too badly out of the nuclear industry at present David!! Their main sponsor is Nuclear Management Partners and they donate £45k per season and BNFL made a pledge of £500k towards Haven's grandstand that they were hoping to get. Also it has already been stated in the press here that if this area was to become the Energy Coast there would be several millions of pounds for community projects. The Sellafield plant also makes available jobs for Haven players which is a big draw when signing players.

Forgive my cynicism Keith, but a lot of claims are made in advance of deals being finalised that then get tied up in red tape for years to come. I remember the 80's bonanza of BNFL chucking money at Cumbrian RL, but 'community sport' is different to developing an elite club and elite facilities. I'm not sufficiently versed in such matters but I suspect there are tax breaks for companies that invest in community facilities - these would not be enough to get the finance needed for Cumbria SL though.

Whitehaven and Workington are about one and a half hours away from Kendal, getting the Barrow is now alot easier... from the M6 take the duel carriage way up towards the bypass at Cartmel, after the bypass the road isn't great for 10-15 minutes.

It's not an hour away from Barrow, 40 minutes max.