Dickie's Meadow

By -

This week I have been watching, recently departed RFL supremo Richard Lewis, giving interviews in his new role as Wimbledon CEO and have been reflecting on his time in office.

There is no doubt that he provided much needed stability when it was very much needed and RFL revenue has increased under him.  Dickie Lewis has presided over the introduction of the licensing process which has resulted in improved facilities and increased professionalism at SL level. He will be remembered for an expansion of the international game throughout the northern hemisphere and I believe this will bear fruit in the future.

While the financial situation has improved at the RFL (although in my opinion it started from a very low base and needs to increase much more) we have witnessed the Crusaders debacle, the Stobart non-sponsorship and now the problems at the Bradford Bulls. London still play in front of very low crowds (3600 v Leeds yesterday) and they along with other clubs are struggling to keep up. Some of our most famous teams live hand to mouth below SL level and feel excluded by the licencing process. We have replaced Great Britain with England but still struggle to compete internationally against Australia and NZ. Sceptical supporters endure Magic Weekends and the Exiles concept but no Ashes series or Lions Tours.


Meanwhile, Dickie gets interviewed on SKY News with Wimbledon in the background but RL's media profile declines by the hour. We await news of his replacement


Note:
In Dickie's meadow is a north of England phrase which means to be in trouble. 
It refers to King Richard III and his meadow was Bosworth Field

Comments

  1. Billy Bob16 July 2012 at 21:22

    Unfortunately, we have replaced skill with power and our game is much the worse for it

    ReplyDelete
  2. superpaulia16 July 2012 at 21:24

    You can't blame this on Richard Lewis

    He has replaced Great Britain with England and this is a mistake

    ReplyDelete
  3. tfwire21 July 2012 at 14:07

    Great Britain compete successfully at other sports like athletics without any problems

    ReplyDelete
  4. vtvera23 July 2012 at 18:50

    Is this (competing as England) a funding requirement from Sport England??

    I don't know

    ReplyDelete
  5. Little Richtea24 July 2012 at 20:04

    This has been a bad year for Rugby League in the UK

    With the Bradford Bulls problems following on from Crusaders.
    There have been far too many basketball score lines

    We have copied the Aussies for far too long. Let's go back to traditional, hard, skillfull Rugby League

    ReplyDelete
  6. Tobi26 July 2012 at 19:24

    There are still too many Aussies and Kiwis involved especially at couching level. Why are the Hull clubs employing two mark Aussies?
    Surely Daryl Powell, Karl Harrison ...etc could do better

    ReplyDelete
  7. Andy27 July 2012 at 13:50

    It's the same on the field of play where we have many many many ordinary Australians and NZers (in important positions)blocking the way of our own young talent. I notice that Hull KR have just signed a NRL reject for next year. Surely they can find some good young RL players in Hull!!!!!

    It shows at International level too. Whenever the going gets tough our players turn round and look for their leader e.g. Leuleui, Monaghan...etc but he isn't there. Unfortunately, at club level the leaders are usually not English.

    The French have the same problem

    ReplyDelete
  8. Sarah29 July 2012 at 14:24

    A minor point but does the phrase "Dickie's Meadow" refer to the Battle of Wakefield where Richard, Duke of York was defeated during the War of the Roses?

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Drama in Sport

By -
I remember saying to a friend of mine a few years ago that you couldn't beat International RL for drama in sport. I'm deliberately writing this in the middle of the competition and I still think this is true. We could do with some more variety and more unpredictability but for sheer entertainment, International RL is great When, when, when will the English team perform to their true potential. Sam Burgess and Gareth Ellis have been stars in NRL this year and there are plenty more like them. Graham, Roby, Westwood, Tomkins etc are great players in SL if they can just do themselves justice on an international stage. Greg Eastwood has been very ordinary all year in SL but he performed well when it counted. Australian administrators please note. I’ve just said that Greg Eastwood performed when it counted i.e. in an international match. They are the pinnacle of any sport and should be treated as such. Anybody who treats a club (or State of Origin) match as the main event is wrong,
Read more

So, We'll Go No More a-Roving?

By -
So, our national side was defeated yet again and it's time for English RL's annual self appraisal. We're depressed and down hearted and some of us might be thinking, is this really more trouble than it's worth? In 1817, while living in Venice Lord Byron wrote a famous poem called "So, We'll Go No More a-Roving" expressing doubts about his hedonistic lifestyle Maybe we should stay at home too and concentrate on club competitions. We could quit international RL and allow our friends down under to continue to develop their NRL code of football with two referees and no corner flags. We could continue to proclaim how good SL is every year and forget about beating the Aussies. Absolutely not. Like Lord Byron, we must go a-roving. He carried on and died seven years later We must continue to participate and develop International RL or the sport will wither and die. I was alarmed at the lack of coverage given to the Four Nations in the UK. I realise tha
Read more