All Golds v Newcastle Thunder KPL1 2017
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Clubs in the South are encouraged to send their expressions of<br />
interest to enter the new Eastern and Western Premier Divisions<br />
to competitions@rfl.uk.com by Wednesday, June 7.<br />
There will then be a meeting on Sunday, June 18 at Hemel Stags’<br />
Pennine Way Stadium (HP2 5UD) where more information will<br />
be available.<br />
Full details of the proposed restructure can be found below:<br />
The plans, as David Raybould<br />
says, may not be the finished<br />
article from day one but there is<br />
room for them to grow and for<br />
clubs to grow with them, finding<br />
their own level at which they are<br />
comfortable. It may be messy at<br />
first and may take a few years<br />
to settle down into the strong<br />
competition it is hoped it will<br />
become, but perseverance will<br />
be the key and the support,<br />
understanding and will to make<br />
it work from the RFL will be<br />
essential.<br />
Of the clubs in the West of<br />
England, my personal thoughts<br />
are that Bristol Sonics would be<br />
a good fit as they move into a<br />
new home. Swindon St George<br />
look ideally set up to take full<br />
advantage of the arrangement,<br />
while it would help cement the<br />
partnership between Oxford<br />
Cavaliers and Oxford RL for the<br />
Cavs to compete at that level.<br />
Editor’s comment: Firstly, I<br />
must declare a vested interest<br />
in the plans as I am currently<br />
Chairman of Gloucestershire<br />
Warriors and the Warriors will<br />
be looking to play somewhere<br />
in this set-up.<br />
Looking at the proposal<br />
through a Warriors lens, it<br />
seems to make sense.<br />
These plans have actually been<br />
knocking around in one form<br />
or another for a while now but<br />
I think the time is right to put<br />
them into practice. They give<br />
scope for clubs who want to<br />
go forward and play a longer<br />
season the chance to do that<br />
while equally clubs who just<br />
want a shorter, more social<br />
season can be accommodated<br />
as well.<br />
With the demise of the<br />
Conference League South<br />
(CLS), this format is one that<br />
can stretch over time to fill the<br />
void and give the likes of the<br />
Valley Cougars and London<br />
Chargers the opportunity<br />
to play at a decent standard<br />
and strengthen their club<br />
infrastructure.<br />
It could also provide<br />
opportunities for semi-pro sides<br />
such as the <strong>All</strong> <strong>Golds</strong>, Hemel<br />
Stags, Coventry and Oxford to<br />
run development sides at the<br />
appropriate standard.<br />
Whilst the Warriors are<br />
probably not in the position to<br />
move into the West Premier<br />
league in 2018, the club is<br />
supportive of the structure. The<br />
Warriors are ambitious enough<br />
to want to move forward and<br />
work towards achieving a place<br />
in the West Premier where they<br />
can provide the (currently)<br />
missing step in the pathway<br />
from novice to professional.<br />
As I have said, the Warriors<br />
are not in a position to move<br />
there immediately and from<br />
what they have said in the<br />
past I believe that Cheltenham<br />
Phoenix would not be looking<br />
at entering, though I may of<br />
course, be wrong.<br />
A strong West Premier league<br />
would be the opportunity for<br />
the <strong>All</strong> <strong>Golds</strong> to run a reserve<br />
side until such time as the<br />
RFL gets a national reserve<br />
competition up and running to<br />
replace its dual reg and loan<br />
system.<br />
There have been plenty of ups<br />
and downs since the Summer<br />
Conference kicked off 20 years<br />
ago now thanks to the hard<br />
work of the <strong>All</strong> <strong>Golds</strong> very own<br />
president and visionary Lionel<br />
Hurst.<br />
Perhaps now there is a<br />
competition that will help to<br />
support and encourage clubs<br />
and individuals playing the<br />
great game of rugby league in<br />
the south of the country.<br />
19<br />
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