Cumbria/ RLF/BARLA

[sean]

people in west cumbria we are very fortunate that we have a crop of players that enjoy rugby,but a such an early age are been torn between, teams set up by RFL, and normal club and county games,. these two great bodies should be pulling together to make our grass routes stronger, not wedge a divide and ruin the sport??
for a example cumbria county had a U19 trial game on sunday 1/3/09, to allow selectors to pick a side to play for cumbria in the 3 counties games later this month and April, copeland and allerdale picked a side, 8 of which play for the west cumbria u18 side that was set up by the rfl, out of these 8 only 2 have been selected to rep the community lions, and the other six have not been selected for rep football, as the county picked these young boys, it was a chance to step up and play a better quality of game, and also have the chance of a BARLA U21 slot, but these boys were told in no uncertain terms, Us (RFL) or them , (BARLA), this is shocking behavior from a so called professioal body, to make a kid choose is terrible, can we please help towards pulling this great game together ,and in the right direction, all we seem to do is make people make choices, but we should be encouraging these kids to play rugby, and if that means , playing BARLA, and community so be it, we never see BARLA turning the thumb screw to persuade people either way, yours in sport

[Big Bad Bri]

thats disgusting,

I hope you call on your rep to get this brought up at the next community board meeting.

since unification RFL has done everything possible to undermine BARLA, examples such as this and silly things like instructing their staff to answer the BARLA phone number as RLS do nothing to progress the situation.

just another example of the RFL interpretting unification as elimination.
.

[j & R Blair]

These U'19s should not have been put in this situation, any coach or manager of a side only wants the best for the players and to make them make a choice is WRONG, this all important game that West Cumbria played on Sunday could have been rescheduled to give these kids a chance to be selected for Cumbria County and possibly in time BARLA GB, but instead they played an U'19 game, Cumbria County rescheduled this trial game from an earlier date to ease pressure on the kids, and now we are being told that these under 19's have been told that the way forward is with the RFL, do they not realise that the people who are telling them this are PAID employees of the RFL and it is their job to do this.

[big jims stiff arm]

All i want to no is, are the lads happy with the desicion they have made, and do they know that they wont be considered for any barla team as i understand it.I hope they have been told what was at stake before they didnt make themselves available.I take it its the same rules for this as for the open age.

[Big Bad Bri]

I think the original poster is saying that the rfl told the lads in no uncertain terms you either play for us or for Barla.

[Marauder]

If it’s true, it’s looking like the RFL now believe they have divided and conquered the amateur game at aged group level to such a extent that they feel confident to go on a full frontal onslaught in their bid to destroy BARLA.

[Sam Armstrong]

I think the original poster is saying that the rfl told the lads in no uncertain terms you either play for us or for Barla.

But then isn't this poster saying the same is applicable from a BARLA perspective as they can now not play for BARLA?

... and do they know that they wont be considered for any barla team as i understand it

Or are we just choosing to ignore that post as it doesn't add to the paranoid Big Brother argument. Good old Marauder knew he'd get it back on the agenda

they have divided and conquered the amateur game at aged group level to such a extent that they feel confident to go on a full frontal onslaught in their bid to destroy BARLA

I wonder if there is a B-side??? Sick of hearing that tune as all it does is make us a laughing stock in the media and to other sports who work WITH their NGB's in comparative harmony. If we didn't insist on the "them and us" scenario all the time maybe things would improve - but why should commonsense prevail???

[Big Bad Bri]

Sam,

I've never heard of any player being told they can't play for BARLA just because they've represented a community side.

I'll stand corrected if you can prove otherwise

you claim paranoia, but there is much eveidence to suggest that what marauder is saying is not far off the mark.

unification wasn't supposed to mean "you'll do what we tell you, or w'ell wipe you off the face of the planet' or am I mistaken?

[Sam Armstrong]

Bri,

Dealing with younger age-groups who have no BARLA representative honours available to them I've never been too involved in the criteria for selection either for BARLA or for the Community Lions so knowing who can/cannot play where has never been my forte.

My main concern is that there are individuals on here who are so obsessed with their belief that the RFL is out to "destroy" BARLA that they will jump on the slightest comment and try to claim the moral high ground even though many of the statements are nothing more than hearsay, posted by those with their own agenda & intent on mischief or simply unable to be verified when scrutinised .

The RFL are not perfect, far from it, but certainly from a North West perspective seem very very supportive of our individual clubs, our Leagues and the development of the game at grassroots level in our area via their commitment to the schools programme. Why then should we believe that there is an ulterior motive? Surely BARLA's volunteers, myself included, do a lot of work which, had they (RFL) to pay wages to full time employee for would be a frightening and crippling cost. They need us and we equally need them at an amateur level. The relationship should be symbiotic benefitting both sides which is how we at NW Counties 13-15's view their involvement.

Maybe we are unique in our partnership, which is definitely how we view our relationship with the RFL, and others may indeed not be quite so lucky but, and here comes the crux of the matter, we should be working together for the long term benefit of our sport, it's players and it's huge army of committed volunteers and not taking petty swipes behind user names at every opportunity. Doing so merely exacerbates the divide and many sponsors who visit here may well look at the constant in-fighting and decide to invest their money in a less "political" sport where life is so much simpler.

We in rugby league are lucky to have an NGB who take a great pride in the Community Game and are keen to raise it's profile nationally and internationally ... a role previously fulfilled by BARLA's personnel ... but a baton which has now been taken to a much higher level by an expanding band of highly educated and trained professionals.

I have no interest in the politics but merely want the players and clubs I represent to have the best opportunities to develop. If that means a certain degree of mix & match by shopping around then so be it, but I love this sport and am proud of it's players and I genuinely wish that we could show a more united front to the outside world and get this game we all love the positive press and recognition it deserves.

Sadly that will never happen whilst we continue to undermine our own foundations.

[mick doyle]

Question for the blinkered BARLA are whiter than white brigade, does the real problem arise through the three counties introducing a youth rep age group ie u19,s without consultation with the BARLA youth and junior committee ?

And for what it is worth IMO if anyone from the RFL has given that ultimatum then he/she should be named and shamed.

[Marauder]

Question for the blinkered BARLA are whiter than white brigade, does the real problem arise through the three counties introducing a youth rep age group ie u19,s without consultation with the BARLA youth and junior committee ?

And for what it is worth IMO if anyone from the RFL has given that ultimatum then he/she should be named and shamed.

The Three Counties is a BARLA competition so I'm sure they would know.

[clowesey]

And given that the option was to play in a 'trial' game or in a league fixture in an already backlogged campaign which has a deadline to work towards what should take priority? Given that it's impossible for West Cumbria to play a midweek game (home or away) due to the location what else are they supposed to do? They appear to still have 5 league games to play and play-offs to fit in with a Grand Final scheduled for the end of April - do the maths.

I never have grasped the concept of an under 19s County Competition. What is it a stepping stone to? There are 2 options for under 18s rep honours - BARLA & Community Lions (to enable ALL lads who play at this age group a chance to represent their country not just those playing at a BARLA affiliated club), then 21s, 23s (why both) & OA. 19s CC serves no purpose other than to disprupt an already crammed season with seemingly meaningless games. I would have thought, and I've not looked at squads, that a fair number of U21s also play U23s and a number of both of them also playing OA (or are at least eligible).

[Marauder]

I think the original poster is saying that the rfl told the lads in no uncertain terms you either play for us or for Barla.

But then isn't this poster saying the same is applicable from a BARLA perspective as they can now not play for BARLA?

... and do they know that they wont be considered for any barla team as i understand it

Or are we just choosing to ignore that post as it doesn't add to the paranoid Big Brother argument. Good old Marauder knew he'd get it back on the agenda

they have divided and conquered the amateur game at aged group level to such a extent that they feel confident to go on a full frontal onslaught in their bid to destroy BARLA

I wonder if there is a B-side??? Sick of hearing that tune as all it does is make us a laughing stock in the media and to other sports who work WITH their NGB's in comparative harmony. If we didn't insist on the "them and us" scenario all the time maybe things would improve - but why should commonsense prevail???

I'm not saying every thing is bad coming from the RFL and You have obviously never been to a RLC meeting - I agree we need the Rugby League Services and should be working with them (thats what part of the 29 million is for) What I don't agree with is the RFL through the RLS taking over and running BARLA competitions, I also believe there should be a pyramid system (but hay ! even some pro clubs with millions behind them would never make super league even though a new side in a big city down south would ! "thats tell you a lot of hidden agenda"

[Big Bad Bri]

Sick of hearing that tune as all it does is make us a laughing stock in the media and to other sports who work WITH their NGB's in comparative harmony. If we didn't insist on the "them and us" scenario all the time maybe things would improve - but why should commonsense prevail???

Sam,

agree with much of what you say, particularly in the second post, but this section I've highlighted.

the them and us bit.- the only person to use that term was the original poster quoting what the rfl official told them.

I appreciate this is second hand, and I'm not refuting what sean has said, but maybe he would like to contact barla or someone from barla could contact him and get the full details of this conversation including the name of the rep. because if this event happened as described, it should be looked into and if so, the rfl need to be asked if this is now policy.

[Sam Armstrong]

What I don't agree with is the RFL through the RLS taking over and running BARLA competitions ...

But my point is, and again this may solely down to the fact that we have such a good working relationship with our Regional RFL officers, if Leagues and Clubs are prepared to work with them then there is no need for them to undermine anyone.

We are currently due to stage the Lancashire Cup Finals which was previously a BARLA competition but we, as Regional Leagues, have decided that by running it ourselves we have greater control and input in it following disappointment from Clubs, Parents and Players in the previous season's competition.

By running it ourselves we ensure that the competition fixtures fit in with our Leagues, we have a say in what happens to any income (and by the way this was not us being greedy in a grab for cash as all proceeds from the day are being donated to a suitable children's charity for those youngsters less fortunate than our own players) and can give the competition the profile we feel it deserves. Last season's was run on the fields at Oldham Rugby Union Club, in comparison, this year's is on the first grade pitch at the Stobart Stadium, Widnes!

Having decided to "go it alone" so to speak, WE approached the RFL, not the other way round, to help us find a sponsor which they duly did by bringing in a £7000 deal from SponsorBank.

They have additionally helped us promote the Finals by arranging posters and press releases (none of which were seemingly done to the same extent the season before), dealt with several bits of time consuming administration (e.g. organising and issuing tickets) and have also helped source volunteers for the day, but, it is the three NW Counties Youth/Junior Leagues who have made all the decisions regarding the Finals and, at no point, has anyone from the RFL/RL Services tried to impose their will or their criteria on any aspect whatsoever. Subsequently we are very grateful for their assistance and do not feel that they have tried to take over the running of the competition but, instead, have helped us in a fantastic way to facilitate the day for our players and clubs. This is what we should all be concerned with, not whether that is done by BARLA, The RFL or RL Services ... that's a secondary and frankly unimportant aspect for most of the participants on the day who just know that they have been provided with the best day possible!!!

[mary.poppins]

ing - What I don't agree with is the RFL through the RLS taking over and running BARLA competitions, "

As one of the people who as just run the Lancashire Cup games not the RFL I can quite happily say I would prefer for us to do it ourselves.All I can say is I hope I was lot more helpful and kept my under 13's more informed of what was going on through out the Lancashire cup games than we have been during the National Cup.

Not trying to take anything off BARLA but if the way the National Cup as been run up to now is anything to go by enough said. My personal team has been messed about through out the entire cup competition when I emailed Carole & Nigel I wasn't even given the dignity of any responce never mind any apology even now we are no wiser as to when or who we should be playing in 1/4 finals as for the draw for semi's why have the 14's & 16's been published but not the 18's.

I personally was quite happy to try to understand both sides even though they should be a whole and make up my own mind what I thought but after the National Cup fiasco BARLA don't make it easy for you to want to support them.

[mick doyle]

Question for the blinkered BARLA are whiter than white brigade, does the real problem arise through the three counties introducing a youth rep age group ie u19,s without consultation with the BARLA youth and junior committee ?

And for what it is worth IMO if anyone from the RFL has given that ultimatum then he/she should be named and shamed.

The Three Counties is a BARLA competition so I'm sure they would know.

I will make the point again, THE THREE COUNTIES INTRODUCED A REPRESENTATIVE AGE GROUP WITHOUT CONSULTING THE YOUTH AND JUNIOR SECTION OF BARLA.

So causing conflict as previously posted ,so could someone please try and and answer my initial question ?

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