10 to 20,000 Lions fans?

[Clive_Woody]

rus said:

I should have said spectator sport.

Clive could you p[ost the RU figures.

So you are suggesting more spectators watch Rl every year than watch RU? Please provides links to support this claim.
;D

[rus]

clivewoody said:

rus said:

Clive

I have got the references about the crowd figures of RL & RU in the UK.

Do you want me to post them?

I would love to see figures to support your claim that RL is still England's second biggest sport.
;D

So you argee that it was (if not still) the 2nd biggest spectator sport at one stage?

[Clive_Woody]

rus said:

clivewoody said:

I would love to see figures to support your claim that RL is still England's second biggest sport.
;D

So you argee that it was (if not still) the 2nd biggest spectator sport at one stage?

Not at all, do you have any evidence to support this claim?
;D

[rus]

A little dated but here is one reference.

...Why is it that rugby league has never had a greater national and international appeal in its history?


Sailor's departure has had little effect on the appeal of his former league team


Because at last young men can try their hand at the game without fear of a ban from the rival code.

Hence, alongside the many thousands of amateurs and schoolchildren in the heartlands of rugby league, students play at over 75 universities and colleges throughout Britain.

The sport thrives in the armed forces, and over 30 new clubs prosper in Ipswich, Crawley, Coventry, Nottingham, Durham, Gloucester, Leicester and elsewhere.

Others in Greenwich, Maidstone and Bristol are on the horizon.

At professional levels, the comparision between league and union is revealing, for league wins hands-down in support.

What price profile when Super League attracts, on any weekend, far higher attendances than union's Zurich Premiership?

Low union attendances

Widnes and Leigh, just two of 19 clubs in the Northern Ford Premeiership, have a higher crowd aggregate than the whole of the 15-a-side game's second division.

What price profile when the whole of the Welsh/Scottish premier rugby union league can attract barely 20,000 supporters through the turnstiles on any given weekend?

Edinburgh and Glasgow can welcome 500 spectators on a wet Friday night - hardly a respectable attendance for amateur rugby league clubs Skirlaugh, Wath Brow or Woolston.

Few are unaware of the media hype and profile surrounding the union code's international fixtures, and it is right that league is now adjusting its priorities in this direction.

news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_league/1387575.stm


I found the reference to RL being the second biggest spectator sport in England in David Hinchliffe's book 'Rugbys' Class Wars.' Also have a look at pages 137 & 138 of this book.

[windlesaint]

It's only recently that rugby union has overtaken speedway in terms of spectator popularity.

[Clive_Woody]

Interesting that crazy old Ray doesn't include international and Heineken Cup crowds when deciding which sport has most spectators in a season. He then goes on to compares a State of Origin game with a Sale home match to try and make his point, perhaps I should compare an England Wales international (75,000) with a Leigh v Widnes (1,106) SL game!

I still see no hard evidence to support your claim.
;D

[rus]

Even if internations in England attract 400,000 or so spectators (6 x 70,000) the aggregate RL crowds would still be higher. The full season of NL1 games with an average of 1500 or so would equal this amount.

Anyway from what I can see there is a lot of cynicism about the crowd numbers posted an union games in England. I have seen the term 'Union Calculator' used on some internet sites.

What is the origin of this term?

Are union crowds down this season in England?

Btw the union GF in Sydney (played today) was watched by a crowd of 9427-down from about 12,000 last year.

[georgehotel]

clivewoody said:

Interesting that crazy old Ray doesn't include international and Heineken Cup crowds when deciding which sport has most spectators in a season. He then goes on to compares a State of Origin game with a Sale home match to try and make his point, perhaps I should compare an England Wales international (75,000) with a Leigh v Widnes (1,106) SL game!

I still see no hard evidence to support your claim.
;D

Can you provide the evidence of the Leigh v Widnes SL game having an attendance of 1106?
Leigh's lowest attendance this season (I would suspect v London) is 3201.
Their average is 4750, not bad for a team that has had a poor season.

[rus]

Correction-Sydney club RU GF's crowd was 9412.

[kelvinn]

rus said:

Correction-Sydney club RU GF's crowd was 9412.

That really is very poor.
Any reason (other than union is crap) for this?

[rus]

Not sure but there is a tendency for the second tier competitions to drop dispropotionally (in interest & crowds) eveywhere.

This is something akin to what economists call 'the tournament effect.' The players just below the top level receive a pittance as compared to top level players.

However in the GF there were several representative players in both of these union teams & the game was played between two Sydney teams in Sydney.

The game was televised live into Queensland & one thing that struck me was the 'union evangalism' & propaganda that spewed from the mouths of the commentators. There is a new book out called "Gaurdians of the Game NSW RU 1973 to 2004" & these commentators were advertising or promoting it or air. Seemed a bit strange.

Basil have you read the book.

[Thomas]

kelvinn said:

rus said:

Correction-Sydney club RU GF's crowd was 9412.

That really is very poor.
Any reason (other than union is crap) for this?

Interest in RU in Australia tends to be behind the provincial Super 12 (now Super 14) comp and the internationals. Next year, however, the ARU has devised their own provincial championship. It will be interesting to see how it goes.

Rus, I went to the Brisbane RU grand final yesterday. A great day with a great result (Sunnybank won 41-17) with a very vocal crowd cheering the 'bank onto their first championship. Also good to see a lot of people their with NQ Cowboys jerseys and shirts on. Just shows that you can enjoy two codes of rugby without resorting to being a bitter wanker.....

[georgehotel]

As a start-off Super League attendances in the uk (without cup or play-off games) attracted 1,493,582 spectators for the season just finished.
Can anyone post the union attendances?

[Clive_Woody]

rus said:

Even if internations in England attract 400,000 or so spectators (6 x 70,000) the aggregate RL crowds would still be higher. The full season of NL1 games with an average of 1500 or so would equal this amount.

Can I just check your maths here please.

There are 10 teams in NL1, who play a total of 18 games with an average crowd of 1500

18 x 1500 = 27,000

Where are you getting the extra 373,000 spectators from?

news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_league/national_league/division_1_table/default.stm
;D

[georgehotel]

clivewoody said:

rus said:

Even if internations in England attract 400,000 or so spectators (6 x 70,000) the aggregate RL crowds would still be higher. The full season of NL1 games with an average of 1500 or so would equal this amount.

Can I just check your maths here please.

There are 10 teams in NL1, who play a total of 18 games with an average crowd of 1500

18 x 1500 = 27,000

Where are you getting the extra 373,000 spectators from?

news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_league/national_league/division_1_table/default.stm
;D

Think someones maths need checking -

The NL1 clubs attendances for the season just finished excluding Cup and Play off games totalled 348,714