The Virtual Terrace • Talksport this afternoon. TV deal news

An excellent, pragmatic well thought out post. I only differ on your idea that "SKY don't bother to bid". Why an English Sports channlel would not renew the contract thus losing customers and disenfranchising a game British people do love and admire I can't think? It's their bread an butter to pickup sports like RL and it's worked for them for 24 years.

In 2006 Richard Lewis wasn't happy and thought we could be more than what we are and thus attract new audiences and expand the game to attract new broadcasters. This led to Les Catalans, Toulouse, Toronto Wolfpack and now New York, Ottawa, Timbuktoo etc. We've had 14 years of this stuff and nonsense so I would hope that with the new SKY TV deal we can just get back to basics and fortify the game back into what it's successfully been for 124 years - a Northern Rugby Union with a better set of rules that creates an alternative rugby in the sporting TV calendar.

The last deal is something we can't fairly expect again, as I don't feel we delivered that value anyway, but even a 25% reduced deal should secure us enough to carry on giving to the great British sporting public. That means giving them good old Northern Rugby league with the odd London appearance, a "basics" we must really now get back to concentrating on.