FortyTwenty Blog

Windows 7 Ambassadors

2011-08-25T16:45:00.001+01:00

Chances like this don't come around everyday, this is your opportunity to gain some invaluable experience with Windows this academic year. We're looking for an enthusiastic and proactive group of students to join our team of ambassadors to spread the word around campus and get everyone talking about Windows 7.

You'll be doing all sorts of things to build excitement for Windows 7 and our student community Access All Areas. Whether you're building partnerships between student societies, working with us on campus events, or creating and producing creative videos, there are loads of different activities to get involved with and have some fun. It's an amazing opportunity but it won't take precedent over your university work so don't worry if you think it'll all be too much.

Aside from the brilliant experience and the CV complimenting credentials from one of the biggest brands out there, we'll be kitting you out with loads of great gifts including laptops, Windows 7 Ultimate and loads of other technical treats.
*All images are representative only, actual rewards may vary

If you're an outgoing, chatty and proactive individual who's well networked on campus, then you're exactly what we're looking for! It's about who you know rather than what you know. Any previous promotional experience will also hold you in good stead, whilst a desire to get your teeth into a fun, exciting and rewarding role throughout the academic year is equally important. Having an interest in technology and marketing would be great as well, though don't worry if you don't, we'll give you all the training you need at the Microsoft Offices in London.

Contact me on 10110470@hope.ac.uk and I will send over the application forms and details.
This oppurtunity is only availible to students of Liverpool Hope university.

England Vs. The Exiles

2011-06-12T11:19:00.000+01:00

Firstly, I went into a little bit of an exam induced hibernation, so to anyone who missed my blog (yeah right ….) then I apologise. I have been keeping my beady eyes on the goings on of the league, the Willie Mason saga and sponsorship and possible club changes to Super league.

Back into the swing of things though with the England vs The Exiles clash at Headingley. First moan to get out of the way, Leeds city council, why are you resurfacing the main road back to the motorway from the stadium the night of the game? You wasted a few hours of my life, and im sure everyone else’s who was heading back to the M62.

Pre-game, I thought it would be a really good contest. Although I didn’t agree with some selections on the England side, I thought we would put in a decent showing and hopefully come away with a win. There was a decent sized turnout for the first ever fixture but the atmosphere was hardly electric. In the terraces it was difficult to gauge who the fans actually wanted to win, with half supporting England and the other half supporting whoever was getting stuck in to Sam Tomkins (who saved two tries with great tackles)

I, of corse was supporting England, and I was disappointed with the performance. I don’t know what it is about the Australians, but they slide there defence so much quicker than English players. If we had the ball yesterday and switched the play, guaranteed they would have the numbers already across and almost man-on-man. If they switched the play, we would be all over the shop, with slow sliding and some poor positional play, especially when playing down our left side.

A number of times Shenton and Sinfield got shown up on that side. Sinfield is not an international number 6. Granted he has experience, but he has no pace, didn’t organise very well, passing was average and his kicking only improved in the last 15-20 minutes. Michael Shenton also didn’t have the best of games, slipping off a few tackles, and giving away easy yards, which didn’t help as the 2 of them were defending out left channel. Myler isn’t International standard just yet either. He didn’t get involved enough and I don’t think we should waste a pivot position on a support player (that coming from a Warrington fan) and I think a couple of changes could or should have been made.

Both teams defended well overall, but the exiles always looking a little more dangerous to me. There were a couple of good performances though, with Luke Robinson having a great game, as well as Benny Westwood throwing in some huge shots, but certainly more players should have come across better.

Fitzgibbon and Buderus

In my opinion, we are never going to move forward with Steve McNamara as coach. International management is more about motivation than anything else, and what motivates a team more than the title of ‘worst Bradford losing streak in 20 years?’ You need to know that the best is going to come out of the players and they are going to put in a performance, and too many didn’t.

Regardless of fan interest, which is certainly geared more to club rugby than country, Its now four loses out of five for England under McNamara and im keeping my fingers crossed we will fair better next year without him as head coach.

Ireland rugby league

2011-05-02T19:02:00.001+01:00

The RFL have announced that they are to set up a scouting camp in the Irish city of Limmerick, with some of Super leagues top clubs attending, with a view of setting up a super league team within 5 years. They are again showing their plans for the sports expansion, into new countries aswell as counties.

Although Rugby union is dominant in Ireland, along with Gaelic football and hurling, Union play a winter season, with clubs breaking over summer. Having a summer league may be a good way for the RFL capitalise on this, bringing players across from the other code, and improving the quality of the Irish game.

Judging from the report, interest was high, which is encouraging to hear. They have 5 leagues running for this season, each with 4 teams, an increase on last years competition, and also have the 2013 world cup to look forward to.

But will that be enough to create a sustainable Rugby League fan base in Ireland? I don't know, but certainly not in 5 years. This year Magners league RU games in Ireland have attracted about 15000, and sometimes more at the Hurling and Gaelic football games. To expect any core crowd over 2000 would be optimistic for me, with less away fans travelling aswell.

That's before taking into consideration weather it would be taken in by the Irish media, how sponsorship and TV deals may work, and the cost of transporting the team. This without knowledge of weather the team will be success off the pitch with fans and their participation, and on it with the players.

At least with Catalans they have a solid fan base, providing 8000 at home games they can try to cover some of these costs. Crusaders have lower travel costs and help from the RFL, which a new super league team would undoubtedly need, but would it be throwing money at nothing?

I'm usually all for expansion, but this seems to me like they want to force a wedge of Rugby League into a very small hole. Lets hope at least for a increase in participation and interest in their current league, before making a misguided punt.

http://www.rli.ie/

Mason De-registered

2011-04-21T14:49:00.001+01:00

After the less than interesting news from Hull Kr, that no new news was in regarding Willie Mason's Visa clearance, today the RFL have allowed for Mason to be de-registered, in favour of allowing Michael Dobson to return on his overseas quota Space, and adding more fuel to the rumours of a bid from Toulan for the big prop forward.

The statement reads:

The RFL can confirm that Hull Kingston Rovers have re-registered Australian scrum-half Michael Dobson and that the player is eligible for selection for the Engage Super League Round 11 fixture at Hull FC on Friday April 22.

Hull Kingston Rovers have also de-registered prop Willie Mason following a protracted delay in the player obtaining a Tongan passport.

Good luck to Dobson, because hes a top class player, but what a farce this is turning out to be. Re-Registering the De-Registered player that they once registered for the one they just De-registered? What is the point in having a quota of overseas players if it not going to be enforced? The RFL have provided Hull KR with a loophole, and let them pass straight through it, using themselves as the shield by saying it was OK.

In my opinion, the quota should stand for players on your payroll, not that are registered for the next game. As for Hull Kr, They really need to get their acts sorted. With Ben Cockayne's recent racist comments on facebook after losing his wallet in a taxi, now this, which I think reflects just as badly on them as it does the RFL and license applications coming around again soon, its not the ideal press coverage.

Hopefully, this will blow over quickly, the RFL will stop this from happening again in the future, allowing Mason to wander off to Toulon. Where this leaves KR as a club, only time will tell.

Big Willies bandwagon halted?

2011-04-20T09:51:00.003+01:00

So it looks like by many accounts that Big Willie will be moving on after a year with Hull KR to play union in France with Toulon.

First reprted by Aussie Telegrpah post The big prop has been earmarked by the French outfit as an inside centre, moving at the end of the year on a reported 450,000 Euros. This comes on the back of Hull KR preparing a press release about Mason and injured half back Micheal Dobson that is due today at 2pm.

Mason, who has more nationalities than a secret agent in being Kiwi/Aussie/Tongan is waiting for his Tongan passport to be cleared, freeing up the space for Dobson on the overseas quota. But what if he couldnt find it? Reports suggest he isnt moving until the end of the year, so would he keep the quota place? Id be more inclined to keep Dobson, although Clint Newton recently picked up an injury, so they could deregister him and use his place.

Opinion seems to be split as weather this is a rumour generated just before the announcement is made, or if this is genuinely going to happen. I think that its certainly plausible. Rugby's Man City have also signed some massive names in Jonny Willkinson, Matt Giteau and Bakkies Botha so maybe this is another marquee signing to add to the list. Mason is a mercenary, so wouldnt suprise me if he did leave, and reports on both sides of the world suggest he was seen having dinner with Toulons president Mourad Boudjellal.

I hope though that the Mason circus doesnt push Dobson out. He is a quality half back, and Rovers have missed him this year. Mason has been on a steady decline over the last few years, and to me looks lathergic and unmotivated.

Come 2 oclock we should have some more info after Hull Kr's press release, but after all said and done, you cant deny that Big Willies bandwagon has been a quality marketing tool for Kr, if nothing else.

Wigan's Wane Gamble.

2011-04-17T13:45:00.000+01:00

Micheal Maguire has announced that he will be leaving the Wigan Warriors at the end of the season to head back down under to take charge of Russel Crowe's South Sydney Rabbitohs side.

Shaun Wane

The usual name of Shaun Edwards was thrown into the mix very early on, but Wigan chairman Ian Lenagan stated that assistant coach Shaun Wane was in pole position to take the job. I know nothing of Wade and his achievements going up through the ranks at Wigan, but are assistants moved to quickly in from assistant coaching to head coach?

Coaches such as Brian Noble and Rob Powell were also produced internally, and although Powell is still somewhat unproven in super league, he has started out well, with Harlequins playing some decent rugby.

But other recent appointments that follow similar decision paths seem to suggest they are, with Richard Agar currently unloved at Hull KR, Jimmy Lowes' unsuccessful stint as head of the Warrington and Steve McNamara's uninspiring job at Bradford before taking the England mantle.

But if not promotion from within, what other options do Wigan have? In terms of Englishman, current Championship coaches i think could be better choices that internally promoting. Daryll Powell is doing a great job at Featherstone, and has experience at different levels. Dennis Betts may have been mentioned before Widnes' successful application to Super League, but he has not really been touted. Australian Ian Millward may not be the best choice after his ill fated stint with them a few years ago, but i think that some kind of club experience is necessary when leading a top side.

The positives are that they may be settled in the area and have affiliation with the players but I think that the risk in internally promoting a coach is huge. Players will never know how they will respond to a coaches training techniques, team talks, press conferences and tough losses, and fans may also take a dislike, which can cause increased tension.

I think Edwards would be a better choice, but best of look to Wane if we does get the job. It will be interesting to see what players they sign, if any, and in Wane's case, if he can handles the pressure of Super League. Other s haven't...

Widnes to superleague

2011-04-05T10:23:00.000+01:00

Firstly congratulations to Widnes for gaining a place in super league. Like I have mentioned before, I thought it harsh that they didn't make it in last time around, so could not see past them for this license.

They have announced during the last few days that they are to setup the ‘Viking stronghold’ whereby you can sign up for a monthly direct debit of between £14 and £18 (depending on when you sign up) instead of paying out for a season ticket. You also get some extra perks, such as a 'retro' home top, electronic programme and team sheets via your mobile and other discounts. Although not maybe as ground breaking as Steve O’Connor announced (Keighley and Saints have similar packages, less evolved), i think this is the model that super league clubs will probably use moving forward.

Steve Oconnor

It makes commercial sense for clubs to do so, but does also increase risk. It should provide sustainability, as it will stop them from overspending their early season ticket sales money, meaning that they can make monthly projections more precise. I also expect it will increase ticket sales, although maybe not increasing crowd sizes by too much. Alot of Rugby fans will not have money to make a large one-off purchase like a season ticket, but a small direct debit coming out each month isn't as noticeable.

The downside for the club is that the new deal is non-committal. If the club were to go through a rough patch on the field direct debits can be cancelled, taking the income out of the club and potentially pushing them over their monthly projections, although if you do cancel during the off season you are subject to a rejoining fee at the start of the next. Price freeze season tickets last year for the Vikings were £156 and are still available, but fans are encouraged to join the new scheme, which at its most expensive would make around £216 per year.

I think the system should work, as long as fans stay committed. The T-shirts, electronic programme and Team sheets by text are also a nice touch that should encourage fans to sign up, and as most programmes now are jammed full of adverts, it seems a good way for them to market other products to fans.

The difference now is that the packages are now being pushed and promoted on the back of the license decision, and may be able to carry on the media wave that has risen since the franchise announcement. This will not only improve Vikings sales through advertising, but gives us another chance to show that Rugby League is not just about our great sport on the field, but that it has great innovations off it too.

International island hoppers

2011-03-26T01:17:00.000+00:00

As you may be able to tell, i have been blogging alot on the expansion of Rugby league, and wanted to touch on international Rugby and the island hoppers that are jumping from one nationality to another.

Forgive me, but I'm English, and wouldn't like to play under another countries name, but it is increasing popular now with a number of internationals switching from one nation to another. Some that have raised eyebrows in recent times are Pat Richards for Ireland, the Henderson's for Scotland, and Clint Greensheilds playing for France. These are all Internationals who have decided to change allegiances because they wouldn't make their own national sides, but since GB dissolved a couple of years ago, there seems to be more of the island hopping back and to than before.

It was only when Rhys Evans, born and bred in Brigend made the switch to the English national side that i realised why this was. If Rhys listens to everyone else in Rugby, he will probably think he is going to be a big deal (and rightly so because he looks a great prospect so far). Now if i knew that i was going to be a good super league standard player, i wouldn't be to impressed with the prospect of me playing international rugby for Wales against Scotland and Ireland in home nations matches, knowing full well that the English will be taking on the Aussies and the NZ'ers and being competitive.

Evans in Wales National shirt

This may be fine for some, but for others the incentive, playing against the best teams in the world, is to much. That's why players move clubs and why clubs sign players, to be the best. The only option for players like Rhys who are obviously better than their compatriots is to jump ship in order to play world class rugby.

Personally, i don't think you should be able to swap nationalities, and don't think it should be so easy to move from one to another. GB isn't perfect (look at the 'Briers for Britain' debate in previous years) but at least it gives ALL of GB's top talent to come together and play rugby. The game needs to grow in other nations before they become appealing and they become competitive against other nations.

On a broader international scale, The Irish Wolfhounds travelled to meet the US Tomahawks in the Donnybrook cup. The Irish 'B' side (all from Irish domestic clubs) beat the US team 26-8, but it shows far the sport is coming, not just in GB but further afield. I also read that the Norwegian national team are looking to play a friendly in Malta later in the year, and the European Rugby league site (http://www.rlef.eu.com/index.php) has recently been updated and gives some great insight into how far reaching the sport has become since super league. I still think we are moving in the right direction ......

The Exiles and the 30th of March

2011-03-22T10:29:00.003+00:00

So, I think by now everyone has twigged that the eerie looking E badge Below is for the Exiles, a team of UK based foreigners coming together to take on the England team early in June. Others have said it could be the England knights teams badge, but if it is, its not very ... 'Englandy'.

A potential stumbling block for the exiles is the selection criteria squad. It would be unfair if all of one teams players were used. One idea is that only one man per SL team could be picked in order to make sure it is fair and even flirted with the idea of letting fans pick. I think that would be a great idea to get fans involved and could put additional pressure on the exiles. I hope an international freindly like this that can be done every year. It will give us a great benchmark to see how we would fair against the full squads of Aussies and New zealanders, but may take some of the edge off the England squad, and the reason why this has been put in place. Especially if we get badly beaten.

There had been some rumours (mostly from Championship fans) that this ‘E’ was going to be a new franchise team, coinciding with the super league license review which is due to be announced on the 30^th of the Month. On this day we will find out which team(s) are going to be coming up, and going down to the championship. If the RFL were to overlook all of the currently touted Championship teams and start a new franchise elsewhere there would be uproar, so I find this very unlikely. Besides that, I can think of many place names that start with an E.

For what it’s worth, I think that Widnes will get the spot, and I have no qualms with that at all. They have a cracking stadium, good coaches, youth development and infrastructure. They will still be seething from missing out on the space last time around, and it would be tough for them to take another setback like that.

Unfortunately, I feel the comically named ‘Big Fellas Stadium’ In Featherstone is probably holding Fev back more than the fact that they are in close vicinity to other clubs. Hopefully they will be able to rectify this and crack on building their new stadium and continue with their great performances in the league and cup over the last few of years. On the other hand, a team like Barrow may be better for the expansion of RL, which I have spoken about below, and am a strong advocate of.

Guess we will find out soon enough.

Rugby League Expansion

2011-03-17T10:28:00.001+00:00

Don't get me wrong, i understand why the RFL wants rugby in London.

Its good for corporate sponsorship, its good for Sky, and if it works, it is great for British Rugby League. But it doesn't work.
A shocking 1766, there lowest attendance since 2001, turned up to watch their first home game of the season. Its a shame considering a team like Widnes aren't in Super League with such great support.

Quins commercially is suicide, but one that is necessary. Plonking a rugby league team in the middle of London is crazy. The grass roots they put in place are great, and this has started to show with players like Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrooke, Tony Clubb and Will Sharpe, but as a business, there is no way they can steal fans from RU and the 30 or so football teams in the area surrounding the Stoop and make it financially viable. Put simply, you cant get customers in a market so saturated.

The RFL made a great move by moving the crusaders to Wrexham in my opinion. The great asset to Rugby League in North Wales, is that there are no other competing teams in the area to take away competition. All rugby league fans are passionate, but it is no coincidence Warrington, Hull and Wigan have got high crowds and no successful Football teams.


www.billsportsmaps.com Rugby teams UK Map

Rugby League is growing. Attendances have almost doubled in ten years mainly thanks to Sky tv promotion, and we now show the Friday night game live in Norway, but to continue expansion the rfl have to be careful about which areas they go into. The map above shows the rugby clubs in the uk as of 2009. I think a far better expansion strategy would be to try and create a competitive team in Scotland next, followed by a Cumbrian based team. Whitehaven seems the best shout for the Cumbrian, with a strong RL background, and literally NO sports teams for miles. Scotland have a Four nations teams, and amateur teams, and i think geographically they would work better than more southern teams.

I hope we do see another expansion team in the next few years, but i don't know if it would have the desired effect if the team was put in the Championship rather than Super League. That's not to say i want some of the current teams out of the competition, but the bigger the catchment area is and the more Rugby League can be promoted to new players, the higher the quality of the game will be overall.

Rugby League Ref James Child joins Twitter

2011-03-12T08:26:00.005+00:00

Neatly following on from the last post about football refereeing, Super league referee James Child was made the bold move to joining the twitter community.

The Part-time chartered surveyors last assignment, who started Rugby League refereeing at the age of 11 in his home tome of Dewsbury, was running the line at Warrington's defeat of Wakey at the Jungle.

He is one of the 7 full time super league officials who started tweeting earlier this year but has kept quietly under the radar. Although some tweets have given an insight into super league refs and their training regimes, little has been posted on specific games as of yet.

I have a lot of time for Refs, as they are never going to be able to please everyone, but you rarely hear them complain. Referee's engaging with fans is always something that I feel should be done more, as anything that can help fans understand why calls are being made (like the refs wearing microphones) and how the rules work is going to be better for the promotion of the game, and promotion of officiating within rugby.

James was kind enough to answer a few questions i asked him, which you can see below

Paul (@paull3v) - Im doing a small bit on you joining twitter as part of my blog, do you think you could answer a couple of Q's ?

James Child (@jamescchild) - I'll do my best depending on their nature!

PL - Thnx! Did you have to get RFL authorisation to join Twitter or any other social networking sites? Do they given you guidelines on what you can and cant put out?

JC - Match officials are allowed to join social networking sites but must adhere to a RFL code re posting etc

PL- Whats your relationship like with the players?

JC - Player relationship is on professional level & generally limited to matchday & occasional club visits/training sessions

PL – What would say that your greatest achievement is so far?

JC - Greatest achievement: TJ Challenge Cup Final 2006 (youngest ever CC Final official) & TJ World Cup Final 2008.

Pl – Which ground do you feel has the best atmosphere in super league?

JC - Best atmosphere: not always ground can be game-Wak v Cas '06 last game of season, losing team relegated - as good as Grand Final!

Pl – is it hard balancing the 2 roles of reffing then touch judging?

JC - Balancing ref & TJing is not that hard - it's 2 very different roles that also complement each other - I enjoy both

Pl – How much criticism do you get and does it affect you?

JC - Criticism goes with the job! You learn to be thick skinned from a young age so it doesn't affect you

PL - Really appreciate you answering the Q's!

I hope that fans of rugby league will welcome James to twitter, and treat him with the same respect that is shown to officials by our players. Rugby League is now getting great momentum on twitter, with new coaches, players and staff joining all the time. It is making Rugby League and players more accessible and relatable to fans, and this could lead to new revenues from sponsorships, live appearances, and monetization through advertising.

Follow him on twitter @jameschild

Refs: 'He never played at the top level'

2011-03-09T10:59:00.000+00:00

Why is it that so little proffesionals, Football or otherwise, decide to referee after they finish playing.

After watching Arsenal and Barcelona yesterday, I listened to the interveiw of Wenger, who kept mentioning the ref 'couldn't have played at the highest level'

True, but I can't think of an example of any top level sportsman becoming a ref after retirement.

So why?

http://bit.ly/hix2QL is the only thing I have found with the suggestion of ex-player refs. It hardly looks like they are pouring off the field. Refereing may not be appealing as going into coaching or scouting , but I'm sure much more respect would be commanded from ex-player refs and it would be a great advert to young refs who would have role models. The main problem seems to be that, to ref at the top level, you need to have experience reffing in the lower leagues, sometimes for a number of years.

According to the Huddesfeild Examiner (http://bit.ly/ijDgtE), Steve Harper, the current Newcastle keeper is qualified to a certain level, but that level isnt even football league standard, never mind Prem/Champions league level. But with years of knowledge watching football and being invloved, shouldnt this be encouraged and not stifled?

Maybe its time for people to stop using the 'ex-player for pro-refs' calls as they seem to be in a catch 22. After all, I could hardly imagine Kammy or most others picking up the whistle or running the lines. Or maybe if Wenger feels so strongly about it, he could recommend a player or 2?

Maybe Roy Keane .....

The magic Weekend

2011-03-07T13:38:00.000+00:00

Please, move Millennium Magic weekend to the last match of the regular season, Rfl, Please.

I was speaking with my Step dad, Roy, at the first home game at the HJ about the magic weekend and why he had chosen not to go. Roy is an avid fan, and rarely misses a game or 'event' like the grand final, magic weekend etc.

It has since been playing on my mind, and have decided to vent my views through this blog. Would it not make a lot more sense to move the RL weekend to the last match of the regular season?
There were 3 main reasons why i think this would be better.

1. Teams have something to fight for (IE Not the first game, a game that has implications to the league table)
2. Its in summer, which will ultimately make it more marketable and appealing to fans
and 3. It would be a great prelude to the Playoffs.

Look at the amount of people that travel to Wembley in summer for the challenge cup final. 85,000 came to one single game, as opposed to the 30,000 per day that travelled less distance to watch 3 or 4 games that the magic weekend offered. 74,000 can pack into the Millennium stadium, and for all but Quins (and maybe Hull) fans, it is a closer. Thousands travel to London for a one off game, and this could only be rivalled if there was some kind of prize at the end of that game, and if it took place in summer months.

Im sure alot more fans would turn up if it makes the difference between 1st and 2nd, or 8th or 9th in the regular season. The run up to the event could then be built up more, to make the regular season more of a competition than a formality, and crowning the regular season winners at the Magic weekend would encourage more to stay to the end of the day, which has been a problem in recent years. Rivalry's such as Wigan/Saints, Hull/Hull would have additional spice when spectators know that a win or loss could move them in or out of playoff contention. I know i would much rather watch a game that has implications to the league table and there are still possibilities to have it around school or bank holidays.

Each year the weekend is put down as a 'Astounding success' or words to that affect, but when the average attendance is less that of a normal super league game, why is it? Wigan and Leeds have the largest attendances, and Warrington still regularly get 15k in there stands. Crusaders get on average 11k this year and they have the lowest attendance. Yet still only 30k went to the Sunday of the Magic weekend, when Warrington and Leeds were on, among the 6 other teams.

Get your heads screwed on and make it happen RFL! It makes so much more commercial sense that i cant understand why it has not been considered already. Its for this reason that i felt compelled to start a blog and write about rugby ... we will see how much i actually do but i liked putting my ideas onto the screen so hopefully it shall continue !

Paul Leatherbarrow
FortyTwentyBlog