“Not far off bankruptcy” – Former Great Britain man calls for NRL buy-out of Super League in shot at RFL 

A former Great Britain international has hit out at those in the RFL for “killing the game” and backed a possible NRL buy-out of Super League, claiming the game is “not far off bankruptcy”.

Those comments have been made by Bobbie Goulding, a capped 17 times by Great Britain during the 1990s whilst plying his trade for the likes of Wigan Warriors, Leeds Rhinos and St Helens among others.

Goulding called time on his career in 2005 and briefly coached, including the French national team, but now works as a motivational speaker and fitness coach, per his LinkedIn.

He also does some work in the media and his latest comments have come from the Sky Sports Big Breakfast radio show Down Under, in part reacting to the confirmation of the upcoming Ashes series but also to discuss the state of the game.

Goulding was infamously part of the Wakefield Trinity team who saw contracts terminated during the 2000 Super League season on account of a financial crisis, and he’s claimed that one could be on the horizon for the sport in England as a whole thanks to those at the RFL for “killing it”.

“Not far off bankruptcy” – Former Great Britain man welcomes NRL buy-out of Super League in shot at RFL

He explained: “The players are turning up every single year and putting the spectacle on the telly but the people that run the game are killing it.

“I take my hat off to all the players, but the game is being run by people who don’t know what they’re doing.”

There has been wholesale change at the RFL of late with a number of directors stepping down whilst chairman Simon Johnson also exited, replaced with Nigel Wood as the interim chair and in charge of overseeing a club-led review of the sport.

Owners and chairman were key in commissioning that report with the initial statement announcing it penned by Leeds Rhinos CEO Gary Hetherington and Leigh Leopards owner Derek Beaumont, but Goulding fears if owners would be willing to embrace an NRL takeover, despite his belief it is necessary.

He explained: “I don’t know whether the owners of the clubs would be comfortable with an NRL takeover but anything – absolutely anything – is better than what it is now.

“The game is not far off bankruptcy and people don’t realise that it is.

“I think the NRL should come, take over, and get a bloody big brush and sweep everyone from the RFL out and get new people in – new people who can run a game.”

Peter V’landys, head of the Australian Rugby League Commission, has overseen huge success for the sport Down Under and has previously stated that he and the NRL would be willing to buy Super League, conceding that it’s something that must be requested first though.