Championship club call for promotion and relegation to return with options tabled to RFL

Ambitious Championship club Oldham have called for the return of automatic promotion and relegation between Super League and the Championship: calling it the ‘heart and soul’ of rugby league.

Oldham are gaining traction on and off the field after storming their way to the League 1 title under Sean Long in 2024. They have recruited heavily and extensively for 2025 ahead of a return to the Championship, with high-profile signings including long-serving Wakefield forward Matty Ashurst.

Last week, clubs rejected a proposal tabled by Batley and Dewsbury suggesting that the winners of the Championship Grand Final were granted automatic promotion to Super League, irrespective of their IMG gradings score.

And Oldham have joined the number of clubs who feel the concept should return, with Mike Ford adamant there has to be a pathway to the elite.

Ford told Roughyeds TV: “We are finding out the flaws in it, and there are a few – no doubt about it. We have been penalised for playing at Boundary Park which is not right. But the one thing that me and Bill are adamant on – and there is a big swell with other council members – is relegation and promotion.

“At the moment it’s to do with how many points you collect. We support IMG and what it’s doing with your facilities and community but the one thing that’s really flawed is the weighting towards performance on the field. Last year, for winning League 1, we got 0.1 and there’s 20 points to go for.

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“If you win the Championship, you get 0.25. We believe that on the field should be a lot more. Traditionally no matter what people say about American Football where there’s no relegation, in England, promotion and relegation is in our DNA in our country.

“I think that is a fair marker and the common man in the stands will understand that – you win on the field you get rewarded. We put a few options to the council last Wednesday on how we feel it can work.”

Oldham chairman Bill Quinn echoed Ford’s thoughts and said they will not give up on canvassing for the concept to return.

He said: “For the time being it’s still on the table. We’ll keep striving with others to create a formula that works for everybody. You’ve got to have that jeopardy. It puts bums on seats and it gets interest. It’s the heart and soul of it – you strive to get to that part of the season and want to have something at the end of it.”