Two New Sides For League One 2022

Rugby League isn't a sport that easily attracts monied investors. It simply isn't big enough to be attractive to the Roman Abromovich's of this world. Mind you, for the money he spends on one club would be a fraction of what it would cost to buy the sport outright! Not that it is as such for sale but you get the point. 

Coventry: In the midlands of England, the Coventry Bears League One club has had a business invest in them. The name has been changed to the Midlands Hurricanes, a decision I question because of the large area the name encompasses. Is that how far the new club's reach is expected to go? It seems so. Still, if you put up the readies, then you have a say in such matters as branding. 

Cornwall: This is a bit more complicated. A club was established in Ottawa, Canada which gained access to League One (division two) through buying an existing licence from the Hemel Stags. After a year delay through Covid and possibly seeing how poorly a Toronto side was treated on making the elite Super League, it was decided to ditch the trans-Atlantic ambitions and instead start a team in Cornwall, England. 

The area has a small RL club in the Cornish Rebels but this will be a new entity named the Cornwall RLFC. Rugby Union is already a strong sport in the region so the new club hopes to tap into that. The aim is to be a community club that mostly uses local players and build steadily from there. That sounds the right way to go about things. 

Summary: The eleven team League One competition looks interesting. One team in Cornwall (south east), one in London (south west), one based in Coventry (midlands) one each in north and south Wales and six from the north of England.