It is not that easy though. BBC may not have wanted to screen the game on sunday.



Widnes & St Helens also may have wanted the game on saturday.



If you wanna blame anyone then blame the fans!!

Widnes may struggle to build crowds, there isn't enough success to share out and it is difficult to motivate spectators and players alike when the results don't matter. They didn't even really have a great deal of success over the last two years to build on. Super league isn't the cheap ticket it used to be either. One option would be spend money they don't have to build a squad to draw the fans in. Dragging along the bottom won't harm the income too much short term but won't do the club any good long term.

This situation has been building for a number of years. Widnes fans have seen nothing but mediocrity for the past 4 seasons, yet our support always remained strong, even in the Championship. Fans have backed Steve O'Connor and the team time and time again, even when not happy.



No-one expected us to Finish anywhere but bottom, or there abouts, but the week in week out hammering's and humiliation have taken their toll. We could all accept the odd trouncing, but we are total e. There really is no excuse for the extent of this tyness, other than the fact the coach is totally clueless. All these years of mediocrity culminated in one of the most gutless performances it has ever been my misfortune to witness - the Bradford game. Is was truly awful, nay, disgraceful! Players looked like they didn't want to be there and, on several occasions couldn't be bothered to form scrums. There was no effort, desire or even the flimsiest attempt to make the game a contest.



The meagre turn out yesterday was a massive two fingers to all of that, and a fully deserved one at that. The people in charge of coaching and recruitment have ed up year on year, with some very familiar patterns arising. The past 3 seasons have seen poor recruitment and poor performances, which in turn leads to fan discontent and then scapegoating, by the coaching staff, of the players that they recruited. This has lead to players being openly criticised, dropped, loaned out and even sacked. It is all starting again now, with Scott Moore sacked and three other players dropped.



There seems to be no end to it, and I don't think there will be, until the likes of Dennis Betts and Paul Cullen have left the club for good.



Oh, and I went to the game.

Speaking from an outsiders point of view, I think you're spot on there Pepe. I was very suprised when Widnes announced Dennis Betts as head coach, someone who didn't exactly set the world alight during his coaching time in RL and had been out of the game for a number of years. It just didn't seem ambitious enough. I was expecting Brian Noble or someone with a bit more experience and to be honest someone a bit better than Dennis Betts.

I was also very disappointed with Widnes' recruitment for this season (god knows what the fans think!). I was expecting at least 1 or 2 marquee signings to get people exciting and try and generate a bit of momentum at the start of the season. Patrick Ah Van, Ben Cross, Willie Isa & Jon Clarke, whilst adequate for bottom half of SL sides are hardly signings to get either fans or the other players excited and enthusiastic.

Now obviously its a bit hard to criticise Steve O'Connor considering the investment he's made in Widnes but the recruitment of both players and staff does seem a bit unambitious, and I would have expected a better start to the season from Widnes. They should have tried to get a few scalps at the beginning of the season, because they'll really struggle at the back-end of the season when the clubs going for the title really get into their stride.

Why are you so embarrassed of our sport?

Can I just say that although Ah Van was a surprising signing he, apart from the Bradford home game has been immense.

Attendance low yes reasons. Two teams local to main evënts lpool v everton semi at wembly if u was a saints or widnes fan and u had a ticket for this game u would be at wembly fact. I reckon 1k to 1.5k of fans lost to this. Grand national a day when many ppl from widnes st helens go to this sold out event again loss of fans 1.5k to 2k . Nt being part of the s hold package as told would be when signgng up and the fans dissopointment with the teams lack of effort in 75% of our games. Plus the cost expense of three games in 9 days fan loss 2.5 k to 3.5k " game being played on telly 1k to 1.5k fans lost . They are the reason y gate low. Was widnes the lowest gate involing a superleague club-. I think more worrys was the fev cas gate. Couple hundred more yet nt compeating against football nationai and nt on bbc.

Amazing! Widnes fans have been praying for the day they hit the big time again, and to be fair to them they have been patient, but yet after only a few games back they are boycotting games because they are getting some thrashings! Makes you wonder if these fans deserve super league rugby after all!

Things will get better for widnes but it will take time.

Amazing! Widnes fans have been praying for the day they hit the big time again, and to be fair to them they have been patient, but yet after only a few games back they are boycotting games because they are getting some thrashings! Makes you wonder if these fans deserve super league rugby after all!

Things will get better for widnes but it will take time.

This is all we hear from the club.



The problem is that it could be said if we had lost every game 100-0, therefore it absolves the coaches from any possible fault.



There is the distinct possibility that much of Widnes's problems are down to poor coaching and poor recruitment which again is the coaches responsibility. If you just say 'it takes time' how do you accurately judge whether anybody is doing a bad job?



Most people assess the way the team are playing and compare it to previous attempts at Super League. The reality is that we have the worst points difference at this stage of any team for 15 years. We have conceded more than 30 points for 15 consecutive games when Featherstone managed to concede less at their first attempt. Although Widnes played better yesterday as well, Featherstone have at least showed that maybe the gap isn't as humongous that Widnes have been making out it is.



To many Widnes fans, it seems more plausible that the unproven and failed Championship coach Denis Betts is a bigger part of the problem than simply a lack of time. One things for certain and that's that we will see. SOC is a stubborn SOB and he won't be sacking him any time soon.

Oh well we will get rid of years of heritage and a showpiece competition because you don't get it, which if you're an Aussie you won't.



CCup games have never been big crowd pullers until the Semi Finals.



The reason SL games are fuller is pretty obvious - season tickets. Also I'm assuming the kids still get in for free/cheap at away games if they have a season ticket.



Not rocket science is it.