WE’RE JUST THE TICKET DRAGONS’ FIRE IS STOKED BY BELIEF

Bullish Kear’s offer to enlighten new Super League boss

game for rugby league. With all of these questions being asked about the structure of the game and funding the lower leagues, I’ll offer to buy Robert Elstone a ticket for Sunday so he can come along and see how many people are here.

“He can then judge the interest in the lower leagues, and I also think he’ll see two high-quality teams playing a great standard of rugby league.

“I’ll ask then if he sees the value in funding rugby league at this level. If he comes along to Odsal I think he might look at League One and the Championship in a different light.”

Kear believes Elstone’s return to rugby league will ultimately be good for the sport having seen first hand how he works.

He also revealed the pair took on a joint challenge back in their days in the French capital that runner Elstone emphatically came out on top of.

Kear said: “I told him he should stop all the road running and come and undergo a Paris training session – he said he would, but only if I did the London Marathon as well.

“He suffered for about 80 or 90 minutes at the club, and I suffered for six months doing all the prep you need to do for running 26 miles, so he got the best of that deal.

“Perhaps he owes me one now for the lower leagues!

“I’ve known Robert for years and he’s a canny lad. He’s a real rugby league man and that gives me heart.

“I think he will look at the game holistically and ultimately that will be good for us as a sport.”

TEST Elstone says tomorrow’s clash is a great ad for League One FLIGHT OF FANCY Bradford’s Ethan Ryan goes over and he’ll be out to cheer coach John Kear (below) CATALANS forward Jason Baitieri wants the Dragons to finish what they have started against...