Dual Registrations

Dual Registrations are something that seems to be mentioned more and more with regards to teams outside the UK's top echelon of Super League. The big rumour at the moment following the announcement that there is to be a 25% reduction in the Championship and Championship One is that clubs may adopt a dual registration system, similar to National League and Guinness Premiership Rugby Union.
How that works in Union is that two contracts are signed prior to the season, for example Chris Leck was a promising scrum half with Sale Sharks that played a lot for the Reserve Team. He signed dual terms with the Sharks and Sedgley Park, meaning that if Sale did not need him for first team duty he was available to Sedgley. That season he played twenty plus games with Sedgley, six reserve games and two first team games for Sale which gave him valuable experience.
This system appears to have provided a valuable link where players that are oustanding in Reserve Competitions get to play arguably tougher opponents and sample other club's cultures and certainly in the case of one time top club Bedford, it has increased their standing and resulted in some of those players then linking with them fulltime.
In Rugby League existing loan rules see players move for a specified (of a month or a year) before either moving back or extending the agreement only with the parent club's consent. Recent changes have seen players move a little more freely between London Skolars and Harlequins and between Catalans and Toulouse. Where they this years guinea pigs?
While some might suggest feeder clubs, I think this is more a case of being brought in due to the recession and the fact that several people within the sport felt that change was needed. Gary Hetherington at Leeds for example was always a big critic of reserve team rugby. At Leigh before the season, a dual link up agreement with Wigan was discussed at board level but the RFL did not back the plan and it fell through, as a result Leigh lost a coach in Dave Ingram although the present Centurions set-up has gained since Neil Jukes rejoined the club for the first time since his playing days 12 years ago. Interestingly, almost 9 months later a similar type of thing is being talked about.
It all points to the fact that if you are not already in a Super League Academy, you may find it more difficult from next year to break into a first team. It remains to be seen. I'll have to read more about it before I'm totally convinced.
I think this is something that will run and run.