Dave Craven: Featherstone fuel dream of elevation to Super League ranks

It may not be the fashionable thing to admit, and there will be plenty of people questioning whether it is truly viable.

But wouldn’t it be great to see that old club, from the gritty mining town often referred to as a village given its size, having a dig among the so-called ‘elite’ of Super League?

This isn’t based solely on the fact they upset the odds and battered their old foes from Castleford into submission during Saturday’s intoxicating Challenge Cup tie.

And it’s not because I have any particular affinity with the place aside from the fact I spent my high school years just down the road.

It is simply because the whole experience at the weekend was so evocative and a timely reminder of how much rugby league means to people in these parts.

The banter, spirit and excitement their fans generated was plain to see and it was clearly evident the club and their people espouse plenty of the good things the sport tries to achieve.

Ask anyone who was there; it certainly stirred emotions.

Yes, the contest may not have been played out in a pristine new stadium, but so what?

Featherstone are making real progress in their attempt to gain a Super League licence, both on and off the field.

For some time now, Daryl Powell’s side have been the most consistent outside of the top flight and it was no surprise to see how well-organised, efficient and – most impressively – fit they were against Castleford.

You could imagine the squad he has assembled giving current Super League sides Wakefield, London, Salford and, especially, Widnes a run for their money.

The visit of Wigan in a week will, clearly, be a far sterner test than any of them or Castleford might provide but it should create another chance for the club to showcase themselves in the national spotlight.

Sky Sports know when they are on to a good thing and they will again be there to capture the 80 minutes of action.

Off the field, under the stewardship of chairman Mark Campbell and newly-appointed chief executive Craig Poskitt, Rovers are a constantly evolving club.

Blake Solly, the RFL’s licence process guru, visited yesterday and was suitably impressed with their plans, enough for Poskitt to feel the club are being taken “seriously” not only by the powers-that-be but the wider game as a whole.

Let’s hope that they can push on and deliver but also that, when the time comes, the governing body have the confidence to elevate them as well and not shirk away from the prospect.

Featherstone may not fit in with the RFL’s expansionist ideals or have the wider marketing appeal they hope for.

But, if they continue to build, they have the potential to compete more forcibly than clubs who have recently failed.

Given London’s continually pathetic attendances and the Welsh calamity, it is a perfect opportunity to promote from within.

Widnes got their chance and it has to follow that another club from the heartlands, even if they are not as illustrious, do so next.

Similarly, Sheffield Eagles are ticking plenty of boxes and will soon be knocking on that door.

Halifax have their hopes, also, and, to avoid further embarrassment, the next licence has to be awarded to one of these more familiar names.

Given they own their own ground and the surrounding land – a rarity in the modern game – Featherstone have ample opportunity to develop in readiness for Super League.

But they will also hope that, with many clamouring for a smaller competition, the drawbridge is not pulled up in 2015 just when they should be ready to prosper.

That would kill all romance.