Wakefield remaining bullish over new stadium

The battle for Super League licences has hit full throttle with the governing body's detailed revelations earlier this week.

Like Castleford and Salford, Wakefield are planning to re-locate from their current unfit ground in order to achieve a new licence next summer for 2012-2014.

The trio are the ones most at threat with the RFL declaring at least one Championship club will be promoted at the expense of a current Super League outfit.

Unlike their chief rivals, Trinity are yet to gain outline planning permission for their site at Newmarket.

It was widely expected that if Wakefield's plans were held up in council red tape they would share with Barnsley FC at Oakwell for the 2012 season but such contingencies, if required, are now scuppered.

The RFL this week maintained it had to be "satisfied" the new stadium will be open or the redevelopment finished by the start of that campaign.

Less than 18 months before the deadline and with building work on the 12,000-capacity stadium yet to start, Wakefield insist that target can still be achieved .

A club statement read: "An application for outline planning permission was made in February, 2010. We are hopeful that a decision on this application will now be made in September.

"Plans for the detailed permission are ready to be submitted and the stadium build is a 46-week process.

"All parties concerned in the process are aware of the Super League timescale for licensing."

The Wildcats have also underlined that they would not be against sharing with Castleford, but at Newmarket and not the Tigers' Glasshoughton site further down the M62.

With the RFL unlikely to banish Harlequins or Crusaders due to their perceived geographical significance, pressure is mounting on all three clubs although Salford have already started developing their site to enhance their own prospects.

Crusaders could move above Castleford into the crucial eighth spot – and further dent Wakefield's hopes of reaching the play-offs – if they win their game in hand against Harlequins at Neath tonight.