Championship clubs are increasingly warming to the idea of becoming affiliated to Super League sides after a meeting of second tier officials last week, Love Rugby League has been told.

Major reform is on the way for the Championship next year. A salary cap in the region of £200-300,000 is being proposed and likely to be approved in order to restrict reckless spending in the second tier after a number of clubs encountered financial troubles.

That idea is likely to be voted through later this summer but there is also a more seismic development now looming.

It had been mooted previously that Super League and the Championship could follow the model in Australia, where NRL teams are affiliated to clubs in the New South Wales and Queensland Cup.

They do not inherit the NRL teams’ identities, but they effectively act as a home for fringe and reserve players to get experience at a good level before potentially becoming good enough to feature in the NRL.

Those clubs also receive financial support from the NRL too – and it now looks increasingly likely the model will be replicated on this side of the world.

Championship officials met last week with a discussion on the concept high on the agenda. It has been stressed to Love Rugby League that clubs would not be seen as ‘feeder teams’ – nor would the idea be compulsory and every Championship team forced to link up with a Super League club.

But more and more officials of second tier teams are interested in the idea. The proposal would likely see reserve grade scrapped for Super League clubs, which they believe would save each team that currently runs a reserve side in the region of £100,000 per season.

That money could then be routed into the Championship, but the more important aspect of the proposal would be that affiliate teams would get access to Super League players not playing in the top flight on a near-weekly basis.

There are already early rumblings of the model in place. York Knights have a controlling stake in Newcastle Thunder and players have frequently moved between the two clubs this season. York have exploited a loophole in the quota system to use more than ten overseas players this season – but that will be closed off by the RFL for 2027, it is understood.

But more Super League teams are keen to lean on the Championship as a vital cog for player pathway and development, though there is an understanding there has to be room for part-time players. However, with the player pool shrinking, Championship teams could be stocked out by young, reserve grade-level Super League players.

There is not unanimous support. Some clubs, especially those with genuine Super League aspirations in the years ahead, have expressed concern over how they would be able to sell the idea of linking up with a Super League club to their core support without being seen as nothing more than a feeder team for a top-flight club.

But the idea is gaining more and more support and could well be implemented for 2027.

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