Even so, it came as something of a shock when their licence was confirmed on Tuesday morning.

It would have been easier for the RFL to grant a licence to both Salford City Reds – who did get in – and Widnes Vikings – who didn't – and leave Celtic, founded only three years ago, out in the cold, along with Featherstone Rovers, Halifax, Leigh Centurions and Toulouse.

Celtic aren't ready yet, but they do have big and bold plans and with a three-year period of grace, they will have time to put those into practice.

It is now up to everyone involved with the Welsh club to ensure that the RFL's gamble pays off. Clubs in Wales have been tried before, but this time it has to be done right.

Leigh's response was predictably furious. The club's chief executive, Allan Rowley, was "disgusted" with the decision to give Celtic the green light and suggested the decision-makers should "hang their heads in shame".

Leigh are about to move into what, by all accounts, is a very impressive, state-of-the-art stadium, but there's more to being a Super League club than that.

The Lancashire outfit had a shot at the big time in 2005 and – frankly –made a pig's ear of it. They contributed nothing to the competition, winning just two matches, going through a couple of coaches and suffering all manner of behind-the-scenes problems. Their experience was a great advert for the licence system.

They deserve huge credit for the way they've got themselves back on their feet and in Neil Kelly, they have a coach who will take the team forward, but to suggest including Leigh instead of Celtic would make for a stronger competition is ridiculous.

The main arguments against Celtic from the heartlands are that they have no local support and aren't producing their own players.

Last weekend, Crusaders' home clash with Whitehaven pulled in 1,870 fans, not brilliant, but more than turned up at Featherstone and Leigh.

South Wales is a rugby heartland, Celtic are putting down strong roots, their community involvement is increasing and they are attracting positive media attention.

Several top Welsh union players have apparently already indicated that they are interested in switching codes to play for the Bridgend-based outfit, which will increase local interest. And Celtic Crusaders Colts are doing well in Conference National.

Establishing a top-flight club in Wales will open up a whole new well of player talent, something Super League desperately needs if it is to continue to expand.

Nobody with rugby league's interests at heart could argue that having a strong club in south Wales, which Celtic have the potential to become, could be anything other than good for the code.

The argument that "we should look after the heartlands first" just doesn't stand up. British rugby league has effectively been confined to a small area in the north of England for more than a century without making any real progress.