Premier Rugby considers Guinness Premiership changes
With interest in the Guinness Premiership reaching record levels and the World Cup coming to these shores in five years time, it’s an exciting period for followers of the sport in England.
However, there has recently been debate on what’s best for the future of top-flight rugby in this country. On one side of the fence, there are those that believe that expanding the Premiership from 12 to 14 clubs would be good for English rugby; and then there are those who feel it could be detrimental to the clubs currently in the league.
Premier Rugby are looking into the prospect of expansion, but it’s the other proposals which have raised a few more concerns. Along with phasing out the Anglo-Welsh Cup, the idea of halting promotion and relegation is also being weighed up.
Naturally, this has been met with a degree of scepticism and caution – mostly from those not associated with a team from inside the Premiership.
It’s understandable that the clubs inside the top-tier have warmed towards this idea. They would argue that it will allow them to become more competitive in European competition, but this could hinder the competitiveness of the Premiership. And if this were to happen, then interest levels could quickly diminish.
Mark McCafferty, Premier Rugby’s chief executive, has been quick to quash suggestions that relegation will be scrapped, however. Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live on Monday night, he insisted that the new plans do not include "stopping of relegation or ring fencing".
This news will bring relief to some of those who’d read McCafferty’s interview with the Sunday Telegraph at the weekend. Scrapping relegation and promotion would effectively leave those clubs left in the Championship with nothing to play for or aspire towards – looking in from the outside at the unobtainable glamour of the Premiership.
In any sport, there has to be an incentive. Take that away and how do the smaller clubs progress?
If Premier Rugby want more people through the turnstiles at rugby ground across the country, then they need to encourage those unearthed supporters of the smaller, more local clubs to part their hard earned cash at grounds such as Bristol’s Memorial Stadium or Nottingham’s Meadow Lane.
Also, the relegation battle has been arguably the most exciting aspect of the Premiership this season. Leeds Carnegie’s great escape has captivated audiences and will go down in memory as one of the most gripping feats since the league’s inception in 1987.
Worcester Warriors are now preparing for life outside of the top flight after being relegated on Sunday afternoon; but they can take heart from the likes of Northampton Saints and Harlequins. Both clubs were relegated from the Premiership and came back better equipped, revitalised and more experienced.
This shows that a spell out of the limelight can have a positive effect on a club - something which would not be able to happen if the competitive nature of promotion/relegated was suddenly plucked out of the game.
Until now, there have been concerns that expansion would leave the clubs in the Premiership with less money. The cash from television rights is split equally between those teams that compete in the top flight.
However, McCafferty has revealed that Premier Rugby hopes to secure a major increase in TV revenue as the sport becomes more popular. It’s expected that by 2013, a more lucrative deal will be in place, subsequently paving the way for the Premiership to be expanded by two teams.
Along with the issue of money, the impact on the England national team must also be taken into account. With 14 teams competing in the league, this could well result in an overlap of international and club fixtures. If Premier Rugby plan to counteract this by squeezing the fixtures closer together, then the England players may enter their international matches more fatigued in the future than they currently do now.
Although change is good, the current model seems to be running smoothly as it is. As a result, shouldn’t things remain as they are for the time being?
Too many alterations could end up having a detrimental effect on the competitiveness of not only the England national team, but also the Guinness Premiership itself.
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