England and France to pull out of HC

[Jay C]

It will never happen, but i think the best solution in terms of improving quality is for the AP to go back to a straight league system with no play offs at all, and not play any league games on international weekends. To achieve that the premiership would have to be reduced to 10 clubs. So for a club that reaches the final it would reduce the league games by 6 compared to the current situation.

Best quote in this thread

It would enable clubs to target the HC more easily and help avoid player burn out and unfair matches when players are unavailable to their clubs

[stevetelcom2000]

Having now been insulted by a variety of pseudo-gaelic posters (I say pseudo-gaelic for I don't know if they are actually as gaelic/brythonic as me) such as snoopster may I venture that it sounds to me like panic might be setting in. We may find out how good the Irish PROVINCES actually are if they have to vaguely behave/play week in week out in a competitive league.
I do think that most of the posters on here have tried to be pleasant and constructive in the face of blank refusal.

If it's a level playing feild that you 'claim' to be looking for? Then how about English Club squads being restricted to no more then 5 non English qualified players, similar to the restrictions Irish clubs have with Non Irish Qualified players. Tigers usually have more then 5 non English qualified in the match day 22, never mind the whole squad.
I never hear that idea being championed on here in the quest for parity :

[Bill W (2)]

Hardly worth posting 3 times surely?

[stevetelcom2000]

Hardly worth posting 3 times surely?

How ironic that a comment on the quantity of posts made by someone is made by your goodself

Can one of the 'grown ups' on here remove 2 of the posts please? It was only meant to be submitted once, despite it's undoubted quality.

[Bill W (2)]

Can one of the 'grown ups' on here remove 2 of the posts please? It was only meant to be submitted once, despite it's undoubted quality.

If you ask one of us grown ups will expain to you how you can edit (and delete) your own posts.

It is not difficult - my 3 year old grandson can manage it!

[Phil B]

If your 3 year old grandson hadn't been deleting your posts, how many do you think you would have now?

[stevetelcom2000]

Can one of the 'grown ups' on here remove 2 of the posts please? It was only meant to be submitted once, despite it's undoubted quality.

If you ask one of us grown ups will expain to you how you can edit (and delete) your own posts.

It is not difficult - my 3 year old grandson can manage it!

Bill . When I referred to ‘Grown up’s’ I was of course referring to a moderator, don’t flatter yourself.
It is also obvious to 3 year grandsons up and down the country that you are quite clearly deflecting the thread away from my very valid counter argument.
Get back on topic, there’s a good chap.

BTW, with both my business and social diary’s being as full as they are I am unable to give this forum no more then the odd 5 minutes every now and then. So I haven’t the time to piddle about deleting threads. With yourself, and apparently your Grandson having so much time on your hands! I’m happy to send you my log on details so you can edit them for me. I’m sure it won’t be abused. I will knock off one of the pints of Guinness you owe me in return Cheers mate

[tigerburnie]

http://www.thisisleicestershire.co.uk/L ... story.html

IF the English and French clubs do pull out,then this would seem to be a declaration of intent to win the tournamant before it ends...........

[youngtiger]

BTW, with both my business and social diary’s being as full as they are I am unable to give this forum no more then the odd 5 minutes every now and then. :

Are you also too busy to remember how to pluralise the word diary? Just sayin'...

Also, although you gave a counter argument, it in itself is a deflection of Bill's argument, so although valid, it's rather hypocritical (considering your later comment about deflection) and as a consequence, rather weak.

Also would like to highlight that when leinster attempted to compete in serious games 3 weeks on the trot they managed 2 out of 3, losing their domestic final, so we can see that, were the "champions of europe" in similar circumstances to the french and english and thus on a fairer playing field, even they would would struggle to a certain extent.

[Tigerbeat]

Just released:

Issued on behalf of Premiership Rugby
Following recent media interest, Premiership Rugby confirms that it has given notice, effective 1stJune 2012, under the terms of the European Rugby Cup (ERC) Accord and understands that notice has also been served by other parties to the Accord. Such notice period expires at the end of the 2013/2014 tournament at which time, therefore, the Accord will terminate.

“We hope that there will now be an urgent dialogue about the future of European cup rugby, including qualification, competition formats and ambition to expand into new markets,” said Premiership Rugby Chief Executive

[Bill W (2)]

Thanks for that Tigerbeat.

So the issues are still as were they were when I started the thread:

1. Without the ERC the Rabo "clubs" quickly become insolvent. Maybe the nations could just afford one centrally contracted squad each - but no more;

2. Without "automatic" qualification to the ERC the number of Rabo "clubs" would need to reduce by between 4 and 8 which would destroy that league;

3. A French/English two tier competition would attract similar if not greater sponsorship than the ERC;

Difficult to see a painless exit route for the Celtic Nations.

[biffer]

3. A French/English two tier competition would attract similar if not greater sponsorship than the ERC;

Not convinced by that. Sponsorship to be the same / greater over a smaller broadcast audience?

[Bill W (2)]

3. A French/English two tier competition would attract similar if not greater sponsorship than the ERC;

Not convinced by that. Sponsorship to be the same / greater over a smaller broadcast audience?

PRL have always been of the view that ERC have not optimised sponsorship revenue. The Celtic audience is quite tiny compared to that of the Anglo/French. Major sponsors might well be more generous on an audience targetted at two (large) nations.

Not my call. But the Anglo/French have a couple of years to further research it.

[snoopster]

3. A French/English two tier competition would attract similar if not greater sponsorship than the ERC;

Not convinced by that. Sponsorship to be the same / greater over a smaller broadcast audience?

I think the French proposal is to cut the HC down to allow them to expand the Top 14 to be the Top 16, as their clubs make more money from the domestic games than the European games - the greater interest there is in seeing French clubs play each other. So I don't find it that unlikely.

[Bill W (2)]

I think the French proposal is to cut the HC down to allow them to expand the Top 14 to be the Top 16, as their clubs make more money from the domestic games than the European games - the greater interest there is in seeing French clubs play each other. So I don't find it that unlikely.

Indeed an Anglo/French top tier of 8 + 8 amd second tier of 8+8 would free up space in the match schedule and likely give sponsorship benefits inter alia to the championship in England. To the benefit of both French and English Clubs.

Down to the Celts to table an alternative.

With sponsorship????