Italians conditionally confirmed for Magners League

barnesd

www.magnersleague.com

Magners League Announcement on Italy...
26 March 2009, 12:21 pm
by Editor
Italian Supporters
Italian Supporters
©INPHO/Dan Sheridan
© ©INPHO/Dan Sheridan
The Celtic Rugby Board yesterday (Wednesday) considered the possibility of the introduction of two Italian teams to the Magners League...
Resulting from these deliberations it has advised the FIR that they have agreed in principle to invite two Italian teams to join the Magners League in season 2010/2011 subject to a number of conditions being met.

These conditions, which will be clearly defined, fall under main headings of Playing and Facility standards, Finance and Commercial including Television.

This will be a comprehensive process and will take some time. The Board therefore decided that participation could not commence before 2010/2011 season.

The Magners League is one of the top professional rugby union tournaments in the world. The quality of the Magners League is demonstrated by the fact that in the deciding Six Nations match between Wales and Ireland no less than 42 out of the 44 players that took part in that historic match play their rugby in the Magners League. Four of this season’s Heineken Cup quarterfinalists are Magners League teams.

It is essential that any changes to the structure of this great competition maintain the highest standards.

escobar

Yeah the Italians have been knocking on the door for a while now. I definitely think that the Italians could field two very good teams, it should be of great benefit to the CL.

They'll probably be based in Milan and Rome.... A great chance to market the CL in Italy too. The CL is already a very prestigeous tournament with it's players holding the Heineken Cup, Powergen Cup, and the six nations grand slam. The CL players having won the last two six nations by grand slams. Onwards and upwards.:)

acontadino

great.

Macsimus

v interesting - might initially dilute the quality of league but the Italians will come up to standard in time, which can only make for a stronger competition.

(Im assuming the Italian teams will be made up of Italian club players initially, but in time the future Parisse's, bergamascos, and Castos will surely gravitate towards their nationally representative teams rather than France- especially if they are given preference for Italy selection)

At least it should make for some good scraps :pac: and the Connaught boys might have some competition for the wooden spoon - no offense meant Connaught I know ye box your weight with the resources available

ScholesyIsGod

I think this will be a good thing, hopefully it will lead to a lot of the French based Italian players returning to play their club rugby in Italy, if that was to eventually happen then the two Italian sides would be fairly strong and could be quite competive. It will also help the development of the national side, as the other players who dont get the moves outside of Italy will be playing a much higher standard of rugby then they would have in their domestic league.

Legion2008

Plus 2 additional home games and attractive destinations for away trips.

Stupido

I reckon one of the teams will be in Milan, playing their games in the Monza stadium.


The ground holds about 18,000 with two 2-tier stands and seats at the ends. Built when the local comune thought the team would get into Serie A ....I think they are now in the 7th division!

The Italian Rugby final is often played there.


http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stadio_Brianteo (in Italian but you get the idea!)

anonymous_joe

Yay. Really glad about this.

Craft25

Great News, hope they really take to it, Italian rugby really needs a jolt of optimism before they resign themselves to being perennial wooden spooners!!

[Jackass]

This is superb news for a number of reasons.

Reason Number 1:

We get to welcome and become friends with new fans to the league and show them a good time.


Reason Number 2:

More games to go to at home and the option of a couple of away trips to, eh, get behind the team!



Reason Number 3:

The league expands more in line with other competition, play-offs will have come into affect, and most importantly, this will mean that the ERC and all the unions will HAVE TO review the European qualification process as 11 teams out of 12 going into the major European competition is a complete joke. It will give ML the final element it so desperately needs to become a major and very serious competition - universal European Qualification standards - now only 3 leagues enter HEC. 24 teams in cup.

MY IDEA is to not only improve the qualification process for HEC for all leagues, but also to revamp the challenge cup to make it a serious and worthwhile competition.

Top 6 from ML, GP & T14 all go into HEC. The defending champions get an automatic spot - if they already qualify through league position, 7th in their league gets in. A final place is awarded to the next team outside of qualification in all 3 leages to have a play-off group for the final group place. (7th in GP, 7th in T14 & 8th in ML would have been in play-off if it was this years competition).

That gives 20 teams in 4 groups of 5. Top 2 from each group go through to quarters and noraml format applies from there after. That means The HEC becomes more Elite - no Dragons, Glasgow, Bonus group with an Italian team distorting final ranking places etc. etc. unless they're good enough to get in through league.

ML gets the same importance to teams as GP as far as euro qualification goes (thereby eliminating the major argument for nay-sayers of why we should sabotage our own domestic league) and then teams who haven't a hope in HEC play the challenge cup and get a shot at European glory and it's no longer big English teams against mickey mouse teams, but a whole load of French, GP and ML midtable teams and a more even competition, plus the top Italian teams - and there is absolutely NO POINT in Italian teams playing in HEC and getting hockied in every game against the best in Europe, this competition is more at their level to build confidence and progress and they still get to test themselves against top opposition in the league.

Perfect .... bella!!

Massive move for ML & European rugby imo and will be superb for the Magners Euro League (no more CL - celtic league is dead now)

Digifriendly

[Jackass] wrote: »

That gives 20 teams in 4 groups of 5. Top 2 from each group go through to quarters and noraml format applies from there after. That means The HEC becomes more Elite - no Dragons, Glasgow, Bonus group with an Italian team distorting final ranking places etc. etc. unless they're good enough to get in through league. (no more CL - celtic league is dead now)

Your proposed plan has been very well thought out and seems much fairer than what we have at present especially re HC qualification. Just a couple of queries. Would you still have home and away in pool stages of HC as this would mean 8 games instead of present 6? With 2 extra teams in new ML an extra 4 games there also. How would this affect Autumn Internationals/6 Nations dates i.e. would some games have to be played on international weekends and if so do you think this would affect attendances much?

[Jackass]

Thanks Well I didn't spend too long thinking about it, but it would have to be home and away - so if the extra games couldn't be fitted in then it could simply be changed to 5 groups of 4 with the best 3 runners up going through and problem solved

Personally I prefer the bigger group with top 2 going through, but whichever makes more practical sense prevails I suppose!

Macsimus

[Jackass] wrote: »

Thanks Well I didn't spend too long thinking about it, but it would have to be home and away - so if the extra games couldn't be fitted in then it could simply be changed to 5 groups of 4 with the best 3 runners up going through and problem solved

Personally I prefer the bigger group with top 2 going through, but whichever makes more practical sense prevails I suppose!

Nice original post Jackass, I particularly like point 1 - :eek: meowsers

If something like that did happen though the Scots would really be rubber ducked - no h cup money could really spell the end for Scottish rugby and none of us want that

I would also not like to see the number of qualifiers from ML reduced as it seems to be the only league currently in the ascendancy - what if # of qualifying spots were kept the same, but the league position decided who got them? so theres real competition at the top for play off place's + in the middle to lower positions for HC qualification

I know the italians and scots aren't setting the world alight, but dont forget Glasgow beat Toulouse in FRance this yr and if the Italians join the ml they will inevitably improve - given time and the incentive of losing hteir spots to the likes of a hungry Connaught would this not work??

Diabhal Beag

Finally! I think this has come around at the right time.

chupacabra

So is the ML getting rebranded again once these teams are introduced?

Honey-ec

[Jackass] wrote: »

This is superb news for a number of reasons.

Reason Number 1:

We get to welcome and become friends with new fans to the league and show them a good time.

Anyone else think that looks suspiciously like the President's Bar in the RDS???

Chucky the tree

Honey-ec wrote: »

Anyone else think that looks suspiciously like the President's Bar in the RDS???

there's a background in the picture?

Robbo

chupacabra wrote: »

So is the ML getting rebranded again once these teams are introduced?

Well do they sell "heavily marketed cooking cider" in Italy?

stephen_n

Chucky the tree wrote: »

there's a background in the picture?

Was going to say i really hadn't noticed the room at all and that the poster must be female

NickNolte

The Chianti League?

Stupido

do they have the (meat) balls for it??? :D:D

Climate Expert

A terrible decision.

The Italians will add nothing to the tournament just like they have added nothing to the H Cup. Rugby in Italy is just not popular enough and no amount of forcing will change that.

NickNolte

Climate Expert wrote: »

A terrible decision.

The Italians will add nothing to the tournament just like they have added nothing to the H Cup. Rugby in Italy is just not popular enough and no amount of forcing will change that.

You're right. There's no point in trying to develop rugby in any other countries.

Stealdo

Macsimus wrote: »

If something like that did happen though the Scots would really be rubber ducked - no h cup money could really spell the end for Scottish rugby and none of us want that

I would also not like to see the number of qualifiers from ML reduced as it seems to be the only league currently in the ascendancy - what if # of qualifying spots were kept the same, but the league position decided who got them? so theres real competition at the top for play off place's + in the middle to lower positions for HC qualification

The league positions already effectively decide who does/doesn't get into the HEC from the ML. The problem is that there are 10 teams and 9 spots. The two scottish teams are guaranteed places, but that aside the lowest placed Irish/Welsh team is the only one that doesn't qualify. The other plays off against an Italian team for a place, but this recently has been the Dragons and they always win. If you add 2 Italian teams and 2 HEC spots nothing changes as far as HEC is concerned, except they may give up the playoff spot, presumably the two Italian teams will enjoy the same privilidge that the Scots enjoy now. A league that has no relegation and all but 1 team qualifying for the major competition the following season will never be competitive at the mid-lower places late in the season.

There's no way in hell as you say that the Scots would give up the guaranteed 2 places. They just couldn't afford to and it would kill off the pro game there which would have knock on effects for the ML and 6N etc.

Macsimus

Stealdo wrote: »

The league positions already effectively decide who does/doesn't get into the HEC from the ML. The problem is that there are 10 teams and 9 spots. The two scottish teams are guaranteed places, but that aside the lowest placed Irish/Welsh team is the only one that doesn't qualify. The other plays off against an Italian team for a place, but this recently has been the Dragons and they always win. If you add 2 Italian teams and 2 HEC spots nothing changes as far as HEC is concerned, except they may give up the playoff spot, presumably the two Italian teams will enjoy the same privilidge that the Scots enjoy now. A league that has no relegation and all but 1 team qualifying for the major competition the following season will never be competitive at the mid-lower places late in the season.

There's no way in hell as you say that the Scots would give up the guaranteed 2 places. They just couldn't afford to and it would kill off the pro game there which would have knock on effects for the ML and 6N etc.

I meant that if for example Connaught finish above one of the new italian or scots teams that they get the spot not the Italian/ scots team - ie that the spots are not country specific - but your absolutely right, for some reason I had it in my head that 8 out of the 10 went on to H cup.

Catmologen

Fantastic news, the ML has beem really progressing in the last few years and this is the next logical step. It'll be great to see some of the up and coming Italian players getting a chance to play against the top teams. Granted the first few years wont be pretty but it time it's gonna be of benefit in the long run.

Chochese

chupacabra wrote: »

So is the ML getting rebranded again once these teams are introduced?

They could follow the naming format of the Super 14 run by SANZAR and have different names of the tournament in each participating region, thus keeping it the ML up in these parts...

anonymous_joe

Climate Expert wrote: »

A terrible decision.

The Italians will add nothing to the tournament just like they have added nothing to the H Cup. Rugby in Italy is just not popular enough and no amount of forcing will change that.

What about us, the Welsh the Scottish?

Regionalising, and thus reducing the number of teams led to a higher standard at both international and club level.

Scotland are only doing badly now because of a poor generation of players, but their clubs are much stronger than ever before.

This is a good way for the basic standard of Italian player to be improved.