Tommy Bowe new contract

vang

TB's contract is up at the end of the season. Munster get the cheque book out!

GymJim

More likely to head back to Ulster I would think. Would not go down well politically if he went to Munster.

If Ulster keep progressing the way they have been then a couple of quality additions could really have them challenging in the HEC. Perhaps a quality second row, full back and Bowe could do the trick.

Also I think Munster have realised that they have a guy who has the potential to be very like Tommy in Denis Hurley now. Improving every game after a very dodgy start to his pro career(quite similar to Bowe's progression from a few years ago).

Tim Robbins

GymJim wrote: »

More likely to head back to Ulster I would think. Would not go down well politically if he went to Munster.

If Ulster keep progressing the way they have been then a couple of quality additions could really have them challenging in the HEC. Perhaps a quality second row, full back and Bowe could do the trick.

Also I think Munster have realised that they have a guy who has the potential to be very like Tommy in Denis Hurley now. Improving every game after a very dodgy start to his pro career(quite similar to Bowe's progression from a few years ago).

The only way a player should be changing provence is if he can't get his game. If Bowe went to Munster it would be a disaster. Don't do it, Tommy.

toomevara

vang wrote: »

TB's contract is up at the end of the season. Munster get the cheque book out!

Assuming he jumps ship, and to be honest from a rugby perspective I'm not sure he should, there'll be quite a few interested parties as far as Mr. Bowe is concerned...GP clubs and possibly even French interest.

shawpower

Heard a news snippet on the sports bulletin this morning mentioning this. The word on that station was that Munster and Leinster are both interested if he decides to move from Ospreys.

I'd be amazed if Ulster didn't make an offer too, but that isn't to say they'd be favourites. Lots of players have played for different provinces, so it could be any of the three. I'm sure the IRFU would love to have him playing at home again instead of over in Wales.

Personally I'd love to see him at Leinster. Great long term replacement for Shaggy.

thehighground

toomevara wrote: »

Assuming he jumps ship, and to be honest from a rugby perspective I'm not sure he should, there'll be quite a few interested parties as far as Mr. Bowe is concerned...GP clubs and possibly even French interest.

If Tommy wants to win any silverwear, he'd be better off leaving the Ospreys and while I'm sure there will be a lot of interest from the GP* and French clubs, none will be too pushed about allowing him the amount of time that Kidney / IRFU has planned for Ireland squad next year (2 months Sept/Aug next season).

*Tommy had an offer from Leicester as well as the Ospreys when he was leaving Ulster.

Ciaran-Irl

Tim Robbins wrote: »

The only way a player should be changing provence is if he can't get his game. If Bowe went to Munster it would be a disaster. Don't do it, Tommy.

Not sure that is fair.

1. For tax reasons, he would be paid much more in Munster or Leinster, and before people jump on that being mercenary, Rugby players are not paid massive sums of money unless they play in France or are the very, very top players - like BOD or POC - that can get big sponsorship deals.

Players retire very young, and then have to start a new career very late in the day. Many backs, like Denis Hickie, have to retire even younger than the norm. They make a very limited amount of money out of Rugby, so all the power to them.

2. He might not have felt like he belonged at Ulster. There is a very unique culture at each club in Ireland that not everyone would fit into. He has probably made great mates with the Munster and Leinster lads from Ireland and Lions camps. If he wanted to join one or the other, why blame him?

3. Maybe he wants to win a Magners league title or a HEC title in his career. It is hard to argue with the fact that he would have a better shot at it in Leinster or Munster. He is one of the best wingers in the world. Scrum.com had in in the team of the year. Why shouldn't he want to end his club career with a few medals?

He should go where he wants to go and that is the end of it as far as I'm concerned.

toomevara

thehighground wrote: »

If Tommy wants to win any silverwear, he'd be better off leaving the Ospreys and while I'm sure there will be a lot of interest from the GP* and French clubs, none will be too pushed about allowing him the amount of time that Kidney / IRFU has planned for Ireland squad next year (2 months Sept/Aug next season).

*Tommy had an offer from Leicester as well as the Ospreys when he was leaving Ulster.

Yep,good points, tend to agree, however if Tommy wants a big fat payday...Forgot about the Leicester offer, christ how they'd love him now!

Tim Robbins

The tax reasons are margnial and can be offset by a cheaper cost of living in the North!

Podge_irl

I'll be shocked and somewhat disappointed if he ends up at either Munster or Leinster. Its just too politically dodgy - I can't see the provinces going into a bidding war for him.

thomond2006

Doug Howlett's contract is up at the end of the season and is unlikely to be renewed.

I think Bowe will replace Howlett in the squad and will walk into the Munster team.

Going to Leinster may be risky as he faces competition from Nacewa, Fitzgerald and Kearney Jnr. Even Bowe is not a dead cert for the Leinster XV, he is for Munster's.

Bowe's decision to move to the Ospreys was a brilliant one, it made him a Lion.

thehighground

Tim Robbins wrote: »

The tax reasons are margnial and can be offset by a cheaper cost of living in the North!

He wouldn't make as much on off field sponsorships deals etc. because Ulster don't get the same tv coverage/publicity in the ROI as Leinster or Munster. RTE Heineken Cup highlights are extensive for Leinster & Munster and Ulster got about 5 mins coverage (and Connacht got no coverage).

If Munster & Leinster can pay world class players like Howlett, Rocky etc., why shouldn't we try and keep our own world class players here and pay them accordingly. Bowe could be a straight swap for Howlett.

Ciaran-Irl

Tim Robbins wrote: »

The tax reasons are margnial and can be offset by a cheaper cost of living in the North!

They're not marginal as far as I heard. The first 125k per year that he ears can be claimed back as Tax Free when he retires, isn't it?

danthefan

Ciaran-Irl wrote: »

They're not marginal as far as I heard. The first 125k per year that he ears can be claimed back as Tax Free when he retires, isn't it?

I thought it was you just gets back a certain % (40 or so) of all the income tax you've paid when you retire. It's not marginal anyway.

Tim Robbins

thehighground wrote: »

If Munster & Leinster can pay world class players like Howlett, Rocky etc., why shouldn't we try and keep our own world class players here and pay them accordingly. Bowe could be a straight swap for Howlett.

Because it would be very bad for Ulster. Whereas with Howlett, Rocky it's not very bad for Ulster. So they aren't comparable.

shanagarry

Tim Robbins wrote: »

Because it would be very bad for Ulster. Whereas with Howlett, Rocky it's not very bad for Ulster. So they aren't comparable.

I take your point, but it's not exactly fair to Tommy that he would have to sacrifice medals and earnings for the good of the province. I'd be more than happy to see him back playing for the province of his choosing in Ireland.

Tim Robbins

shanagarry wrote: »

I take your point, but it's not exactly fair to Tommy that he would have to sacrifice medals and earnings for the good of the province.

The sacrificing medals thing is a bit presumptious. Leinster / Munster aren't intrinsically better. Ulster have had their fair share of success over the years and they have always played decent Rugby which is important for a winger.

thehighground

Tim Robbins wrote: »

Because it would be very bad for Ulster. Whereas with Howlett, Rocky it's not very bad for Ulster. So they aren't comparable.

Why is it bad for Ulster? Andrew Trimble seems to be back on form and other young players are coming through. Tommy said one of the reasons why he went to the Ospreys was because they were going to let him play centre and fullback as well as wing, which Ulster were not keen on.

Bowe owes Ulster nothing - he should look out for himself as he has a very short professional career.

Sangre

Tim Robbins wrote: »

The sacrificing medals thing is a bit presumptious. Leinster / Munster aren't intrinsically better. Ulster have had their fair share of success over the years and they have always played decent Rugby which is important for a winger.

'Intrinsically' better? Not sure what that is meant to mean.

If its HC glory he wants then the safe money would be on Leinster/Munster.

Tommy should look after number 1 - go to the club that plays at the highest level and pays the most. I'd absolutely love him as a Shaggy replacement - very similar player.

Podge_irl

Sangre wrote: »

'Intrinsically' better? Not sure what that is meant to mean.

If its HC glory he wants then the safe money would be on Leinster/Munster.

Last year maybe. Ten years ago it was ulster winning the European Cup. This year Ulster look about as effective as Munster and with a younger team.

What Tim means is that Leinster and Munster will not always necessarily be better than Ulster. Hell, Ulster and Leinster used to be the powerhouses of Irish rugby.

Anyway, if it was HC glory he was after he shouldn't have gone to the flippin Ospreys. As long as we have Nacewa I wouldn't want him at Leinster, it would be a waste. Young backs in Leinster get few enough chances as it is anyway, I'm sure Leinster can replace Horgan with D Kearney or one of his ilk.

conf101

No-one seems to think he might stay at the Ospreys. Would that be totally out of the question?

Tim Robbins

Sangre wrote: »

Tommy should look after number 1 - go to the club that plays at the highest level and pays the most. I'd absolutely love him as a Shaggy replacement - very similar player.

I'd agree with you he'd be a great Shaggy replacement but I would hate to see another province get our second best player. So I don't think it's fare to take their's. Glass houses and stones and all that...

Leinster / Munster have been stronger than Ulster in the last 8 years. I don't expect that always to be the case.

For a start, Ulster got much tougher groups and if they bring through a few more young lads and get all their best players back home - they could easily be stronger. They also had the highest attendances for the ML for a few years in a row. The IRFU always needs to look at the big picture. Bad enough shafting one province, but shafting another...

Deedsie

Id love to see him playing with Munster. Would be a great signing.

Ciaran-Irl

danthefan wrote: »

I thought it was you just gets back a certain % (40 or so) of all the income tax you've paid when you retire. It's not marginal anyway.

That sounds right actually.

Thankfully they didn't ruin us in the budget! Sad truth was that because they kept the sport relief, I was happy on budget day.

danthefan

Ciaran-Irl wrote: »

That sounds right actually.

Thankfully they didn't ruin us in the budget! Sad truth was that because they kept the sport relief, I was happy on budget day.

It probably earns more money than it costs though, interest in rugby would definitely wane if all our biggest players were overseas.

shanagarry

Tim Robbins wrote: »

The sacrificing medals thing is a bit presumptious. Leinster / Munster aren't intrinsically better. Ulster have had their fair share of success over the years and they have always played decent Rugby which is important for a winger.

Well, you can put potentially/possibly in there if you want, it doesn't matter in terms of what I was trying to say.

The point I was trying to make is that it would be very unfair on Tommy Bowe if he was forced to play for Ulster 'for the good of the province' if his preference, for what ever personal reason, is a different province. I don't think anyone has the right to demand that of him.

laugh

Tim Robbins wrote: »

Bad enough shafting one province, but shafting another...

I don't see how its shafting, he already doesn't play for Ulster.

Better to have him back in Ireland playing with some of his probable Ireland back line team mates at Munster/Leinster than in England/Wales/France.

My predicition is Leinster, I get the vibe that he isn't a big fan of ROG, and seems to be good mates with Luke and Rob.

9. Reddan (The way he played at the weekend) / POD
10. Sexton
11. Luke
12. Darcy
13. BOD.
14. Bowe
15. Rob

nice

monaghanbiffo

laugh wrote: »

I don't see how its shafting, he already doesn't play for Ulster.

Better to have him back in Ireland playing with some of his probable Ireland back line team mates at Munster/Leinster than in England/Wales/France.

My predicition is Leinster, I get the vibe that he isn't a big fan of ROG.

You get the vibe he doesn't like ROG? Based on what? and then to assume that he would base his future on such a trivial matter?

What doe that even mean...idiot.

DOC09UNAM

As a Munster fan, i would welcome this man into the squad easily.

What a fantastic player.

laugh

monaghanbiffo wrote: »

You get the vibe he doesn't like ROG? Based on what? and then to assume that he would base his future on such a trivial matter?

What doe that even mean...idiot.

I get that vibe and I'm entitled to my opinion yea?

So getting on with your perspective team mates is trivial?

Podge_irl

laugh wrote: »

I don't see how its shafting, he already doesn't play for Ulster.

Better to have him back in Ireland playing with some of his probable Ireland back line team mates at Munster/Leinster than in England/Wales/France.

My predicition is Leinster, I get the vibe that he isn't a big fan of ROG, and seems to be good mates with Luke and Rob.

9. Reddan (The way he played at the weekend) / POD
10. Sexton
11. Luke
12. Darcy
13. BOD.
14. Bowe
15. Rob

nice

I'd rather keep Nacewa to be honest. At least then we'd have one back not being lost during international camps or "resting periods". Leinster don't need Bowe


To add further complication to all of this of course, he'll be on an IRFU contract if he comes back to Ireland, not a provincial one. That eliminates some of the possibilities for individual provinces to encourage him in their direction. I also don't understand the assumption that Bowe wouldn't want to go back to Ulster. It's not like you ever would have caught BOD signing for Munster even when they were more successful.

bamboozle

danthefan wrote: »

I thought it was you just gets back a certain % (40 or so) of all the income tax you've paid when you retire. It's not marginal anyway.

you get to recoup 40% of the income tax paid on rugby income (not endorsements) in your 5 highest years of income as a professional rugby player provided your last year as a pro player is based in Ireland.

i'd say if he was to move back to Ireland he'd go to Munster, given the quality of backs knocking around the Leinster squad plus the likes of conway, macken, kearney jr and Keating coming through it would make much more sense that he'd go to Munster or Ulster. I'd say the IRFU would love to have him at home, whether he wouldnt be forced to play for Ulster (who knows maybe he'd want to) by the players advisory group would be the issue.
Wasnt it Simon Easterby who wanted to sign for Leinster, PAG said he could sign for Ulster or no-one so he signed for Llenelli

thehighground

laugh wrote: »

I get that vibe and I'm entitled to my opinion yea?

So getting on with your perspective team mates is trivial?

Wrong vibe if you go on what Tommy says about ROG in the Grand Slam book. When Jamie Heaslip scored the try that Tommy made the break for, everyone ran over to congratulate Jamie, ROG went over to Tommy to congratulate him for making the break in the first place. Tommy said in the book how motivational he found that and how he appreciated ROG for thinking to do it.

He also seems to dig POC bigtime - a bit of "POC said this, POC said that etc..."

Anyway, Tommy seems to be the kind of character that gets on with and is liked by everyone.

GymJim

laugh wrote: »

My predicition is Leinster, I get the vibe that he isn't a big fan of ROG, and seems to be good mates with Luke and Rob.

Utter rubbish. Quite the opposite if you ever watch the lads train, pre-match or as another poster mentioned read the GS book. Obviously age profiles and training partnerships (first choice Irish back 3) would mean Tommy, Fitz and Kearno would be around each other a lot and be tighter. And who the hell would make such an important choice based on their liking or dislike for one individual.

He would be centrally contracted so there is no way they'd allow him join another province (especially Leinster given the fact it would seriously impact the development of the likes of Kearney jnr, Macken etc. and even McFadden). Personally I think Ulster would be his best (and preferred) option anyway...young team which are becoming a very strong unit and he would get opportunity to play wing/centre/FB. Wouldn't rule out a stay at Ospreys either though as he seems to have benefitted so much from his time there.

shawpower

Podge_irl wrote: »

It's not like you ever would have caught BOD signing for Munster even when they were more successful.

I think you are comparing apples and oranges there a bit. BOD has been a legend for Leinster and played their all his career (10 years). Bowe was a good player for Ulster but has stepped up since going to Wales. He only played 4 full seasons with Ulster. I don't think it's fair to say he couldn't go to another province. There is very little chance of any top level player moving directly between provinces, but if they've been away for a number of years I think the problems decrease.

That said, I do think that it's most likely he'll stay with Ospreys, with Ulster and then Leinster/Munster the likely order. However, I'd say that if Bowe said he'd prefer not to move to Ulster (for whatever reason) then the IRFU would prefer to see him play for either of the other two HEC provinces than stay abroad. With the huge swell of underage backline talent at Leinster, it is possible that they would push more towards Munster as a preference, but I'd still love him to replace Shaggy (as I already mentioned on p1).

Is the PAG still as strong as when Simon Easterby moved to Llanelli? Was it them that blocked the move for Giteau too?

irishbucsfan

9. Boss
10. Humphries
11. Danielli
12. Wallace
13. Trimble
14. Bowe
15. Schifcofske (Or someone else?)

Seems like a great backline to me. And with a pack of
1. Court
2. Kyriacou
3. Botha
4. O'Donoghue
5. Caldwell
6. Ferris
7. Pollock
8. Henry

I'd say that that team could challenge any of the other Irish provinces (perhaps missing the depth elsewhere, but still a quality starting 15)... they just need a reliable kicker

shawpower

To be honest with you, i'd say it would be stronger with Bowe at 13 and Trimble at 14. Although, possibly even Cave. Don't rate Trimble as a centre much. He can do a job, but wouldn't be a huge fan of him there.

laugh

thehighground wrote: »

Wrong vibe if you go on what Tommy says about ROG in the Grand Slam book.

Anyway, Tommy seems to be the kind of character that gets on with and is liked by everyone.

GymJim wrote: »

Utter rubbish. Quite the opposite if you ever watch the lads train, pre-match or as another poster mentioned read the GS book.

Fair enough, maybe its wishful thinking on my part, only time will tell.

When would it be announced? Summer time?

WeeBushy

Dunno if this has been said already...

Moving to Leinster wouldn't be a good idea for Irish Rugby as a whole. There are some seriously talented back three players in the Leinster academy at the moment. It's well placed with Shaggy coming towards the end of his career, he's got enough time left in him to bring through the young players and then step aside when they're ready to take over. If we signed Bowe it would just stifle their development.

Back to Ulster would make sense emotionally and possibly from a rugby perspective as well. England or France would make monetary sense.

I wouldn't be surprised if he renewed his contract in Wales though, its done wonders for his career and he seems to enjoy playing there. Has this been ruled out?

Podge_irl

WeeBushy wrote: »

England or France would make monetary sense.

Nonsense. The IRFU can afford to pay players as much as anyone in England and nearly anyone in France. The Irish teams are easily able to compete in monetary terms - they're probably able to offer more than almost anyone really.

laugh

WeeBushy wrote: »

Dunno if this has been said already...

Moving to Leinster wouldn't be a good idea for Irish Rugby as a whole. There are some seriously talented back three players in the Leinster academy at the moment. It's well placed with Shaggy coming towards the end of his career, he's got enough time left in him to bring through the young players and then step aside when they're ready to take over. If we signed Bowe it would just stifle their development.

Would it not be good for Irish Rugby if the number 1 back line were playing together regularly as the world cup is on the horizon?

As far as Bowe and Ulster are concerned, he breaks a lot of rules, high quality Irish players getting selected do not have a habit of going abroad. Did Bowe leave just because Ulster were not successful recently?

WeeBushy

Podge_irl wrote: »

Nonsense. The IRFU can afford to pay players as much as anyone in England and nearly anyone in France. The Irish teams are easily able to compete in monetary terms - they're probably able to offer more than almost anyone really.

Really? I was under the impression that France especially were able to offer contracts way above ours.

Guess I was wrong.

irishbucsfan

WeeBushy wrote: »

Really? I was under the impression that France especially were able to offer contracts way above ours.

Guess I was wrong.

You were under the right impression. I'm not sure about England, but the big French clubs are far more wealthy than the IRFU.

Podge_irl

irishbucsfan wrote: »

You were under the right impression. I'm not sure about England, but the big French clubs are far more wealthy than the IRFU.

The English have a salary cap so are probably less able to afford big names than the provinces. The likes of Toulon can afford to spend far more than the IRFU but its certainly not universally true for all the French clubs. Aside from the IRFU, the provinces themselves have some serious cash flow available to them - they're some of the best supported teams in Europe after all.

WeeBushy

laugh wrote: »

Would it not be good for Irish Rugby if the number 1 back line were playing together regularly as the world cup is on the horizon?

That would be a postive, but it would stunt the development of a lot of youngsters so in the long run I still don't think that woud be a good idea, imo.

laugh wrote: »

As far as Bowe and Ulster are concerned, he breaks a lot of rules, high quality Irish players getting selected do not have a habit of going abroad. Did Bowe leave just because Ulster were not successful recently?

He left for a new experience and challenge as well as the fact that Ulster weren't doing very well. Irish players tend not to, but then again they tend not to leave in the first place. I just think that his time outside Ireland has been so successful he wouldn't be adverse to going somewhere else abroad.

Podge_irl

laugh wrote: »

Would it not be good for Irish Rugby if the number 1 back line were playing together regularly as the world cup is on the horizon

I dunno, while playing together is good there is certainly an argument that having players from different teams coming into the national side brings some freshness with it. France, England, the ABs etc. don't pick their national teams from only two teams after all and its working pretty well for them.

He said before he went to the Ospreys because of the style of rugby they play and that playing that style has made him better.If he uses the same criteria then he would definitely go to Leinster.Look at Doug Howletts try ratio,why in gods name would he want to replace him.He would touch the ball twice every match.

Also people have said he wouldnt get his game,he would have the 14 jersey in an instant.

thehighground

laugh wrote: »

As far as Bowe and Ulster are concerned, he breaks a lot of rules, high quality Irish players getting selected do not have a habit of going abroad. Did Bowe leave just because Ulster were not successful recently?

Ulster never pushed on from when they won the Heineken Cup in '99 (they haven't gotten out of their pool since they won it). They were badly managed and from what I can see it was very much a 'job for the boys' type of set up (unproven Mark McCall in 2004 was preferred to Declan Kidney who was available at the time), whereas Leinster & Munster haven't been afraid to bring in SH coaching staff etc.

If Tommy wasn't going to be in a team that was making the later stages of the Heineken Cup at least occasionally, he was never going to improve and nail down a place on the Irish team.

Ulster are now on their third coach since Tommy left so there is definately something not quite right about it.

[Jackass]

Well money wouldn't be an issue, Leinster & Munster can offer serioussss contracts, more or less given the cheque book to sign any player in the world of any reputation (Howlett, CJ Van Der Linde, Rocky etc.) and I'd say only one or two in France could out bid those provinces. You'd imagine the IRFU would allow a large contract to keep him in Irish rugby and would gladly see him return to Ulster.

Ulster makes the most sense by far. As someone said, Leinster have too much talent coming through, particularly in the back 3 where academy players like Luke & Rob have established themselves on the world stage, but more of them are coming through, it would be ridiculos.

Munster have a lot of backline talent at the minute, they can't fit all of their big names into the backline any more, players like Hurley, Jones and Earls are only finding their feet, but developing nicely, again, Bowe isn't eseentially needed, and would be hampering the progress of Irish rugby.

But at Ulster, it's his home team, they're a sleeping giant of European Rugby, they're starting to show serious signs of coming back to the good old days, they've got a fantastic team, if not a great squad it has to be said, but guys like Bowe are bringing top range class back into the team and adding depth also. Don't be surprised if Neil Best comes back too...a bit of a Leon Cullen & Shane Jennings comeback type season...and look what that did for Leinster, 1 Magners and 1 Heineken Cup in the 2 seasons they're back so far. This season they'll have made it 2 MLs and 2 HECs in 3 seasons!!! (I kid, I kid )

Nah, hopefully he'll come back and hopefully he'll go to Ulster...they're starting to look like a serious team, and just need a few extra sprinkles of class like Bowe, and a bit more depth, and they'll be a Heineken Cup knock-out stages standard team..then from there who knows, they could make the ultimate come-back a few years down the line and be kings of Europe again!

shawpower

Tim Robbins wrote: »

For a start, Ulster got much tougher groups and if they bring through a few more young lads and get all their best players back home - they could easily be stronger.

Totally agree. But it's a vicious circle. They are being hamstrung by horrendous groups in the HEC, but until they do better their seeding will keep them like that.

Tim Robbins wrote: »

They also had the highest attendances for the ML for a few years in a row.

You are wrong here. They haven't had the highest attendence since 05/06 season. And since then they've been going backwards in the table with just a constant average of about 9,000-9,500 a year.

06/07 - 2nd behind Leinster.
07/08 - 2nd behind Leinster.
08/09 - 3rd behind Munster and then Leinster.
09/10 - 4th behind Munster, Leinster and Cardiff.

Perhaps with rejuvenated form and the expanded Ravenhill, the numbers will go up some more. But I can't see them getting ahead of Munster or Leinster for quite a while since their max attendance is at least 6,000 less than either. It'd take more development of Ravenhill along with a dip in fortunes for both other teams.

Tim Robbins wrote: »

The IRFU always needs to look at the big picture. Bad enough shafting one province, but shafting another...

I really can't see how this is shafting Ulster. Yes it would be better if he went there for the province, and possibly the IRFU. But the player has to have some input, and if he doesn't want to go there, it is hardly shafting the province? I am not saying he doesn't want to go there btw.

bamboozle

Podge_irl wrote: »

The English have a salary cap so are probably less able to afford big names than the provinces. The likes of Toulon can afford to spend far more than the IRFU but its certainly not universally true for all the French clubs. Aside from the IRFU, the provinces themselves have some serious cash flow available to them - they're some of the best supported teams in Europe after all.

English clubs attraction has diminished as sterling has weakened considerably