Potential 14 Team Premiership-with no relegation

LeeroyJones

From Planet Rugby

English rugby's elite division, the Guinness Premiership, could be poised to expand from 12 to 14 teams - and do away with relegation.

According to Mark McCafferty, the chief executive of Premier Rugby, the 12 current top-tier sides expressed a desire make the move at a recent series of meetings between club owners and chief executives in order to help grow the game.

"There was a general consensus that we should look properly at expanding to 14 teams," McCafferty, whose body represents the 12 clubs, was quoted as saying in The Sunday Telegraph.

"In 2012 we hope to secure a big increase in TV revenue, which will remove some of the obstacles to expansion where people are worried they will get less money because there would be 14 mouths to feed rather than 12.

"My view is that we can solve the financial issues and get the jam, if you like, spread thickly enough for everyone to be happy."

Other proposals reportedly include scrapping the Anglo-Welsh Cup and, controversially, halting promotion and relegation for a period.

McCaffery said: "We are exploring all the issues but we are conscious of the need to protect the integrity of the competition.

"By going up to 14 teams you increase the number of games that overlap with internationals and therefore you have more occasions when elite players are absent from their clubs.

"There is also a choice to be made between having two competitions - an expanded Premiership and Europe - or retaining the Anglo-Welsh Cup, which provides breathing space and offers a chance to test different players."

One man who would be keen to see a suspension of promotion and relegation in an expanded Premiership is Worcester's owner, Cecil Duckworth. His side are currently engaged in a three-way scrap to avoid relegation.

He said: "There has been talk of a two or three-year moratorium to absorb two new clubs and then there would be a debate on how you gain access after that."

outwest

wha they should do is a format like the super league. were no relegation but teams can be demoted for palying badly.

chupacabra

Removing relegation removes a lot of the competition for the lower sides and screws over the teams in the lower divisions. Stupid move imo.

LeeroyJones

outwest wrote: »

wha they should do is a format like the super league. were no relegation but teams can be demoted for palying badly.

how does that work?

outwest

a means test was done on clubs, attendences, location, stadium, were used to rate the clubs, top clubs are in the super league, other in div2, no relegation. but i think after a few years the might replace one team if their bringing down the standard of the league

sock puppet

It's not a bad idea if implemented well. Giving a team a guaranteed 2-3 years in the Premiership before relegation would ease a lot of the pressures they face during their first year after promotion. Not many players with aspirations to play for England would sign for Bristol next season knowing that relegation is a serious possibility.

toomevara

This has been inevitable for some time. The fear of relegation is completely stifling the game in England. For example Leeds are playing in what's been dubbed "the million pound game" here in Headingley today. Win it and they stay in the prem and essentially completely alter their prospects, loose it and its back down to the lower division and the total decimation of the club. Here the club is all, for players administrators etc...for this very reason. I'd expect more fee flowing, less attritional type of game being played here when this comes in. it should also improve the fortunes of the English national team.

Podge_irl

There is also the issue that it is, to a certain degree at least, the same couple of teams constantly going down and coming back up. With an expansion to 14 teams it could be possible that there is no one really left in the lower division that warrants promotion.

Digifriendly

toomevara wrote: »

This has been inevitable for some time. The fear of relegation is completely stifling the game in England. For example Leeds are playing in what's been dubbed "the million pound game" here in Headingley today. Win it and they stay in the prem and essentially completely alter their prospects, loose it and its back down to the lower division and the total decimation of the club. Here the club is all, for players administrators etc...for this very reason. I'd expect more fee flowing, less attritional type of game being played here when this comes in. it should also improve the fortunes of the English national team.

On a side issue but astonished there was no live TV coverage of this ''million pound game''. Talking about TV revenue and coverage of the GP the TV bosses surely made a big error in not covering this game live.