The Aviva premiership

profitius

Does anybody know who much the clubs make per year?

Anybody watch it much? Its really gone downhill IMO and won't get much better until they increase the wage cap. The clubs can't compete with French teams and even Irish teams are able to outbid English teams these days.

CIARAN_BOYLE

profitius wrote: »

Does anybody know who much the clubs make per year?

Anybody watch it much? Its really gone downhill IMO and won't get much better until they increase the wage cap. The clubs can't compete with French teams and even Irish teams are able to outbid English teams these days.

Some of the clubs struggle financially even with the wage cap.

They need to fix something on a commerical level to generate more income for the league rather than just increase the salary cap.

toomevara

Watch alot of it, regularly attend LI games and for my sins Leeds Carnegie, when I feel all masochistic, and I'd say in terms of standard there's a bit of an urban myth about that the prem is boring, attritional etc... This just doesn't marry up with what I see on a regular basis on the pitch. The top flight teams like Leicester, Wasps, Northampton are capable of beating anyone on their day and I'd imagine that the Tigers and the Saints are going to push hard in the Heineken this year. There are signs of a Gloucester revival (Amlin form notwithstanding), and a team like Exeter are proving that money is not everything in the English game as indeed are Bath who have acquired a rich sugar daddy but lost all form.

Its difficult to compare directly/fairly English clubs to their counterparts elsewhere on these Islands as they operate in an altogether much more different and brutal commercial reality (as I think clubs like Sale and Newcastle may demonstrate before the end of this season)..They've got to sing for their supper., compete for entry to the Heineken and dont have a cast iron guarantee of survival like the welsh/scottish/ Irish clubs. This completely alters the approach on the field and off it.

profitius

The wage cap means teams have to have a smaller squad and that is not good for a long season. Northampton seemed to run out of steam last season for this reason. Wasps hammered Dragons the other day and are on form but I presume they've a fit squad in general now. London Irish started the season well and are losing every game now. We see if with Connacht too, teams with small squads struggle once they get a few injuries.

Stev_o

profitius wrote: »

The wage cap means teams have to have a smaller squad and that is not good for a long season. Northampton seemed to run out of steam last season for this reason. Wasps hammered Dragons the other day and are on form but I presume they've a fit squad in general now. London Irish started the season well and are losing every game now. We see if with Connacht too, teams with small squads struggle once they get a few injuries.

Could be a number of things to be honest. London Irish seemingly are being exposed for not having that top ten inches in them which is nothing new considering how well they did last year not losing to Leinster yet getting thumped by Scarlets twice.

Some other clubs though like Sale, Gloucester, Newcastle, Leeds are in dire terms though. The successes of Exeter though proves that not all is lost that there are clubs that can come through and step up to the plate.

profitius

Mike Brewer got sacked from Sale today. Reading another website somebody said he was hard to work for and didn't get on with some players.

CatFromHue

is it just me or are there not alot of english aviva games on tv

i got in sky last year for the lions tour and have had it ever since. the way i justified it was when the heineken cup wasnt on i could watch the english premiership games.

ive found though that there doesnt seem to be a regular game slot on the weekend. sky tend to show games at irregular times each week and so ive found it hard to get into. in comparison to say setanta and now rte/tg4's coverage of the magners you can be nearly gauranteed there will be a game on the box on friday at 7 and sat at 7 each week.

even in relation to the curry cup or the air new zealand league ive always found skys coverage of their own league to be second rate in relation to live games. you could have 2 air new zealand games and 2 curry cup games but only 1 english league game on a given weekend.

i could just not be paying enough attention though and if an english league game is on at the same time as a magners league game, ill always watch the magners.

CouchSmart

ESPN show 2 a weekend usually, with SKY showing 1.

CatFromHue

i dont have espn as part my sky package and it would be just too expensive for wat id get out of it. especially with the magners being on rte/tg4.

i do have espn classic though and they have some good games on every now and again

Brenireland

In reply to the main post their aint a huge amount of money in The Aviva premiership if you compare it to say France/& Us here in Ireland!

Now in The Aviva Leicester would be the main club Revenue wise now they would take in £18Million a year!& considering the average club revenue per year in the Aviva premiership is say £9Million Leicester have done well!

This is mainly due to the fact that they are one of thee most successful clubs in the history of professional rugby!,also their population play's a huge part in this!also the failure of their football team in Leicester may play a big part in this:p,I seen an interview with Gavin Henson on t.v this week & it was highlighted that sadly only 10% of the people in Saracens geographical location were into rugby!,the rest football!

Now for saracens having such a small Rugby supporting population this means the on average have say 8,000 turn up for each game resulting in their revenue been @ £6million!,Leicester on the other hand!,they have a huge Rugby population and on average each week attract 18,000!=nice revenue+New Player=success,and so on so fort!

Now on average each club has say a £70-100,000 wage cap per year so when you compare this with football their aint competition!

Although when your talking numbers&comparison you have to take a look forward & English Rugby in the long term will remain extremely stable!,each club wants to move forward but they do so carefully and Business like,The English rugby union have an aim & that aim is for rugby to become more entertaining & very much like the NFL!,Saracens fore example their new owner has turned the club around pretty soon & with some success they could be one of the top dogs in europe!,this week the play wasps in Twickenham!,think of the money here for the rugby union,this game has sold out 70,000 or so tickets gone!,the interest is their!,You see Toulon doing this & Stade Francais in France!

Sadly here in Ireland we depend on our T.V but sadly lots of income will be lost as our government make games free to air,this may see players(irish) moving to say France/England!:)
stations like setanta/sky helped pay our players wages and subscribers now with games free to air =small wages+Airport=france/england

danthefan

It's like basically any league in any sport. Some of the games are very good, some are very bad.

toomevara

profitius wrote: »

Mike Brewer got sacked from Sale today. Reading another website somebody said he was hard to work for and didn't get on with some players.

Yep, that horrible phrase, he had lost the dressing room. Not all down to him though, nothing but trouble for Sale since Saint-Andre left, not a happy ship, attendances down etc... Also serious concerns over the viability of Newcastle....

Sangre

Correction, the Lansdowne Premiership.

JustinDee

CatFromHue wrote: »

i do have espn classic though and they have some good games on every now and again

The best of the sports channels.
Love it.

Digifriendly

JustinDee wrote: »

The best of the sports channels.
Love it.

Unfortunately while much of their material is good (esp. classic rugby matches) they keep repeating same programmes and due to rights issues are showing less material than before. See - http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=1156750&highlight=espn+classic

profitius

And to think a few years ago Sale were packed full of big name players.

THE GAME IS GOING BUST SAYS SALE CHIEF BRIAN KENNEDY

SALE owner Brian Kennedy has delivered a dire warning about the financial state of the Aviva Premiership while demanding more from RFU coffers to deal with the situation.
“I have been at this club for about 11 years and I have spent £15million, so it can get debilitating when you’re having to spend that amount just to keep the doors open,” said Kennedy, above.
“The game itself is bust and that’s the case with maybe eight of the 12 clubs, so you’ve got owners who have to continually put their hands in their pockets while the RFU are making £26m or £27m a year.”
There is disagreement within the Premiership over the future of the £4m salary cap, but Kennedy’s grim diagnosis implies that any increase would put some clubs out of business.
His continuing commitment is shown in the reorganisation being carried out under Steve Diamond, though Sale are still not entirely safe from relegation and were well beaten at Northampton last Saturday.
“If the Premiership owners pulled out, you’d have just four clubs left in England and that would put the RFU in a very funny position, wouldn’t it?” Kennedy told Rugby Times. “The RFU have to give us more support eventually, otherwise the game will go bankrupt.”

The Union’s largesse currently depends on the players clubs contribute to the England squads and how many English-qualified players they field in their squads week by week – schemes the RFU say are working better than ever.
Kennedy is not impressed. “The RFU have to do something about it because one day the owners will walk away,” he said.

http://www.express.co.uk/rugbyunion/view/238778/The-game-is-going-bust-says-Sale-chief-Brian-Kennedy

GerM

Reading reports about Tony Buckley's debut for Sale. Suffice to say, the locals are not amused. He came on for the last quarter and was hammered in the scrum and driven back in contact. Feel bad for the big man, was hoping he would turn things around there but, from reading the Sale forum, this isn't going to be a happy union at all.

Digifriendly

profitius wrote: »

The wage cap means teams have to have a smaller squad and that is not good for a long season. Northampton seemed to run out of steam last season for this reason. Wasps hammered Dragons the other day and are on form but I presume they've a fit squad in general now. London Irish started the season well and are losing every game now. We see if with Connacht too, teams with small squads struggle once they get a few injuries.

Think you've got that wrong as Dragons beat Wasps 30-29 in LV Cup.

profitius

Digifriendly wrote: »

Think you've got that wrong as Dragons beat Wasps 30-29 in LV Cup.

This thread is from last season.

Hagz

London Irish are thinking of playing a game in Boston

http://planetrugby.com/story/0,25883,3551_7285729,00.html

wixfjord

Hagz wrote: »

London Irish are thinking of playing a game in Boston

http://planetrugby.com/story/0,25883,3551_7285729,00.html

Well diddlyeye top o the morning!

What a load of bollocks. This playing games abroad could get out of hand. Ulster will be playing in Holland next!
(I've set someone up for a punchline, who will take the bait...?)

profitius

Hagz wrote: »

London Irish are thinking of playing a game in Boston

http://planetrugby.com/story/0,25883,3551_7285729,00.html

They want to tap into the Boston Irish. I wonder what the Boston Irish will make of them when they see a team full of non Irish players!

SomeFool

Anyone watching Northampton Wasps? Looked cynical from Laws on Robinson. No effort to wrap him in the tackel - more of a NFL hit.

GerM

Watching it now. Payne silly yellow card. Northampton can be contenders if Lamb can get some consistency and handle pressure.

On a side note, their away jersey is awesome.

profitius

I watched it. Wasps are after turning into a powderpuff team. Easy win for Saints. They got lucky with a few decisions.

Their choice of 10 should be interesting next week. Lamb is better in open play but he is a bad kicker. I think Munster would prefer to see Lamb starting.

wixfjord

profitius wrote: »

I watched it. Wasps are after turning into a powderpuff team. Easy win for Saints. They got lucky with a few decisions.

Their choice of 10 should be interesting next week. Lamb is better in open play but he is a bad kicker. I think Munster would prefer to see Lamb starting.

I'd agree, but Lamb has experience of Thomond doesn't he?
And I would probably think that he'd be better in getting that backline moving, which Quins did so well at Thomond last year.

someone pick a club for me to follow please and thank you. Miss live rugby too much already.

I'm in Manchester/Birmingham/Stoke/Sheffield area

thomond2006

Wasps have been in the doldrums since Dallaglio retired.

Lamb played very well against us in the Madjeski last season with London Irish. Then again I remember we put no pressure on him at all. He's a very good player when on the front foot but is terribly flaky when defenders get in his face.

It looks like he's the first choice now and he's probably a better option than Myler, who's no more than solid.

someone pick a club for me to follow please and thank you. Miss live rugby too much already.

I'm in Manchester/Birmingham/Stoke/Sheffield area

Follow Irish favourite Tony Buckley at Sale Sharks!

something tells me I wouldn't see a lot of him if I did!

CIARAN_BOYLE

thomond2006 wrote: »

Follow Irish favourite Tony Buckley at Sale Sharks!

Also former Munster 'great' Tuitupou as well as former Leinster men Kyle Tonetti and Cillian Willis

Digifriendly

CIARAN_BOYLE wrote: »

Also former Munster 'great' Tuitupou as well as former Leinster men Kyle Tonetti and Cillian Willis

Is Cillian Willis not retired from professional game having played for Leinster during duration of RWC?

Digifriendly

Digifriendly wrote: »

Is Cillian Willis not retired from professional game having played for Leinster during duration of RWC?

Nope, he managed to secure a contract based on some very classy performances. Best of luck to the lad, deserved the break after being around the provinces for a long jaunt.

CIARAN_BOYLE

Digifriendly wrote: »

Is Cillian Willis not retired from professional game having played for Leinster during duration of RWC?

He retired in June came out of retirement when offered a short term contract with Leinster had a wonderfull start to the season and now has a contract till the end of the season with Sale. Made his debut today and got 20 minutes off the bench. Apparently Sale went from 23-0 to 23-10 in the 20 minutes he was on the field.

GerM

Deleted User wrote: »

someone pick a club for me to follow please and thank you. Miss live rugby too much already.

I'm in Manchester/Birmingham/Stoke/Sheffield area

That's a fairly serious geographic spread! If you're Manchester/Stoke I guess Sale makes sense but Leicester is an option from Stoke and you'd have Murphy, Staunton and Morris to cheer on. If you're in Birmingham I'd go for Gloucester. Great crowd and club. Nothing like The Shed. Most passionate fans I've encountered. All based on whether you've wheels or not!

wixfjord

GerM wrote: »

That's a fairly serious geographic spread! If you're Manchester/Stoke I guess Sale makes sense but Leicester is an option from Stoke and you'd have Murphy, Staunton and Morris to cheer on. If you're in Birmingham I'd go for Gloucester. Great crowd and club. Nothing like The Shed. Most passionate fans I've encountered. All based on whether you've wheels or not!

Leicester I'd go for.
Great club and a day at Welford Road is great craic.

GerM

GerM wrote: »

That's a fairly serious geographic spread! If you're Manchester/Stoke I guess Sale makes sense but Leicester is an option from Stoke and you'd have Murphy, Staunton and Morris to cheer on. If you're in Birmingham I'd go for Gloucester. Great crowd and club. Nothing like The Shed. Most passionate fans I've encountered. All based on whether you've wheels or not!

I'm dead centre of the lot, an hours drive to pretty much all of them!

Was intending to go to the Leicester v Ulster in a fortnight, but looks like that's not possible anymore.

Will see what the Gloucester atmosphere is like at the Connacht game, and go from there. For the time being, I'll just have to keep an eye on them all...

GerM

Lawes with another speciality tackle today leaving an opposition player down injured after the ball was gone. It's ridiculous at this stage.

Courtney Botha

Teferi

As a neutral Leicester would have a huge draw for me. The passion of the players and the fans, the family feeling that the club has is definitely inviting.

But remember, if you do choose them I'll be slagging you for supporting only winning teams like an avid New Zealand supporter that will remain nameless...:D