Criticism mounting after RFU decision shuts famed academy that produced likes of Danny Care
Former England lock Tom Palmer has branded the Rugby Football Union’s decision to axe the Yorkshire rugby academy as “shocking”, ending a system that gave Stuart Lancaster his first coaching opportunity and delivered Danny Care, Luther Burrell and Rob Webber on to the Test scene.
Palmer won 42 England caps in a career that started as a teenager with Leeds when the club were operating at the top of the English game.
The lock went onto to play for Wasps, Stade Francais and Gloucester and is now defence coach at Rouen in the French second tier of professional rugby alongside head coach Richard Hill, the former England captain.
Palmer said: “It is shocking. Yorkshire is the biggest rugby-playing county and needs to have some kind of academy. It really took off when Stuart Lancaster was in charge and an audit showed Leeds had one of the highest number of graduates in the Premiership.”
Wasps back row forward Alex Rieder tweeted his anger at the decision to abandon the academy: “An absolute joke. I gained my opportunity to pursue a dream through Leeds academy. Yorkshire is a hub of talent and has some of the highest calibre of young talent in the country. If you want to sabotage/isolate the development of English rugby then congratulations, job well done.”
Another major blow for the sport in that region https://t.co/ClIaMKHtCh
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) July 15, 2020
Conor O’Shea, the RFU’s director of performance, insisted that a funding model had been agreed pre-pandemic to maintain the academy programme in conjunction with a new partner as Yorkshire Carnegie could no longer fund it, but that proposal fell through.
Carnegie’s relegation from the Championship triggered a crisis and it now means no academy system exists in Yorkshire which has a bigger population than New Zealand and Ireland.
Lancaster, the ex-England head coach who is now with Leinster, was crucial to the early success of the academy and his own son Daniel is a product of the system, making his first-team debut for Carnegie last season. O’Shea is aware of the mounting anger in Yorkshire which has supplied 124 players to England and boasts 120 junior clubs.
O’Shea told RugbyPass that a short-term plan was being put in place to ensure talented young players remained on the correct pathway and that a long-term solution to deliver a viable academy in Yorkshire was being examined. This may not be based in Leeds and would also involve satellite facilities to recognise the long distances some players face to take part.
The RFU licence which enabled the Yorkshire academy to receive central funding of around £350,000 ended on June 13 and budgets for the union’s academy system will be cut in line with reductions being made in all areas.
O’Shea said: “In the longer term it is about having a focal point in Yorkshire and we had a very clear direction but that has had to be put on the back burner. Across the Gallagher Premiership, it is going to be challenging in terms of the academy funding which is linked to the revenue which is going down this year.
“We have to work smart this year and every academy will get the same level of investment. For Yorkshire, we have to ensure coach development, player identification and development and if we can tick those three boxes in the short-term we will be able to establish the programme that needs to be there.
“Yorkshire was a hot-bed of players and we know how many good players will continue to come from the county. I feel for people in the short-term but hopefully they are comforted by the fact we are trying to re-establish it as it was. I have no doubt it will be again.”
'There were times when I was in the car with the rugby coach and players would be phoning in saying they couldn’t do anymore because it was affecting their actual work life.' @Tom_Varndell talks to @heagneyl ???https://t.co/oKkSFnhHom
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) April 19, 2020
Comments on RugbyPass
AI is only as good as the information put in, the nuances of the sport, what you see out the corner of the eye, how you sum up in a split second the situation, yes the AI is a tool but will not help win games, more likely contribute to a loss, Rugby Players are not robots, all AI can do if offer a solution not the solution. AI will effect many sports, help train better golfers etc.
45 Go to commentsIt couldn’t have been Ryan Crotty. He wasn’t selected in either World Cup side - they chose Money Bill instead. And Money Bill only cared about himself, and that manager he had, not the team.
25 Go to commentsYawn 🥱 nobody would give a hoot about this new trophy. End of the day we just have to beat Ireland and NZ this year then they can finally shut up 🤐
13 Go to commentsTalking bout Ryan Crotty? Heard Crotty say in a interview once that SBW doesen't care about the team . He went on to say that whenever they lost a big game, SBW would be happy as if nothing happened, according to him someone who cares would look down.. Personally I think Crotty is in the wrong, not for feeling gutted but for expecting others 2 be like him… I have been a bad loser forever as it matters so much to me but good on you SBW for being able to see the bigger picture….
25 Go to commentsThis sounds like a WWE idea so Americans can also get excited about rugby, RUGBY NEEDS A INTERNATIONAL CALENDER .. The rugby Championship and Six Nations can be held at same time, top 3 of six nations and top 3 of Rugby championship (6 nations should include Georgia AND another qualifying country while Fiji, Japan and Samoa/Tonga qualifier should make out 6 Southern teams).. Scrap June internationals and year end tours. Have a Elite top six Cup and the Bottom 6 in a secondary comp….
13 Go to commentsThe rugby championship would be even stronger with Fiji in it… I know it doesen’t fit the long term plans of NZ or Aus but you are robbing a whole nation of being able to see their best players play for Fiji…. Every second player in NZ and AUS teams has Fijian surnames… shame on you!!! World rugby won’t step in either as France and England has now also joined in…. I guess where money is involved it will always be the poor countries missing out….
84 Go to commentsNo surprise there. How hard can it be to pick a ball off the ground and chuck it to a mate? 😂
2 Go to commentsSometimes people just like a moan mate!
1 Go to commentsexcellent idea ! rugby needs this 💪
13 Go to comments9 Brumbies! What a joke! The best performing team in Oz! Ditch Skelton for Swain or Neville. Ryan Lonergan ahead of McDermott any day! Best selection bolter is Toole … amazing player
12 Go to commentsI like this, but ultimately rugby already has enough trophies. Trying to make more games “consequential" might prove to be a fools errand, although this is a less bad idea than some others. Minor quibble with the title of the article; it isn’t very meaningful to say the boks are the unofficial world champions when it would be functionally impossible for the Raeburn trophy not to be held by the world champions. There’s a period of a few months every 4 years when there is no “unofficial” world champion, and the Raeburn trophy is held by the actual world champions.
13 Go to commentsIts a great idea but one that I dont think will have a lot of traction. It will depend on the prestige that they each hold but if you can do that it would be great. When Japan beat the Boks (my team) I was absolutely devestated but I wont deny the great game they played that day. We were outclassed and it was one of the best games of rugby I have seen. Using an idea like this you might just give the the underdog teams more of an opportunity to beat the big teams and I can absolutely see it being a brilliant display of rugby. They beat us because they planned for that game. It was a great moment for Japan. This way we can remove the 4 year wait and give teams something to aim for outside of World Cup years.
13 Go to commentsHi, Dave here. Happy to answer questions 🥰
13 Go to commentsDon’t think that headline is accurate. It’s great to see Aus doing better but I’m not sure they’ve shown much threat to the top of the table. They shouldn’t be inflating wins against the lousy Highlanders and Crusaders either.
3 Go to commentsSuch a shame Roigard and Aumua picked up long term injuries, probably the two form players in the comp. Also, pretty sure Clarke Dermody isn’t their coach. Got it half right though.
3 Go to commentsOh the Aussie media, they never learn. At least Andrew Kellaway is like “Woah, yeah it’s great, but settle down there guys” having endured years of the Aussie media, fans, and often their players getting ahead of themselves only to fall flat on their faces. Have the “We'll win the Bledisloe for sure this year!” headlines started yet? It’s simple to see what’s going on. The Aussie teams are settled, they didn't lose any of their major players overseas. The Crusaders and Chiefs lost key experienced All Blacks, and Razor in the Crusaders case, and clearly neither are anywhere near as strong as last year (The Canes and Blues would probably be 3rd & 4th if they were). The Highlanders are annually average, even more so post-Aaron Smith and a big squad clean out. The two teams at the top? The two nz sides with largely the same settled roster as last year, except Ardie Savea for the Canes. They’ve both got far better coaches now too. If the Aussies are going to win the title, this is the year the kiwi sides will be weakest, so they better take their chance.
3 Go to commentsThe World Cup has to be the gold standard, line in the sand. 113 teams compete for what is the opportunity to make the pool stages, and then the knockout games for the trophy. The concept is sound. This must have been the rationale when the World Cup was created, surely? But I’m all for Looking forward and finding new ways for the SH to dominate the NH into the future. The autumn series needs a change up. Let’s start by having the NH teams come south every odd year for the Autumn/Spring series games?
13 Go to commentsWhat’ll happen when the AI models of the future go back in time and try to destroy the AI models of the past standing in their way of certain victory?
45 Go to commentsThanks, Nick. We (Seanny Maloney, Brett and I) just discussed Charlie as a potential Wallaby No 8, and wondered if he has truly realised how big he is in contact (and whether he can add 5 kg w/o slowing down). Your scouting report confirms our suspicions he has the materiel. No one knows if he has the mentality (as Johann van Graan said this week about CJ, Duane and Alfie B) to carry 10-15 times a game.
58 Go to commentsHe would be a great player for the Stormers, Dobbo should approach the guy.
3 Go to comments