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'Over time if the competition is not an every-game-matters, it's not sustainable'
Bristol boss Pat Lam believes the Gallagher Premiership should be an incentivised competition throughout in an absence of relegation. No club will drop into the Championship at the end of this season, with England’s top-flight league comprising 13 teams next term.
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It is widely thought a no relegation stance could continue beyond this season. The current regular Premiership campaign has six rounds remaining before playoffs and a final in June. It has left clubs in the league’s lower reaches knowing their Premiership status is guaranteed as opposed to facing a possible relegation scrap.
Bristol are twelve points clear as Premiership leaders, but rugby director Lam said: “My only concern at the moment is there has to be some sort of incentive to ensure teams are still going hard. I completely understand why there is no relegation this year because of Covid.
“Going forward, if we are not going to have it [relegation] for however long, there needs to be an incentive – whether it’s financial or whatever – to being No11 as opposed to No12 or No10 as opposed to No11 so the competition stays strong. History has shown that a home semi-final is the key. If we didn’t have that as an incentive, we could relax as soon as we made the top four.
“There is an incentive for Europe – the top six – the incentive down the bottom was (avoiding) relegation, but if we are not going to have that there has to be something else, whether (that is) money that links to your finishing place. It’s over to the decision-makers.
"I can remember maybe hearing rumours about it six, seven years ago but it is a different prospect in rugby in a lot of ways…"https://t.co/D0srFWpOcv
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) April 20, 2021
“I don’t want us to get into a position where it’s, ‘experienced guys are leaving, so we will just play all the young guys to give them experience for next season’. To me, that devalues the competition. Historically, the threat was relegation, but if we have taken that out what is the incentive for the bottom teams? We need to ensure everyone is fighting until the end.”
Controversial – but ultimately doomed – plans in football for a breakaway European Super League caused outrage throughout the sport. Asked if Premiership Rugby would do well to observe football’s fierce reaction to that closed shop scenario, Bristol boss Lam added: “My main thing is making sure that the competition has value from round one right through to the very end. For every team.
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“Once it becomes less incentivised, once it gets to a situation where there is nothing to play for – for players and fans – to me it becomes devalued. It’s very easy to get a lot of investment initially to do it a certain way, but ultimately it is the standard of the competition, I believe, that determines the sustainability and success of it.
“You might get the big lump sum to do something, which I have seen in Super Rugby and PRO14, but over time if the competition is not an every-game-matters, it is not sustainable in my view. Even if they have a closed shop in the football, what I am seeing is that there are no consequences for being the bottom team of that really rich league.
“If relegation is gone, make sure there is a discouragement to end up on the bottom, apart from your own pride. I always believe the greatest gift we have been given in life is choice, and there are consequences of all our choices. Those consequences can be great or they can be poor.”
The Bears host defending champions Exeter this Friday at Ashton Gate https://t.co/iQepaPShDF
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) April 20, 2021
Comments on RugbyPass
The shoulder is a “joint” with multiple bones. You don’t “fracture” a shoulder, you fracture any one or more of the bones that make up a shoulder.
2 Go to commentsOh dear, bones too suspect to continue?
2 Go to commentsBold headline considering the Canes and Blues are 1 and 2 and the Brumbies were soundly beaten by the Chiefs and Blues. Biggest surprise is Rebels 4 Crusaders 12 - no one saw that coming. If Aus are improving that’s great 👍
1 Go to commentsAnna, You are right, we need to have patience whilst the others catch up to England and France. Also it is the PWR that has been the game changer for England. the RFU put money into that initially at the expense of the Red Roses. I was sceptical at first but it has paid off in spades.
1 Go to commentsI think Matt Proctor became a 1 test AB in the same fixture. Cameron is quality and has been great this season, can’t believe’s he only 27. Realistically how would he not be selected for ABs squad this year. Only Dmac is ahead of him as a specialist 10. With Jordan out, it will come down to where and when Beauden Barrett slots back in, and where they want to play Ruben Love. Cameron seems an absolute lock in for the wider squad though. Added benefit of TJ-Cameron-Jordie combination at 9, 10, 11 too.
1 Go to commentsFarcical, to what end would someone want to pay to keep this thing going.
1 Go to commentsHavili, our best 12 by a mile, will be in the squad, if he stays fit. JB is the most overrated AB in the last 50 years.
61 Go to commentsWe had during the week twilight footy, twilight cricket, tw golf plus there was the athletics club. Then the weekend was rugby 15s plus the net ball, really busy club scene back then but so much has changed and rugby has suffered. And it was all about changing lifestyles.
6 Go to commentsIn the 70s and 80s my club ran 5 Senior sides plus a Vets. Now it is 2 sides with an occasional 3rd team. Players have difficulty getting to training now, not sure why and the commitment is not there. It seems to me more a problem of people applying themselves and not expecting to turn up and play whenever they want to.
6 Go to commentsROG’s contract is until 2027. The conversation about a successor to Galthie after RWC 2027 may be starting now. We can infer that Galthie’s reign stops then. He is throwing the Irish Coaching Job angle in because he is Irish. The next Irish coach MUST be Leo Cullen. As well as being the best coach available, coaching the vast majority of Irish Internationals week in week out, he has shown incredible skill at recruiting the best coaching staff for the job in hand. That was a failing in France. Cullen is a shrewd guy and if there is a need for foreign coaches underneath him he won’t hesitate. Rightly so. Ireland does need to start to bring Irish coaches through. Not just at the professional level but we need to train coaches to man new pathways for developing kids from schools/clubs up through the divisions.
8 Go to commentsNo Islam says it must rule where it stands Thus it is to be deleted from this planet Earth
18 Go to commentsThis team probably does not beat the ABs sadly Not sure if BPA will be available given his signing for Force but has to enter consideration. Very strong possibility of getting schooled by the AB props. Advantage AB. Rodda/Skelton would be a tasty locking combination - would love to see how they get on. Advantage Wallabies. Backrow a risk of getting out hustled and outmuscled by ABs. Will be interesting to see if the Blues feast on the Reds this weekend the way they did the Brumbies we are in big trouble at the breakdown. Great energy, running and defence but goalkicking/general kicking/passing quality in the halves bothers me enormously. SA may have won the World Cup for a lot of the tournament without a recognised goalkicker but Pollard in the final made a difference IMO. Injuries and retirements leave AB stocks a bit lighter but still stronger. 12 and 13 ABs shade it (Barret > Paisami, Ione = Ikitau, arguably) Interesting clash of styles on the wings - Corey Toole running around Caleb Clark and Caleb running over the top of Toole. Reece vs Koro probably the reverse. Pretty even IMO. 15s Kelleway = Love See advantage to ABs man for man, but we are not obviously getting slaughtered anywhere which makes a nice change. Think talent wise we are pretty even and if our cohesion and teamwork is better than the ABs then its just about doable.
11 Go to commentsCompletely agree. More friday night games would be a hit. RFU to make sure every club has a floodlit pitch. Club opens again Saturday to welcome touch / tag. Minis and youths on Sunday
6 Go to comments1.97m and 105Kg? Proportionately, probably skinnier than me at 1.82 and 82kilos. He won’t survive against the big guys at that weight.
56 Go to commentsThe value he brought to the crusaders as an assistant was equal to what he got out of being there. He reflected not only on the team culture but also the credit he attributed to the rugby community. Such experience shouldn’t be overlooked.
8 Go to commentsGood luck Aussie
11 Go to commentssmith at 9 / mounga 10 / laumape 12 / fainganuku 14
61 Go to commentsBar the injuries, it’s pretty much their top team …
2 Go to commentsDon’t disagree with much of this but it appears you forgot Rodda and Beale, who started at the Force on the weekend.
11 Go to commentsExcept for the injured Zach Gallagher this would be Saders best forward pack for the season. Blackadder needs to stay at 7, for all of Christies tackling he is not dominant and offers very little else. McNicholfullback is maybe a good option, Fihaki not really upto it, there was a reason Burke played there last year. Maybe Havilli to 2nd five McLeod to wing. Need a strong winger on 1 side to compliment Reece
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