'Extremely damaging' Premiership infighting must end for the good of the game - Andy Goode
Premiership clubs are dealing with some of the toughest possible subjects to resolve at the moment but they have to get on the same page fast for the good of the game. Whether it’s the details of the salary cap regulations in the wake of Lord Myners’ review or how long clubs need to prepare if it is possible to restart the season, the clubs don’t seem to be able to agree on much at the moment and that has the potential to be extremely damaging if it continues.
Clearly, it would be much more straightforward if the league was dictating to the teams but the Professional Game Board has to meet and an agreement has to be reached so it isn’t easy to reach a consensus with so many different parties with different views but it’s vital that the clubs get aligned soon.
I completely understand Steve Lansdown’s position on the salary cap and it’s great that Bristol are in such a positive place but if more than a few clubs feel similarly and then another group feel we need to rein in spending, there’s obviously going to be an impasse.
Realistically, I think the majority of clubs can’t continue with the status quo given the situation we’ve found ourselves in and we just can’t allow clubs to go bust and end up with a six-team league when we come out the other end of this.
You can completely see the point about wanting to grow the league commercially but it’s a tough time to be doing that in right now and if there isn’t enough change and revenues don’t significantly increase in the immediate future, half the clubs will be gone in a few years without a shadow of a doubt.
The details around returning to playing rugby are hugely difficult to agree on because this is something none of us have seen before and there is no hard and fast rule for it but Pat Lam thinks four weeks of training is enough, while Geordan Murphy wants eight weeks.
The word is that testing regimes could cost each club up to £20,000 per week as well so there is a financial implication when clubs are struggling for money as well.
Plus, of course, the majority of players are furloughed at the moment and there will be a big debate going on around the level of their pay when they do return to training.
Clearly, they will expect to return to full pay when they return to work and I’d have been exactly the same when I was a player but clubs will have massively reduced revenue for many months to come even when rugby does resume as games will be played behind closed doors. Again, the solution isn’t straightforward.
You can see why Bristol might want a shorter build-up if their squad is in a good place and see an opportunity to win the Premiership and you can see why Leicester might think longer is necessary and they aren’t realistically going to make the top six this season.
Both views are understandable ones but a consensus has to be reached and player welfare must be at the forefront.
It was great to hear weeks ago that Premiership Rugby wanted to try to become the first sport back in England after Coronavirus and it’s only right that they had that aim but the level of contact in rugby means it is the most difficult sport to get back.
Nobody is saying it’s easy, far from it, and all of the conversations going on right now are difficult ones to have. It’s tough for everyone to agree but time is of the essence and we don’t want to be left behind when it comes to returning to play or the salary cap.
The faster the clubs become aligned, the better it’ll be for the whole sport. We can’t be fighting lots of individual battles right now and have pockets of clubs battling against one another when the future of the league and the sport is at stake.
Comments on RugbyPass
🤦♂️🤣 who cares who’s the best . All I know is the All Blacks have the star coach but have few star players now …
29 Go to commentsJe suis sûr que Farrell est impatient de jouer avec Lopez et Machenaud et d’être entraîné par Collazo… 🤭
1 Go to commentsAn on field red (aka a full red) in SRP must surely carry a bigger suspension than a red card given by the bunker as that carries a 20 minute team punishment. Had Damon Murphy abdicated his responsibility as a ref and issued both Drua players a yellow, which would have been upgraded to a 20 minute red by the bunker, that would have killed Australia and New Zealand’s push for the 20 minute red to be trialled globally from July this year.
11 Go to commentsEver so often you all post a Danny Care story that isn’t the announcement that he has finally re-signed for one more, victory tour season at Quins and I’m just like, “well you fooled me again!” My absolute favorite player ever, we need to make his final year at the Stoop (and Twickers) official already. I know he supposedly snubbed France but I won’t feel better until he signs.
1 Go to commentslate hit what late hit it wasn’t at all late and can clearly see he was committed before the tackle
1 Go to commentsChristian Lio -Willies 2 try perfomance was a standout. As was captain Scott Barrett. Up front was where the boys won it.They are a great team and players. Fantastic Crusades , you can keep going.
1 Go to commentsI don't know how the locals feel about that? I guess if you call yourselves the Worcester Wasps that might be appease. But really we need more teams in the Premiership in my view so they are not padding it out as they are at the moment. It might curtail so many players going abroad as well
5 Go to commentsNZ 😭😭😭is certainly rivaling England for best whingers cup!😭😭😭 !!!
29 Go to commentsYup. New Zealand won 3 out of 10 world cups played. SA 4 out of 8 attempts 30 Vs 50 per cent.🤔🤔
29 Go to commentsShould've done this years ago. Change Saturday kick off times to around 11am. Up and off and back home before 3pm, limit travel time too. Allows players to actually do something else with their Saturday that's family oriented or being rugby fans they could ‘watch’ pro rugby. Increases crowds etc. How can anyone that enjoys grassroots and pro rugby have to choose between the two on Saturdays?
9 Go to commentsI bet he inspired those supporters just as much.
1 Go to commentsBen Smith Springboks living rent free in his head 😊😂
67 Go to commentsGood to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
29 Go to commentsHow is 7’s played there? I’m surprised 10 or 11 man rugby hasn’t taken off. 7 just doesn’t fit the 15s dynamics (rules n field etc) but these other versions do.
9 Go to commentsPick Swinton at your peril A liability just like JWH from the Roosters Skelton ??? went missing at RWC
14 Go to commentsLike tennis, who have a ranking system, and I believe rugby too, just measure over each period preceding a world cup event who was the longest number one and that would be it. In tennis the number one player frequently is not the grand slam winner. I love and adore the All Blacks since the days of Ian Kirkpatrick when I was a kid in SA. And still do because they are the masters of running rugby and are gentleman on and off the field - in general. And in my opinion they have been the majority of the time the best rugby team in the world.
29 Go to commentsHaving overseas possessions in 2024 is absurd. These Frenchies should have to give the New Caledonians their freedom.
21 Go to commentsBell injured his foot didn’t he? Bring Tupou in he’ll deliver when it counts. Agree mostly but I would switch in the Reds number 8 Harry Wilson for Swinton and move Rob Valentini to 6 instead. Wilson is a clever player who reads the play, you can’t outmuscle the AB’s and Springboks, if you have any chance it’s by playing clever. Same goes for Paisami, he’s a little guy who doesn’t really trouble the likes of De Allende and Jordie Barrett. I’d rather play Carter Gordon at 12 and put Michael Lynagh’s boy at 10. That way you get a BMT type goalkicker at 10 and a playmaker at 12. Anyways, just my two cents as a Bok supporter.
14 Go to commentsThanks Brett, love your articles which are alway pertinent. It’s a difficult topic trying to have a panel adjudicating consistently penalties for red card issues. Many of the mitigating reasons raised are judged subjectively, hence the different outcomes. How to take away subjective opinions?
11 Go to comments