1
Gallagher Premiership welfare initiatives agreed; includes no player starting three games in a week
Officials in England have finally agreed on a series of player welfare initiatives to help absorb the workload of the remainder of the 2019/20 season and the whole of the 2020/21 Gallagher Premiership and England campaigns.
ADVERTISEMENT
The outbreak of the pandemic Covid-19 pandemic required changes to this season – including the scheduling of midweek league fixtures – and next by the PGB to cover Gallagher Premiership and England matches and what has now been agreed will apparently be under constant review and monitored weekly.
A statement outlined the various measures that will be implemented in the Gallagher Premiership:
For the 2019/20 season:
- No player will play more than 180 minutes if selected in a matchday 23 on three occasions in a week;
- No player will start all three games in a week;
- No player will be selected in more than six matches in the seven games between August 14 and September 13;
- A player’s training load will be managed if they are selected in three matchday squads in any given seven-day period.
In addition, at the end of the 2019/20 season there will be:
- A three-week break for all players, except those in the Premiership final who will receive a two and a half week break and one and a half week preparation for round one;
- No pre-season friendlies for clubs in the Premiership or European finals;
- England players will receive a one-week break after England v Italy and two weeks following their return to clubs in December.
For the 2020/21 season:
- The season starts Friday, November 20, and ends with the final on Saturday, June 26;
- All players are guaranteed a three-week rest period with maximum notice possible;
- A game-wide mental health monitoring programme will be launched, and will be available for all players;
- Premiership Rugby Shield cancelled for this season and will be reviewed.
Phil Winstanley, rugby director at Premiership Rugby, said: “The Covid-19 global pandemic has created the biggest challenge we have ever seen to professional sport in this country and has placed significant operational and financial pressures on the sport.
“The effects of the pandemic have required a redesign of the rugby calendar and shift in the 2019/20 and 2020/21 Premiership seasons.
“Working closely with the RFU, RPA and a number of senior players and coaches we have collaborated to produce player welfare initiatives for both seasons. No two players are the same and we need to allow the directors of rugby to manage these individual needs but within a framework we are all comfortable with.”
Conor O’Shea, director of performance Rugby at the RFU, added: “All parties have approached this acknowledging the challenges we all face but also understanding everyone would need to compromise.
ADVERTISEMENT
“We have had extensive discussions across the game but most importantly with the players, Eddie and a number of directors of rugby. Through this, we have reached a really positive solution.
“We will constantly review and monitor all players, especially those who carry the greatest load. We have managed to marry the scientific with the practicality of the challenge.”
Damian Hopley, chief executive of the RPA, said: “The next twelve months will be the most arduous playing schedule ever undertaken by the players, clubs and England. All stakeholders have worked collaboratively to agree on essential player welfare initiatives in these extraordinary circumstances.
“We recognise the duty of care that the clubs and RFU have for the players and we will all continue to work closely with the medical and strength and conditioning experts to monitor individual player load throughout the challenging schedule that lies ahead.”
ADVERTISEMENT
Sharks bite back after comments in South African political circles https://t.co/L7Y6OLEQtY
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) August 18, 2020
Comments on RugbyPass
Good 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.
16 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.
7 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.
16 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?
4 Go to commentsYes Sir! Surprising, just like Fraser would also have escaped sanction if he was a few inches lower, even if it was by accident that he missed! Has there really been talk about those sanctions or is this just sensational journalism? I stopped reading, so might have missed any notations.
4 Go to commentsAI 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.
26 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 🤐
16 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….
26 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….
16 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!
4 Go to commentsexcellent idea ! rugby needs this 💪
16 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
14 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.
16 Go to comments