[ledzepsfr]

MP's call for a review of the RFU to save the game.
https://www.bbc.com/sport/rugby-union/a ... 05pqeyq77o

Accounts for 2022/2026 season showed 'collective losses of £30.5m and net debts of more than £300m.'
I would be interested to see a club by club account of those losses.

[poyntonshark]

Whilst it is clear that something needs to be done, getting politicians involved is perhaps the worst thing that could happen to the game.

"We've made a proper Horlicks of running the country; give us something smaller to practice on"

[Surbiton_Shark]

For those old in the tooth to remember the words of Will Carling - what he said all those decades ago still holds true.

Would be interested to know the amount of overheads (wages/expenses) etc for those that govern the game - we seem to treat it like the football Premiership with a bloated governance for what isn't that huge a spectator sport and now 10 clubs in the main league.

Even with the 10 club league - this season is one of the worse I've known for continuity - I'm a big fan, I've literally no idea what the table looks like as the season is so stop/start - it's basically now 3 mini seasons. It's very poor and that's from a fan - can't imagine how the sport presents itself to the outside viewer.

The shame of it - rugby is an excellent product, has some great games - good to watch as a spectator in terms of being family family etc.,

The wage structure does need looking at - whilst clubs spend way more than they bring in then it's always on the edge of being viable when a sugar daddy decides to get a new shiny toy.

As for having the government have a look.....I'll have a pint of what he's having....talk about delusional

[ageinghoody]

For those old in the tooth to remember the words of Will Carling - what he said all those decades ago still holds true ...

They do indeed, but, with some of his recent comments, is Will in danger of becoming one himself?

[ledzepsfr]

There will be no relegation from the premiership this season after Ealing failed to meet the required criteria.
https://www.bbc.com/sport/rugby-union/a ... g04kznyzvo

IMO this is an absolute joke and just reinforces the fact that the prem is ringfenced.
It is not by accident that the ground capacity of 10,000 is the MAGIC number, given that StoneX is 10,500 and Kingston Park is 10,200
Also, why do the same capacity rules not apply to the PWR?

[Yareet]

There will be no relegation from the premiership this season after Ealing failed to meet the required criteria.
https://www.bbc.com/sport/rugby-union/a ... g04kznyzvo

IMO this is an absolute joke and just reinforces the fact that the prem is ringfenced.
It is not by accident that the ground capacity of 10,000 is the MAGIC number, given that StoneX is 10,500 and Kingston Park is 10,200
Also, why do the same capacity rules not apply to the PWR?

10,000 is the MAGIC number because that’s when safety regulations kick in

https://www.gov.uk/find-licences/safety ... ts-grounds

Given that the Act is from the 70s, I’d imagine both Kingston Park and the StoneX were built with those regulations in mind.

[ledzepsfr]

Came across this old (24/01/2025) article by Charles Richardson in the Telegraph.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/rugby-union ... _reg_first

Upon reading I have to agree with the amendment to the try scoring bonus point system. I was not aware of it's use in France, but if adopted here, it would certainly aid teams like Sale.

[Major Bloodnok]

Came across this old (24/01/2025) article by Charles Richardson in the Telegraph.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/rugby-union ... _reg_first

Upon reading I have to agree with the amendment to the try scoring bonus point system. I was not aware of it's use in France, but if adopted here, it would certainly aid teams like Sale.

Can you give us a clue? It's still hidden behind a paywall.

[RinTin]

In France teams need to score 3 more tries than their opponents to get a try bonus point.

The losing bonus point is 5 points or less, not 7 as in England.

I like both.

[Yareet]

Came across this old (24/01/2025) article by Charles Richardson in the Telegraph.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/rugby-union ... _reg_first

Upon reading I have to agree with the amendment to the try scoring bonus point system. I was not aware of it's use in France, but if adopted here, it would certainly aid teams like Sale.

Can you give us a clue? It's still hidden behind a paywall.

The French system awards points in this manner:
4 points for a win.
2 points for a draw.
1 "bonus" point for winning while scoring the equivalent of at least 3 more tries than the opponent (15 points).
1 "bonus" point for losing by no more than a specified margin. Through the 2013–14 season, the margin was 7 points; starting in 2014–15, the margin was reduced to 5.

This system prevents a losing team from picking up two bonus points in the same match, as is possible under the normal system.[3] It also means that neither team earns a bonus point in a drawn match.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rugby_uni ... nts_system

[Major Bloodnok]

Thanks.

I've long thought we should have a transferrable bonus point: you get three points for a win, none for a defeat. If the margin is seven or fewer, one point is allocated to the loser, otherwise, it goes to the winner. That makes the 'losing bonus point' a jeopardy for the winning team: it's in their interest to keep the margin high.

The French system sounds better.

[ledzepsfr]

Sorry about that, I didn't realise it was.

Basically it is calling for a change to the points system like this:
1-Losing bonus point for teams within 5 points of the score line instead of the current 7 points,
2-Try scoring bonus point for teams scoring THREE tries more than the opposition instead of current 4-try score.

This would mean that no team can get 2 losing points in a match and that it will prevent teams from 'switching off' in the last 20 minutes as a try scoring bonus will not necessarily be guaranteed.

[RinTin]

Good to see everyone is reading the full thread before posting replies!