Stuart Barnes says English rugby wouldn't benefit from following southern hemisphere formats.
Exeter prove value of relegation and promotion, says Stuart
It's that time of the year when the great relegation debate gathers steam.
It is right up there with the salary cap as the reason English clubs have been blown out of Europe this season. Year after year, directors of rugby claim English rugby is hindered by the fear of relegation while the owners say that without financial stability it is impossible to plan for professionally.
These excuses can be countered but before they are even considered let us just smash the entire argument into a thousand pieces: EXETER - there you go.
All those years ago when the clubs were desperate to ring fence the Premiership and benefit from being fortunate enough to be on the inside at the right time, the counter argument was that their good fortune was an utterly unjustifiable slamming of the door in the face of every rugby club bar the lucky 12.
There was and remains a case that lurking below the surface is a team and club that a few years hence may rise to the top and make a greater impact on the game than the lucky lucrative dozen. Sean Edwards has been stating that he thinks Exeter could become one of Europe's leading clubs. He would not have been saying that had the ring fencers with their dreams of a cosy cartel had their way.
Now England has a region rich in rugby traditional (and significantly for the sake of the national game) that is relatively weak in football terms. Where football is strong union does not find it easy to embed; where football is weak it takes roots. Bath and Gloucester are good examples of the latter, while Newcastle and Sale have always fought the uphill battle.
Exeter will benefit the English game but that is secondary. The absolute reason why their presence is so persuasive an argument against relegation is the proof that the elite don't and can't read the future. What arrogance to suggest that nobody else has a right to have a crack at the big time; men who made money in the competitive world of capitalism think they alone have the right to a secure rugby future. The game is professional; not all that has come with this is good but the opening of opportunity to a team like Exeter is as powerful a reason to celebrate professionalism as any.
Achievement
If you believe in a league where there should be no relegation then you do not believe Exeter should be one possible win from the Premiership play-offs. Had the clubs had their way and blocked relegation Exeter would not be creating headlines. Who will come forwards and say Exeter shouldn't be in the Premiership. That is the case that has to be put for those against relegation. There may be another Exeter plotting quietly in the lower leagues. What arrogance, what insecurity and what foolhardiness to snub all this potential.
English sport has a culture of promotion and relegation. Just because US and Southern Hemisphere sport is comfortable with a closed-off elite does not mean we should follow. I like the end of the football season when a team like Wigan make the miracle escape. I know it's all brutal for the financiers but for the fans it is fabulous and without fans sport loses soul.
Away from the clinching argument that is Exeter; I was in Gloucester for Saturday's clash with bottom placed Newcastle. Had relegation not been the fundamental issue of the day it would have been a lousy mediocre affair. But whilst Gloucester's players were not that interested in Heineken Cup qualification, the Falcons were desperately fighting for their survival. It was their first away win since Leeds in 2011; their second away bonus point of the season. It was not a game of beauty but I found it inspiring as the Falcons found the psychological strength to match the physical determination.
4.30 Saturday afternoon was a moment to shout, 'who cares about the long term implications, this was magnificent for its' own sake'. Newcastle have been in a few relegation fights in the last few years and played their way out of them (especially under the harshly treated Steve Bates) with some imaginative rugby.
Conflicts
It is easier on a rugby field as in life to wreck rather than to create. Average coaches use relegation to hide their own failure on the attacking front. Saracens play a clever, percentage based game that rarely moves the soul but they are not threatened by relegation. It is a choice to use statistics ahead of the imagination; it came unstuck against Clermont when more was needed. It wasn't the fear of relegation or financial shortcomings but failure on the field that cost them.
A world without wage caps and relegation would not have English clubs soaring high. England has undergone a poor period of rugby thinking with negativity at the helm. Leinster are seeking a third Heineken Cup in four years not because of money and no relegation but because they are carving teams to pieces as well as defending well.
Relegation is an English asset, not a weakness. Look at the Celtic League. For all the success of their teams in Europe which do benefit from having no relegation concerns in the sense that players can be rested for games, they have a terrible problem creating a powerful competition in its own right. You could argue that the Heineken Cup is far too far ahead as a priority for the long-term health of these rugby nations. Wales has a Grand Slam but a shot national system with a falling number of followers away from the test team.
Is that what those who want no relegation dream of? A league where experiment is part of the match day experience? Crowds will fall but the short term dreamers of a closed shop lack the vision to see this. They also lack the ability, like the rest of us, to see into the future.
Just to close this column off, I'll repeat. Had the clubs had their way a decade ago Exeter would not be where they are; if you think that's all right then you and I have a very different belief in what sport is all about. If you believe in the closed shop you have no right to wish Exeter well. Devon has a well run rugby club that is going to put a few more established names to shame over the next few years. They are a viable proposition and a romantic story. Nobody ever had a right to stop them writing a new chapter in the history of the English game.
Stuart answers your emails...
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IRISH EYES
Stuart - on a scale of one to ten how do you rate Leinster's chances in the Heineken Cup semi-final? I know you mentioned they are potentially the greatest European team ever, but don't forget there have also been some very lacklustre performances away from home this season. In particular the three away pool games were far from convincing. Also, should Leinster make the final - presumably we will play Ulster. How far apart are these two teams in your opinion? The Irish press reckon Ulster's victory over Munster gives them the title of "second best" in Ireland but I think the teams could be a lot closer than we think. Finally Stuart, one more question. Leinster finished as second behind Munster in the overall pool stages in the Heineken Cup right? Can you please explain to me why we have to go away for the semi-final then? At this stage, home advantage is often the match winning stat unfortunately. Any chance the ERC could look and revise this in the coming seasons? Thanks Stuart. Shane O'Brien
STUART REPLIES: The semi-final draw is the one fundamental weakness in this great tournament. In an ideal world, a two legged semi-final is the answer but until then a neutral venue is a must. The ERC should trust the quality of the competition to ensure a sell-out at an appropriate venue. Either one of these options (preference for the first) but if neither is in the pipeline then seeding from group stages should remain in place throughout. Therefore, Ulster should travel to Scotland because Edinburgh were higher-placed seeds even though Ulster beat the top seeds.....as I write this the fact becomes clearer, seedings are fine for the quarter-finals but thereafter become unsatisfactory.
As far as Leinster go, 5 out of 10 would be my assessment of their chances. They are the best team in Europe but that doesn't mean they will win the semi because the gap between their superiority and Clermont's might not be as great as home soil advantage. Ulster are a fine team but will find Leinster harder to hold than Munster. It could yet be that Ulster win the Heineken Cup but I reckon that happens if they play Clermont in the final, so I foresee Leinster remaining Ireland's finest even if Ulster lift Europe's biggest pot.
ON THE BACK FOOT
Great article last week Stuart. Hardly an original thought this one I'm putting forward: Do you think the defensive mindedness is a natural evolution considering the fear of relegation and then clamour for European rugby within the French/English Leagues? Leinster have been ten years in the making. Perhaps they can afford the insight to plan longer-term than the French and English? I'm not necessarily saying the Leagues should be closed, just offering this as an explanation of the situation. Steve Norman, Arsenal fan
STUART REPLIES:The Arsenal line is most welcome. Go the Gunners. Leagues must not be closed. Newcastle didn't defend their way to victory at Gloucester. Defensive thinking and relegation may obsess coaches but that doesn't mean we should bow to the narrow minded thinking of some people who have less vision than they should. The facts don't bear t out but it's a bloody good explanation/excuse for why a team is so stymied in attack. As for Leinster, sorry, their attack game has not been ten years in the making. It is the undoubted hallmark of Joe Schmidt. Under Michael Cheika they were a different beast.
IMPOSTORS?
Should England be ashamed when they pick so many non-English players? You do have the most club players in the world...Brinley McPolin
STUART REPLIES: Brinley, Embarrassed would be a better word than ashamed.
