New semi-pro league

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ColinM
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Re: New semi-pro league

Post by ColinM »

Columbo wrote:
ColinM wrote:How to rip the heart out of rugby in Ulster...

1. Appoint Logan as CEO and sanitise the provincial matchday experience beyond all recognition
2. show provincial matches on an unheard of PPV channel
3. create three superclubs in order to dispense with domestic rugby
4.......
I agree with 1, not with 2 (it's cheap and sounds like it's going to be very comprehensive - and you can't argue with the additional money coming across to the clubs..)

on 3 to play the devil's advocate, domestic rugby is in the doldrums right now in Ulster. I'm not sure why - at least in part from Logan's talk > action attitude, but that's how it is. Hardly any representation at the top end of the UBL, crowds of 2 men and a dog, generally poor facilities etc etc ( I speak as someone who enjoys watching a fair bit of UBL btw) - so the status quo is little interest / engagement from the Ulster rugby community in any case.

Also I can understand the IRFU being frustrated with the UBL - it seems to be irresistible, no matter what rules and regulations are in place, for clubs to try to sneak money onto the table for players, and that can end up very messy.

I personally would be interested in seeing a 'superleague' and back to amateur provincial leagues, with an all Ireland play-off..
Personally I will pay the fee and watch the matches on the new channel. The casual fan who UR need to attend a match or two per season won't bother their hoop and will become disconnected - attendances will drop.

With the semi pro league, I think it sounds fine on the face of it as well but when you start to think of the detail it unravels quickly.
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Gerald the Mole
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Re: New semi-pro league

Post by Gerald the Mole »

is there no A league next year
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BR
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Re: New semi-pro league

Post by BR »

Gerald the Mole wrote:is there no A league next year
Nobody is interested.
Can I come out from behind the sofa yet?
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Gerald the Mole
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Re: New semi-pro league

Post by Gerald the Mole »

BR wrote:
Gerald the Mole wrote:is there no A league next year
Nobody is interested.
Why
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BR
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Re: New semi-pro league

Post by BR »

ColinM wrote:
Columbo wrote:
ColinM wrote:How to rip the heart out of rugby in Ulster...

1. Appoint Logan as CEO and sanitise the provincial matchday experience beyond all recognition
2. show provincial matches on an unheard of PPV channel
3. create three superclubs in order to dispense with domestic rugby
4.......
I agree with 1, not with 2 (it's cheap and sounds like it's going to be very comprehensive - and you can't argue with the additional money coming across to the clubs..)

on 3 to play the devil's advocate, domestic rugby is in the doldrums right now in Ulster. I'm not sure why - at least in part from Logan's talk > action attitude, but that's how it is. Hardly any representation at the top end of the UBL, crowds of 2 men and a dog, generally poor facilities etc etc ( I speak as someone who enjoys watching a fair bit of UBL btw) - so the status quo is little interest / engagement from the Ulster rugby community in any case.

Also I can understand the IRFU being frustrated with the UBL - it seems to be irresistible, no matter what rules and regulations are in place, for clubs to try to sneak money onto the table for players, and that can end up very messy.

I personally would be interested in seeing a 'superleague' and back to amateur provincial leagues, with an all Ireland play-off..
Personally I will pay the fee and watch the matches on the new channel. The casual fan who UR need to attend a match or two per season won't bother their hoop and will become disconnected - attendances will drop.

With the semi pro league, I think it sounds fine on the face of it as well but when you start to think of the detail it unravels quickly.
Not only will the casual supporter become disinterested, kids will find something else to aspire to, and won't have their dads up at the crack of dawn on a Saturday to take them to the minis.
Can I come out from behind the sofa yet?
www.stoutboys.co.uk
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Dave
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Re: New semi-pro league

Post by Dave »

BR wrote:
ColinM wrote:
Columbo wrote:
ColinM wrote:How to rip the heart out of rugby in Ulster...

1. Appoint Logan as CEO and sanitise the provincial matchday experience beyond all recognition
2. show provincial matches on an unheard of PPV channel
3. create three superclubs in order to dispense with domestic rugby
4.......
I agree with 1, not with 2 (it's cheap and sounds like it's going to be very comprehensive - and you can't argue with the additional money coming across to the clubs..)

on 3 to play the devil's advocate, domestic rugby is in the doldrums right now in Ulster. I'm not sure why - at least in part from Logan's talk > action attitude, but that's how it is. Hardly any representation at the top end of the UBL, crowds of 2 men and a dog, generally poor facilities etc etc ( I speak as someone who enjoys watching a fair bit of UBL btw) - so the status quo is little interest / engagement from the Ulster rugby community in any case.

Also I can understand the IRFU being frustrated with the UBL - it seems to be irresistible, no matter what rules and regulations are in place, for clubs to try to sneak money onto the table for players, and that can end up very messy.

I personally would be interested in seeing a 'superleague' and back to amateur provincial leagues, with an all Ireland play-off..
Personally I will pay the fee and watch the matches on the new channel. The casual fan who UR need to attend a match or two per season won't bother their hoop and will become disconnected - attendances will drop.

With the semi pro league, I think it sounds fine on the face of it as well but when you start to think of the detail it unravels quickly.
Not only will the casual supporter become disinterested, kids will find something else to aspire to, and won't have their dads up at the crack of dawn on a Saturday to take them to the minis.
What time does minis start these days?
I have my own tv channel, what have you got?
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Russ
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Re: New semi-pro league

Post by Russ »

Look at what happened to cricket

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RuPi
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Re: New semi-pro league

Post by RuPi »

Gerald the Mole wrote:is there no A league next year

Start of September for 6 weeks involving Irish and Welsh sides, then a final on the 7th weekend.
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Gerald the Mole
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Re: New semi-pro league

Post by Gerald the Mole »

RuPi wrote:
Gerald the Mole wrote:is there no A league next year

Start of September for 6 weeks involving Irish and Welsh sides, then a final on the 7th weekend.
Any Scottish teams ?
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Dave
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Re: New semi-pro league

Post by Dave »

Banbridge are already semi-pro.

#chequebook
I have my own tv channel, what have you got?
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BaggyTrousers
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Re: New semi-pro league

Post by BaggyTrousers »

Kofi Annan wrote:
Liz Fraser wrote:See in Lancashire clubs have come out of the national league system to play locally.
Financial strain due to travel and a wanting to see a return of regular local derbies were cited as reasons.
I must say I agree and this may produce a domino effect.

Schmidt made it clear he did not want pros playing with amateurs and the academy system has made this by pass possible
Therefore club rugby has become an irrelevance to the system.

They should do what suits and I personnally would scrap the AIL to go back to the local league's for the reasons the Lancashire clubs cited.
Then the league winners could play off for Irish champions if they so wished.
Provincial leagues WAY FORWARD
Disappointed that nobody has yet entitled this move: Back to the Future.

There is a great quandary, the Ireland team is the IRFU's major concern as it is the cash generator, but they understand that there is a wider need for clubs or where does the interest come from? Longer term, the Leinster schools system will not populate 4 provinces and if the clubs die, who will buy the tickets that the FIRFU need to sell to fill the coffers.

I remember the initial excitement of the AIL and clubs without a pot to pish in chartering planes to travel to Cork. Entirely unsustainable. For the amateur game relatively local appears to make sense every time, costs and local rivalry which itself produces more interest.

I went to 3 games Malone & Armagh home & away & the final game when The Red Sox bate poor ould Nenagh, strangely one of several places that my grandfather claimed he may have come from, Belmullet being another. :D The AIL games were more enjoyable events than anything I saw at Ravenhill.
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colwynvet
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Re: New semi-pro league

Post by colwynvet »

What about if each province played an “A” team in the current leagues?

“A” teams play all their games away from home except for games against each other. Thus they don’t burn out through too much training alongside regular competitive matches. Effectively there would be two leagues within the league. One for the clubs, one for the provincial teams. Top cub team wins the Club League, top provincial team wins the Provincial League.

Advantages are listed below. I’m sure you guys will find a few disadvantages.

1. Fringe/squad players get regular competitive game time.
2. Young players play against older more experienced players. Especially important for young props.
3. Having a sprinkling of “stars” playing might attract a few more spectators thus increasing club revenues without the expense of travelling to play the “A” teams.
4. “A” Games against each other could be played midweek so as not to distract from club games on Saturdays. Players might even be available to play Occasional games for their clubs on Saturdays, for example if they came off the bench for only a short time during the mid-week game.
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Lurgan Lad
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Re: New semi-pro league

Post by Lurgan Lad »

I think at the end of the day the teams people identify with are Ulster and hopefully their local club. The professional teams in Wales have struggled mightily because there hasn't been a long term connection between the clubs and their supporters, and pooling resources with local rivals isn't the best idea.
As some have said disband the AIL and have provincial leagues and hopefully the reduced cost and time pressure on players helps and more intense local derbies benefits the clubs. As for semi pro it needs to be academy type teams from the 4 provinces and hopefully team up with what is going on elsewhere.
Liz Fraser
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Re: New semi-pro league

Post by Liz Fraser »

BaggyTrousers wrote:
Kofi Annan wrote:
Liz Fraser wrote:See in Lancashire clubs have come out of the national league system to play locally.
Financial strain due to travel and a wanting to see a return of regular local derbies were cited as reasons.
I must say I agree and this may produce a domino effect.

Schmidt made it clear he did not want pros playing with amateurs and the academy system has made this by pass possible
Therefore club rugby has become an irrelevance to the system.

They should do what suits and I personnally would scrap the AIL to go back to the local league's for the reasons the Lancashire clubs cited.
Then the league winners could play off for Irish champions if they so wished.
Provincial leagues WAY FORWARD
Disappointed that nobody has yet entitled this move: Back to the Future.

There is a great quandary, the Ireland team is the IRFU's major concern as it is the cash generator, but they understand that there is a wider need for clubs or where does the interest come from? Longer term, the Leinster schools system will not populate 4 provinces and if the clubs die, who will buy the tickets that the FIRFU need to sell to fill the coffers.

I remember the initial excitement of the AIL and clubs without a pot to pish in chartering planes to travel to Cork. Entirely unsustainable. For the amateur game relatively local appears to make sense every time, costs and local rivalry which itself produces more interest.

I went to 3 games Malone & Armagh home & away & the final game when The Red Sox bate poor ould Nenagh, strangely one of several places that my grandfather claimed he may have come from, Belmullet being another. :D The AIL games were more enjoyable events than anything I saw at Ravenhill.
Back in the day the top players all played AIL rugby.
For exmple I saw a Blackrock side that played Malone containing BOD, Leo Cullen, Munch, Emmet Farrell, Ciaran Scally and Bob Casey.
Malone had a few names of their own too and it was a Division 2 fixture.

There was a buzz about the place.
Those days are gone and without those calibre players there is no draw or reason to travel other than for a diehard support.

I accept the reasoning behind the pros not mixing with the amateurs and the improvements at international level have been dramatic.as a result.
It just negates the point of having an AIL with the best players no longer requiring regular higher club competition to maintain and improve performance levels.
Back to the future indeed.
Dublin4
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Re: New semi-pro league

Post by Dublin4 »

I'd be happy with two divisions of 8 in the AIL playing home and away and playing the other division once.
Let the rest of the clubs go back to provincial rugby and save on costs.
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