Championship clubs in shock over RFU’s decision

Looks like Scottish are the first club to announce serious change at this point, with them stating that without any other changes in regards to funding the club will transfer to a part-time model for the 2020/2021 season.

Edited by dropout22 - 29 Feb 2020 at 22:21

Kimbo wrote: You missed Cov off that list D22. Chairman Jon Sharp confirmed it last wednesday evening on the BBC.

As I did, apoligises.
With the news funding will be cut now by £135,000 and that only in 2021/2022 will funding levels go to £288,000. And the news 7 of the current clubs will remain full-time, will it not just be business as usual for most clubs?, albeit squads may be smaller and some may be paid abit less. This may prove beneficial for the champ clubs in my eyes, as I will force some to look at young up and coming players and give them chance, as they won't be able to afford various international imports, which can occasionally be seen by some clubs at the moment.

It might be a good idea for the Reds to brush up on their French

PlangentThrowback wrote: FHLH wrote: Ellis Genge - Hartpury to Bristol You could equally say Ellis Genge - Old Reds to Hartpury! This idea that somehow Championship clubs are the exclusive breading ground for players who go on to the Premiership is a little odd.  Players move from the Premiership clubs to the Championship (and back again).  Players move from the Championship to the Premiership.  Players move from the National Leagues to the Championship and so on.  No league exclusively develops players.  Using Genge as an example he signed for Bristol at age 18.  Did Old Reds develop him?  Hartpury?  Or was it Bristol who converted him to prop?  Or Leicester or even England? But I'm pleased to see that, as I suspected, the initial cut was just the opening gambit in a negotiation and we'll now see a much smaller reduction, presumably still phased in.  I hope this has prompted both the RFU and Championship to get together and finally sort out what they actually want the Championship to be.

I apologise if the following link has already been posted:

https://bedfordrugby.co.uk/news/2020/02/open-letter-chairman-geoff-irvine-rfu

Players Donny helped along the way, not as many as other championship team.

Edited by KnightsBoy - 24 Feb 2020 at 16:56

I thought Edwards was at Rosslyn Park.

Kimbo wrote: PlangentThrowback wrote: FHLH wrote: Ellis Genge - Hartpury to Bristol You could equally say Ellis Genge - Old Reds to Hartpury! This idea that somehow Championship clubs are the exclusive breading ground for players who go on to the Premiership is a little odd.  Players move from the Premiership clubs to the Championship (and back again).  Players move from the Championship to the Premiership.  Players move from the National Leagues to the Championship and so on.  No league exclusively develops players.  Using Genge as an example he signed for Bristol at age 18.  Did Old Reds develop him?  Hartpury?  Or was it Bristol who converted him to prop?  Or Leicester or even England? All true.

The point is though without a strong 2nd tier then there is a lack of a decent stepping stone to bounce back to a Premiership squad or develop further to make it from a ND1. Decent players could be lost, as they can't prove themselves to get "2nd" chances. Each division plays its part but the Championship is most critical being the closest level to the Premiership for those late developers discarded or not picked up by an RFU funded academy.

Take Edwards - was at London Irish but dumped from the academy, went to Rosslyn Park, Blues, then back to Sale at 28 years of age and now in Bordeaux French Top 14.

Twelvetrees - deemed not good enough at Leicester. went to Blues, back to Leicester (with a bit of bouncing to Nottingham), before becoming an England international.

FHLH wrote: Ellis Genge - Hartpury to Bristol

islander wrote: BP wrote: QI We went through the teams from the Prem games last weekend. There were 10 ex Nottingham players within their ranks. Assuming other Champ teams have players in there, not too bad for a league not producing prem players The Jersey Reds 'Graduates' XXIII - details HERE - includes 14 players playing regularly in the Prem, 2 current Pro14 players, a French Top 14 player, 3 in the Championship (including 2 likely to be promoted with Falcons), 1 who's gone semi-pro and moved to Rosslyn Park + 1 who's just left his Prem club to move to Super Rugby in his native Oz. Bedford, meanwhile, have more than 50 players who've moved up to the top tier, enough for two 'dream-team' squads - HERE

A proper Jersey squad too with 4 front rowers on the bench.