WRW EXCLUSIVE: 10 BECOMES 12, AS PRL MOVE IN ON P15s
Premier 15s to expand in next round of franchises
PREMIER 15s TO GROW
WRW understands the future for women’s professional rugby appears set, with the Premier 15s set to expand in the new series of franchises. Currently at 10 teams, the Premier 15s will become a 12 team league with clear aspirations to expand further when future franchises are decided upon.
14 teams is a distinct possibility in the longer term, with 16 an aspiration for further down the line. But sooner than that, Tigers aim to be in the mix for a place, under the new agreement which will begin in 2023/24.
The runners and riders
Tigers will be one of at least 13 confirmed bidders, which means that one team will miss out, but it looks probably that there will be two Leicestershire-based franchises.
Loughborough Lightning will be one of 9 current franchise holders expected to bid again. Harlequins, Saracens, Bristol, Exeter, Wasps, Gloucester-Hartpury, Worcester and Sale will be the others.
After two seasons of heavy defeats, Darlington Mowden Park are thought unlikely to bid again and even if they do, serious questions about its purpose or viability would exist.
If Durham DMP Sharks do go, that leaves three spots between five new bidders. Newcastle - unsuccessful bidders last time - will likely become the new North East franchise, which then leaves two, which are likely to see bids from Ealing, Bath, London Irish and Leicester.
What do each franchise need to do?
Each squad will contain a mix of Red Roses, foreign talent as well as semi-pro and amateur players - and under the new 3-year franchises, clubs are going to be tasked with ensuring a deeper depth of squad.
All squads will have to include 35 “Premiership-ready” players, but how clubs ensure a smaller imbalance in quality of players remains unanswered.
But the move to 12 franchises is not universally popular. There are legitimate concerns over whether there is enough depth within English rugby to sustain 10 professional outfits, let alone 12. Certainly, that is the view of Loughborough DOR Rhys Edwards.
It is noticeable that clubs are developing their grassroots operations to get more female talent. Despite winning one only more game than Durham, Sale are definitely building for the future under Katy Daly-McLean.
Leicester are certainly building in a similar way, with Vicky MacQueen building links with Lichfield and the University of Leicester. The talk is of potentially real talent emerging but only time will tell.
Cash is king
Under the new regulations, each club will be subject to an £120,000 salary cap, an increase (!) on the current franchises and it will be interesting to see if clubs will pay for player insurance in all cases. England players will receive a minimum of £12,000 per season.
While RFU funding will be capped at £70,000 per club, each franchise will be expected to pump up not much below £400,000 per season to run the outfit.
That level of investment tied to an increase in clubs involved, surely means that PRL are close to taking over the running of the Premier 15s itself. Certainly, I would want to help run it if I were putting in nearly half a million pounds a year.
What about Leicester?
Certainly, Leicester are serious about bidding for a franchise this time around. You can expect to see competitive games next season, with a place in Championship North 1 under a Leicester Tigers banner likely.
That would be in place of Lichfield whose first team (“Greens”) would drop down a league to replace the “Reds” who would move further down. A fourth team, the “Whites” would be entered at grassroots level, offering a competitive pathway from amateur rugby to the top-level professional ranks.
Listening to Vicky MacQueen on last week’s BBC Leicester Tigers Rugby Show, you get the sense that Leicester’s grassroots strength is growing and you hope they will get the due rewards.
THE CHAMPIONSHIP - AND WHAT TO DO WITH IT
All sorts of ideas are knocking around what to do with the men’s second tier, with belts being tightened in a post-Covid world.
The first and most obvious, is to ensure promotion and relegation continues. And yet that already feels the cry from yesterday. There will be no relegation from the Premiership and there is a commitment to a 14 team Premiership.
While Ealing seemed the best placed to make the jump, yesterday’s announcement that neither they nor Doncaster will be admitted next season should they win the league, is a blow.
There are any number of thoughts from the predictable to the bizarre. But one thought I have. The 10,000 minimum capacity has been in place for some time - this is not a new rule.
If you are serious about wanting to be promoted to the Premiership, why don’t you have plans in place? Even temporary plans? If it’s true, as The Times reported this morning, that Ealing do not have any form of safety certificate, then you are offering those who want ringfencing the proverbial gifthorse in the mouth.
Those who want a Championship along the lines of Pro D2 in France forget one thing. The French have crowds.
Where are the thousands of extra punters desperate to go and watch the likes of Doncaster v Ampthill? The Championship’s economics don’t work, regardless of how much short term Premiership and RFU funding would kick in. Fix that first - and then we can talk about ending ringfencing.
An idea worth considering?
According to the Telegraph a couple of weeks ago, a new hybrid league could see Premiership development teams play alongside Championship teams. This is not a new idea and it’s not at all popular among some, especially the Championship.
I don’t know if this is an idea worth considering. Some Premiership teams would struggle to field teams for an A League as it is. But you could use this as a starting point.
How about expanding the Premiership Cup to include say, 3/4 teams from the Championship and make it a simpler 16-team competition? That would show a genuine desire to grow the game.
Short and sweet this week, ahead of the big two meeting in North London on Saturday. Hopefully, this is the means to getting more WRW out more frequently.
Enjoy your rugby…see you next week. (Hopefully)
Chris
Surely Doncaster could negotiate a ground swap with Doncaster RLFC, and play at the Eco-Power Stadium which has a 15,000 capacity. I don't believe DRLFC get more than 800 to a game.
Can’t agree with mixing in A teams with championship. Far too many games will be determined by which players Prem teams will release each week. Rendering games far too unpredictable and creating a worthless league.
Would still favour French model, but agree it needs financial underpinning to get off ground, plus new forms of income streams.
Would have helped if RFU didn’t summarily drastically reduce funding