{"id":187378,"date":"2025-10-03T11:26:07","date_gmt":"2025-10-03T11:26:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/187378\/"},"modified":"2025-10-03T11:26:07","modified_gmt":"2025-10-03T11:26:07","slug":"english-rugbys-champ-era-gets-under-way-dogged-by-same-old-ups-and-downs-champ-rugby","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/187378\/","title":{"rendered":"English rugby\u2019s Champ era gets under way dogged by same old ups and downs | Champ Rugby"},"content":{"rendered":"

This weekend should, in theory, open the door to a brave new world. The old Championship, the second tier of English club rugby, has morphed into \u201cthe Champ\u201d and, at first glance, the brochure looks promising. A freshly rebranded league, Worcester back in business<\/a>, a live streaming partner in Clubber TV, talented players raring to go. And for the champion team, insist the organisers, the ultimate prize of promotion to the Prem.<\/p>\n

Just try to cling fondly to this blissed-out vision for a moment, particularly in the rose-tinted aftermath of a wonderful Women\u2019s Rugby World Cup. Because, sadly, it is in some danger of dissolving even before the RFU Council gathered on Friday to debate the Prem clubs\u2019 pursuit of a franchise-based model that would curtail relegation for the elite.<\/p>\n

Further details have been requested by council members with a full vote not anticipated for another four months. Simon Gillham, chair of Tier Two Rugby, is also adamant that things are not as cut and dried as some Prem hawks are claiming. \u201cThe position of the Champ board remains the same. The lifeblood of sport is aspiration and jeopardy and we have to have a system that rewards sporting success and sanctions failure.\u201d<\/p>\n

What everyone really wants to know, though, is whether the promotion goalposts will once again be shifted in mid-season? On that front, Gillham cannot yet be wholly definitive. \u201cThe best-case scenario is that we\u2019ve agreed there\u2019s no relegation from the Prem and therefore the winner of this season\u2019s Champ playoffs goes up. The worst-case scenario is we haven\u2019t managed to get to an agreement and the current legislation stays in place, namely a playoff between the last placed Prem side and the top side in the Champ.\u201d<\/p>\n

Interesting. It is well known the Prem would like to expand to at least 12 teams and the return of a reborn Worcester, with their stadium and support, would fit snugly into that vision. But further down the track? Gillham makes clear that, in the new order, even some established Champ sides will need to smarten up their act imminently or risk others replacing them. \u201cThere are half a dozen clubs who are going to have to up their facilities in order to stay in the Champ,\u201d he warns. \u201cIt may be some clubs feel they don\u2019t want to make the investment. They might exclude themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

Worcester\u2019s chief executive, Stephen Vaughan, owner, Christopher Holland, Tier 2 chair, Simon Gillham, and RFU director of performance, Conor O\u2019Shea after the club\u2019s rebirth in April. Photograph: Ben Birchall\/PA<\/p>\n

All of which leaves the majority of Champ coaches and players eyeing yet more contractual and funding uncertainty. Take Bedford\u2019s Mike Rayer, who has seen a lot of new dawns during his 20 seasons in charge at Goldington Road. \u201cWe\u2019ve almost got to the point where it looks like there\u2019s a bit of stability and suddenly there\u2019s the chance of the drawbridge being closed up again,\u201d says the former Wales international. \u201cIt\u2019s been the story at this level for 15 or 20 years.\u201d<\/p>\n

At Coventry this week they have been lamenting the loss of a potential new American backer who withdrew over the lack of clarity surrounding potential admission to the Prem. And listen to Gillham\u2019s predecessor, the former England centre Simon Halliday, who remains outraged at the way the Champ clubs have collectively been treated and at the idea of favoured Prem wannabes being hand-picked. \u201cWhat the Premiership and RFU want to do is select a certain number of clubs to suit their commercial agenda. If the next two years are a shambles [for the Champ] they won\u2019t really care.\u201d<\/p>\n

To which certain Prem owners will say the commercial gap between the two leagues has grown so wide that change has become inevitable. It is an easier argument to make in the wake of Newcastle\u2019s shotgun marriage<\/a> with the marketing behemoth Red Bull \u2013 but not at Ealing Trailfinders who have an equally bullish backer and yet are still, to their frustration, personas non grata. Having topped last season\u2019s table and been privately told they were finally in the promotion frame, it is alleged they were subsequently \u201cjilted at the altar\u201d because of fears Newcastle would collapse if they were relegated.<\/p>\n

Amanaki Mafi, of Newcastle, in action against Saracens\u2019 Rotimi Segun. Newcastle\u2019s purchase by Red Bull helped stave off fears of collapse. Photograph: Bruce White\/Colorsport\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n

Others wonder aloud about the integrity of the supposedly iron-clad eight-year deal between the Rugby Football Union and the Prem being amended only one year later. Elsewhere, the former England No 8 Nick Easter, now Chinnor\u2019s director of rugby, remains firmly opposed to a franchise model. \u201cThe history of sport in Europe and the UK is about jeopardy and reward. That\u2019s what you\u2019re playing for. That\u2019s why we have the best fans in the world. It also puts bums on seats and drives interest. Look at France who have the most the successful club model in the world. Yes, there are differences in municipality funding and TV income but that\u2019s what works. Everyone loves it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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It is a similar story at Caldy where the impressively committed former England, Saracens and Sale hooker Matt Cairns has also seen the debate from both sides. \u201cIt was brilliant the first year we were in the Champ when there was relegation. Loads of jeopardy, every game mattered. For the last two years it\u2019s been a bit dull. We noticed our crowds starting to drop a little bit. With English sport there\u2019s as much interest in the bottom as there is in the top when there\u2019s relegation involved.\u201d<\/p>\n

Easter, furthermore, flatly disputes the idea that relegation spells automatic oblivion. \u201cI was with Harlequins when they went down in 2005. It was the best thing that happened to the club. They bounced back up, sorted their priorities out, got their house more in order, learned a lot and actually increased their fanbase. Northampton did the same thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Either way, the entire long-running argument may shortly be academic. \u201cThe stepping stone between the Champ and the Prem is huge and we\u2019re going to go to franchises,\u201d was the blunt summary of Exeter\u2019s chair, Tony Rowe, this week. But what about someone such as Lee Blackett, a product of Rotherham and Leeds who is now England\u2019s attack coach? Not to mention all the ambitious youngsters just below the Prem who need somewhere to play?<\/p>\n

In other words be careful what you wish for. As Gillham says: \u201cIf we close off the league, we will actually do a huge disservice to English rugby.\u201d At the same time, though, he stresses the feuding has to stop. \u201cThe past is the past \u2026 the Prem and the Champ have got to work together.\u201d All hail the Champ? Get along to a game this autumn and make your own mind up.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"This weekend should, in theory, open the door to a brave new world. The old Championship, the second…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":187379,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[567],"tags":[64,63,760,85],"class_list":["post-187378","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-rugby","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-rugby","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187378","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=187378"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187378\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/187379"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=187378"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=187378"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=187378"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}