Morariu: ‘Invite teams into Six Nations’

Editor

Octavian Morariu, the president of Rugby Europe, has called for more fixtures for the likes of Georgia and Romania following the World Cup.

The former Romania international flanker and International Olympic Committee member is pushing for Tier Two sides in Europe to play more games against the Six Nations sides.

Georgia impressed with a win over Tonga while Romania defeated Canada in this year's competition.

Citing the progress made by Argentina in the Rugby Championship, Morariu stated that providing more matches for those ambitious teams in Europe could be the true legacy of this World Cup.

"Teams like Georgia and Romania proved themselves able to compete at the World Cup and need regular fixtures against top European teams," Morariu said.

"We can all see the progress Argentina have made since entering the Rugby Championship.

"Argentina have added value to the game and we believe Georgia and Romania could do the same if they get more games.

"The greatest legacy of this World Cup could be opening the game up to more countries.

"It's not just about promotion and relegation to the Six Nations, it's about opening the competition to more countries, so the competition could become a seven or eight nations.

"We need to see how this can be done because we don't want to damage the Six Nations. The idea is to make it more interesting, competitive and productive."