Flawed attempt: Mark McCafferty
Premiership Rugby chief executive Mark McCafferty was left upset over a European Rugby Cup meeting that took place without their presence.
Union talks between France, Scotland, Ireland, Wales and Italy were held on Wednesday but ended fruitless after several ideas were tabled.
And that has left McCafferty unhappy as he hit back by saying that the alliance between England and France is ultimately stronger than ever.
"It was a flawed attempt to divide and rule and it failed," McCafferty told the Guardian.
"In the short term, the meeting was not helpful in finding a solution that meets most of the needs of all those involved in the European tournaments.
"It may be that a period of reflection is needed and that, with the autumn internationals coming up, it may be a good idea to postpone the next meeting of the shareholders, which is planned for next Tuesday in Dublin. It is something I will be discussing with our clubs on Friday and I know from the calls I have received that they are very angry at what happened this week."
Top 14 and Aviva Premiership outfits want to ensure that RaboDirect PRO12 teams qualify for a 20-team elite tournament and for the money to be divided equally between the leagues. And with the French rejecting two counter proposals tabled by the PRO12, it seems Anglo-French ties remain strong. The Rugby Football Union were at the meeting, represented by chief executive Ian Ritchie and professional rugby director Rob Andrew.
"If the ERC thought our plan was going to change then they understand now that it is not. The picture is clearer. The way the meeting was done was not helpful but maybe there has been some reverse benefit," one club source told the Press Association.
Comments
DaveJ says...
wah wah wah wah wah wah......
I get the impression the French are keen to engage and get it sorted out but this clown and the RFU are toy throwing, mainly because all of their clubs are crap.
Let's see the French stance when Claremont win the Hcup in May....
Posted 14:52 26th October 2012
rugby_rockstar says...
fratrated eh? Just think how frustrated Italy, Scotland, Wales and Ireland were when PRL negoicated a tv deal behind their back. PRL are hypocrites. Rounds 1 and 2 of the eurpean cup were brilliant, so I'm still of the opinion then PRL's motives are more to do with dragging the celtic domestic model down to their level rather than improving european rugby.
lets just look at the consequences of forcing Pro 12 teams to qualify for the eurocup.
1, there will be pressure for the celtic stars to play every match week in week out which means a large increase in work load (the way the celtic sides look after their players is surely a good thing?) which in turn will effect performance. this is the crux of the issue. the england stars are battery farmed so PRL want the Celtic players similarly flogged.
2, to avoid this burn out adequate cover will need to be purchased. At present only the french sides have large budgets to do this. Can Pro 12 and the aviva afford to do this? Not with the current salary caps. if they do rasie the salary caps then where are these players going to be supplied from?
3, The likey sourse is the SANSAR nations. Will the Cheifs be able to win a bidding war for Liam Messam? what happens to southern hemisphere rugby if the tallent drain increases by 500% (England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland and Italy) ???
Face it everyone if PRL get their way then global rugby suffers. this will hit Cantebury, The Stormers, the Waratahs (Australian super rugby is stretched beyond their means already! how are they going to deal with losing Pocock or Genia to Europe???)
It's not workable and its not just a case of having a big dump on italy and scotland, Southern Hem fans need to be concerned too.
Posted 14:25 26th October 2012
froggy73 says...
@pw29uk: I agree with you, but the whole point is to have a proper "competition" in the PRO12, ie everyone would have to fight for a spot in HEC. Yes the main clubs (Leinster, Ospreys, Munster etc...) would still be there but they would not be allowed to use the PRO12 as a simple training ground before the HEC games. With only 6 spots allowed each year, these clubs would have to be careful not to lose points. At the moment, being 2nd or 10th makes no difference.
Posted 14:11 26th October 2012
Armchairwarrior says...
So Froggy, do you want the six nations to be just about Fr v Eng like it was about 10 years ago and then the English wanted to leave and join the Tri nations due to lack of competition?? Stronger Celtic teams are in France's benefit, and do you not want to develop rugby??
Posted 13:14 26th October 2012
pw29uk says...
As I see it the English are only moaning for not winning the Cup enough surely that?s down to the Aviva Premiership structure in England, I don?t think cutting the PRO12 numbers would solve the problem you will still have the Top 3 Irish sides in it but no Italian or Scottish sides or maybe only 2 Welsh sides(still not going to win it)
Posted 13:13 26th October 2012
jamesliveinhope says...
what audience are these guys playing to?
We seem to have accusation and counter accusation of playground politics with apparently very little constructive work getting done. Who exactly does McCafferty think cares whether ERC are employing dirty tricks? Hes not after mass votes, the rugby public, whilst interested, cannot assist him with his intended outcome in anyway.
Here's a thought, why done't these idiots shut up, get around the table and say nothing in public until there is an outcome one way or the other.
Very bored with this tale-telling. (and they're all as bad)
Posted 13:04 26th October 2012
Ybgurrrrr says...
This guy makes me ashamed to be a fan of English club rugby.
Posted 12:45 26th October 2012
liam2me says...
Serves him right for his earlier antics. His bluff was called and now he's whinging (like the English clubs always do) that he's having to take his medicine for being caught out
Posted 12:33 26th October 2012
APV1 says...
And suddenly the tables have turned. It's now not the English behaving badly, it's the others.
I have no doubt that the nonsense-merchants will still slag England off for some reason, but that's to be expected.
How do they think they can make a decision without all of the important stake-holders at the table?
@ dodgyrog - he represents the clubs who play in the ERC, so has a right to be upset when excluded. And the fact the the RFU doesn't appear to have been invited either, makes the meeting look even more compromised.
Posted 12:09 26th October 2012
provyd says...
I don't know why Mike McCafferty is so upset about an ERC meeting that took place without them. First of all, it was National Unions meetings, not club representatives. Secondly, hasn't Premiership Rugby had plenty of meetings about the ERC without involving any other interested parties in an attempt to impose their will on the others? Striking a TV deal with BT, for instance.
froggy73, the Celts have not ignored any rules, and they are the same rules that were in place when the English and French were winning all the HCs. The real problem in England is poor player management, which is a consequence of the inability of the RFU and Premiership Rugby to have a normal, functioning relationship with each other.
Posted 11:51 26th October 2012
dodgyrog says...
when he is a member of a union, maybe they will ask him then.?
Posted 10:52 26th October 2012
froggy73 says...
I have always prefered a HEC with all 3 leagues (Top14, Premiership and PRO12), which makes it more exciting, but if the Celts keep on ignoring the rules have so far been too much in their favour and therefore need to be changed, then I suppose we should leave them out. The HEC is exotic for the French, important for the English, but vital for the Celts. I guess the Celts have much more to lose...
Posted 10:04 26th October 2012