Is there an Echo??

This is a recent article that I produced for the Exeter Express and Echo which includes my predicitions for this season - I would love to hear your thoughts:

The Championship is set to revolutionise rugby at Level 2 in the English game and despite retiring I am really excited about the kick off to the season.

In theory, with the dawn of the new playoff system, this should be the most open league for quite some time but it seems that the new Championship is destined to begin under a cloud of uncertainty for a number of would be contenders.

All the news coming from the capital was that perennial under achievers London Welsh were going to come out of the shadow of the famous names of the past and mount a serious challenge for the title.

Having signed some quality performers, from this league and above, all looked rosy for the Dragons but they were plunged into administration citing the credit crunch as the cause of their problems.

Things seemed to have settled and the likes of Chris Whitehead and Michael Holford will add steel to a front row that has struggled to dominate teams in the past – but will all the off field issues come back to bite them?

It was a difficult time for the players at Nottingham last year when wages were cut and financial uncertainty was the hot topic – it will be interesting to see if the difficulties have brought the team closer together or left them worried about their future.

It is rumoured that a number of clubs are feeling the financial pinch which is only going to play into the hands of the big guns, Exeter and Bristol.

Birmingham and Solihull were promoted to the Champions as Champions of National Division Two last season but have thus far failed in their attempts to get planning permission at Sharmans Cross Road and they must be one of the favourites for the relegation play off.

Nottingham’s troubles also continue – the lack of forthcoming investment has resulted in a smaller squad and they have also been asked to leave Meadow Lane following Notts County’s takeover and the arrival of Sven Goran Eriksson.

Nottingham’s biggest concern will be in the ball carrying department having lost their three talisman in Dan Montagu (Bristol), Joe Duffey (Leicester Tigers) and more recently Tim Molenaar (Gloucester).

In season’s gone by it has been important to hit the ground running but the playoff system will change the dynamics of the year.

As we have seen in the Guinness Premiership it is all about timing and making sure that you have qualified for the later stages and hitting form at the right time.

Much of this emphasis will be placed on the Director’s of Rugby – they will need to manage their squads well and keep them fresh for the big games.

Will this be Exeter’s year?

They certainly have the squad that could win the league but it has been their ability to perform under pressure that has let them down in the past few seasons.

A change of leadership might help but more importantly they will be able to draw on the experiences from Twickenham and Billesley Common and put right what went wrong as England did in their 2003 World cup victory.

Pirates seem to have more solidity than in the past few seasons – having Gavin Cattle back will make a big difference, he is one of the best scrum halves and game generals in the league.

Can we look past Bristol for the title?

With the parachute payment and some clever signings including Montagu, Spice, Bedes and Jack Adams they will definitely be one of the favourites and with a large squad should be fresh for the play offs.

Top Eight: Bristol, Exeter, Bedford, Doncaster, London Welsh, Nottingham, Cornish Pirates,

Plymouth

Bottom Four: Birmingham and Solihull, Rotherham, Moseley, Coventry

RFU Unveils Championship Structure

The RFU announce the structure of the Championship for this season - click here

Playing Them Off

So the poll is over and you have voted that Exeter Chiefs will win the Championship this year!!

Thank you to everyone that voted - I am looking forward to seeing if you are right and will publish my thoughts on the runners and riders later this week.

Normally at this time of year teams are making last minute preparations in order to hit the ground running for the first league game of the season.

For the first time being ready for game 1 is not as important and the teams will have more time to gel and experiment.

The play off system is guaranteed to change the dynamics of the league and I am a big fan of the concept.

In years gone by losing three to four games would put an end to any Championship aspirations but it is a much more open playing field this year - in theory!!!

I like the group system at the end of the season - but ultimately to win promotion to the Premiership you have to perform on the big stage and what an exciting climax to the season.

I still prefer the Rugby League play off system - especially the idea that you can choose your semi-final opponents but this is a great step forward for the promotion of this league and should provide some exciting rugby at the end of the year.

Wouldn't fancy being in the relegation play off though!!!

Logo

Great news that the RFU have given the Championship a logo ahead of the launch in September - ceratinly will help with the leagues identitiy - something that was severely lacking as National Division One.

I also heard on the grapevine this week that there is a photoshoot at Twickenham next week involving all of the 12 teams that are taking part.

Things certainly seem to be changing - well done RFU.

Fortress Under Attack

The Championship seems destined to begin under a cloud of crisis as clubs come to terms with the economic downturn and ever changing sporting landscape.

At the beginning of the week it was good to hear that London Welsh would kick off the new season in the Championship thanks to a take over by Red Dragon Rugby Ltd. but as the week draws to a close another club is thrust into turmoil.

Turmoil is nothing new for Nottingham Rugby, who were one of the first clubs to announce financial difficulties last season, but the latest breaking story could potentially end professional rugby as we know it in Nottingham.

It has already been a mad week for Nottingham sport!

The appointment of Sven Goran Eriksson as Director of Football at League 2 side Notts County sent reverberations around the country - Munto Finance and the Oldest Football Club in the world mean business and nothing will stand in their way.

It now appears that will include Nottingham Rugby.

Notts County have reportedly stated that Nottingham Rugby will not be able to stage their home games at Meadow Lane this season.

This is a big issue for Nottingham Rugby, who sold their home at Ireland Avenue in 2006, and have made Meadow Lane a fortress in recent years.

The impressive stadium is a big draw card for the club in terms of players, sponsors, match day hospitality and, perhaps most importantly, profile in what is already a cluttered sporting environment in Nottingham - without it I fear that the club will have to change substantially.

I have no doubt there will always be a Nottingham Rugby Club but without Meadow Lane, and a lack of other enticing options, it is hard to see how they will be able to continue with the model and budgets that they will have set at the start of the year.

Having come through a difficult time last year this is another testing time for the players and staff, who stayed loyal despite the issues last season, and as the Chairman, Geoff Huckstep, states this could signal the end of professional rugby in Nottingham in its present state.

A legal battle seems unlikely considering the rugby clubs financial situation and the fact that Notts County are reportedly paying Sven £2m a year.

The partnership was started because both parties had something to offer, Notts had a stadium and Nottingham Rugby paid them to use it in times of financial need.

Money is no object for the football club anymore and they will want the best playing surface possible for Sven and the new signings - sixteen games of rugby would certainly take its toll.

They always say that the biggest threat to a Fortress is from the inside - let's hope that there is a plan B.

Is Anybody Listening???!!!!!

I seem to have set a trend for retirement announcements in the last few weeks - watch out blogging can be dangerous for our favourite national sports!

Whilst I would be delighted if Michael Vaughan and Freddie Flintoff have read the blog, I would be devasted if in some strange twist I had ended their sporting careers because of what they had read.

I didn't see Freddie saying "if that Ben Thompson is retiring then perhaps it is my time is up too" on Sky Sports News this week - but I do feel in exhalted company.

You also have read it here first - I am turning to the 7's circuit in India to make my millions too!!!

It has been a completely different month for me but I haven't regretted my decision for one minute - especially when all you hear are the horror stories of preseason training.

The pictures of the London Welsh marine training camp, for example, look horrendous - come on guys have a heart - as if the players aren't feeling bad enough at the moment!!!

London Welsh captain, Michael Powell (third from left), updated his status on Facebook half way through the camp - "now know what hell is!!" - yeah I am really missing it!!!

I'd like to say a quick thank you to collybs who kindly posted a link to the blog on the popular National League Rugby message board. (Thanks also to Richard Lowther, Wakefield supporter, for providing the service!)

I have been a big fan of the message board for a long time - it is a great source of information (especially the signings and departures section) and more importantly it represents the opinion of the fans that are travel the length and breadth of England to follow their team.

I know that a lot of players and management staff regularly go to the board to glean information.

In my opinion, if any of the clubs aren't looking at them and using them in a positive way to understand the people they are trying to attract through the gates, then they are missing a perfect opportunity.

There is no doubt that there can be some odd posts from disillusioned fans, players and, more than likely, even a few curve balls from people who should know better but the majority offer a great insight into rugby at this level, both on and off the pitch, and should be embraced.

In the past clubs have seen the fans' forums/message boards as a negative and a place for disgruntled fans to rant and rave - but as Bad Company famously (or not!!) sang "There is no smoke without fire"!! and if this is the case they are missing a trick.

As with any opinion or advice - even this blog I hear the cynics cry - the reader has total discretion about what, why and how they use the information that is being written and being handed to them on a plate.

This may be a surprise but I passionately believe that club officials should be actively involved in the forums (and should have one on their website!!) - there is obviously a limit to information that can or should be released - but they have a perfect platform to interact with the paying public that large companies would have paid researchers thousands of pounds for before the internet revolution.

There is no doubt the fans' comments are being monitored and read - I wonder how long it will be before we see a major step change and the forums being used to their full potential - it has to be have a positive effect for the fans, clubs and rugby as a whole.

I would be delighted to hear your comments on the subject - I will definitely get involved in the discussion!!!

Leader of the Pack

They say that change is as good as a rest but Exeter Chiefs will be hoping that a change of captain will make them better than the rest and propel them into the Premiership as they embark on the first Championship season.

The Chiefs, Devon's most successful club, have been the leaders of the chasing pack for too long in the eyes of the Directors at Sandy Park and they have their sights firmly set on bringing the Guinness Premiership to the county.

Long standing captain, Richie Baxter, has "stepped down" as captain and is replaced by former Plymouth Albion second/back row Tommy Hayes with Alan Miller installed as Club Captain.

(Can anything to be read into the fact that Tommy Hayes is listed as a number 8 on the website?)

Rob Baxter's (Richie's brother) appointment as Head Coach appears to have paved the way for a number of changes at Sandy Park - something I believe could help them move from perennial runners up to Premiership elect and the first ever winners of the Championship.

There were sweeping changes at Sandy Park in March when the double header against Moseley back fired and essentially cost the club a place in the Twickenham Final and killed off all hope of reaching the Premiership.

Pete Drewett carried the can for their failings on the pitch despite, as far as I am aware, not having a large amount of input on the training field. But such is life at the top of a sporting organisation.

And it could be argued that the recruitment policy that involved cherry picking the top players in National Division One, to create an enormous squad of 50 high quality players, meant it was all or nothing for the former England Under 21 manager.

The board obviously want results and they have turned to former captain and Exeter legend Rob Baxter to provide them and I wish him well in the quest for Premiership status, something the club definitely deserve in their fantastic stadium.

I have the utmost respect for Rob, having played under him as a coach and captain, and firmly believe he has given himself the best chance of succeeding in this challenge.

Selecting a new captain and the announcement today that Nick Beaton will replace John Baxter (Rob's father) on the board gives Rob complete control of his own destiny thanks to two shrewd tactical moves.

It will certainly release some of the pressure and potential questions surrounding family loyalty that could rumble upstairs in the board room or downstairs in the changing room.

There is no doubt that Exeter are and will continue to be a very good side next year but the change in leadership could be the trump card that gives them the edge.

Richie has embodied the style of the Chiefs' play during his record 285 appearances - he is strong, organised, methodical, carries the ball hard and does the basics very well.

However, my one criticism of their style, is that, in recent years they have appeared to lack a Plan B especially in situations where the opposition have stood up and knocked them off course or taken the game to them - not often the case at Sandy Park I might add.

Effectively the Chiefs have bullied sides out of games and in some cases won the game on reputation before they have even kicked off - but in the pivotal games of the season that doesn't always cut the mustard.

You need game breakers, dynamism and flair - something that seems to have been stifled in the past - apart from the exception of Josh Drauniniu (who has subsequently left).

Has this sense of adventure been stifled by the leadership, the pressure they are under as a squad or the lack of ambition to change because, let's face it, they are still doing very well?

Whatever the answer they will need to find that edge to reach their goal and a change in captain and potentially at number 8 could provide that.

Tom Johnson, who suprisngly didn't leave for the Premiership this season, is by far the most dynamic back row forward in the league - could he play more at 8 this season?

I don't want it to appear that I think Richie's time has passed - he is a fantastic player and certainly has a big role to play in the first Championship season and will always a threat with ball in hand.

But it will be certainly interesting to see how the Chiefs' style of play unfolds and whether they have a Plan B and a gamebreaker up their sleeve when the heat is really on?

I look forward to hearing your thoughts and engaging in a discussion about the subject and any other relevant to the Championship!!!


Thanks to everyone who has voted thus far on the opinion poll too!!