Should Georgia & Romania be added to the 6 Nations?

[rowan]

I think this result vindicates World Rugby's decision not only to include Romania as well as Georgia on their core committee, but also to include them in the restructured top flight scheduling to take effect from 2020. With shrinking playing numbers, small crowds and a loss to Germany, that was beginning to look questionable - until today.

Btw, this is twice already this year there has been confusion over the awarding of a trophy in a major international competition. Just as it was initially thought (wrongly) that Georgia had won the championship despite this loss, so it was believed at first that Argentina had won the Americas Rugby Cup ahead of the US on points differential (the US actually won it on bonus points).

[Lizard]

Here’s a thought. Italy are one of the 12 automatic qualifiers for RWC2019 but are ranked 15th going into the draw. Teams ranked above Italy but not automatically qualified are Fiji (screwed in the 2015 Pool of Death), Tonga (didn’t beat Georgia) and Samoa (didn’t beat Japan). If Italy end up in a 2019 pool with any of the Island teams, there is at least a reasonable chance that Italy will not qualify automatically for RWC2023 (Italy are 3 from 7 against the Island teams since RWC2011).

If that happens, then it will be interesting to see what qualification route is proposed for Italy for RWC2023. Up to RWC2003, Italy played in at least the latter stages of qualifying tournaments. For RWC2007, there were 8 automatic qualifiers for the final time. Italy did not have to take part in the earlier qualifying rounds but played a round-robin with Portugal and Russia to qualify as Europe 1 (EU 2 was decided between Rom, Geo and Spa). RWC2011 and RWC2015 had 12 automatic qualifiers allowing Italy to scrape in.

I presume that there will again be 12 automatic spots for RWC2023. If Italy doesn’t get in that way, it will be interesting to see whether WR makes them play in a tournament or just has a home and away play-off against the REC champion.

[rowan]

Well, you know World Rugby. They'd come up with something really imaginative, like a one-off between Italy and the ENC 3 team (usually Russia but currently Spain).

[rowan]

Rugby's "most influential man" pushing for 6 Nations expansion

Georgia should be allowed into the Six Nations for the good of the game, World Rugby vice-chairman Agustin Pichot has told Sportsmail.

Pichot, who was recently named the most influential man in rugby after pushing for Argentina to join the southern hemisphere Rugby Championship, wants the Six Nations to adopt promotion and relegation.

‘I’m sure it will touch a lot of nerves but I would urge the Six Nations to give other countries a chance,’ said the former Pumas captain. ‘They don’t want a threat to the status quo. It’s been the same for years.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/rugbyu ... z4eDJEtiYd


Also interesting:

Georgia are hot favourites to join Pro12 ahead of Germany... and expanding the competition opens up brave new world of opportunity

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/rugbyu ... z4eDK7gHy3


Could we stick the Sunwolves in there as well

[rowan]

I suspect we could be looking at a 7 Nations with an actual promotion-relegation fixture, if Pichot gets his way. There's practically no risk of Italy or anyone else getting relegated that way (apart from the newcomer, of course). Likely scenario in the foreseeable future would be Georgia gets in. The likes of Italy would then have to not only slip up against the Lelos, but then also lose to the likes of Romania in the promotion-relegation fixture(s) in order to lose their place.

[rowan]

I think the surest sign neither Georgia nor anyone else will be added to the 6 Nations any time soon was the announcement of the global calendar last month, running right through to the 2030s. The addition of 6 Nations v ENC teams fixtures to the AIs now appears more like a compromise - or a sort of peace offering - as the 6 Nations dig in their heels and World Rugby lacks the resolve to budge them. Still, it's a step forward, and if the Lelos et al do improve with experience and achieve some good results then 6 Nations expansion will be sure to follow - just not for another couple of decades or so...

[wanderingjock]

. A lot of the work done to close the gap has been down to the pre- tournament time and money provided by WR before the RWCs,

& how many teams compete at the World Cup? Not 10. Not just the 6 Nations and the Rugby Championship teams. They're only half. So what about the other half? They contribute to this great quadrennial money-spinner as well - only to be practically ignored the rest of the time; basically deemed unworthy. That's what I mean by 'betrayal.'

And you seen to avoid the finances brought to world rugby by those nations, yes at the moment they are going to look after their own, it's hard to look outward, but in comparison to football as you have cited, we stayed a world cup in the 80s not the thirties and whilst times have changed like it or not money rules. It will change again, you seen to have an issue that the 6 nations, despite being crap provides more money for world rugby than anyone else.

[wanderingjock]

Look at football now.

[rowan]

No arguments re the success of the 6 Nations, just stating that the biggest money-spinner in the game - the World Cup - is a 20-team affair, so it's a little arrogant to treat half of the nations which contribute to that as poor relations the rest of the time.

[wanderingjock]

Should we abandon stuttering strong hold in favour of new money and pasture, I'm easily convinced, but money turns the tide of all politics, the fact remains in every other world cup apart from maybe this one and a heavily funded south African one, the French and the English ones fill the coffers.

[wanderingjock]

Morally I'm not saying it's right, but when new Zealand turn a loss, there's less funding for anything

[wanderingjock]

Morally I'm not saying it's right, but when new Zealand turn a loss, there's less funding for anything

[wanderingjock]

Is it arrogant to make some cank and share it with them? The arrogance is how it's split up

[wanderingjock]

The money I mean

[wanderingjock]

And no neither team should be added to the six nations

[wanderingjock]

Do you have a point?

[wanderingjock]

And this whole thing about the usa and Canada, or south Africa, south Africa is a tiny tip of a huge continent, you ever been to Africa. It wouldn't be a continental game it would be a tiny country in the continent taking part in games they give no hoot about

[rowan]

I'm not a major advocate of further 6 Nations expansion, but more in support of a promotion-relegation system which would tie the tournament together with the ENC and create a truly pan-European competition. That is only one step away and would actually be an amazing achievement. Not even football has an annual European championships.

We've seen in the ENC this year how difficult it is for the team trying to earn promotion to travel to the home of the team defending its place, so I seriously doubt there would be any real prospect of even Italy being removed from the 6N in the foreseeable future.

Georgia has a relatively small domestic competition in terms of player numbers, and Romania lost to Germany not so long ago, so expanding the 6N to accommodate either of them right now would be as foolish as expanding Super Rugby to 18 before it was ready.

Your comments on South Africa seem a little nonsensical to be honest. South Africa is geographically bigger than France, the British Isles and Ireland combined, while its population exceeds the vast majority of countries' in Europe. Yes, I've been to Africa three times, though only Tanzania in terms of Sub-Saharan Africa. I disagree with your comments in this respect.

[wanderingjock]

My south African point was in relation to your point about it being a world cup for the continent. It wouldn't, personally I give not a jot whether they get it or not, share it or not, but for the continent? Wouldn't make a difference at all to Senegal, Mauritania or even Namibia.not that silly a point when you consider Africa is a huge continent and you said it was a world cup for the continent.

[wanderingjock]

No arguments re the success of the 6 Nations, just stating that the biggest money-spinner in the game - the World Cup - is a 20-team affair, so it's a little arrogant to treat half of the nations which contribute to that as poor relations the rest of the time.

If the world cup is the biggest money spinner, why did new Zealand make a loss?

[Lizard]

My south African point was in relation to your point about it being a world cup for the continent. It wouldn't, personally I give not a jot whether they get it or not, share it or not, but for the continent? Wouldn't make a difference at all to Senegal, Mauritania or even Namibia.not that silly a point when you consider Africa is a huge continent and you said it was a world cup for the continent.

To be fair, I was in Africa (Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, South Africa) in 2009 and in most places people were seeing the 2010 FIFI WC an "African" event. They were quite excited by it.

Obviously soccer is way more popular in Africa than rugby (I spent most of a day on a bus painted in Chelsea livery from Moyale to Isiolo in Kenya) so the same attitude might not prevail to the same extent. But in the rugby community I think it would.

[rowan]

Yes, it seems a bit hypocritical to me that everybody talks ethusiastically of the 2019 World Cup being a tournament for Asia and how it's going to have a positive spin-off for the game across the continent, but then dismiss the same view of a World Cup in Africa being a tournament for that continent. Anybody who comes out with that clearly just doesn't want SA to host it for whatever personal reasons.

NZ may have made a loss at the World Cup. I don't know. But I do know vast amounts of proceeds from the World Cup go toward the development of lower tier competitions which sustain and help develop the game across the globe.

[Lizard]

NZ made a loss mostly because of the huge cut that WR takes. It funds most of World Rugby.

[rowan]

Baia Mare: Apjock leaves the club after 14 years, both parties agreed a changed is needed. The new coach is George Sava (Poli Iasi) who is coming back to Baia Mare after 17 years.

Steaua: Coach Cristian Petre won't continue so they are looking for a new coach as well

CSM: Bradley most probably will leave for Zebre

Timisoara: Chester Williams was only a temporary solution so probably he'll need a new coach as well; I don't think Anesi will be head coach.

Poli Iasi: after losing Sava, one of the best assets of the club, they certainly need a good coach to deal with that young squad.

[rowan]

First Romanian member of World Rugby Judicial Panel! Big congrats to ex referee Valeriu Toma


https://frr.ro/2017/06/07/valeriu-toma- ... rld-rugby/