RFU needs a sense of proportion
EALING, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 20: Ealing take to the field prior to the Trailfinders Challenge Cup match between Ealing Trailfinders and Doncaster Knights on February 20, 2021 in Ealing, England. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Alex Davidson/Getty Images)
The RFU has always maintained that promotion-relegation is sacrosanct, even though the RFU Council agreed in February 2021 to a so-called “moratorium” to suspend it for three years after bowing to Premiership pressure post-Covid.
It was a bad decision because the Premiership model was badly broken before Covid, and in need of radical reform. The RFU was then forced to go back on its own moratorium when Wasps, Worcester, and London Irish went bust, and were all relegated under RFU regulations for the multi-million financial collapses.
At the end of this season the moratorium ends, with promotion-relegation to be restored in 2024-25. What should also be restored is a sense of RFU proportion. It should refuse to rubber-stamp restrictive Premiership Minimum Standards Criteria, and stipulate that any Championship club with a 5,000 stadium capacity, seated and standing, can be promoted, and receive equal funding.
