JERSEY REDS chairman Mark Morgan says something has to change for rugby to flourish as a sport in England and he has questioned a failing structure following the difficulties experienced by long-established Premiership clubs Wasps and Worcester Warriors.
Morgan added that Reds would not think about promotion to the Premiership ‘without there being absolute clarity around the funding situation’.
Reds are currently riding high in the Championship with five wins from five and are just one point off the top spot behind Ealing Trailfinders. However, the club does not currently meet the minimum criteria required for eligibility for promotion. And on Sunday, the England Rugby Football Union chief executive Bill Sweeney argued the case for the Premiership to be limited to just ten teams, while denying that there was a permanent ring-fence in place to prevent promotion to the highest league in English club rugby.
But with both Wasps and Worcester suspended from the Premiership and in administration, Morgan believes rugby in the top tier is being played ‘way outside of its capabilities’ and welcomed ongoing discussions to address the issue.
‘The guys at Worcester and Wasps have been let down by a system that has failed them,’ said Morgan.
‘It is heartening to see that finally the RFU and PRL [Premiership Rugby Limited] are not only recognising something needs to be done but it looks like something will be done this time.
‘It’s too early to comment on what that means for us or what that means for the Championship.’
Morgan has called for the RFU to ‘strip everything back to basics’ and focus on its objective to keep the sport flourishing at every level.
He added that club rugby is still struggling to get crowds back through the turnstiles after Covid.
‘[The Premiership] has given a false impression of how sustainable rugby at the top level is in England,’ said Morgan. ‘It’s just like any other business, you’ve only got two levers that you can pull. One is your income line and the other is your expense line. And whenever your expense line is peeking up above the income line, you’ve got a problem. At that level, salaries have gotten out of control and they need to be playing within an income level they can actually afford.’
RFU regulations on administration dictate that both Worcester and Wasps will be relegated to the Championship for next season, both clubs will appeal in an attempt to prove a ‘no-fault insolvency’.
It may be an enticing prospect for Reds fans to see them competing at the Stade Santander but it remains to be seen what that might mean for the current Championship structure.
‘There’s such a lot of unknowns at the moment,’ added Morgan. ‘From our perspective, we’re playing a two-legged game. One is: let’s focus on where we are now and continue to do well. And two: let’s see how things fall in terms of restructuring and figure out how we can fit into that.’
