Money at the root of evil cricket and rugby schedules

I like it. Twenty20 is the counties’ only chance of making decent money from

their actual cricket, so it is only right and proper that they are allowed

to play that format when they will be able to attract their biggest crowds.

But then you still have those complaining about little or no cricket on

Saturday. As I was saying about not pleasing everyone.

Well, on Saturday, even though there is one County Championship match

beginning and a NatWest T20 Blast fixture, why not watch some rugby union?

There is plenty of that on television, with England

v New

Zealand, then France against Australia, South Africa against a World

XV, completed by Ireland facing Argentina.

But that brings us back to the subject of scheduling. There is a slight

problem with the England match. Most of their first-choice side will be

sitting in the stand watching. They were playing in the Aviva Premiership

final at Twickenham last Saturday and will not arrive in New Zealand until

tomorrow.

Why? Well, it boils down to the fact that the International Rugby Board’s

window for summer Tests begins on the second weekend in June. Last weekend,

even though Saturday was May 31, was classed as the first weekend. There was

a breakdown in communication with the previous Rugby Football Union

hierarchy, and this is what we are left with.

But it is not an isolated incident. Rather it is symptomatic of a rugby

calendar that is every bit as messy as any cricketing equivalent, which

everywhere in the world has the Indian Premier League lurking over it like

Banquo’s ghost.

Calls for a global season in rugby union have been growing louder, with Bath’s

owner, Bruce Craig, recently calling for a new six-week home-and-away

international window in August and September to replace the present summer

and autumn Tests.

New Zealand coach Steve Hansen has also said that the summer window should be

in July rather than June. But that is so that the Super Rugby could be

played in a continuous block, whereas now it has to take a three-week break

for the three Tests against England.

July Tests would give England’s players a rest after the season, but the knock

on would be their unavailability at the start of the following season, which

would not please the clubs.

The club/country agreement is worth a lot of money. Ah, cash. Now, we are

getting to the nub. It is why Saturday’s Test could not be changed.

Contracts were in place. Money would have been lost.

England will play four autumn internationals this year, which, in fairness,

they do only every other year, but Wales now play four every year, paying

the fourth opponent, as the fixture is outside of the IRB autumn window.

This year it is South Africa, last year it was Australia. They both come at a

price of about £750,000. New Zealand? They cost £1.5 million. England paid

that in 2012, when they beat the All Blacks actually.

This November in Chicago, remarkably, New Zealand play the United States, yet

they have never played a Test in Samoa, Tonga or Fiji. The reason? Money, of

course.

As I demonstrated earlier by my comments on Twenty20, that is the crux. You

can talk about global seasons, player welfare, simulated annealing or

whatever you want, but it is money that is at the root of all these

schedules.

Sadly then, it is no wonder they are mostly evil.

Article source: http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/sport/11162009.RUGBY_UNION__Gosford_cap_season_by_lifting_Shield/

Money at the root of evil cricket and rugby schedules