Interpros are around since 1946 mate.
Thanks, mate. But I was looking for the full Pro14 standings.
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The weirdo is running his own domestic competition that the teams themselves don’t even know they are taking part in …
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It’s all a matter of opinion really - sure @mickee321 reckoned it was the AIL while @Little_Lord_Fauntleroy was suggesting that the Europa league was the premier domestic soccer competition.
It’s a competition within a competition. Not uncommon in rugby. By way of comparative, the first two tests of the annual Bledisloe Cup series between Australia v New Zealand are the home and away tests in the Rugby Championship between the Anzacs, in a competition in which they compete with Argentina and South Africa. The 3rd Bledisloe Cup test is a non Rugby Championship test match.
is there a consensus now with the rugby fraternity that the franchising and professionalism of the provinces has not done harm to the club game? I thought it was generally considered that the professional game killed the club game, but are we now saying it hasnt and that the professional games is really the club game? And that they play out an imaginary competition within a European competition?
Good man Geoff, don’t let the fuckers drag you down.
Irish rugby is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.
It certainly changed the club game - probably relegated it to a second tier competition without the internationals/top players.
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The AIL had its halcyon days in probably its first six seasons from 1990/91 up to 1995/96. The Ireland International team was probably at its lowest ever ebb in that period, winning just 5 of its 24 Five Nations games in that 6 year period.
The shift in emphasis for elite players from clubs to provinces from around 1996/97 was the catalyst for the upswing in the fortunes of the Ireland international team from 2000 onwards.
So there’s not enough teams playing baseball, american football, basketball et cetera? Maybe soccer is simply the outlier?
Upswing in fortunes?
They still never made it past the last 8 of a sport only 5/6 countries take semi seriously.
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They play domestic games in Ireland. Much like League of Ireland teams who play in a cross border league with a British team, they play in a cross border league too.
I’m sure those countries have more than 4 teams.
Why are the rugger boys so ashamed of the AIL?
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The NFL, NBA, NRL, AFL, Nippon League, NHL, Euro League Basetball, MLB et cetera don’t have relegation, that’s the point. Organising your professional sport well is a good idea and has helped Irish rugby grow.
Maybe if soccer in this country organised itself better then it would be more attractive for punters to go to. Instead one Irish province in Leinster can get pretty much the same paid home attendance annually as the entire Premier and 1st Division of the SSE League of Ireland. And given that many of Leinster’s opponents are overseas, that says something. Fair enough the League of Ireland does have a British team in it, but at least it’s just a land border for away fans to travel over.