Any Prem-URC merger should be rejected out of hand

If you ran a new but thriving business, one that attracted customers from all over the world, that produced a range of high quality products and was projected to continue to grow for at least the foreseeable future, would you hitch your wagon to a business that has been forced to shrink while so many of its most talented employees have left? No, you’d be mad to do anything of the sort. So why is this story of a possible merger between the United Rugby Championship and the Premiership being taken seriously?

Perhaps no one is actually taking this seriously and it's simply a storm in an English teacup. According to the Telegraph, “It is understood that the preference of the Premiership clubs, after a board meeting in London on Thursday morning, is to further explore the possibility of the creation of a British and Irish league.” So it's just a possibility now. Still, history's worst mistakes all started as possibilities.

There’s one catch. This league would not include the four South African and two Italian teams that currently play in the URC. What is on the table is an idea for the four Welsh, four Irish and two Scottish teams to join with the 10 English clubs. Various iterations have also been explored with a reduction in the number of English and Welsh teams to better accommodate all parties.

Whatever guise this proposed league would take it would be a catastrophe and should be rejected out of hand. Not because it would be bad news for the English clubs, or indeed bad news for the Welsh teams (more on both in a minute) but because it would utterly shaft the South Africans, Irish, Scots and Italians. If indeed this proposition reaches decision-making desks in Cape Town, Dublin, Edinburgh and Rome, it should be met with derision and contempt.

Why on earth would the Irish and Scots want to join their English counterparts? In just three seasons of the URC both Munster and Glasgow have lifted the title. Leinster, once so dominant in the competition that they could roll our B-teams and canter to the crown, have been knocked off their perch, having thrice been beaten in the semi-finals. Testimonies from coaches and players have all confirmed that the competition has not only been a step up of what had come before, but that they have the addition of the South African clubs to thank for that.

Now perhaps the Irish and Scots don’t want to be tested as rigorously every week. But I refuse to believe that. And I’d go further in suggesting that the addition of the South Africans, with their burly forwards, dynamic runners and radically different conditions on the other side of the world, have all contributed to the improvements of the Irish and Scottish national teams. Maybe it’s just a coincidence that the Irish under Andy Farrell have started bullying English, French and New Zealand packs. Maybe it is at least partially down to the fact that their players scrum and mail against South Africans on a weekly basis.

Antoine Dupont is being pushed hard by Jamison Gibson-Park for the title of best scrum-half in the world (Photo By Brendan Moran/Sportsfile via Getty Images)

Perhaps it is also a coincidence that the Italians have seemingly found their mongrel. Oh sure they had sparkle and flair before, but their performance against France in the last Six Nations, not to mention their demolition job of Wales, was proof of their evolution. These are not merely hot-stepping show-ponies, but battlers and grafters. Causation is difficult to prove with absolute certainty but there it is at least worth considering how much of a role the introduction of the South Africans have played in these forward steps. And if that seems far-fetched, why not ask Australians and New Zealanders if the absence of regular contact with South Africans has impacted their ecosystems.

So if it would be madness for the Scots and Irish to jettison the best thing that has happened to their domestic rugby since the dawn of professionalism, who could be driving this lunacy? Who would have anything to gain? The answer is obvious.

It wasn’t long ago that the Premiership could attract some of the world’s best talent. Now the league can barely keep hold of England’s best talent. It wasn’t long ago that the Premiership was bursting with historic clubs. Now it looks over the wreckage and ruin that is Wasps, Worcester Warriors and London Irish. It wasn’t long ago that the Premiership carried great jeopardy as ambitious clubs fought their way into the top flight. Now it is ring-fenced with no chance for change, no matter how awful Newcastle and Gloucester may be.

I don’t mean to come across as a hater. I really do love the Premiership. It’s a cracking league with some of the best supporters in the game and a handful of delightful grounds. But not even the most blinkered fan of English rugby could argue that it is a league on the rise. Healthy people don’t tie themselves to those working through a sickness and the same should be true of professional sports leagues.

Then we have the Welsh who would benefit the most from a merger. But would the English want them? As Daniel Schofield wrote in the Telegraph, “Beyond the South West, the struggling Welsh regions are not putting any bums on seats in any Premiership ground.” Leaving the URC for a teetering ship won’t solve Wales’ problems.

Need more reasons why this is a bad idea? How about the fact that it would effectively kill the Champions Cup and render European club games meaningless. What would be the point if there were only two leagues on the continent? If Leinster’s management and supporters are truly obsessed with that next star, then they should do everything in their power to end this nonsense before it takes off.

Fans have power and their voices should be heard. We saw how protests scuppered the proposed European Super League in 2021. If these talks between the English and their Celtic neighbours develop, they should be met with resounding disapproval. The struggles of the Premiership should not be the concern of anyone beyond the borders of England.