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Georgia coach's Autumn Nations Cup plea to rugby's superpowers: 'It's not an excuse, but we need time'
By PA
Georgia’s elevation into the Autumn Nations Cup has been billed as the chance to prove they warrant a place at Europe’s top table but head coach Levan Maisashvili has more limited ambitions.
Italy’s failure to win a Six Nations match since 2015 has led to calls for relegation to be introduced into the Championship with Georgia, perennial winners of the continent’s second tier competition, their most likely replacement.
Commercial imperatives mean there is unlikely to be change any time soon, but The Lelos have profitted from Japan’s withdrawal from the Autumn Nations Cup because of travel complications caused by the coronavirus pandemic by filling the vacancy.
For Maisashvili, rare fixtures against Saturday’s opponents England, Wales and Ireland and not a narrative around Championship inclusion are the real benefit of the coming weeks.
“Results and how we play is not, for me, the measure of whether we play in the Six Nations or not,” he said.
“It’s a first opportunity for us and we need time. It’s not an excuse, but we need time. Who knows what will happen?
“But one thing I definitely promise – Georgia will fight in every game and Georgia will take from every game experience. Game after game we will try to show we are getting better.
“But to measure our results in the tournament and then decide our place in the Six Nations or not, I don’t think that’s the correct way.
“What we need is more games against the tier one countries because, as I mentioned, every year we have only two games against the strong teams.
“Take the experience, because we never have such an opportunity on a roll in such a small time-frame against so many strong teams.
“Every year, we have only two games against Tier One countries. Now we have four weeks, week by week, to play against strong teams and to analyse our game. That’s an opportunity for us.
“Against the strong teams, if we make mistakes we have to pay a very expensive price. We have to be ready.”
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Latest Comments
oh ok, seems strange you didn't put the limit at 7 given you said you thought 8 was too many!
Why did you say "I've told you twice already how I did it but your refuse to listen" when you had clearly not told me that you'd placed a limit of 8 teams per league?
"Agreed with 4 pool of 4 and home and away games?"
I understand the appeal of pools of 4, but 6 pool games might not go down well with the French or the South Africans given already cramped schedules. I do still think that you're right that that would be the best system, but there is going to be a real danger of French and SA sides sending b-teams which could really devalue the competition unless there is a way to incentivise performance, e.g. by allowing teams that do well one year to directly qualify for the next year's competition.
Go to commentsFoster should never have been appointed, and I never liked him as a coach, but the hysteria over his coaching and Sam Cane as a player was grounded in prejudice rather than fact.
The New Zealand Rugby public were blinded by their dislike of Foster to the point of idiocy.
Anything the All Blacks did that was good was attributed to Ryan and Schmidt and Fozzie had nothing to do with it.
Any losses were solely blamed on Foster and Cane.
Foster did develop new talent and kept all the main trophies except the World Cup.
His successor kept the core of his team as well as picking Cane despite him leaving for overseas because he saw the irreplaceable value in him.
Razor will take the ABs to the next level, I have full confidence in that.
He should have been appointed in 2020.
But he wasn’t. And the guy who was has never been treated fairly.
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