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Thread: Georgia, Romania push to end Six Nations status quo

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    Georgia, Romania push to end Six Nations status quo

    http://news.yahoo.com/georgia-romani...120604981.html

    Italy had just been handed another thrashing in the Six Nations when its captain was asked the question that always seems to crop up in the latter stages of the tournament.
    "I still think we really deserve to play in this tournament," said Sergio Parisse, hurting after a grim 58-15 loss to Ireland in Dublin.Does Italy still merit an automatic place at European rugby's top table?
    Thousands of miles away, those associated with the Georgia and Romania teams likely were saying the same thing.
    At a time when expansion is all the rage in southern hemisphere rugby, the northern hemisphere remains a closed shop. The Five Nations became the Six Nations in 2000 when Italy joined the fold but wins have been rare for the Azzurri, who are guaranteed the wooden spoon for the 11th time in 17 editions when the 2016 tournament climaxes on Saturday.
    Meanwhile, in the European Nations Cup containing the second-tier teams, Georgia and Romania continue to dominate and will meet for their latest tournament decider, in front of an expected 50,000 fans in Tbilisi on Saturday.
    The prospect of the Six Nations opening its borders? Remote, at best.
    "We are just asking for a chance," Milton Haig, Georgia's New Zealand-born coach, told The Associated Press in a phone interview.
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    FILE- In this Oct. 6, 2015 file photo, Romania's Valentin Calafeteanu, left, and Romania's M …

    Haig's desperation is born from the fact that Georgia is on the brink of winning its sixth straight title in the European Nations Cup, which also includes Russia, Portugal, Spain, and Germany. He feels Georgia and Romania need tougher matches, and is proposing a three-year trial period in an expanded Seven or Eight Nations.
    "It's getting a bit tired," Haig said. "For the improvement in our rugby, it's vital we find a competition that extends us a bit more.
    "If it's going to cost us some money, tell us how much, and I'm sure our government and our benefactors would jump at the chance to try and finance something like that."
    And money is what it boils down to.
    The Six Nations is a commercial entity, privately run by the six competing countries. They see the competition doing fine as it is, in both sporting and financial terms, and have no desire to change it.
    Six Nations Rugby declined to respond to questions posed by The Associated Press regarding possible expansion, or even promotion and relegation.
    John Feehan, the Six Nations chief executive, has previously said it is a "closed tournament," adding that change "is not a subject on our agenda and, frankly, it is not the job of the Six Nations to provide solutions for Georgia, Romania, or anyone else."
    World Rugby has no power to force change in the Six Nations but has been investing more in Tier 2 teams like Georgia and Romania, including attempting to give them more games in the June and November test windows against Tier 1 nations. World Rugby also helps underwrite the cost of fixtures and things like player insurance, as well as funding the hiring of foreign coaches like Haig with Georgia and Welshman Lynn Howells with Romania.
    Octavian Morariu, who runs the European Nations Cup through his role as chief executive of Rugby Europe, acknowledges that an expanded Six Nations is simply a "wish" at this stage. He told the AP that a starting point would be to provide more games between Tier 1 and 2 nations to ensure rugby in Georgia and Romania doesn't stagnate through lack of competition.
    "This is a very important condition to improve," Morariu said. "If you look at the initial progress of Italy (in the Six Nations), and the quality of Samoa, Tonga and Fiji who play Tier 1 countries regularly, I think we have an answer there."
    Haig led Georgia to its best-ever performance at a Rugby World Cup, with a third-place pool finish guaranteeing qualification for the 2019 event.
    In 2015, Georgia reached the final of the European Under-18 Championship, which included all the Six Nations teams. And Haig says the eastern European rugby market is there to be exploited, especially given Georgia's proximity to Asia.
    "It's not about keeping the status quo, but looking at potential, of what you could develop," Haig said. "And about adding value to the current competition. We can add value."

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    Immortal GIGS20's Avatar
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    World Rugby has no power to force change in the Six Nations
    Oh really?

    I think "Play Six Nations and you no longer qualify for a World Cup" might do the trick, but obviously the World Cup cant survive unless the teams that place from 6-10 don't turn up.

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    I wonder if they would consider a European Barbarians team in the comp. Take the best of Italy, Georgia, Romania et al., and see if it performs better than Italy alone.

    I know there is plenty who think thats a shit idea but surely better than Italy floggings or just a 5 Nations. Plus what happens when Parisse hangs up the boots. Those floggings will blow out even further.

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    Legend Contributor brokendown gunfighter's Avatar
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    how about a promotion/relegation series for the 6th placed side against the next ranked european side?

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    Because whoever comes in will still only roughly be as competitive as Italy?

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    Veteran chibi's Avatar
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    Italy needs a severe rocket after not sufficiently developing the game outside of Veneto, despite being a promising team in the early 90s. It seems Italy is more interested in granting Argentines with Italian heritage European passports and paying foreigners to qualify through residency as their two major tactics to bolster the national team.

    Rugby is a game with the unique ability to give regions and nations an identity. Much has been said in Italy about how the big money lies in the north and therefore the soccer clubs south of Rome will never compete with Juventus and the Milanese, so why not put a real focus on taking the game to these areas which already have strong regional identities and allow rugby to become part of it? Naples, Calabria, Sicily, Sardinia et al; are all parochial areas which could become rugby hotbeds. Would be an interesting cultural shift indeed.

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    A playoff between the last team in the 6 Nations versus the winner of the European Nations Cup would make sense. And at least the rugby in the other Nations will have a better chance of growing as a result of the exposure.
    As a note Australia has had more than 40 points or more scored against them by the All Blacks on 4 occasions since August 2013.
    Does that represent floggings?
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Histor...nd_New_Zealand

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    Quote Originally Posted by yungfen View Post
    Australia has had more than 40 points or more scored against them by the All Blacks on 4 occasions since August 2013. Does that represent floggings?
    Are you suggesting we play off for relegation with Samoa?

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    Player yungfen's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by GIGS20 View Post
    Are you suggesting we play off for relegation with Samoa?
    Certainly not Gigs, just highlighting that 40-50 points are not necessarily floggings.
    It very often is the result of one team scoring on most of their attacks versus another just missing that bit of flair/skill to finish off a spell in attack. The Force can sound familiar.....

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