Blues get Heineken Cup spot

By Dai
June 27 2004

The Cardiff Blues have been awarded a place in the 2004/2005 Heineken Cup despite finishing as the lowest placed Welsh region last season.

The European Rugby Cup Board held a meeting last week to discuss the possibility of the Blues taking a place in the Heineken Cup which would have gone to the Celtic Warriors had they not been disbanded by the WRU and after the meeting the decision was made to allow Wales to have 4 teams in the 204/2005 Heineken Cup.

It had initially been thought that the ERC would take a tough stance this season having already allowed Wales to enter all of its regional teams into the 2003/2004 Heineken Cup but rather than insisting that the Blues take the place they earned in the Parker Pen Cup by finishing as the lowest place Welsh region in the Celtic League they have given them a Cup spot.

The qualifying criteria for future tournaments may change with more emphasis being placed on the Celtic League and Italian Championship positions. Jean Pierre Lux, Chairman of ERC said "The Heineken Cup is the flagship of the professional club game in the northern hemisphere and we want it to remain as competitive in the future as it has been in the previous nine years. We feel the system for qualification we have devised for the future is fair to every nation and also gives an extra incentive to teams in the Celtic League and the Italian Championship."

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