The Relegation Debate - A look at the history

By BrianC
February 22 2005

Professional rugby at club level is now in it's eight season. As such it is still very much in it's infancy and suffering growing pains. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the vexed issue of promotion and relegation.

In this series of articles we take an in depth look at the history of promotion and relegation in the professional era, the bodies involved, the issues they are grappling with and the options open to them.

Can we learn from history?

Before launching into the various arguments it is worth looking at the history of relegation and promotion in the professional era and the circumstances prevailing at the time. Whilst past decisions do not dictate what will happen in this and future seasons I do feel they serve as a guide.

When the professional league, initially fourteen clubs, was established in the 97/98 season it was agreed and announced that one team from this league would be relegated every season. That club would then be replaced by the winners of National Division One (ND1) subject to the promoted team meeting certain requirements, particularly with regards to ground size and financial stability.

Arguably had this been cast in stone from the start, where whoever came last in the Zurich Premiership (ZP) actually went down and everybody clearly knew where they stood, the game would not now be in the pickle it is with regards to this issue. The fact is that whilst there has been some promotion and relegation down the years it has not been that clear cut. Here is what has happened down the seasons together with some idea of the context in which the decisions were made.

2003/4 – Rotherham relegated, Worcester promoted.

Rotherham, in their second Zurich Premiership season, failed to make any impact on the league. They finished the season without any victories and with only three bonus points. With an average gate of just 3.2k they struggled to keep up financially with the other clubs indeed this season they are in financial difficulty not least as a consequence of monies spent whilst in the ZP. Worcester had some difficulty persuading Premier Rugby Ltd. (PRL) that their Sixways ground was adequate but eventually were admitted.

2002/3 – Bristol Relegated, Rotherham promoted.

This and the previous 01/02 season perhaps gives us the best clues to the workings of the powers that be and what might happen this season. As the last day of the season approached there were no less than four teams facing the drop. Bath, Bristol, London Irish and Newcastle. At one stage a couple of weeks previously Bath looked certain to come last. In the week before the last round PRL met and announced that they would delay any announcement on promotion and relegation until after the games had been played.

Other factors at work here were that Bristol’s main backer at the time, Malcolm Pierce, had decided to pull out of backing the club. Bristol were struggling to stay afloat financially and to supply the necessary guarantees of financial viability for the following season to PRL. There was also talk at the time of a Bristol/Bath ‘merger’ and of the possibility that Bristol, having struggled to build a large enough home crowd in their home city may move to Oxford’s Kassam Stadium.

Having been denied promotion due to ground inelegability the previous season Rotherham has secured a guarantee from PRL that Millmoor was a suitable venue for premiership rugby, had they not been promoted legal action would surely have followed.

In the end Bristol did come last, on the same number of points as Bath but with a slightly poorer win record, they were duly relegated. It is a matter of conjecture what would have happened had either of the other three clubs come last. For what it is worth my own feeling is that some kind of fudge or deal would have been dreamt up to keep that club in the premiership. If this were not the case why did they delay the announcement until they saw who ended bottom?

2001/2 Leeds bottom, no relegation.

The relegation battle this season was mostly a three way fight between Leeds, Harlequins, and Bath. At the end of the season, after all the crunch ‘relegation deciders’ had been played, it was announced that Leeds, though they were bottom, would not face relegation. National Division 1 champions Rotherham were deemed in Clifton Lane to have a ground unsuitable for premiership rugby.

Leeds, who had been newly promoted, had surprised many people this season. In previous seasons the upcoming clubs had struggled to stay competitive. A revolving door effect was noticeable. The Yorkshire based club had the temerity to actually start winning games. Although they ended last this was in doubt until their round 21 defeat by Harlequins at the Stoop. They ended the season with a respectable total of thirty five points.

2000/1 Rotherham relegated, Leeds promoted.

Whilst not quite as dire as the later 03/04 season Rotherham's first season in the top flight was not a happy one. They managed only two wins the whole season. Off field they did little better. An average gate at the time of just over 2.5k saw them well behind their closest rival (Newcastle 4.3k).

1999/00 Bedford relegated, Rotherham promoted.

In the amateur era Bedford were considered to be on a par with second tier clubs such as London Irish and Sale. As the professional game and other clubs developed they struggled to keep up. Their disappearance from the top flight was mired in financial difficulties from which they have never fully recovered. In the 1999/00 season they only managed to win one match. Since their fall to ND1 they have been solidly mid table.

1998/99 West Hartlepool relegated, Bristol promoted.

This was the only season that saw fourteen teams in the premiership. By the end of this West Hartlepool were well adrift of the other teams having won only three games and drawn one. London Scottish and Richmond faltered financially and were 'merged' with London Irish.

1997/8 Bristol relegated, London Scottish, Bedford and West Hartlepool promoted.

In the early days of professional rugby an attempt was made to expand the premiership, as subsequent events have shown it failed.

Depending on your viewpoint there are two opposing standpoints you can take from the events listed above.

- Relegation is alive and well. It happened every year except 01/02 and that was due to Rotherham having an inadequate ground.

- Meaningful relegation and promotion is dead. In the last five years it has only happened when a club has been so far adrift of the pack that it made little or no difference to the ZP if it was relegated. The only time a club has put up a good show it was allowed to stay up. The other relegation, Bristol, would not have happened if the financial state of the club had not been so precarious at the time.

In the next article in this series we'll look at the various arguments, and those arguing the case, behind the promotion and relegation debate.