European Rugby - Why are we so good at being average?
Discussion
If you compare the tables for the Heineken Cup with those of the European Challenge Cup, it makes for some pretty interesting reading.
In the HC, there's really very little between the different nations. Quins, Cardiff and Munster have all qualified for the QFs, and it was only the real shocker with Toulouse losing at home to Glasgow which has prevented the first 4 qualifiers coming from 4 different countries.
Look at the Challenge Cup, though, and it's a very different picture.... Four out of five pools have already been won by English teams with a game in hand, including London Irish almost comically scoring more points than all their pool opponents put together, and with a bonus point win surely on the cards for Newcastle, and Overmach Parma not all that likely to win away to Brive, it looks highly likely that the final lineup for the quarter finals will be 5 English teams, 1 French (Brive), 1 Irish (Connacht) and 1 possibly Italian (Overmach Parma) if two of the three best runners up can come from the same group?
Why is this? Is the English GP really so much tighter from top to bottom than any of the other top flight leagues?
In the HC, there's really very little between the different nations. Quins, Cardiff and Munster have all qualified for the QFs, and it was only the real shocker with Toulouse losing at home to Glasgow which has prevented the first 4 qualifiers coming from 4 different countries.
Look at the Challenge Cup, though, and it's a very different picture.... Four out of five pools have already been won by English teams with a game in hand, including London Irish almost comically scoring more points than all their pool opponents put together, and with a bonus point win surely on the cards for Newcastle, and Overmach Parma not all that likely to win away to Brive, it looks highly likely that the final lineup for the quarter finals will be 5 English teams, 1 French (Brive), 1 Irish (Connacht) and 1 possibly Italian (Overmach Parma) if two of the three best runners up can come from the same group?
Why is this? Is the English GP really so much tighter from top to bottom than any of the other top flight leagues?
It's an interesting point.
The only explanation can be due to the competitiveness of the English league, where on their day, a bottom team can beat a top team, know-one would have expected Newcastle to beat Gloucester (who would have gone top) the other day, but it happens all the time.
It almost questions the point of having a second string Euro competition, especially from the English clubs point of view. You just know an English club will win it. And what satsifaction are London Irish getting from having two 70 point+ vicitories this season? They know they could beat better teams. The name 'Challenge cup' is kind of ironic during the pool stages.
The only explanation can be due to the competitiveness of the English league, where on their day, a bottom team can beat a top team, know-one would have expected Newcastle to beat Gloucester (who would have gone top) the other day, but it happens all the time.
It almost questions the point of having a second string Euro competition, especially from the English clubs point of view. You just know an English club will win it. And what satsifaction are London Irish getting from having two 70 point+ vicitories this season? They know they could beat better teams. The name 'Challenge cup' is kind of ironic during the pool stages.
The only team in the Challenge Cup apart from the English ones who had any chance of winning it, even from the outset, is Brive. I don't see what the point is of the competition.
I think the GP is stronger top to bottom, the Top 14 has a handful of outstanding teams (Toulouse/Stade/Clermont), but the standard really tails off soon after that, the gap is far larger top to bottom. Then, there aren't really any other teams to take part in the CC. Three of the four Irish sides, both Scottish and all four Welsh take part in the HC, leaving just (an average) Connacht, a few poor top 14 teams and the rest to fill up the CC.
I think the GP is stronger top to bottom, the Top 14 has a handful of outstanding teams (Toulouse/Stade/Clermont), but the standard really tails off soon after that, the gap is far larger top to bottom. Then, there aren't really any other teams to take part in the CC. Three of the four Irish sides, both Scottish and all four Welsh take part in the HC, leaving just (an average) Connacht, a few poor top 14 teams and the rest to fill up the CC.
Though as an Exiles fan the results do bring a smile to my face 
The weaker clubs though are not going to improve unless they get investment - the CC at least gives a bit of prize money, kudos and a way into the HC without needing a huge squad to compete every week in the leagues.
At the moment it might be going the GP teams' way but hopefully with a bit more time things will cascade down the leagues and the cups will be less GP dominated.
The weaker clubs though are not going to improve unless they get investment - the CC at least gives a bit of prize money, kudos and a way into the HC without needing a huge squad to compete every week in the leagues.
At the moment it might be going the GP teams' way but hopefully with a bit more time things will cascade down the leagues and the cups will be less GP dominated.
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