Follow the Yellow Brick road

              Another  conference today, another day of uncertainty as no clear path for the future of the ERC can be seen. We all know the back-story by now. Premiership and Top 14 clubs are looking for a restructure of Europe's premier club rugby competition. Specifically, they want a reduction from 24 to 20 teams and all trimmings coming for Pro 12 sides (of course). They also want to address the way that money is dished out, specifically to have it split by league instead of union.

                We are all assured that this is in everyone's best interests. The Pro 12 teams will get "a smaller slice of a larger cake" Of course, what exactly this larger cake is, is kept under wraps by the Premiership clubs, who have signed a rights deal with BT vision for domestic and European games (which they may or may not have the rights to, but that's another story), however will not disclose how much of that £ 152 million actually goes towards Europe.

                On one side there are crude threats. On the other, the promise of you just do whatever we say, everything will be great. The spokespersons for Premiership Rugby assure us that their way will lead to a stronger Heineken cup, a stronger Amlin cup and a stronger Pro 12. In fact, one has to wonder if these proposals truly are the land of milk & honey, why have the other unions been so cold to them?

                To understand the different stances in this debate, we need to appreciate how people view European rugby. One can make  the point that each of the six unions involved has a quota to fill, England and France 6, Ireland and Wales 3, Scotland and Italy 2. To meddle in qualification from the Pro12 will result in only England and France having guaranteed representation. Another way to look at it is that there are three major leagues in Europe, The Aviva Premiership which provides 6 clubs, the Top14 which provides 6 and the Pro12 which provided 10. This is an equally valid viewpoint. However, when negotiating, it's very easy to dictate changes when they don't affect yourself.

                The rational for making changes (specifically, scrapping the Union quota system and awarding by league) is that Pro12 sides have some unfair advantages in the Heineken Cup. An assertion that doesn't pass the most basic scrutiny. First off, it's not Pro12 sides, it's Irish sides. The Irish Provinces have steadily become powerhouses in European rugby, lifting 5 Heineken Cups and an Amlin since 2006. Irish clubs also dominate the top third of the Pro12 table, producing 4 finalists in the last 3 years.

                As we all know, this is just varnish, a coating to mask the real issues here, that of money (Premiership clubs wanting to narrow the bridge between their French counterparts) and future control of the sport in Europe. The struggle between Club and Union.

                What is best for the sport of Rugby Union are not always what is best for a private corporation (and that is all a privately owned club is, in the end).  Sadly, the race  to catch that cold, hard cash (the proverbial Emerald City of my not too subtle heading) will always take precedent over the growth of the sport.

                  One could forgive the Premiership sides, wrapped up in their bubble of a strong domestic league, for not noticing that Rugby is a niche sport throughout most of the world. even in countries where it's strong, it's almost always the 2nd or 3rd sport. Professional Rugby is still in it's infancy and needs to be nourished and protected.

                Cutting teams from the Heineken cup. Dissolving any relevance to the Amlin. What will this mean? For the Irish, not much. They will almost certainly have three teams near the top of the Pro12 table. The Welsh wouldn't be far behind. But for Scotland...or Italy? Kiss them goodbye.

                You may recall names such as Border Reivers? Celtic Warriors, or Aironi Rugby? Teams fallen by the wayside.  That is the future waiting for Zebere, Newport Gwent Dragons and Edinburgh, teams which need a strong, meaningful competition to survive.

Where will the road take us?

                Unfortunately, day by day we seem to be moving European Rugby closer to the Premierships obvious inspiration, European Soccer. A battlefield won and lost off the pitch. Where players command outrageous salaries and the success of a club is determined not by belief and fortitude, but by it's budget and the prestige of it's sugar-daddy.