The Schools Section, or the SLSRFA, have proposed a new format for the Schools competition next year which will increase the participation from 10 schools to 16.
The main reasons given for this change by the SLSFRA, is that there is too much pressure on the schoolboys to win at all costs, and to reduce the number of court cases that are filed against them. One pretty obvious way to achieve the second aspect which concerns them, maybe, just maybe – to actually administer the tournament with a set of clear, enforced rules and not to be incompetent, lethargic idiots. But instead, an entire overhaul of the a season that brought us some of the most open schools season’s in history will be disregarded.
Currently, all ten teams play each other on a home or away basis and the winner is the one who has the most points at the end of 9 games. It’s a system that has been working pretty well with all the A division schools, and crowds have been almost guaranteed some spectacular rugby with teams being able to beat almost any other team on the day. The season is over in 9 weeks, or about 12 weeks with the knock outs and trophy games and that settles the year, so that boys can go back to studying.
The proposed format sees 16 teams competing in 4 groups of 4 (like in the RWC or any Football WC). The 4 teams will play each other and the group will be decided after 4 games. Subsequently, the top two will advance to the Super 8, and the bottom two teams to the Bottom 8 who will play for Division 1A or Plate segment, or what is colloquially called the B division. For instance league champs Dharmaraja have lost a lot of their most influential players. They may not compete at the same level without that team that had won together since they were 16, although they will be awarded pride of place in the rankings.
The groups will be seeded apparently along last years performances. You only have to have watched a couple of seasons of rugby to realise that last year’s performances mean little or nothing this year or next year when you have senior players all becoming ineligible. One dominant side, could lose all their good players and go back to being a very average side, meaning that they will get an undue advantage in seedings, or the tournament could be lopsided.This will be most evident in Groups C and D which will see the 3rd and 6th ranked teams playing each other and the 4th and 5th ranked teams playing each other.
There are several drawbacks:
1. Teams will be allowed to carry forward their points and play only 6 games in the Super 8. This could mean a close game, or a bit of bad luck in the group stages will haunt you throughout the season with almost no remedy to be had. It will also make the group stage far more competitive than it needs to be with everyone fighting for a top 2 finish. So the argument that it will reduce the win at all costs attitude is utter bollocks. In fact it will make it worse, with weaker teams in the groups getting hammered so that tries and points will not be an issue to top the group.
2. The biggest issue I feel is that top teams will be playing much weaker opposition sometimes in the group. This is not a problem for the top teams, but it is a problem for the bottom teams as they will end up playing teams early season that are a lot better, stronger and more prepared. This could result in injuries and serious demoralisation against big teams that will not have any sympathy for the reasons set out above. When it comes to the bottom 8 competition, things will then begin to even out, but the damage would have already been done.
3. After that it becomes the A and B division competition all over again. The difference is nobody actually gets demoted from the A division to the B division. It is only 2 teams – the teams placed 15th and 16th – that get demoted, with teams from Division 2 coming up to take their slots. The 2013 season showed exactly why promotion and demotion is necessary with Wesley and Dharmaraja being newly promoted in the 2012 season ending up winning both trophies on offer and making the knock out finals. When teams have a goal to play in the higher divisions they work towards it. However, now all coaches need to worry about is not being the 15th or 16th team.
4. It is also a logistical nightmare for some of the traditional rivals. For instance if Royal and Trinity get drawn in the same group, the first leg of the Bradby maybe the first or second game of the season. After this, they will have to wait, not two weeks, but until the group stage and Super 8 are over before they can play a second leg. This will apply to all trophy games, and the traditional fixtures may either happen very early season, or very late in the day, making life very difficult for things like ground bookings etc.
5. Since the format reverts almost to the exact same situation as currently exists, there doesn’t seem to be a point in making wholesale changes as the existing problems will definitely resurface if not addressed better. The Super 8 stage will be as competitive as the the current league is and the win at all costs mentality will continue. The only change is the avoidance of demotion from 9th and 10th place, but this means 11 and 12 have little to play for.
The problem with schools rugby has almost always been the ineffective governance of the SLSRFA which consists of schools representatives who almost always pull for their own schools, and their own interests. This leads to disgruntled officials and the issues are always taken out on the field. The other problem is officiating of the matches themselves. There are no competent referees to match the standard of rugby and coaching. With several millions pumped into schools rugby, it is being managed by a completely unprofessional outfit. Crowd behaviour cannot be controlled by changing the format, or playing behind closed doors, it can only be managed with the raising in the standard of refereeing.
This is another classic Sri Lankan case of throwing the baby out with the bathwater. I hope the format doesn’t get approved by SLSRFA, but if it does, ‘what to do’. It is worthwhile to note that even the Cricket World Cup tried to adopt this format which failed spectacularly. Let’s hope saner counsel prevails.
