silly punt wrote:Leinster Rugby has decided to combine both events at nearby locations in order to showcase the best that Domestic Rugby has to offer to a wider, and maybe a new audience.
In other words the branch now gets the gate money that would have gone to two provincial clubs.......sounds like a great way to support provincial rugby. Hosting a semi final like this could be the difference between a club being in the red or the black for a season.
I dont think they would have got the gate money though would they. Is is not practise that all rounds up to and including Q/F go to host clubs and S/F & F go to the organising authority.
I could be wrong but it makes sense as that is how the competition pays for itself.
AFAIK.....and i stand to be corrected but this seems to change every season but the bottom line was that the clubs did in different cases, get some of the money / all of the money from the semi finals. The final has in the past been split along a percentage basis between host club and branch, its has also been given to the host club 100% and in one particular fiasco by the branch a host club had to pay a fee to the branch for hosting the game and where then allowed to keep any profit they cleared from the game (which they didnt).
Like i said the circumstances seem to change every season but the bottom line is that clubs did benefit from hosting semi finals and finals and now they will not.
silly punt wrote:Leinster Rugby has decided to combine both events at nearby locations in order to showcase the best that Domestic Rugby has to offer to a wider, and maybe a new audience.
In other words the branch now gets the gate money that would have gone to two provincial clubs.......sounds like a great way to support provincial rugby. Hosting a semi final like this could be the difference between a club being in the red or the black for a season.
I dont think they would have got the gate money though would they. Is is not practise that all rounds up to and including Q/F go to host clubs and S/F & F go to the organising authority.
I could be wrong but it makes sense as that is how the competition pays for itself.
Our club has hosted a semi final & final in recent years, the club gets to keep all of the gate receipts for the semi final but must provide a meal for both teams. The club that hosts the final gets to keep an agreed amount & then must share the balance with the branch after all expenses have been taken into account. the criteria for the host club is high & a lot of facilities must be provided, including a complimentary drinks reception to invited guests.
I must agree I think it is wrong for the semi finals to be hosted in Donnybrook, the towns cup is a competition of great tradition. And one of the traditions is the semi finals are played on nuetral provincial grounds. The competition pays for itself by the sponsorship of Newstalk & the entry fees of the clubs, the Leinster branch has no outlay, apart from providing medals.
Experience is the name everyone gives to their failures
I will head to Donnybrook for the two games as a keen Leinster club fan. I dont really think having it in Donnybrook will increase the crowd that much though or am I wrong?
I hope the four teams get a decent crowd because they should be good hard games.
How important is the towns cup competition in the modern era of Rugby? Apologies if this may be a silly question or may offend participating teams and past winners.
I can completely understand the high esteem that this cup competition holds for clubs. Indeed in the past players of winning clubs were merrited on the number of town cup medals they had. But rugby has evolved significantly since those leather ball playing days. I am not implying that the players of that era were any less a player than the players of today, but, everything evolves.
Logically, what incentives are there for clubs to participate in this competition other than bragging rights should they win. Is there a finanacial windfall for the winner, do they get to host next years final, etc.
Unfortunately having played in many a towns cup competition and won more than one medal, I believe the competiton is being passed by the dominace of the J1league and new AIB cup competition.
I strongly feel that if action is not taken quickly the competition will become obselete. At least with Newstalk 106 being sponsors of the competition it now gets much needed air time, hopefully this will continue.
How important is the towns cup competition in the modern era of Rugby? Apologies if this may be a silly question or may offend participating teams and past winners.
I can completely understand the high esteem that this cup competition holds for clubs. Indeed in the past players of winning clubs were merrited on the number of town cup medals they had. But rugby has evolved significantly since those leather ball playing days. I am not implying that the players of that era were any less a player than the players of today, but, everything evolves.
Logically, what incentives are there for clubs to participate in this competition other than bragging rights should they win. Is there a finanacial windfall for the winner, do they get to host next years final, etc.
Unfortunately having played in many a towns cup competition and won more than one medal, I believe the competiton is being passed by the dominace of the J1league and new AIB cup competition.
I strongly feel that if action is not taken quickly the competition will become obselete. At least with Newstalk 106 being sponsors of the competition it now gets much needed air time, hopefully this will continue.
Judging by the reaction of the Navan players & supporters alike over the last couple of years i would say it is still very important. Or is it only not important this year because your club Navan have been knocked out?
Experience is the name everyone gives to their failures
Great initiative to have the Towns Cup semi finals in Donnybrook.
I look forward to the Metropolitan Cup Finals being played in New Ross and Tullamore.
Watched both games yesterday. Boyne and Clane was a good game, not to much to choose between the forward packs but Boyne were devasting out wide and really showed their class when the game opened up. Hard luck to Clane who I felt battled hard against a far superior outfit and the scoreline does not really show what a big effort they put in. Take nothing away from Boyne though, a very professional performance from them and they will enter the final as clear favourites.
In the second game, Tullamore just looked the better side. Will we see a better try than the the Tullamore full-backs effort in the first half? Incredible individual effort.
A good day out in Donnybrook yesterday, pitch looked hard & sandy but alright and the smallish crowd got to decent games with lots of tries.
How important is the towns cup competition in the modern era of Rugby? Apologies if this may be a silly question or may offend participating teams and past winners.
I can completely understand the high esteem that this cup competition holds for clubs. Indeed in the past players of winning clubs were merrited on the number of town cup medals they had. But rugby has evolved significantly since those leather ball playing days. I am not implying that the players of that era were any less a player than the players of today, but, everything evolves.
Logically, what incentives are there for clubs to participate in this competition other than bragging rights should they win. Is there a finanacial windfall for the winner, do they get to host next years final, etc.
Unfortunately having played in many a towns cup competition and won more than one medal, I believe the competiton is being passed by the dominace of the J1league and new AIB cup competition.
I strongly feel that if action is not taken quickly the competition will become obselete. At least with Newstalk 106 being sponsors of the competition it now gets much needed air time, hopefully this will continue.
There's a lot of "romance" around the towns cup. It's a rugby institution. I can't keep track of all the various competitions at different league and age levels, but I always look out for the Towns Cup results. If you're from a rugby town around the country, it's still a big deal.
That is a great honour for a club which probably has the best facilities in Junior rugby in the country, and buts the vast majority of senior clubs to shame.
