Montauban thrown out of Top 14

[Teh Mite]

Montauban have become this season's first victims of the Top 14 financial watchdog the DNACG and have been administratively relegated to the ProD2.

The relegation - which is still subject to appeal and is a suspended sentence - effectively ends the race to avoid relegation with Albi already relegated mathematically.

The club, currently sitting tenth in the Top 14, was unable to find a EUR2m shortfall in its budget relative to its season expenditure when inspected by the DNACG and President Patrick Vianco announced the punishment on Thursday.

Should the club and Vianco find the money and the team finish higher than thirteenth, Montauban may yet survive in the top flight, but a failure to find the money by the end of the season will see the club relegated irrespective of its final standing in the table.

"I have told the players first, as well as telling them my strategy for staying in the Top 14," said Vianco.

Bourgoin and Stade Français' punishments for a similar problem will both be announced on Thursday.

The Parisian club is not thought to be in danger but Bourgoin have been flirting with the same problems as Montauban all season. Ironically, despite winning only three games this season, Albi could yet survive if neither Montauban nor Bourgoin are found to have covered themselves financially.

http://www.planetrugby.com/story/0,25883,16024_6068575,00.html

 

[highveldlion]

Montaubau might even be relegated to the Federal league ( amateur league ). Paris will come out of it because the sponsors have the money to bail the club. Bourgoin might survive but, this just opened a serious debate in France and this will eventually lead to serious reforms in the French top 14 and eventually the creation of super franchises. The problems is that the French stadiums are too small and that some of the cities where the clubs are based are way to small to suport a top 14 team. Look at the size of Albi, Bourgoin or Montauban for example, or Lannemezan in D2. There is no way that at long terms these teams will sustain pro rugby and compete with larger cities based teams like Perpignan, Toulouse, Toulon, Clermont or Stade Francais. That is going to happen eventually is that teams like Bourgoin are going to go down to the D2 because they are not going to be able to attract sponsors and players or be forced to merge or move to bigger cities . Bourgoin could merge with Lyon in d2 and play at Gerland ( 42000 seats stadium ) and become of force in French rugby. The other solution for them would be to move to Grenoble and the stade des Alpes ( 20000 seats, expandable to 35000 if needed ).

The Rugby de Clochets in France is over, it is time to move and place teams in cities that are going to sustain a pro team. Even Castre who is leading d14 is not going to sustain a team in the future in the Top 14, there is no way with the size of that stadum and the fan base. There should only be one team in Pays Basque ( Biarritz and Bayonne should merge ). The French top 14 is already surpassing the French footlball league 2 in terms of attendance and I think rugby has a serious chance to become as popular in attendance as the French Ligue de Football. The time of super franchise like in the southern emisphere has arrived. It is time for French Rugby to evolve : Lets keep teams in Toulon, Toulouse, Clermont, Montpelier, Perpignan , Merge Bayonne and Biarritz ( have them play in San Sebastian until construction of a 25,000 seats stadium ), lets put one team at the Stade de la Meditteranee . Stade Francais needs to move to the Parc des princes ( PSG football needs to move to Saint Denis and the north suburbs where most of its hooligans come from ). Let put a team in Bordeaux ( Chaban delmas has 37000 seats ) , Lets put a team at the Velodrome in Marseille ( imagine a derby Toulon Marseille ). Lets consider cities like Nantes ( 38000 seats ), Renne ( 35,000 ), St etienne ( 35000 ) even Lille with the grand stade ( 50,000 ) and have Racing 92 move to that proposed 40,000 seaters at la Defense. Nime ( 25000 seats ) , Nice with 40,000 seats stadium in development should be also considered as well as the Tarbe,Pau area with a 25,000 to 30,000 stadium in the region.

 

[Prestwick]

I think that process is already beginning albeit in a gradual way. If there is one club rugby scene that doesn't like sudden and frightening change more than England then its France and I'd think a lot of the Clubs in the South West would have a lot to say about being told to merge or simply vanish into the amateur leagues.

Let nature take its course and allow the fittest to survive. Other clubs elsewhere in France will take the place of the fallen and everything will fall into place. But simply saying "you shall play there with them. End of discussion" is just asking for a major fall out between the FFR, the rich Clubs and the smaller Clubs.