Round 10 of the Aviva Premiership saw victories for Harlequins, Bath, Northampton Saints, Sale Sharks, Saracens and Wasps. Here are my Top 5 Talking Points After Round 10.
1: Hartley A Liability For Saints and England?
Another Dylan Hartley controversy has engulfed the Aviva Premiership after the latest round of fixtures last weekend. 17 minutes into Northampton Saints game against Leicester Tigers was all Hartley lasted as his elbow made contact with Matt Smith’s face and ref JP Doyle showed him a red card.
Saints coach Jim Mallinder has claimed that Smith went down easily after the incident but it is becoming increasingly difficult for Northampton to keep backing their captain. Hartley was given a 26 week ban for eye gouging in 2007 and missed the Lions tour in 2013 for verbally abusing referee Wayne Barnes in the Premiership final.
Hartley is likely to face another ban after the clash with Smith and questions are bound to arise about his place in the England squad. There is no doubt about Hartley’s playing ability but if he continues to have problems of this nature, Stuart Lancaster will come under increasing pressure to look at other options in the hooker position.
2: Salary Cap Questions
The rumoured ongoing investigations into Saracens and Bath’s breaching of the salary cap have brought up some interesting debates, especially from Saracens and their CEO Ed Griffiths who called for the cap to be removed.
Bath, the other club supposedly under investigation have remained tight lipped on the situation but Leicester Tigers, Gloucester and Sale Sharks have called for the salary cap to remain in place in its current guise.
It is easy to see why a club like Saracens would want to see the end of restrictions on the amounts they are paying their players but it is essential for the competitive nature of the Premiership that the cap remains in place.
3: Time To End Promotion / Relegation
London Welsh’s played 10 and lost 10 record this season tells its own story. They suffered another huge defeat at the weekend and it is clear that the club is nowhere near being competitive enough to be at this level. One losing bonus point from the 10 games is an embarrassment to the competition.
The question I am asking this week is: Has the time come to end promotion / relegation in the Aviva Premiership? The Rugby League franchise system would also be suited to the Premiership. If you add teams like Worcester Warriors and Bristol would have the structures in place to cope at the top level.
This would be a controversial proposal and of course a few more games added to an already busy schedule for teams is a lot to take on but surely it would be good for the competition. The franchise system could be reviewed every 2/3 years and each Premiership team would have to re apply, along with any teams who wanted to apply from the Championship.
4: Time To Stop The Clock For The Scrum
The scrum set piece is a vital and always should be a major part of the game of rugby union but the time has come for major changes to be introduced in this area. As important as it is, the amount of time being taken to sort the scrums out by referees is having a major adverse reaction for supporters and viewers.
Especially around this time of the season, with pitches in poor condition, the time it takes for the ball, or a ref awarding a penalty to either team takes approximately 3/4 minutes for each time the scrum is set.
This is not good for player, coach, referee and more importantly spectator. If the game wants to continue to grow, this issue needs to be sorted and a trial period of stopping the clock until the ball is out of the scrum or the ref has awarded a free kick / penalty is a must.
5: Saints Stroll To The Top At Christmas
Despite the sending off of Dylan Hartley, Northampton Saints were by far the better team against Leicester Tigers and although they are only two points clear of Bath at the top of the Premiership, they are fully deserving of their lofty position.
At their best, the Saints can dominate most teams up front and rip them to shreds when the ball is released to the backs. Stephen Myler goes about his business at out half in as professional a manner as any other out half and George North is the best winger in the Premiership by a distance.
Jim Mallinder and Dorian West have built a superb squad with nearly two top quality players to every position. The most important aspect of the Saints though is the spirit they club seems to have. Last weekend was a prime example, captain sent off after 17 minutes and still go on to win the game. A class above the rest? Time will tell as the season rolls on.
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