Unions confident about Celtic League

THE lack of a main sponsor and the head to head clash with the World Cup are just two complications surrounding the birth of the newly expanded Celtic League.

Even so, the Welsh, Scottish and Irish Rugby Unions are confident the latest version of the competition will enjoy a long and happy life.

The newly expanded format will comprise of 22 pool games, home and away, and the addition of a cup competition for the 12 participants.

With Gilbert and Guinness onboard as ball and drink sponsors, the action begins tomorrow night with the featured game between Leinster and Munster, the respective champions of the past two seasons.

The lack of a main sponsor is not, insist the organisers, a major problem and recently appointed tournament director Keith Grainger stressed short term investment from the Unions involved will have long term gains.

"The format of this year's tournament has already paid dividends in that Scotland and Wales have decided progress in this competition will be the only source of deciding qualification for the Heineken Cup.

"This makes it a highly important competition, the backbone for the professional club player in each of the three countries. As it starts to take shape this is going to be huge with 23 games guaranteed between the league and the cup competitions and probably up to 29 games for some."

Grainger, a former chief executive of Newport and Northampton, is more aware than most of the monetary pressures of the professional game.

"I am heartened with the reaction from the supporters. It's going to be their main rugby diet in years to come and it gives the clubs a great opportunity to bring in some much needed income because it will have a much broader appeal than national leagues.

There are those who believe the World Cup will dilute the Celtic League at a time when a new format is in it's infancy. Grainger disagrees.

"I I think it will strengthen the competition and make it more attractive for players and fans alike. I believe, and I think all coaches believe at this stage, that rugby is not all about the first 15 players. Instead, it's important to allow squad members the chance to develop and work their way into a challenging position for a place in the team.

"Most of the teams will have established players away with their countries in the World Cup. That opens up opportunities for coaches to experiment and for players to get chances that they might not normally get.

"A lot of guys will get the chance to step up and demonstrate whether they are capable of competing in the professional game.

"It should also be remembered that a lot of seasoned international players from the three countries won't make it to Australia. There will be enough big names to make the matches attractive from a supporters' point of view and they will also be privy to seeing some young talent emerging from the various games.

"For the first year at any rate, I think it is really going to benefit Irish sides. The Welsh and English clubs have been working a squad rotation system for a few years now and that system has worked particularly well in England we're constantly reminded of that but the Irish could prosper.

"The fact that it is being played in World Cup year is actually a bonus because the World Cup will raise the profile of the game. OK, some of the star names won't be there for some of the tournament but the genuine rugby supporters will go out and follow their teams for the sake of the whole squad and, as I say, the fact that it stretches through to the end of the season, whilst also embracing a knock out cup competition, will make it more attractive."