Premiership versus Pro14 'Grand Final' looks hugely unpopular on Twitter
With CVC potentially in a position to acquire both Premiership rugby and the Pro14, reports have emerged that a Grand Final could be played between the winner of each league, according to The Times.
This is something that has been met with widespread opprobrium from fans, who feel that this is excessive in this day and age of rugby.
With international, European and domestic rugby, the main concern currently is that players are playing too much. An additional final would be overkill according to many fans, and unfair on the players.
Another match would also be incompatible with rugby calendars, particularly in years with British and Irish Lions series, where there is barely any time between the end of the domestic season and the start of the tour.
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Not only this, but this is a final that could undermine the Champions Cup final, or more likely, pale into insignificance compared to the European competition. Some fans envision this being nothing short of a friendly, where two teams may have already faced each other in a final.
For example, Saracens and Leinster could potentially meet each other twice in the finals if the system were in place this season.
This is what the fans have been saying on Twitter since the rumours of this match emerged:
https://twitter.com/maxtrail1/status/1118927998210625542?s=20
https://twitter.com/mxyzplx/status/1118931440899641345?s=20
https://twitter.com/aj_backrow/status/1118931947382812672?s=20
https://twitter.com/Ciaran_O/status/1118924220552163335?s=20
https://twitter.com/moffettAG/status/1118926589708787717?s=20
https://twitter.com/TomQuinnen/status/1118919511418253313?s=20
https://twitter.com/bigparahandy/status/1118933418547601408?s=20
https://twitter.com/samalexrogers/status/1118928263261368321?s=20
https://twitter.com/maxtrail1/status/1118928217606279168?s=20
The consensus amongst fans is that this would just be a pointless exercise. The danger is that too many finals could dilute season finales that already are in place.
From both a fan and player perspective, this does not look like a popular proposal. As player welfare is increasingly at the forefront of rugby, a decision like this seems to ignore that completely. Players do not need another brutal final to contend with at the end of their season, and this is what many fans feel.
A lot of plans are being made for both international and club rugby at the moment, some which have been more popular than others, but this seems to be an idea that has been met with universal disapproval.