A Slant on the Rugby World Cup

Well, it was off to Gloucester this weekend to embrace the Rugby World Cup at Kingsholm as Tonga took on Georgia.
I was picked up on Friday afternoon by Sham and we pottered down the scenic route to Chipping Camden and our billet at the Lygon Arms. This is the cheap version, not the hugely expensive version in Broadway, and extremely pleasant it was. The first person we met was an American lady who worked in the Chiswick Business Park next to Silver Crescent, so that was a bit weird. We then dined with the locals in front of the tele as England huffed and puffed to a bonus point victory. Good enough but not earth shattering.

Next day it was off for the live match which kicked off at 12, noon. There was time for a Doom Bar before going into the shed. That was an experience. Its terraced and as we got there ten minutes before kick-off we had to squeeze through a few locals to get a spec. The abuse we got was bizarre.
'You can't just turn up with ten minutes to go to kick-off and expect a view'  eh, why not? 'What are you some group of toffs who never go to matches except in Corporate' eh, no, but we do like to see how the other half live........that went down well. We did move a few kids in front of us so they could see, but once the game started everybody settled down.

It was not much of a game in the first half but it picked up in the second half and Georgia ran out worthy winners in the end. They are a big unit so could give the big dogs in the group a test.

After the game we visited a few horse racing pubs in the Cheltenham area before settling for the Plough to watch South Africa v Japan. What a proper game of rugby that was and well played to the Jap's for a very well deserved victory.

On Sunday before we left we went on a tour of Simon the Farmer's homestead and this picture shows how much we looked the part.

 I got home to news of multiple Welsh injuries and was mightily disappointed for them....here's to the weekend.

Cardinal sin

Strange things afoot at England Rugby 2015, as new Chairman, Andy Cosslett, dispenses with the services of Paul Vaughan, the CEO and my sometime golfing companion.

Andy considered that Paul had taken the organisation of the Rugby World Cup as far as he could, and wished to move the planning onto a different plain. With everything involving the organisation of the tournament, the venue selection process and schedule planning all on track, Paul may well feel a bit put out.

He is being replaced by Debbie Jevons, a key player in the London 2012 Olympics process and one of Seb Coe's inner sanctum. Andy's wish is for Debbie to create the sort of feel good factor which surrounded the Olympics, and transfer it to the Rugby World Cup.

I do wonder, though whether he has taken sufficient counsel on the whole matter. Andy's CV lists his previous roles with Cadbury Schweppes and InterContinental Hotels. This indicates a well honed background in leisure and retail, a background which Paul shared through his time with GrandMet and Whitbreads.  Any previous exposure to Rugby which Andy may have does seem to be absent from much of his biographical data.

The appointment of somebody with such fresh experiences from London 2012 into the rugby environment  is certainly a forward thinking initiative, however, I worry that the image and enthusiasm of one, may not necessarily be suitable to the other .

Lets look at some specifics:

The Olympic Games runs full on for two weeks, there are events morning,  noon and night all over London, and save for the football, only in London ( sorry Weymouth, you too!). The Rugby World Cup will be a three or four week event, with matches primarily at the weekends, and with dead periods through the week. Matches, like the football will be distributed to the main conurbations of England and Wales. Developing  a new approach to rugby support for that length of time, across the Country will be challenging.

The Olympic Games events had British and Irish participants in one or more events so giving a constant support focus for the fans so that when one star got eliminated, there were others to fill the void. The rugby World Cup has four national teams competing in an overall population of 16. Some of them may not make the knockout stages, and if one of those is England, then a huge percentage of potential spectators will lose interest. Yes the stadia will still be full, but the need for fan zones will greatly diminish.

Now lets consider the fan zone concept. Rugby supporters are a very predictable lot. They will have a few beers before the game, watch it and adjourn back to the bar afterwards. Those who do not have a ticket will either watch at home , in their local rugby club  or watch in their local pub, I can't see swathes of casual fans sitting on Twickenham Green, in Princes Street or at Cardiff Castle on a damp and cold Autumnal afternoon watching Italy take on Namibia.

Finally, what of the travelling fans?  The Olympics has hundreds of different Countries to support, and London is an attractive City to visit. Its straightforward to focus all your attention in one place. I did not notice a huge number of Olympic visitors in Scouseland, and the trouble that LOCOG had selling the football tickets is a warning sign for Debbie and her team.

So all in all, it will be interesting to see what new initiatives Debbie does come up with, and how they add to the success of the tournament. Nothing will contribute more than another England victory, and that is something that is out of her hands.