Lions make way for Kings

Cape Town - The South African Rugby Union (SARU) on Thursday confirmed South Africa’s participants in Vodacom Super Rugby at a General Meeting of the member provinces.

The top four teams in the South African Conference in 2012 (Stormers, Bulls, Sharks and Cheetahs) will join the Southern Kings in the 2013 tournament.

The teams were confirmed after the General Meeting accepted a proposal first tabled by the Executive Council in January. The proposal was that: “The franchise occupying the lowest log position of the five franchises at the end of 2012 would be relegated.”

The Lions, who finished bottom of the South African Conference, will have the chance to regain their status in 12 months’ time. The Executive Council had previously determined that the bottom team in 2013 would play in a two-legged promotion and relegation series against the relegated franchise. The promotion/relegation series will also be in place in 2014 and 2015 - at which point the broadcast contract expires.

“All rugby provinces have been consistently in support of the need for an Eastern Cape team in the Vodacom Super Rugby competition,” said Oregan Hoskins, president of SARU. “That decision was first taken in 2005 but their inclusion has twice been postponed.

“We made a commitment to the Kings to include them in 2013 and rugby has delivered on that commitment. The franchise represents more clubs than any other region - apart from the Stormers - and contains numerous leading rugby schools. It has been starved of top-class rugby competition for a decade and a half and now it has the chance to show what it can do.”

Hoskins said that SANZAR’s decision to grant the 15th franchise to Melbourne in 2011 – rather than the Southern Kings – had created a dilemma for SARU. He said that the organisation and players had wanted a “rugby solution” to accommodate six franchises in five places and this had been delivered, as challenging as it was for the relegated team.

“The provinces asked for a rugby solution and we believe that this was the fairest and most transparent method to respond to what is undoubtedly a less than ideal situation,” he said. “We also canvassed Vodacom Super Rugby players before the start of the season, through the Players’ Association, and this was their preferred mechanism. Jurie Roux, the CEO of SARU, said that the decision to apply a promotion and relegation system from 2013 was standard practice in sport.

“We operate promotion and relegation in all our Absa Currie Cup competitions, with the bottom-placed team being relegated unless it wins a play off,” said Roux. “Our strategic goal is to have six strong franchises covering the whole of South Africa and this decision keeps all of them in play on an annual basis.”

I thought the Kings were being offered a few million to remain out of the super 15 for next year.......something must have happened in negotiations?? Or they were being greedy..........i dont want to be pessimistic, but they will struggle to win even 2 or 3 games in the super 15. How is this going to look for SA rugby??? Another building phase for the next 4 years i suppose. So tired of this crap excuse!

PeeKay with promotion relegation in from next year they might not even be playing Super Rugby in 2014. I however see a mass exodus from the Lions.

Very sad day for SA rugby.......It's a political move. When this saga started way back in 2007, Pieter de Villiers were made coach of the so-called Southern Spears. The spears or the Kings as they are now called were formed to be a team representing black players from the Eastern Cape.. I hope that they do have about 10 black Eastern Cape players in the squad as that would then makes sense to me re all the pressure of the ANC on the amateur SARU to let the Kings play S15 in 2013. If not & this team is boosted by ex-Lions and other has- been players that cannot make it into the other 4 S15 teams, then this will be another political joke.

And, by the way, I've got nothing against black rugby players. Just hope the Anc & Puke Watson and daddy will stick to the original decision to give the black rugby players of the Eastern Cape a chance to learn & prove themselves

The Lions do have a couple of very exciting youngsters.......if the mass exodus is on the cards, hopefully WP won't wake up too late and nab some players before Blue Bulls snatch the whole lot.

PS - Luke Watson and his father has finally got what they wanted :X

No team should have automatic rights to be in a lucrative competition like Super rugby. I am a Sharks fan but if they played terrible rugby and were comprehensively outplayed and finished last in the log I would be brave enough to admit that they should be relegated. Lions fans should do the same. They came last....finish and klaar !

We might have our own all black team now:D

It's a different story if they can hold their own in this competition, but at the moment i seriously have my doubts!

Excuse my ignorance, but what happens to all the players that are now contracted to the Lion "super rugby franchise?"
Surely all these players will just move around to other franchises and to the Kings?

:XI think it stinks to high heaven - WHY NO PLAYOFF ? The Kings could not even hold their own in the Vodacom Cup :X And now there is no place for the Currie Cup champions ????? I hate the bloody political decisions :X:X

There is a reason why our golfers are doing so well - NO POLITICAL INTERFERENCE; even in the Olympics, our medals were (mostly) earned by athletes who trained privately - 'Team SA' had sweet bloody bugger all to do with it - if it were up to them we would again came home with one lonley silver medal.

gordo Wrote:

---

> Excuse my ignorance, but what happens to all the
> players that are now contracted to the Lion "super
> rugby franchise?"
> Surely all these players will just move around to
> other franchises and to the Kings?

Agreed Gordo and not just the players what about sponsors who signed multi year contracts as the Lions were expected to play Super Rugby until the end of 2015. Surely there must be some actions taken here.

On a positive at least the other 4 franchises get 10 easy points before the comp starts.

Ok. here we go......


Southern Kings president Cheeky Watson says they will appeal the one-year Super Rugby agreement handed to them by the South African Rugby Union (SARU).

It cannot be accepted," he said, and replied with a very firm "yes" when asked if they will try and lodge an appeal.

They believe they should be given the right of at least three years in the top flight.

Farking laughing stock.......they won't get anywhere in 10 years