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English rugby bosses in English are considering a “recruit league” which could be introduced at the level of under 20 years next season, new data reinforcing the conviction that the best young people in the country still do not play.
Figures seen by Telegraph Sport Show that the 50 members of England Elite Player Squad (EPS), had on average a little more than seven full match equivalents in all the competitions between the start of the current season in September and the second round of the under 20 nations of the under 20 nations last Friday.
This takes into account British university and colleges competitions (BUCS), as well as playing time on loan further in the league pyramid in the championship, National One and National Two. The Première, the Première Rugby Cup, the Champions Cup and the Challenge Cup matches have also been monitored, as well as the international quality internationals.
Although certain perspectives have been accelerated, there is a collective concern through the English game that the “best of the best” between 18 and 20 years are not exposed to enough matches at an appropriate level.
Henry Pollock, for example, has made eight Prime Minister matches during the 2024-25 campaign so far, as well as four others in the Champions Cup, two in the Premiership Cup and one for England A, as well as two Outings under 20 years of age in the six nations.
Before an 80 -minute performance for England against France during the REC last Friday, he had already accumulated 893 minutes, just over 11 equivalents with a full course.
However, the opportunities were much rarer for other EPS members under 20. This despite a thrust of clubs and rugby football union to promote a talented harvest, some of which helped to win the world under 20 last year, towards senior ranks and to launch individual development plans for 50 EPS members.
The competition offer for all the players of the academy is being examined, but the emphasis is on a “very specific demography”. We think that around 20 full game equivalents per season, about 1,600 minutes, is ideal for a player in this tranche.
“There will always be” unicorns “that increase the ranks in a transparent manner,” said Neil McCarthy, chief of players’ development at Premierhip Rugby. “It is not necessarily a question of responding to these players, but of creating something that will allow the majority of players of the immediate period after 18 years, which is an important age group.”
There are challenges in the rugby landscape in England due to the locations of clubs concerning the regional clubs of clubs. The fragmented nature of the development of players in England was a challenge for all Prime Minister’s clubs to offer the right opportunity to the right player at the right time.
Currently, some Première clubs are based on their links with the Bucs teams to give their young matches. Others lend the players to the second, third and fourth levels. Such arrangements may mean that players train with two different teams on the same day and must travel considerable distances to represent their loan club.
A new competition could be launched next season
It is understood that a recruit league would not replace the Première Rugby Cup, which has traditionally presented older players on the sidelines of the first team teams depending on the way the clubs use this competition.
An examination process is underway, but it seems that the recruit league would be capped at the level of under 20 and that the 2025-26 season has been described as “not outside the table”.
He would follow a format similar to the current league for under 18s, which organizes his final day this weekend in Kingsholm, with Northampton Saints against Bath in the decision-maker.
The League of Oscars under 18 has become an important pillar of players’ development in England and hope is that a competition for under 20s could reflect this success, perhaps with eight championship games for each of the 10 clubs before a semi-final and a final.
There was also success with the live broadcast of the finals of the under -18s, with a total audience last year of 76,000 and a peak of more than 6,300 simultaneous viewers on YouTube.
It would be an ambition for the Recruit League under 20 to broadcast and stage a day of the finals at the end of the season could also build an intrigue for the selection of England before the World Unscrew Championship 20 years.
While some have questioned the capacity for the resources of another competition, the initiates of Premières are convinced that there would be enough players for a competition at 10 teams and that the challenges revolving around travel and the endowment could be met.
