Can Britain survive the exodus?

For

1 votes so far

With the current state of the English Rugby Union side a pale shadow of the 2003 World Cup winning team, or even the 2007 final-reaching squad, perhaps an injection of European flair is just what’s needed. 

Sport has become an increasingly global activity, and with our shores being infiltrated by foreign talent at a rapid rate in the last decade it was just a matter of time before our own home-grown stars made the reverse trip to ply their trade on pastures new.

Just take the example of David Beckham, global megastar, sports icon, and fairly handy with a football too.  Becks, who has now spent over a third of his professional career abroad after a phenomenal eleven years at Manchester United, has recently wowed critics again at his stint in Milan, revitalising his bid to play for England up until the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

And given the host of foreign talent gracing British sports teams, we shouldn’t begrudge foreign leagues a willingness to emulate them.  What would the Premiership be without Ronaldo or Torres, or the Guinness Premiership without Butch James or Martin Castrogiovanni?

English-based players have been notoriously overlooked in world sports awards.  Before Ronaldo this year, English clubs had never been host to a World Player of the Year winner, and they have fared little better in the Ballon d’Or stakes, Manchester United’s holy trinity of Best, Law and Charlton picking up one apiece before Michael Owen, later of Real Madrid, in 2001 and Ronaldo this year.  Yet Kevin Keegan won the prestigious award twice in a row whilst playing for Hamburg in Germany, so it’s not that our stars simply can’t compete with the likes of Ronaldinho or Zidane.  Similarly, the IRB awards are dominated by Australians, South Africans and Kiwis, with Shane Williams and Jonny Wilkinson the only Brits to pick up the award in its eight year history.

Andy Murray, Britain’s best hope of a Wimbledon men’s title since 1936, moved to Barcelona aged 15 to train with Emilio Sanchez, and Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton currently lives in Switzerland along with other F1 luminaries such as Schumacher and Fernando Alonso, albeit probably for tax reasons, not to further his career.  Even Britain’s Olympic swimming heroes in Beijing are packing their Speedos to train abroad in preparation for London 2012, preferring the warmer climes of the continent to Aldershot’s Olympic training camp.

Therefore the world away from these shores offers much to our athletes.  Apart from the obvious attraction of more money in their pockets, there is the lure of a different experience, top training facilities and simply a warmer climate.  England’s top rugby stars’ emigration across the Channel to France could be beneficial for the standard of our national team.  Given the Man City-esque sums of money these French teams are willing to splash out on England’s finest, and continued participation in the Heineken Cup, rugby union’s biggest club competition, it is likely that the French could inadvertently make England a rugby superpower once again as our big guns hone their skills in a different competition.

On a club level, it could also lead to a new generation of young English hopefuls being thrust into the limelight, and before long we could find a new Jonny Wilkinson amongst the youth ranks of the likes of Wasps, a rough diamond finally coming to the fore after years of playing second fiddle, as they get their chance to play in the absence of those already elevated to stardom.

- Jamie Presland

Against

2 votes so far

Last Friday provided relief for English rugby union as Wasps fly-half Danny Cipriani signed a one-year extension to his contract with the London club, quelling rumours that he was to follow a growing group of players out of the Premiership.

Unfortunately, the lure of the continent has attracted some of rugby’s finest assets. Wasps stars such as James Haskell, Tom Palmer and Riki Flutey have already signed contracts with French sides, and the exodus may continue.

The main reason why British players are leaving the Premiership is the financial attraction of the French league. Unlike the French Top 14 league, the Premiership has a salary cap which has prevented big money being splashed around in the same way as football.

The current salary cap of up to £3.4m imposed on the Premiership clubs was deemed a viable solution to keep high standards of competition within the nation’s top league.

However, even though this ensures competitive domestic play, with no singular team being able to offer exceedingly over-priced salaries, the scheme is set to help excel the exodus of players from the English game.

After all, why would a player want to play for a club on capped wages, when he can live in continental Europe and earn more money?

This argument could have a detrimental impact on the domestic game. England head coach Martin Johnson has already hinted that those who leave these shores for greener climes will see their place in the England squad come under scrutiny. “Not being in that structure (the Premiership) will inevitably affect individual players’ selection chances.”

This warning to departing players is one that union fans may well be concerned about. Not only will the quality of the domestic game be affected, but so will that of the national team, if Johnson is prepared to expel those who move to France.

A similar concern has been raised in other international sports too. The Indian Premier League has taken great strides in recent months to ensure English cricket players will participate in their tournament, costing them big bucks, and possibly costing England players international places and a crippling effect on the domestic scene.

In football, we are all aware of the distortion money can cause. England and Spain have seen their international credentials limited to just two major trophies, even though their leagues are deemed the best in the world.

A possible reason for this is the imposition of foreign players on their leagues, with the Premier League attracting footballers from all over the world, while La Liga continually absorbs a torrent of South American stars.

Money clearly talks with a greater voice than ever. While sports stars leaving their domestic leagues can damage competition, any input of sportsmen on a certain league could have a detrimental affect on that country’s international aspirations.

As for union, it seems that England, already on a downward spiral since Jonny Wilkinson’s World Cup-winning drop goal in 2003, do not have what it takes to challenge the best in the world at this moment, or in the immediate future.

Whereas English players may need to remain in the Premiership to structure a successful international team, it could be argued that the lure of money from the un-capped French league will be enough to disband the spine of the England team.

For the future of the domestic game, the Rugby Football Union must find a way to prevent England’s best players from moving abroad, leaving a weak domestic game, while impacting on the international stage.

- Joe Short