Griffiths blasts RFU for denying promotion bid
WHEN Doncaster Knights were denied promotion in 2016, it came down to what happened on the pitch, and that’s how it should stay, according to former head coach Clive Griffiths.
The Knights and fellow Championship frontrunners Ealing Trailfinders are locked in a three-way title battle with Cornish Pirates but, as things stand, they will not be allowed to compete in an expanded Gallagher Premiership next season.
The RFU announced this week that both clubs had failed to meet the Minimum Standards Criteria, chiefly the need to have a 10,001-capacity home ground, while the Pirates failed to apply for promotion before the November deadline.
What looked set to be a thrilling finale to the season suddenly had all the life sucked out of it and the Knights’ hopes, if they manage to finish top, now rest on the outcome of an appeal.
In a statement, the Knights said they were “disappointed, dismayed and disheartened by the decision”, while Ealing have so far chosen to keep their counsel.
“As a rugby man and someone who spent nine seasons at Donny, I am disappointed,” said Griffiths, whose Doncaster side lost 60-47 on aggregate to Bristol in the 2016 Championship final.
“Promotion should be decided on the field and not in the boardroom. Yes, we have got these rules and people are aware of the criteria and so forth but it is not as if Ealing and Doncaster are a million miles away.
“Are we saying everything has to be prim and proper before Harlequins and Saracens set foot on Castle Park with temporary terracing on one side like they have at Bath?
“Doncaster has got a lovely stand with hospitality and a really nice clubhouse behind one of the posts and leeway to put a temporary stand behind the other set of posts.
“It wouldn’t take long to get everything in place, weeks not months.”
Doncaster once took great stock in being “the most promoted club in English rugby”, but climbing the final rung of the ladder may prove insurmountable given the Premiership’s cartel-like operation.
“There is still a lot of water to go under the bridge, and Cornish Pirates could put a spanner in the works, but I am so disappointed for everybody. If you finish top of the league, you should be rewarded,” Griffiths reiterated.
“A trophy is great to put into the cabinet but the following season, Sarries, Bristol, Harlequins... you name it, they would all be coming to Doncaster, and it would be fantastic for the town which is why I was gutted we missed out (in 2016).
“I hope Donny win the appeal and if they finish top, we get to see those great clubs run out at Castle Park. They deserve it.
“The dream of Steve Lloyd and Tony de Mulder and everyone associated with the club was to go from Yorkshire 2 to the Premiership, and by hook or by crook, they are on the brink yet, here we are, talking about them being denied that opportunity.
“This is not just a fly by night thing. The club has gone up and up and up with good management and great investment and the ground has continually improved – they’ve got a hybrid pitch, an international-standard 3G pitch, all it needs now is a few more seats and bingo!
“The Premiership needs a strong team in Yorkshire and the facilities at Castle Park are second-to-none.
“Yes, there are a few logistics to sort out with the Council around access and stuff but it was sorted out for the women’s international and the U20s international, and there were 5,000 people there. All those logistics were sorted out then.”
Criticism has been levelled at the Doncaster and Ealing management for not ensuring planning permission for temporary stands was in place to enable them to meet the criteria before the promotion application was submitted. But as Griffiths points out, it is a big risk financially at a time when finances are stretched across the board.
“Nobody within the RFU would do that, they wouldn’t throw thousands of pounds at something that they don’t know they are going to achieve. Put a stand up with 6,000 seats in November and you could end up with a white elephant,” said Griffiths, now defence coach at National 2 North leaders Hull.
Another counter argument to the claims of Doncaster and Ealing for promotion is that both clubs would struggle for support given that crowds average around 1,000.
However, near 5,000 sellouts were achieved for the home legs against Yorkshire Carnegie in the semi-final and the final against Bristol the year Griffiths led Doncaster to the brink of glory.
Griffiths has no doubt the appetite is there for top-flight rugby. “For me, that is not an issue. It is the top of the tree competition. People want to come and watch the best teams,” he said. “You take a high-quality game like the England women’s international and you get 5,000 people there.”