NORWICH NOT UNDER PRESSURE, SAYS BOSS
NORWICH boss Daniel Farke insists his Canaries are not feeling the pressure as they head into today’s Championship clash with Stoke on the back of three games without a win.
With leaders Brentford not playing until tomorrow, Farke’s men can regain top spot with a win over the Potters but last week’s loss at Swansea extended their poor recent form.
Farke told a press conference: “We are not a side who has lost its nerves.
“In this league, the momentum can switch unbelievably quickly – at the end of January we were the team of the moment and five days into February our backs were against the wall. “We like to lead from the front.
“There is no additional pressure from being at the top. We are trying to stay focused and level-headed.”
Reading also saw their promotion push derailed by defeat to Brentford on Wednesday but Royals boss Veljko Paunovic believes his side can bounce back strongly against Millwall.
Paunovic told his side’s official website: “Losses like Wednesday night always serve to learn and grow, and I think the growth will be shown in the next couple of games.”
Millwall go into the game on a run of five unbeaten but are without Ryan Leonard who injured his ankle in last week’s 4-1 thrashing of Sheffield Wednesday.
THE RFU has announced there will be no relegation from the Gallagher Premiership at the end of the season and that the league will be expanded to 13 teams for 2021-22.
The Rugby Football Union Council voted with a “strong majority” yesterday for a temporary suspension of relegation, which will also extend to the Championship, with no team going down to National League One.
The governing body says that, as long as the winner of this season’s Championship is eligible for promotion under the RFU’s current Minimum Standards Criteria, the 2021-22 season will consist of 13 teams in the Premiership and 11 in the Greene King IPA Championship.
The Council made the move after taking into consideration the impact of Covid-19 on the game.
The cancellation of today’s Premiership game between Northampton and Newcastle takes the number of fixtures lost to the pandemic to six so far this season and the RFU fears the impact could mean relegation is based on cancellation not on field merit.
RFU, Premiership Rugby and Championship representatives will now work on recommendations for changes to the season structures from 2021-22 and officials say the moratorium on relegation could last for three or four years.
They say the aim is for a different approach to promotion and relegation which will recognise the ambition of clubs in the Championship and below and continue to allow a route to the Premiership.
Officials will discuss new minimum standard criteria and a review of the domestic calendar to allow additional preparation time for the England men’s team ahead of the 2023 World Cup.
RFU president Jeff Blackett said: “The RFU Council has taken time to understand and discuss all the factors regarding no relegation for this season so that we act in the best interests of all levels of the game.
“We want to ensure a healthy elite game to support successful winning England teams that generate income to stimulate and preserve the game across all levels.
“The Council will continue to be closely engaged with the proposals from the RFU, Premiership Rugby and the Championship to ensure we maintain the integrity of the future league structures for England Rugby.”
Premiership Rugby says the new structure has the unanimous support of the top-flight clubs.
Darren Childs, chief executive of Premiership Rugby, said: “We welcome today’s decision and thank the RFU Council members for their support.”