{"id":8113,"date":"2020-12-09T16:29:48","date_gmt":"2020-12-09T03:29:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/?p=8113"},"modified":"2020-12-09T16:35:52","modified_gmt":"2020-12-09T03:35:52","slug":"change-in-structure-for-2021-club-season-agreed-upon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/2020\/12\/09\/change-in-structure-for-2021-club-season-agreed-upon\/","title":{"rendered":"Change in structure for 2021 club season agreed upon"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div class=\"m_-4558588248277161642layout m_-4558588248277161642one-col m_-4558588248277161642stack\">\n<div class=\"m_-4558588248277161642layout__inner\">\n<div class=\"m_-4558588248277161642column\">\n<p><strong><em>\n\t\t<style>\n\t\t\t#wpls-logo-showcase-slider-1 .wpls-fix-box,\n\t\t\t#wpls-logo-showcase-slider-1 .wpls-fix-box img.wp-post-image{max-height:250px; }\n\t\t<\/style>\n\n\t\t<div class=\"wpls-wrap wpls-logo-showcase-slider-wrp wpls-logo-clearfix wpls-design-1 \" data-conf=\"{&quot;slides_column&quot;:4,&quot;slides_scroll&quot;:1,&quot;dots&quot;:&quot;true&quot;,&quot;arrows&quot;:&quot;true&quot;,&quot;autoplay&quot;:&quot;true&quot;,&quot;autoplay_interval&quot;:3000,&quot;loop&quot;:&quot;true&quot;,&quot;rtl&quot;:&quot;false&quot;,&quot;speed&quot;:800,&quot;center_mode&quot;:&quot;false&quot;,&quot;lazyload&quot;:&quot;&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"wpls-logo-showcase logo_showcase wpls-logo-slider  sliderimage_hide_border \" id=\"wpls-logo-showcase-slider-1\" >\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wpls-logo-cnt\">\n\t<div class=\"wpls-fix-box\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.roblawmax.co.nz\/\" target=\"_self\">\n\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-post-image\"  src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/rmax24.jpg?fit=220%2C120&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" \/>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div><div class=\"wpls-logo-cnt\">\n\t<div class=\"wpls-fix-box\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.geeksonwheels.co.nz\/locations\/wellington-computer-repair\/\" target=\"_self\">\n\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-post-image\"  src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/images.jpg?fit=296%2C170&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" \/>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div><div class=\"wpls-logo-cnt\">\n\t<div class=\"wpls-fix-box\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/thecallcentre.co.nz\/\" target=\"_self\">\n\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-post-image\"  src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/TCC-Logo-400x260-1.jpg?fit=400%2C260&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" \/>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div><div class=\"wpls-logo-cnt\">\n\t<div class=\"wpls-fix-box\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.partnersfinance.co.nz\/\" target=\"_self\">\n\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-post-image\"  src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/part2.jpg?fit=300%2C195&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" \/>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>WRFU release:<\/strong> Wellington Rugby Football Union\u2019s 14 premier clubs have agreed on a structure for the 2021 Men\u2019s Premier competition.<\/p>\n<p>Two options were presented by a working group made up of Club Chairs and Delegates who proposed competition formats in line with club feedback, and existing representative programmes.<\/p>\n<p>Central to the working group\u2019s recommendations was feedback from clubs and statistics from team sheets. This showed most clubs favoured an April season start and no gap between club rugby and the start of the Mitre 10 Cup.<\/p>\n<p>After a final discussion, Club Delegates voted 7-6 in favour of \u2018option one\u2019. This means the 2021 Men\u2019s Premier competition format with a full Swindale Shield round has been implemented. Full details are:<\/p>\n<p><strong>2021 Men\u2019s Premier Competition Format:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>17-week competition beginning 10 April 2021<\/li>\n<li>13-week Swindale Shield (everyone plays everyone)<\/li>\n<li>4 weeks finals series. Uses an innovative system whereby all 14 teams have a second life<\/li>\n<li>The Finals Series begins with eight\u00a0teams in Jubilee Cup and six\u00a0in Hardham Cup,\u00a0then swaps to six\/eight\u00a0in week two onwards (see illustration below)<\/li>\n<li>Grand Finals on 31 July<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Also approved by clubs was a change to entry criteria for the Premier competition. This will see clubs required to field both a Premier and Premier Reserve team. As 2021 is a \u2018transition and recovery year\u2019 and given challenges with team numbers post-COVID, the Colts grade has been removed from these criteria but will receive specific game development support in 2021.<\/p>\n<p>Rugby Board &amp; Men\u2019s Competition Review Working Group Chairman Sunil Surujpal says it\u2019s fantastic to have some clarity around 2021.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019d like to thank the working group for the immense amount of hard work it put into reviewing this season, whilst masterminding the next.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019d also like to thank clubs for the time and effort they have dedicated to considering the two proposed formats and reaching a conclusion. The close vote last evening continues to illustrate there are differences in opinions on the best format. This feedback will be critical to the working group when they reconvene in early 2021 to determine the best format for 2022-24.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI for one, am already looking forward to next season and seeing our clubs back on the paddock playing the game we love.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A draft draw will be distributed to clubs by Friday, 11 December with the final version to be published publicly a week later.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Finals Series Explained:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Top eight (Jubilee Cup) and bottom six (Hardham Cup) split (for week one only) based on standings at the end of the Swindale Shield<\/li>\n<li>Four-week finals series (adapted from the McIntyre system) in both divisions<\/li>\n<li>All teams have a second life after week one of the finals series with the two lowest ranked losers from the Jubilee Cup dropping down to the Hardham Cup. The remaining losing teams all have a second chance match too<\/li>\n<li>Below is an illustration of how the finals series would work using 2020 results<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m_-4558588248277161642layout m_-4558588248277161642one-col m_-4558588248277161642fixed-width m_-4558588248277161642stack\">\n<div class=\"m_-4558588248277161642layout__inner\">\n<div class=\"m_-4558588248277161642column\">\n<div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"CToWUd a6T\" tabindex=\"0\" src=\"https:\/\/ci6.googleusercontent.com\/proxy\/hI5QzhEaHqyc0-aU3tNFVOmIjVw5c9rdRG0MqBoIM_dZsD27AewXJbFLbUaKiTXsu_1jEl_F1jrDMlTEnusQ8qVMQPTjgVXT3mFPbjw-OSzSEjCIDA9kaEC3ljeqaQ6sHcF3GBWHN3OuDv3ijw=s0-d-e1-ft#http:\/\/i2.cmail19.com\/ei\/j\/D0\/906\/992\/105449\/csfinal\/Premier_Playoffs-9900000000079e3c.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div align=\"center\"><strong><em>\n\t\t<style>\n\t\t\t#wpls-logo-showcase-slider-2 .wpls-fix-box,\n\t\t\t#wpls-logo-showcase-slider-2 .wpls-fix-box img.wp-post-image{max-height:250px; }\n\t\t<\/style>\n\n\t\t<div class=\"wpls-wrap wpls-logo-showcase-slider-wrp wpls-logo-clearfix wpls-design-1 \" data-conf=\"{&quot;slides_column&quot;:4,&quot;slides_scroll&quot;:1,&quot;dots&quot;:&quot;true&quot;,&quot;arrows&quot;:&quot;true&quot;,&quot;autoplay&quot;:&quot;true&quot;,&quot;autoplay_interval&quot;:3000,&quot;loop&quot;:&quot;true&quot;,&quot;rtl&quot;:&quot;false&quot;,&quot;speed&quot;:800,&quot;center_mode&quot;:&quot;false&quot;,&quot;lazyload&quot;:&quot;&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"wpls-logo-showcase logo_showcase wpls-logo-slider  sliderimage_hide_border \" id=\"wpls-logo-showcase-slider-2\" >\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wpls-logo-cnt\">\n\t<div class=\"wpls-fix-box\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.roblawmax.co.nz\/\" target=\"_self\">\n\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-post-image\"  src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/rmax24.jpg?fit=220%2C120&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" \/>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div><div class=\"wpls-logo-cnt\">\n\t<div class=\"wpls-fix-box\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.geeksonwheels.co.nz\/locations\/wellington-computer-repair\/\" target=\"_self\">\n\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-post-image\"  src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/images.jpg?fit=296%2C170&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" \/>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div><div class=\"wpls-logo-cnt\">\n\t<div class=\"wpls-fix-box\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/thecallcentre.co.nz\/\" target=\"_self\">\n\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-post-image\"  src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/TCC-Logo-400x260-1.jpg?fit=400%2C260&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" \/>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div><div class=\"wpls-logo-cnt\">\n\t<div class=\"wpls-fix-box\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.partnersfinance.co.nz\/\" target=\"_self\">\n\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-post-image\"  src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/part2.jpg?fit=300%2C195&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" \/>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t<\/em><\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on the_content --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on the_content -->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>WRFU release: Wellington Rugby Football Union\u2019s 14 premier clubs have agreed on a structure for the 2021 Men\u2019s Premier competition. Two options were presented by a working group made up of Club Chairs and Delegates who proposed competition formats in line with club feedback, and existing representative programmes. Central to the working group\u2019s recommendations was&#8230;<!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on get_the_excerpt --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on get_the_excerpt --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":8115,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8113","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-in-briefs"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/OBU-Norths-pic-for-story.jpg?fit=1280%2C853&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pbDiON-26R","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8113","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8113"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8113\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8116,"href":"https:\/\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8113\/revisions\/8116"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8115"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8113"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8113"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clubrugby.nz\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8113"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}