USA Rugby has initiated a review of Men’s Club competitions at all levels of the game; including Rugby Super League, Division I, Division II, and Division III. This report summarizes the competitions review and presents recommendations for the structure of Men’s Club Rugby.

The primary goals of the competition review were to:

• Raise the level of Senior Men’s Club competitions
• Agree a playing pathway to National Elite representative teams
• Create an integrated competitive structure that will help address the rising cost of travel, improve player welfare and assist in the marketability toward sponsorship opportunities

The Competition Review Committee was convened and included representatives from various stake-holders in Men’s Club Rugby including:

• USA Rugby Director of Competition – Dan Payne
• USA Rugby Competitions Committee - Alan Sharpley, Chair
• USA Rugby High Performance - Matt Sherman,  Manager Pacific Region
• Territorial Unions - Graeme Leask, Midwest TU Competitions Director
• Local Area Unions – Eric Pittelkau, Potomac Rugby Union President
• Rugby Super League - Jim Perkins, RSL Competitions Committee
• Division I, II, and III clubs – Steve Compo, Severn River RFC

The review was organized in three phases:

(1)  Collection – compiling descriptions of competitive structures at LAU, TU, and National levels  

(2)  Evaluation – examination of those factors that promote competition and those that inhibit it – travel, expenses, player and club pathways. Definition of minimum standards for participation at various competitive levels. Integration and standardization of playing seasons – local club, playoffs, premier.

(3)  Recommendation – develop a comprehensive competitive structure that integrates competitions at all levels while addressing the primary goals of the competitions review. This report represents the output of Phase 3 – Recommendations for USA Rugby Men’s Club competitions.

The following recommendations have been agreed upon by the Competition Review Committee.  Subsequently, the results were reviewed and approved by the Rugby Committee and also by the USAR Board of Directors.   The recommendations below pertain to the competition portion of the review.  The player pathway and HP plans will be released under a separate cover.

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Organize the league into two, eight team conferences utilizing an East/West conference breakdown (currently consists of three, six team conferences).

• Geographically structured conferences will assist in improving player welfare by reducing time needed to travel, time needed off from work, etc. In addition, it will help minimize the constantly increasing cost of travel being absorbed by the clubs and players, while reinforcing geographic rivalries. 
  
• The league season would consist of seven conference matches plus playoffs.
  
• Implement and strictly regulate minimum standards.  To include, but not limited to: dedicated, dependable and safe playing/training facilities, administrative support, coaching, etc.
  
• Teams that don’t adhere to the minimum standards should face penalties and risk being replaced in the competition.
  
• Implement relegation and promotion between Premier competition and Division I competition.

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• East and West Conferences

  • East – Northeast TU, Mid-Atlantic TU, Midwest TU, South TU
  • West – Pacific Coast TU, Southern California TU, West TU
    
  • Round One (Round of 16)
    • Two pools of four in each conference
    • Each pool advances one team to Round Two
    • Single venue in the East and in the West Conference
    • USA Rugby Competitions Committee seeds TU representatives in conference pools (see Figure 2)

   

• Round Two (Finals)
• Two pool winners from the East Conference play cross-over matches against two pool winners from the West Conference
• Includes semifinals, final, and consolation matches
  
• Promotion and Relegation procedures TBD.
• Division III is increased to a 16-team competition.

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The format of the Senior Men's All-Star 15s Championships will shift from the previous territorial union structure to a four-team competition, based on the USA Rugby High Performance regions. The championship date, which is still to be determined, will now fall at the conclusion of the club competition season.

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