No B division plans: URC door remains shut for Cheetahs

In a big blow for the Cheetahs, who were hoping to get back into competitive international franchise rugby, it was confirmed by United Rugby Championship CEO Martin Anayi during a media round table on Tuesday that there are currently no plans in place for a B division in the competition.

A couple of weeks ago, after a Currie Cup match, Cheetahs coach Hawies Fourie claimed there were advanced talks in the URC for a B division next season, which he was hoping the Free State side would be included in.

Anayi, however, poured cold water on those claims, once again leaving the Cheetahs in limbo.

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“It’s not on the cards. We have a real job on our hands to make the URC as good as it can possibly be and we are getting there, so I think not for the present,” said Anayi.

“We do love the Cheetahs, by the way. They are a big part of our history, so if we can help them in any way to find a competition that does work for them, you can be rest assured that we would do that.”

Anayi also said there were no plans in place for promotion/relegation to be introduced to the URC, as the goal was to strengthen the current 16 teams taking part.

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“We’ve got contracts with each of our teams, so it’s a closed league practically,” Anayi said.

“It’s there to make sure that these teams can be sustainable and can invest in getting better without the fear of being relegated into an unknown competition.

“So it’s a little bit different to the (French) Top 14 with the Pro D2 or the (English) Premiership with the Championship. There isn’t an established division below us so there’s nowhere to go for those teams to be relegated.”

The Cheetahs will now have to return to the drawing board to try and find a way back into competitive international franchise action.