Euro clubs must not let RWC have all the epics

By Brendan Gallagher 
To borrow heavily from the great Tom Petty, “too much ain’t enough”, although I fancy the rock maestro had something other than Rugby Union on his mind at the time.
Top quality rugby is throwing itself at us and demanding our attention on a weekly basis this season, it’s feast upon feast, with the European Champions Cup now drawing into town barely two weeks after the World Cup circus made its triumphant exit.
Halcyon, unprecedented, days for the rugby tragic. Or so it seems but there are possible pitfalls as well. Now must also be the time European club rugby puts its best foot forward because palates can quickly become a little jaded and customers disappointed unless the product remains exceptional.
A pivotal season therefore awaits for the Champions Cup.  For years it has been the most significant driver and innovator in European rugby, often outshining and outperforming the Six Nations. More glamorous, passionate, spectator friendly and accessible and frequently, in my opinion, better rugby.
Yet recently it has stalled a little. Three years of unbending implacable Toulon dominance has robbed the tournament of some of its romance and unpredictability and resulted in accusations that it has become the playground of cash-rich French clubs and their mega squads of galacticos.
Only partly true – Toulon have money but are also brilliantly motivated and driven – but the perception is there.
Then two years ago came the squabbles and sabre rattling off the pitch, the formation of EPCR, radical restructuring of monies, the renegotiating of commercial deals and a streamlined tournament reduced, for the time being, to 20 teams although don’t be surprised if that expands again sooner rather than later. Peace did eventually break out, as we all knew it would, but it was a tough period and, although last season’s Cup definitely had its moments, it was far from vintage European fare with fewer classic moments than in many previous seasons.
And now comes the challenge of kicking off this season’s tournament in such close proximity to a dazzling Rugby World Cup which seemed to emphasise the current superiority of Southern Hemisphere rugby, and, by implication, its flagship club competition the Super 15. Again that is the perception and a raft of Premiership coaches in particular were queuing up begging to differ at the Champions Cup launch earlier this week. In fact they were quite chipper and you sensed an encouraging collective determination to strike a few blows on behalf of English rugby.
What is certain, though, is that with memories so fresh there will be an overwhelming temptation to relate everything we see in the Champions Cup this month in Rounds One and Two back to those World Cup epics of last month. That can be good and bad. If the Champions Cup can step up a notch – in terms of quality of rugby and positive approach – it can cash in gloriously on the momentum built by RWC2015. But if it stagnates the comparisons will be harsh and the disappointment lingering. The bar has been set very high.
Still there was a good optimistic buzz around at the Stoop when the great and good – refreshed by the in-flight catering of new sponsors Turkish Airlines – gathered to kick off the tournament. “Widen your world,” incidentally is the company motto of our new Turkish friends, a message Leicester Tigers have immediately taken on board by adding nearly  three metres width and eight metres length to their pitch.
Bath boss Mike Ford thought the World Cup inspiring but insists there was nothing new to copy or “nick” to use his own word. “For me the World Cup was a validation of everything we have been trying to do at Bath. That’s the rugby – New Zealand, Australia, Argentina – we aspire to play. We are not there yet, we haven’t mastered it but that’s our template and the World Cup showed us it can succeed at the very highest level.
“Our philosophy is still to go out there and really play and score more points than the opposition and we won’t be changing that. We have a tough pool again but we are older and wiser and there were some very good performances to look back on last year, a record away win at Montpellier and, I believe, inflicting Toulouse’s heaviest home defeat in the tournament.”
Neither Saints’ Jim Mallinder or Exeter Chiefs Rob Baxter accept that there is a gulf between Northern and Southern Hemisphere standards and point out that Wales could have squeezed past South Africa and, but for a controversial refereeing decision, Scotland could have beaten Australia. Would there be questions raised about the quality of European rugby generally – at club and national level – if there had been two Northern Hemisphere semi-finalists? A fair point.
Mallinder also argued that in terms of tempo and skill, several of Saints’ bigger European games – notably the classic 2012 final with Leinster – wouldn’t have looked out of place at the World Cup. The talent and ability is there even if occasionally inhibited. That last point is, of course, the crux, giving full rein to that ability even when the match is in the balance.
“It’s still a massive step up, some of the games are Test rugby in all but name,” says Saints experienced skipper Lee Dickson. “You have to prepare well and if you don’t get it just right you can lose by a lot – as we discovered against Racing and Clermont last season!”
Of the English contenders you suspect Bath, Wasps and Exeter will put the accent firmly on the fast tempo, fluid attacking game of RWC2015 – they won’t die not knowing – while Saracens, Saints and Leicester will attempt to tread the middle line mixing old-style pragmatism with their own attacking qualities.
To be honest the omens aren’t great in a compressed season which, more than ever, will test the strength in depth of Europe’s  top clubs but what a lift to the English game it would be if one of those named could become the first English team to lift the trophy since Wasps in 2007.
It’s been too long.