Let’s get Saturday back as match day

THE Premiership’s ‘long weekend’ fixture experiment which is pushing club rugby fans from pillar to post with matches played on Friday nights, Sunday afternoons, in the USA – with a few Saturdays thrown in – is asking for trouble.

In Round 5, Friday evening matches outnumbered Saturday matches by three to two, with today’s Wasps v Bath encounter the Sunday offering.

This a is travesty given the long tradition of Saturday afternoon matches in this country, and a Rugby Union public which is tuned-in to it being a regular part of their weekend.

The attraction of Friday night kickoffs is hardly overwhelming when you consider the gates at the most recent matches. It goes without saying that the attendances – 5,123 at the AJ Bell for Sale v Gloucester, the 7,650 at Kingston Park for Newcastle v London Irish, and the 7,517 at Sixways for Worcester v Saracens – will not have come close to covering the wage bill for any of those home sides.

Friday nights are a hard sell due to the traffic mayhem in large tracts of the country at that time.

In addition, the idea that it will attract youngsters who play on Saturdays is also misplaced because the attraction of getting back late when they have to get to matches on Saturday mornings is limited.

Stick with Saturdays, or risk the game losing profile – and fans