Following a meeting with the teams in the Metro J1 League the consensus of opinion was that while the present 8-team home and away set-up in Section “A” works well there needs to be a shake-up in Section “B”…
The majority view was that a Super Six competition in Section “B” should be tried even though it will be unbalanced with 11 teams in the Section rather than the ideal number of twelve. The Competitions Committee has decided to implement this suggestion.
As a result the format for the Metro J1 League for 2011-12 is:
* Section “A” – 8 teams playing home and away with the team in first place at the end of the League winning the Metro J1 League title. The last placed team will be relegated to Section “B” and the second last team will play off against the second team in Section “B” (“Top 6”) with the winner playing in Section “A” and the loser in Section “B” in 2012-13
* Section “B” – 11 teams competing in a Super Six competition.
Ø Phase 1 will comprise a 6-team Pool 1 and a 5-team Pool 2 with teams playing all other teams in their Pool once.
Ø In Phase 2 the top three teams in each Pool will advance to the “Top 6” with the remaining teams playing in the “Bottom 5”. All Phase 1 results against teams advancing to the same Phase 2 group (“Top 6” or “Bottom 5”) will be carried forward. Phase 2 will be played on a home and away basis (with carried forward scores to count). The winner of the Top 6 will be promoted to Section “A” while the runner up will play off with the 7th placed team in Section “A” (see above).
The fixtures have been posted on the Domestic Rugby website and can be accessed via the following links:
The second point that came out of the meeting was that the Metro Cup should not start until the League has been completed. The Competitions Committee will look at this suggestion over the coming weeks and decide whether or not to implement it.
Note: Lansdowne and Wanderers are both down to play at home in Lansdowne Road on Sunday, 6th November. One of these fixtures will change (either venue and/or date and KO time) closer to the date.
