AT THE END OF THE DAY | Rugby league relegation battles on the cards

The concept is not one that will take too much explaining to those in the know. Teams that finish at or near the bottom of their respected leagues are relegated and replaced with those near the top of the ladder in the league below.

Probably the most famous model currently in place is that of European soccer, namely the English Premier League.

At the end of each season, the three sides with the lowest point totals are cast aside to wallow in the Championship, while three other clubs - the top two regular season teams and a playoff winner - get the chance to run around with the big boys.

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For the most part, this type of system has not made its way across the pond, with competitions in Australia remaining static year-on-year, with apologies to fans of the North Sydney Bears and Newtown Jets.

Being promoted in those internationally-viewed leagues is about much more than playing at a higher standard of competition though. It is about money, money and more money.

The previously mentioned play-off game to get the the EPL has been dubbed 'the richest game in soccer' due to the money the clubs make from the massive TV rights deals in the top league (although professional soccer players in lower leagues are hardly doing it tough).

Now relegation and promotion will be making its way to the Central West, and while it may be a necessary move, it will surely bring all kinds of headaches for clubs.

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This week it was announced that two new competitions, adopting promotion and relegation, would be implemented in a new Western Conference system set to shake rugby league up in the west.

In 2022, a premiership competition will be formed and a corresponding lower-tier championship league.

At the end of each season, the championship winner will play-off against the premiership's bottom side in a promotion-relegation match ahead of the next season.

This move followed the news that Group 10 would feature just six clubs in the 2021 season, with both Cowra and Blayney unable to field first grade sides.

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So while this idea of essentially combining the teams from Group 10 and Group 11 is probably a necessary one to keep the remaining clubs afloat, I worry that those at the bottom will be forgotten about, while those at the top will thrive even more.

The idea that the winner of the championship - after batting a gruelling finals series - will have to face off against a wooden-spooner which has had weeks to rest and recover seems unfair in my mind if the goal is to truly give those lower-tier clubs a fair crack at the top league.

I can also see problems arising for both the players and clubs involved in the respective relegation battles.

What has often been the case with the EPL is that once a club is promoted, new, better players are brought in to the club with some of the players who did the hard work to get promotion in the first place, are let go or transferred to another club in one of the lower divisions.

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While this may seem a cruel practice, it is unfortunately necessary for those not wanting to be one-season wonders in the top flight.

Would this new rugby league competition see a similar thing happen?

Obviously the TV deals and money aren't the same, but at what point will players value playing at the top level and the money that comes with it, over club loyalty.

Will we see a relegated club gutted as a result of greener pastures elsewhere? And if not, and players decide they want to battle it out in the lower league, how watered-down will the top tier competition become without those big name players?

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Group 11 chairman Bob Walsh was in attendance when the announcement was made.

He said change was for the "betterment of the whole region" and that it was about "keeping the game alive."

I remain sceptical about this. While the intentions are good, in practice what this promotion and relegation system will likely mean is clubs initially placed in the bottom tier will be there for a while to come.

The level of footy played in those towns will decline because players will gravitate towards the top tier, and ultimately those clubs on the brink of folding may still do so.

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For the sake of the region's rugby league and bush footy in general, I hope this plan is a success.

If it is, it will be a beacon of light for clubs, towns and leagues across the state. If it's a failure, then we may see an even swifter exodus of clubs than we were already expecting.

Here are the full details of the new structure:

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