In his first and only season in the league, Cheika says he has “enjoyed the ride” in the East Midlands and has been surprised by the diversity of playing styles across the Premiership, citing Bristol’s free-wheeling approach.
He also believes the league has the potential to rival Australia’s National Rugby League (NRL) and become one of the world’s leading sporting products, with plans afoot to bring in a franchise model in a bid to take Premiership rugby to the next level.
“I think it should be like the NRL, when you think about the population. The game deserves a bigger economy. It needs the league to get it bigger, more money in there so there can be more impact,” Cheika said.
“There’s a really good thing going on here that we can build on, but it needs a central economy to create that energy, so teams don’t go to the wall and they’re able to benefit from a strong central economy with more sponsors, more people, more merchandising, a bigger TV deal, all that type of stuff that runs off the back of it.
“As an outsider there is definitely the potential for the game to be much bigger on a national scale.”
But with the game’s status quo under threat from a breakaway league, Van Graan has highlighted how the sport’s foundations are built on tradition, and believes the league is in a strong place after a challenging few years.
“That experience in Cardiff a few weeks ago, when Bath played Bristol, was amazing. It felt like a Test match,” he said.
“There are so many good things about the Premiership. My Dad went to the 1991 World Cup and he brought me back some grass in a little bottle, which I still have. Twickenham was always the place and I remember our game there against Quins three years ago, I thought: ‘this is amazing’.
“I can’t control anything that happens about franchising, or rebel leagues, or the outside. All I can control is our team, and I’d like to think all 10 Premiership teams have done their bit to make this a spectacle in all of our different ways.
“We are all different, but there is all respect for each other. I think the Premiership is in a good place.”
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