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But we’ve no complaints, at least we finished full of fight.”In fact, Leicester finished with a penalty try awarded when Agen pulled down a maul as Leicester’s forwards rolled towards the line. Until then, Leicester had never threatened to score a try, being kept afloat in torrential rain by five penalties. Agen took the contest more meaningfully than the others but, even so, they made eight substitutions in a one-sided final.Whatever doubts may exist about the value of such events, Bob Dwyer, Leicester’s newly-installed director of coaching, was left in no doubt about the size of the task confronting him as he attempts to reshape Leicester’s midfield to make them fully competitive.With fresh half-backs and a new centre pairing, Dwyer is short of time as he prepares for the match against Saracens on Saturday. Even with a pounds 57,500 prize fund, some of the rugby resembled nothing more extending than touch-and- pass.

It will have a direct and beneficial impact on skills and fitness levels,” Crichton said.The SRU said they will announce the names of players who accept contracts, but they will not disclose details of individual deals.. Leicester 22 Agen 28

Leicester were given a foretaste of what to expect when the European Cup starts as they were handed any number of sharp lessons in creativity and defensive organisation while being comprehensively outplayed by Agen in the final of the inaugural International Challenge Cup at Welford Road yesterday.
For future tournaments to be judged a success and taken seriously, clubs will have to field something like full-strength teams and not treat the event like some glorified training exercise. There will be additional match fees and a win bonus scheme covering the major club competitions and international matches.
Most contracts are for three years, although a small number are for one year, recognising the importance of continuity and building a strong squad for the 1999 Rugby World Cup.The contracts have been overseen by Ken Crichton, the SRU’s staffing convenor. He described the payments as “realistic and fair, in accordance with the principle of trying to keep our best players in Scotland.”The SRU has recognised that some players will not wish to accept full- time contracts, and will offer part-time contracts, with match fees and win bonuses, to those players.”This is a most exciting time in Scottish rugby, with our top players now being asked to treat their sport as their full-time profession – with all the added commitment that will involve.

Players who accept full-time employment will receive a basic salary of between pounds 20,000 and pounds 50,000 per annum. Obviously we are providing the players and we want to be in control of our own destiny.”The announcement by the WRU chairman, Vernon Pugh, that there would be no inaugural Anglo-Welsh club tournament prompted Deshayes to say: “We feel that the Anglo-Welsh event is a very important and valid competition, and it is certainly one that we would like to preserve. We shall be showing complete solidarity with the Welsh clubs on that.”. The Scottish Rugby Union has offered full-time contracts to 56 players as part of its plan to introduce professional rugby into Scotland. The French clubs had indicated their interest in such a scheme to club representatives some months ago, and yesterday Kim Deshayes, the chief executive of Epruc, which meets today to discuss this latest turn of events, said: “It is fair to say we have to explore all options. The Welsh and Scots followed England’s example and turned themselves into limited companies for the purpose of managing their fiscal affairs.It would certainly be attractive, since the bulk of the British Isles’ leading players would be involved – including every first-choice Englishman. The pieces are in place for an alternative home international tournament to become at least a possibility.There would even be money for such a venture, since BSkyB could no doubt be persuaded to offer the deals they had originally put to the other Home Unions to the respective clubs’ organisations of each country.