London Irish lock Nick Kennedy assesses the challenges facing his club at European level in his Telegraph blog.
"In France the authorities decided to curb their teams’ previously infinite salary budgets for the new 2010/11 season and duly restricted teams to a paltry £7.1million limit. Yes, that’s right, £3million more than their Anglo Saxon opponents. At London Irish we have a squad of 34 players and a quick look at the website of our pool opponents Toulon, shows no fewer than 47 first team players.
"Having nearly twice as money to pay in salaries and therefore larger squad sizes means that French teams can perform more consistently in both domestic and European competitions. They are able to field one side for their Top 14 games and then a whole new, well-rested one for the Heineken Cup games. This is a luxury that English teams definitely do not have. Irish sides tend to prioritise the Heineken Cup much more than their domestic league as in Ireland the Heineken Cup is considered the Holy Grail. It is very rare that the top players will play week in week out in the Magners League and then start a Heineken Cup game.
"English clubs can rarely afford to rest players for Premiership games; the schedule is so tough and the standard so competitive that no team is safe from dropping down to the Championship as recent relegations have shown. If a team in the Magners League has a bad season there is always next year, that isn’t the case in England. The Heineken cup is a challenge we thoroughly look forward to, but not until next week."
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