Aviva Prem: End Of Season Report Cards - London Welsh

So, barring the fat Lady who is limbering up for her appearance at Twickenham next weekend, the 2012/13 Aviva Premiership season is in the books and I thought it would be a good time to start to look at how each team has fared, whilst running the well trodden 'School Report' thread through it. 

I'll look at each team in reverse finishing order, looking at what went well, what didn't, stand out players and areas for improvement for the coming season:

London Welsh

Final Position: 12th (Relegated, pending Newcastle's somewhat inevitable victory in the Championship final)
P: 22	W: 5	L: 17	D: 0	F: 412	A: 619	Pts: 23*

*Deducted 5pts because the RFU were scared they might stay up

Plus Marks:

NOBODY EXPECTS THE SPANISH INQUISITION! In a hard, long season where Welsh could rightly feel like the world or more specifically the vested interests of certain governing bodies, was against them, Welsh came flying out of the blocks at the start of the season. Trying their hardest to follow the Blitzkrieg example blazed by Exeter a few years previous and  after negating the frankly unavoidable opening defeats to Leicester and Harlequins (I'm starting to sound like a conspiracy theorist, but Tigers and Quins in your opening two weekends? Come on...) they came out swinging, racking up 4 out of their 5 wins by the start of December.

They were also very good at staying in games, only rarely suffering the blowouts many expected, their total of 7 losing bonus points was only bettered by Wasps, Bath and Worcester.

I also thought that when they could, they recruited as well as they could - lots of people rolled their eyes with the signing of Gavin Henson for example, but they protected themselves financially with an incentive loaded contract, meaning that they were only exposed to the potential upside of signing an (admittedly wayward) former Lion.

Detentions:

Lets be honest, they were doomed from the start.  The legal challenge needed to secure their place in the top flight meant that they could do little to no recruitment, which they (and every promoted team) badly needs to flesh out a promising squad.  They seemed to scramble well though, picking up who they could when they could, and were looking good until Christmas, benefitting both from their own determination and the woeful seasons of Irish and Sale.  Then the  scandal over Tyson Keats unfolded with the RFU seizing on the opportunity to re-establish the status quo and deducting Welsh 5 points due the criminal actions of one of their administrative employees, which even the RFU admitted Welsh knew nothing about and reported it immediately upon discovery. 
This left Welsh with too much of a mountain to climb, added to the fact that their squad, wanting for nothing in terms of passion and work rate, but too short on proven top level quality were relegated. 
I know it is quite obvious my views on this as you read, but I genuinely do feel that the RFU/Premiership Rugby's actions surrounding London Welsh's entry and exit to the top flight cheapen our domestic game, tarnish its image internationally and personally, as a rugby fan, leave a nasty taste in the mouth. 
Their desire for the Premiership to be a nationwide competition in order to maximise advertising revenues, media exposure and growth of the game is obvious, and if done correctly commendable, but the thinly veiled voracity with which they seem to spring in to life to protect the interests of their key 'outpost' clubs such as Newcastle and Sale is worrying and needs challenging.

Head Boy:

There were a number of standouts, with the likes of Phil McKenzie and Tom Arscott auditioning well enough to be staying in the Premiership next year with Sale.  The old head and dependable boot of Fly Half Gordon Ross tried valiantly to steer the Welsh ship off the rocks, and Captain John Mills led by example.  But most impressive (and not just because Wasps have signed him!) has been back rower Ed Jackson - limited to 13 appearances but a strong ball carrier with a nose for the line and a resolute defender - Wasps will struggle to fill a Billy Vunipola shaped hole in their back row next year, but this is a step in the right direction

Predicted Grades Next Year:

As I mentioned earlier, save for Bedford miraculously beating Newcastle over two legs in the Championship final (odds a time of writing are as long as those for Michael Le Vell to be the new face of Childline) AND THEN mounting and winning their own legal challenge to gain promotion (they have already been assessed as not meeting promotion criteria), London Welsh are to be relegated back to the RFU Championship for the 2013/14 season.
Once there, they will again have to rejoin the feeding frenzy currently being led by the likes of Leeds, Bristol, Nottingham and Bedford in order to have another crack at bouncing up. 
They will have some parachute money to throw around, but as I understand it not nearly as much as, say, Newcastle had this year, so next season should see the fairest fight for a while now for promotion from the Championship - good for the game, perhaps not so good for Welsh, who are already shipping their best players at a rate of knots.  But hey, Gavin Henson might stick around though...