As referred to earlier, there are 5 potential structures proposed for British korfball. I’m intending to examine how Welsh korfball might fit into each one, and the pros and cons for Welsh korfball. In each instance, clubs mentioned are a guesstimate.
Division 1 7 Clubs, currently no Welsh participation, Teams: Mitcham, Trojans, Kwiek, Invicta, Nomads, Nottingham, Bec.
12 games, home and away, double headers with reserve league. Play-offs for teams 1-4 for championship, 6th and 7th face relegation play-offs.
Division 2 7 Clubs, currently no Welsh participation, Teams: Croydon, Kingfishers, North Downs, Norwich Knights, Cambridge Tigers, Supernova, Wildcats.
7 single day tournaments, each hosted by different club, 1 or 2 matches played per tournament. Top 2 teams have promotion play-offs, bottom 2 face relegation play-offs.
Reserve Divison: Mirrors Division 1
Local Tier: Welsh League, containing all teams in Wales.
As with proposals B-D, winners eligible to play against winners of all other Area Association Leagues over weekend for place in National League.
Workload
As proposals B-D, exactly the same as season coming up (ie dependent on structure of Welsh League) plus extra weekend of good competitive games for league winner.
Advantages
Leaves us with a lot of flexibility and control over stucture for Welsh teams.
Very little travel required.
End of season competition should be tough and enjoyable for league winners.
Disadvantages
Step up to NL not quite as big as with Proposal B, but bigger than C or D, because of reduction in teams to 14, promoted team would go from facing Cardiff Uni 2 to Croydon/Kingfishers/North Downs in one season.
Promotion to NL more difficult.
Lots of uneven match-ups and not much variation in opposition for the Welsh teams.
Overall
This is a slight improvement on the situation we have currently but only because it offers a good tournament for the league winners.
Conclusion
Options B-D all offer different versions of how top level Korfball in the UK is to be played. Of them, I like option E best, then C and then D. I dislike option B, as it seems to bring in an American style conference system which to my mind only works when measures are in place to maintain roughly even team abilities. However, unless and until a Welsh club is ready to enter the NL, that’s somewhat academic, and others may well have a different preference.
Option A however does offer a significant opportunity to Welsh korfball and is the option I’m most enthusiastic about. It would require a substantial increase in travel from the Welsh League, and some increase in travel from the EKL for Dragons and City 1 players, and a significant increase in administrative work, but this would be compensated for by more challenging competitions. If the players concerned were happy to do this, this option seems to offer much the best way forward for Welsh korfball.
Potential Changes to British Korfball, Proposal E
As referred to earlier, there are 5 potential structures proposed for British korfball. I’m intending to examine how Welsh korfball might fit into each one, and the pros and cons for Welsh korfball. In each instance, clubs mentioned are a guesstimate.
Proposal E
National Tier:
Division 1 7 Clubs, currently no Welsh participation, Teams: Mitcham, Trojans, Kwiek, Invicta, Nomads, Nottingham, Bec.
12 games, home and away, double headers with reserve league. Play-offs for teams 1-4 for championship, 6th and 7th face relegation play-offs.
Division 2 7 Clubs, currently no Welsh participation, Teams: Croydon, Kingfishers, North Downs, Norwich Knights, Cambridge Tigers, Supernova, Wildcats.
7 single day tournaments, each hosted by different club, 1 or 2 matches played per tournament. Top 2 teams have promotion play-offs, bottom 2 face relegation play-offs.
Reserve Divison: Mirrors Division 1
Local Tier: Welsh League, containing all teams in Wales.
As with proposals B-D, winners eligible to play against winners of all other Area Association Leagues over weekend for place in National League.
Workload
As proposals B-D, exactly the same as season coming up (ie dependent on structure of Welsh League) plus extra weekend of good competitive games for league winner.
Advantages
Leaves us with a lot of flexibility and control over stucture for Welsh teams.
Very little travel required.
End of season competition should be tough and enjoyable for league winners.
Disadvantages
Step up to NL not quite as big as with Proposal B, but bigger than C or D, because of reduction in teams to 14, promoted team would go from facing Cardiff Uni 2 to Croydon/Kingfishers/North Downs in one season.
Promotion to NL more difficult.
Lots of uneven match-ups and not much variation in opposition for the Welsh teams.
Overall
This is a slight improvement on the situation we have currently but only because it offers a good tournament for the league winners.
Conclusion
Options B-D all offer different versions of how top level Korfball in the UK is to be played. Of them, I like option E best, then C and then D. I dislike option B, as it seems to bring in an American style conference system which to my mind only works when measures are in place to maintain roughly even team abilities. However, unless and until a Welsh club is ready to enter the NL, that’s somewhat academic, and others may well have a different preference.
Option A however does offer a significant opportunity to Welsh korfball and is the option I’m most enthusiastic about. It would require a substantial increase in travel from the Welsh League, and some increase in travel from the EKL for Dragons and City 1 players, and a significant increase in administrative work, but this would be compensated for by more challenging competitions. If the players concerned were happy to do this, this option seems to offer much the best way forward for Welsh korfball.