Introducing the Port Ember Rugby Union Blackstone Premier Cup
The Port Ember Rugby Union Blackstone Premier Cup, or Blackstone Premier Cup for short, is the most prestigious pure domestic rugby union competition within the Republic of Port Ember, held annually at stadiums all across the Ember Archipelago.
History
Despite Rugby Union being a very popular sport within the Republic, it never managed, historically, to garner the sufficient economical and political support it required in order to compete on the international stage - instead remaining confined to university and local private club level.
Just prior to the commencement of the 28th rendition of the Rugby World Cup, the local and university teams gathered together a ragtag team, and managed to earn an invite to the grandest stage of them all for their sport. As could be expected, it went absolutely terribly. The team played four matches in the group stages - losing all four matches, without picking up a single try.
Despite the utter humiliation that the team, and the entire nation by extension suffered at the hands of the World Cup - it did result in a silver lining. The ruling government realised that there was an ever growing demand for the sport to be taken seriously on a national level - and in reply, the Port Ember Rugby Union (PERU) was established, in an effort to professionalise the sport.
Immediately after its formation, PERU followed the example of the Port Ember Football Association, and established a young international team which consisted of young talent who had zero club affiliations at that moment. The idea was to train up a national team of players, to conform to international standards and skills - who could be assigned to newly established professional clubs, after international exposure and a new fan base were established, which would raise the standard of the sport throughout the nation.
This project was launched with one Garry Keeves as the head coach, training the team everyday for 4 years. Just prior to the commencement of World Cup 29, Garry left the project, and was replaced by Alex Renvier, hailing from Neu Engollon, in an attempt to lead the team to glory and experience.
World Cup 29 was thus considered to be the first "unified, professional" attempt at international rugby for the nation. Despite achieving poor results on paper, failing to move past the group stages, the team did manage to show tremendous promise, putting up spectacular displays of skill and passion against some of the best teams in the sport.
Port Ember was forced to withdraw from World Cup 30, as all sporting events, amongst others, were cancelled due to the serious safety risks posed by a large-scale terror campaign which rocked the nation and claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of civilians.
With the terror campaign won by the tropical islanders, the streets of the Archipelago have become safe once more, and the quest for rugby glory was renewed. In an attempt to sky rocket the sport back into international contention, the Ministry of Sports invested billions of Aurums into various sectors of the sport, creating the largest leap of any sport in the nation's history.
The Port Ember Rugby Union Blackstone Premier Cup was established as a direct result of the sport's rejuvenation.
The competition is about to commence its inaugural season.
Sponsorships & Partnerships
Main Sponsor:
The main sponsor of the competition is Blackstone Aviation Pty Ltd, hailing from the Blacklake Borough in Port Ember Megalopolis, is an international military aerospace company headquartered within Port Ember. Due to being the main financial sponsor for the competition, the cup has been named in their honor.
Special Sponsorship Status: Official Beverage:
The Lillith Rose Lager, brewed by Aleworks Breweries Pty Ltd, hailing from the Greendfields Borough of Port Ember Megalopolis, is the official beverage of the competition.
Official Broadcaster:
The following Broadcasters has acquired the TV rights for all matches of the competition, for a period of four years:
Port Ember
- Premium Sports 1
Official Kit Partner:
Ultimate Sports Pty Ltd, hailing from the Waterstad Borough of Port Ember Megalopolis, is the official kit partner of the competition, being the sole uniform, balls and other equipment supplier to every team within the competition.
Official Gym Equipment Partner:
Real Steel Gym Equipment Pty Ltd, hailing from the Waterstad Borough of Port Ember Megalopolis, is the official gym equipment partner of the competition, being the sole gym and training equipment supplier to every team within the competition.
Format
The Blackstone Premier Cup is contested by a total of 15 domestic rugby union clubs, playing double round robin, with each team playing each other twice, once at home and once away. The winner of each match receives four competition points; if the game is a draw two points were awarded to each team, and a loss would net no points.
At the conclusion of the double round robin stage, the four top teams according to points will contest within the semi-finals, with the first placed team hosting the fourth placed team, and the second placed team hosting the third placed team. The final is then played at a neutral stadium, currently the largest stadium in the nation, the Lilly Black Memorial Stadium.
Teams
The competition includes 15 of the best regional rugby union teams, organised by regional lines. With the exception of the 06 teams originating from Port Ember Megalopolis, every team represents an entire individual island of the archipelago.
The following teams are included within the competition:
- Lilly Black RUC
- Waterstad RUC
- Gold Coast RUC
- Greenfields RUC
- Nirvana RUC
- Blacklake RUC
- Redmond RUC
- Greenford RUC
- Oxbay RUC
- Falaiseville RUC
- Beras RUC
- Amanaki RUC
- Salazaar RUC
- Thurston RUC
- Valonia RUC
Trophy
Champions
Season 1: Lilly Black RUC
