Little in rugby happens without some sideshow diverting attention, and sure enough, one arrived hours before the decisive final round of the United Rugby Championship (URC) in the form of a story in the UK newspaper The Times that gained traction overseas.It stated that South African rugby was “set to leave the Champions Cup”, and Mark Alexander, the Saru president who had hosted a press conference in Cape Town the day before, was the source. The claim piqued my interest because, while a clash of commitments had forced me to miss the press conference, it seemed bizarre that the local rugby media would ignore such a story.Sure enough, it was soon established the reason the South African rugby scribes had missed the major scoop was because it was fake news. Alexander hadn’t mentioned withdrawing from the Champions Cup.The next morning, SA Rugby confirmed this in a press release stating that while in July they plan “a strategic planning session of members and directors of rugby to undertake a thorough review of competitions with a focus on identifying a workable solution to the pressing issue of South African player welfare”, any speculation about outcomes belongs in the realm of supposition.That didn’t stop overseas critics from treating it as fact that South Africa was leaving the EPCR. The usual haters came out of the woodwork, with the predominant feeling expressed being one of “good riddance to the Saffas”.It was all the product of a misrepresentation in London of something said in Cape Town, but it did provoke some thought about what items should top the agenda in the review. The player welfare issues may be less rooted in the competitions that South Africa should participate in than they are in the 12-month season that is the product of, first, the simultaneous commitment to the southern hemisphere season internationally and the northern hemisphere at the club level and, second, one of SA Rugby’s stupidest decisions.It was all the product of a misrepresentation in London of something said in Cape Town, but it did provoke some thought about what items should top the agenda in the review. The latter reference is to the Currie Cup being played during the months that should now be the local off-season. That has never made sense to anyone aside from sponsors who want an open window for the competition to be showcased in. When Alexander refers to competition reviews, the scheduling of the Currie Cup would surely be a bigger priority than reassessing the commitment to the EPCR competitions, of which South Africa is now finally a fully paid-up trustee.It is beyond the remit of local administrators, but an even bigger priority is for SA Rugby to become more forceful with its Sanzaar partners in pressing for the Rugby Championship to be rescheduled into the same window as the Six Nations.As it stands, the Springboks are involved in the Rugby Championship from August to the beginning of October, which is when they should be having their offseason and preseason.Playing international rugby in February to March would be a huge change for New Zealand and Australia, and you can understand their reticence, but what is the championship without the Springboks? The Aussies are more aligned to the thinking than they were, so maybe a little brinkmanship could swing the final stumbling block, which is the Kiwis.However, if South Africa is going to remain committed to the northern hemisphere season through the URC, this country staying in the Champions Cup has to be a non-negotiable. It is the most prestigious competition, and while it has yet to catch on here, in time, once South African teams start going deeper in the competition, locals will buy into it.Exciting though the URC has been, the Champions Cup is a level up, and the quest to finish in the top eight to qualify for the Champions Cup is such a big part of the URC narrative. It is hard to see how South African sides can continue being part of the URC without also playing in the EPCR competitions.The South African clubs have some building to do before they can compete effectively across two fronts, but winning the Champions Cup has to be the Holy Grail. Without that ultimate goal to play for, the URC becomes a bit ho-hum.