AS outlined in this newspaper last week, the IRFU yesterday confirmed that the group and semi-final matches in the European Cup next season will take place in October and November. The final is scheduled for January 4th.

Ireland, of course, will again be represented in Europe by Leinster, Ulster and Munster, the top three in the Interprovincial Championship.

The pool and semi-final dates will of course have an influence on the structure of the season in this country. That issue will be the subject for discussion at a special meeting of the IRFU committee in Dublin on Thursday Week.

There have been recent meetings in Ireland, England, Wales and Scotland over the fixture problems, and so many proposals are emanating from them that the table is likely to be weighed down by them.

In that regard, no one has been more active than Peter Wheeler, the chief executive of the Leicester Club. He was chairman of the meeting in London some weeks ago which set up the European Clubs' Association. The meeting also proposed that there should be two European competitions next season, and a two-tier structure.

The top division would consist of 20 teams, the second tier of 32. What was not made clear was whether the body responsible for running the European Cup, ERC, would continue to do so, or if clubs were attempting to take matters into their own hands.

Subsequently, Wheeler was at the heart of a meeting in England to set up another company as the top English clubs broke away from the organisation set up in conjunction with the English union. The top clubs in England want a bigger share of the sponsorship cake from competitions, and a bigger say in administration.

On Monday night the 12 Welsh first division clubs met representatives from the Welsh Rugby Union. The talk in Wales has also been of two European Cup competitions. It now seems as if the proposed Anglo-Welsh competition for clubs not involved in Europe is dying a slow and painful death.

Wheeler is also on record as being opposed to provincial sides entering Europe, and that cuts across both the Irish entry and, now, the Scottish entry as, like Ireland, the Scottish Rugby Union has entered three District sides for the European Cup next season. Since the game went open, it seems as if it is also open season with regard to the game's administration.

All the Irish senior clubs have been invited to attend a meeting at the Old Belvedere pavilion at Anglesea Road tomorrow for an address by Wheeler. That will be followed by a seminar, "Understanding and Managing Change". There will be three speakers, including Wheeler, and the cost of attending the seminar - separate, let me emphasise, from the clubs' meeting - is £120 per person.

With great respect to Wheeler, a man whom I have know for many years and a fine player for England and the Lions, some of the sentiments he has already expressed make it implicitly clear that he does not understand the nature and essence of Irish club rugby. If he did, he would not be opposing the entry of the Irish provinces into the European Cup.

You cannot compare Old Belvedere to Bath or Leicester and Cardiff, either in terms of playing or financial resources. The structure of the game in this country is vastly different to that which obtains in England. In a word, there is not an Irish club capable of entering European competition with the remotest chance of making an impact on it, let alone win it.

On the domestic scene this weekend, the semi-final of the Connacht Senior League between Galwegians and Ballina tops the bill. The league in Connacht resulted in a three-way tie between Corinthians, Galwegians and Ballina. Corinthians drew the bye to the final, Galwegians and Ballina will play on Sunday.

The Ireland team to meet Wales on Saturday week and the A team to meet the Welsh on Friday week will both be announced tomorrow morning.

Finally, at a time when the game is in turmoil, and so many of the old values are being cast aside, it is pleasant to record that there is still a place in it to honour a member of the old brigade. Last night at the Wanderers dinner, Ireland's oldest surviving international, 98-year-old Thomas Wallis, received a presentation from the club, which he captained in the 1920s He also received a presentation from the IRFU president, Syd Millar.

Tom Wallis, a member of a renowned Irish rugby family, was capped five times for Ireland. He now lives in Kent, and travelled especially to attend the dinner.