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It was the photo op that was always going to adorn today’s papers, and the reverse angle showed a media scrum as big as any I’ve seen in recent times.
More television cameras and photographers than have been assembled at the Sydney Cricket Ground in a very long time, I suspect.
And it is a great photo, no doubt one for the poolroom of the promoters, the clubs involved, and probably even the SCG Trust.
Ahead of the Major League Baseball season opener at the SCG this weekend, between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Arizona Diamondbacks, the resident teams of Moore Park were brought together in front of the iconic SCG Members Stand.
Assembled alongside Dodgers’ pitcher Clayton Kershaw and D’Backs’ first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, were Sydney Swans champion Adam Goodes – widely tipped to throw out the first pitch on Saturday night – Sydney Roosters’ dual international Sonny Bill Williams, and Sydney FC’s Italian superstar, Alessandro del Piero.
It didn’t even occur to me when I first saw the image that something was missing.
It wasn’t until noted sports satirist Titus O’Reily made the following observation on Twitter I really started thinking about it.
Rugby Union has announced it’s officially given up. pic.twitter.com/RpYG6Hsil5
— Titus O’Reily (@TitusOReily) March 19, 2014
I reached the obvious conclusion – one I’m sure many others did, too – the absence of a Waratahs’ player was just another massively missed opportunity for rugby. Yet another self-inflicted shot into the code’s foot.
The biggest event to grace the Moore Park precinct in years, and on the same weekend the Waratahs host the Melbourne Rebels on Friday night next door at Allianz Stadium, and rugby couldn’t even arrange a representative for a photo op.
Trying to wrack my brain to come up with even the slightest hint of plausible reason for the no-show, all I could come up with was ambivalence.
Knowing Wednesdays are often off-days for the NSW players – and particularly yesterday, given they play on Friday – all I could foresee was the Tahs either not wanting to call someone in on their day off, or they couldn’t find a volunteer.
After all, Waratahs players Jono Lance, Cam Crawford, and their new cult hero and South African marquee man, Jacques Potgieter, had taken part in that simultaneously awkward and funny promo video, where they sang “Take me out to the ballgame” along with players from the Roosters and Swans.
Hoping there was a better reason than apathy, but fearing there wasn’t, I fired off a text to the Waratahs last night. And it was obviously a hot topic for them, because I got a call back almost immediately.
“We’re absolutely gutted,” was the Tahs’ spokesperson’s response to my question as to why no Waratahs player was present.
It turns out that what I was ready to deride as rugby’s massively missed opportunity, was actually a kick in the pants for the code of… well, major league proportions.
The Waratahs had and have been working enthusiastically with the Sydney MLB season opener promoters the whole way through, and an invitation did indeed come the Waratahs’ way. They were thrilled to be part of it, despite the relative short notice.
However, when the Tahs weren’t able to deliver the requested Israel Folau for the op, due to prior sponsor engagements organised by Folau’s management team on his day off, the Waratahs were given short shrift.
“It’s Izzy, or no-one,” they were told.
They offered up their captain, David Dennis. They offered up any of their high profile Wallabies including Adam Ashley-Cooper, or Michael Hooper, or Tatafu Polota-Nau. Not good enough, they were told.
“It’s Izzy, or no-one.”
And it’s history now that the vision on the news last night, and in the pictures in the papers this morning, all contain the shot with the Dodger, the Diamondback, the Swan, the FC’er, and the Rooster.
But no Waratah.
This should be ringing gigantic alarm bells for the code.
If the promoters of a major sporting event taking place next door to the home of a major Australian rugby team don’t believe any other rugby players fit the profile of their organised media event, then rugby has a massive relevance problem on its hands.
If people don’t want to be associated with you, your sales job isn’t going very well.