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101-0. It sounds like a reasonable opening partnership. But no, it actually refers to the scoreline in a recent schoolboy rugby match in Sydney between the First XV for The Scots College and the First XV for Newington College.
A number of people have weighed in on the impact of this result, including former Wallaby captain and current Chairman of the NSWRU Nick Farr-Jones.
To quote from Peter Munro’s recent article in the Sydney Morning Herald: “Farr-Jones said drastic change was needed to Sydney’s most prestigious schools association to protect boys from harm and to stop such mismatches. Private schools should also cap the number of athletes on lucrative sports scholarships to ensure a level playing field”.
What sparked my interest, was that on the same day that Scots was raising the century against Newington, Sydney University was celebrating it’s 10th consecutive Club Championship with a clean sweep in all seven grades, including an 85-19 win in first grade against Eastern Suburbs.
Over the last 10 years, Sydney University have won over half of all the Sydney Premier Rugby competitions. To put that into context, the next most successful club (in terms of premierships) is Randwick, with fewer than 10 per cent of the premierships available.
Five clubs – Manly, Souths, Warringah, Parramatta and Penrith – have three premierships between them in that time. Balance and a level playing field do not seem to be evident in Sydney Premier Rugby.
But it’s not just about the lack of premierships which is an issue. This season Penrith, as a club, won 10 of the 108 matches it contested. Teams playing against Penrith scored, on average over 50 points per match.
Penrith conceded over 100 points in a match, not once, not twice, but five times during the season.
And 2014 isn’t a one off. Penrith’s first grade team over the 10 years between 2004 and 2013 won 13.6 per cent of their matches, and their first Colts team won only 3.3 per cent! That’s right, fewer than one in 20. In contrast, Sydney University’s first grade team won close to 80 per cent of their matches, and their first Colts teams won nearly 92 per cent.
And even though concerns have been raised, nothing seems to be happening. This isn’t a question of knocking success, but a realisation that the playing field is not equal in Sydney Premier Rugby.
And the thing is, it matters. If rugby is to succeed in this country, it needs to succeed in Sydney, especially the west. Rugby league has always been strong in the area, but with the push from the AFL with the GWS Giants and the A-League with the Western Sydney Wanderers, rugby needs to focus attention on the area.
The Super Rugby final is being played at Homebush. The inclusion of the Greater Sydney Rams in the National Rugby Championship will provide a great opportunity for NSW Rugby to focus on finding a way to create a level playing field in Sydney Premier Rugby.
To my mind this should be far more of a pressing concern to it than what is going on in the GPS competition.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.