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I know what you are all thinking. You’re worried about the addition of the Argentinian and Japanese teams to Super Rugby – but I’m here to tell you to R-E-L-A-X.
Share our game with the world
People seem to quickly forget that Australia, New Zealand and South Africa don’t own the rights to rugby as a whole.
We can’t afford to be selfish with rugby; we need to spread it as best we can. I’d like to think that in the not too distant future rugby becomes so jam packed full of talent that we need to allow more teams into the Rugby World Cup.
Much like the FIFA World Cup, we can create a tournament where nothing is set in stone and anybody has a real chance to knockdown anybody.
This will of course require the majority of players in each team to be playing professional rugby of some sort. This is where established club competitions around the world come in.
The benefits and my concerns
Super Rugby is doing the sport a service by expanding it’s borders and allowing pro rugby players in Argentina and Japan the opportunity to play the sport they love in the country of their birth. In Japan’s case, they are allowing the opportunity to focus solely on the sport they love rather than simply working for corporations and then playing rugby later that week, usually for the same corporation.
I am not blinded by the love of the sport however. I am aware there will be some obstacles to overcome but that is no reason to stunt the growth of the sport.
This will also open us up to different styles of rugby from different teams. The Argentinians are a good example. Although similar to the Saffas, the Pumas have an almost unstoppable scrum and maul that sets them apart from any other team.
The same goes for the Japanese, who are very quick skilful and tactical and have strong forwards that are underestimated by the majority of rugby fans.
It’s not all sunshine and lollipops though, as I too have a few issues. Firstly, I’m not really sure how Japan alternating home grounds with Singapore is going to work but I’m not going to whine about it.
I’m going to wait and see how they work their way around it, and if they don’t and it becomes a big issue, everybody can collectively moan – but let’s do it then.
But my biggest hope is that they don’t just become the national teams in the SR competition.
I’d like to see the Argentinians employ a few Uruguayans and the Japanese to employ a few Koreans or Hong Kong players.
I hope they blood new talent so they can create stars in the making who play against world class opposition for the majority of their careers.
In turn, this will create a generation of kids that want to replicate that and continue the cycle of rugby talent in these countries.
Other ways to grow the sport
I don’t think that Super Rugby should be the only competition doing this. I would love if one of the higher ranking European Leagues would take in a Georgian Team or even a Romanian team or better yet a mixture of the two.
I would say there would also be space for an American team, but they seem to be big enough to create a league on their own.
I do believe the quality of that league would increase should they choose to include the similarly ranked Canadians in their venture – adding in that strong rivalry they have in almost any sport.
I think the sport would also benefit from a Champions League style competition where the top four or so sides from every club competition get sorted into groups and we get to see who really is the best club side in the world.
Having that competition located in a different country each year we could bring world class rugby to the masses and create more of a cult following to our clubs similar to what we see in football.
Try to keep an open mind
I hope everyone can keep an open mind about Super Rugby in 2016 because I believe you will be surprised about how smoothly it runs. Yes there will be some critics but there already is.
Obviously I wouldn’t expect too much from these new teams in the first year, but I don’t believe that they’ll be complete whipping boys regardless.
In the second year they will have found their comfort zone by knowing the pace, skill, strength and tactical ability required to be competitive in the league – as opposed to the first year of diving head first into the unknown.
Some people need to realise that in any league someone has to come last. If that does happen, it is hardly a reason to freakout.
Maybe, if they get completely decimated in every match and fail to win throughout the season, there will be cause for concern but in all honesty I don’t see that happening at all.
I don’t quite understand why some people are calling for an islander team when all of those island nations are behind Japan and Argentina in rank anyway. Yes there are quite a few islanders already in the league, but their countries most likely don’t have the money to support such a team anyway.
I feel this can only grow the sport further and allow greater opportunities for the world of rugby as a whole, enticing more promising young athletes to take up our game whatever country they may hail from.
They will know that through hard work and determination they can eventually find themselves on the world stage, honing their skills against the best in the business.
Thank you for taking the time to read this – see you next year on the sidelines.
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.