ARU chief Bill Pulver believes he remains the best man to lead Australian rugby out of its state of turmoil and has no plans to stand down.
World Cup-winning Wallabies coach Bob Dwyer claims Pulver enjoys the support of only “five per cent” of the Australian rugby community and that he and the entire ARU board should resign.
Pulver on Monday said he understood fans’ anguish after the ARU confirmed it would cull one of Australia’s five Super Rugby teams from the 2018 competition some time this week.
But he still plans on standing for re-election next February.
“Look, I acknowledge there’s a lot of heartache out there and, believe me, if I thought stepping aside would advantage Australian rugby in any sense at all, I would do it in a heartbeat,” Pulver said.
“I promise you I am here for the game and that’s the only reason. I am not a professional administrator. I will do one job in my life and that’s in rugby.”
Pulver admitted months of uncertainty around which team would be axed had undoubtedly had an adverse impact on the game.
But he said it was for the greater good of Australian rugby to redirect the millions of dollars it will save annually by cutting either the Melbourne Rebels or Western Force into grassroots development.
“These issues are tough,” he said.
“You’ve basically got some over-arching strategic issues which are negative for all sports; long-term declines in children participating in team sport, behaviours of younger demographics, millennials in particular, who do not consume sport the way previous generations did.
“Those two variables alone have negative impact on revenue and will forever, so this is not a short-term phenomenon.
“Then you’ve got Australia in the context of arguably the most competitive winter sports market in the world and suffering from the challenge of the northern hemisphere having financially greater capability to take our players.
(But) there are strategies we can implement to improve revenues.
“Short-term strategy, better high performance will give you a nice quick hit on revenue. The best long-term strategy is growth in participation: more boys and girls in the game.”
Pulver said he would step aside if he thought someone else was better equipped to do the job.
But ARU chairman Cameron Clyne isn’t sure there is at the moment, saying Pulver is an easy target for the critics.
Clyne said the board agreed that retaining five teams in Super Rugby and investing heavily in grassroots rugby would be ideal.
“But you have to fund it,” Clyne said, challenging opponents of Pulver to come up with a better financial model.
“We’ve not had concrete solutions that demonstrate how you get more money in.
“This is a decision we’ve made today to put money into grassroots. We’ve heard that message and we believe it’s very, very important, but we haven’t seen (better) models.”
Clyne also credited Pulver for rebuilding “badly burnt” international relations with other national federations.
“It’s fair to say that we have achieved a lot at the international table and in SANZAAR, which has benefited Australian rugby enormously,” Clyne said.
“Whatever point Bill and the board decide he transitions out, you want to make sure his successor is set up for success.
“Bill at the moment is doing an extraordinary job.”
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.
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