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At the end of 2012 Israel Folau had decided his experiment with Australian rules football had gone on long enough and was seeking a return to rugby league or a new challenge in rugby union.
History tells us that although he went deep into discussions with the Parramatta Eels, he ultimately signed with the ARU and NSW Waratahs.
Since arriving in rugby Folau has won the 2014 Super Rugby competition with NSW, the 2015 Rugby Championship with the Wallabies and played in the 2015 World Cup in the UK in front of three capacity crowds at Twickenham against England, Wales and the World Cup final against New Zealand.
Folau has been able to travel and play rugby in South America, New Zealand, South Africa, USA, Japan and all over the UK and Europe. Folau is now a global star in rugby and will field numerous lucrative offers to play all over the world before he eventually hangs up his boots.
If Folau had signed with Parramatta, he would have plied his trade tucked away in Western Sydney at Parramatta stadium, would have the 2013 wooden spoon in his trophy cabinet and spent the past six months negotiating the minefield that is the Parramatta salary cap debacle. Folau perhaps may have played in the rugby league World Cup in Manchester, England at the conclusion of the 2013 season and experienced some success at State of Origin level over the past four years.
If you’re a prodigious teenage talent capable of playing both league and union and are currently weighing up which one to choose, a quick case study of Israel Folau’s past four seasons makes rugby union a very attractive option. The problem I believe the ARU has is this. Is anyone communicating the advantages of a rugby union career to the next generation of junior talent?
Rugby union will always be the world game and Australian professional players will travel the globe experiencing the culture and sights of numerous exciting countries. We currently in Australia have a generation of teenagers who via social media and the internet have access to the adventure and excitement that comes with travel like never before.
If sold properly, a professional rugby career is a very attractive proposition for an elite teenager athlete.
Is the ARU capitalising on their product, do our current professional players visit the GPS system around the country and speak about the excitement and travel opportunities a professional rugby career will bring?
Even a Super Rugby professional who hasn’t had the honour of a Wallabies debut will have travelled the world more significantly then his NRL counterpart.
Could the ARU launch a social media campaign and aim it at the next generation of talent promoting the global game that is rugby union and the travel opportunities for professional players? Did the ARU advertise the significance of a British and Irish Lions tour in 2013 and the history surrounding this event?
Are the next generation of elite junior talent aware of the significance and prestige that comes with being selected to represent Australia in this tour? Are they aware that even the Australian Super Rugby franchises are able to be a part of this contest and play against the British and Irish Lions?
There are additional subtle messages the ARU could communicate to the next generation of junior athletes. NRL stars Billy Slater and Greg Inglis are former Melbourne Storm teammates of Folau’s. Slater has missed the best part of two seasons with a chronic shoulder injury, while Inglis has limped through the past two seasons with a variety of injuries looking like a shadow of his former self.
Rugby league with the ten metre defensive line has greater collisions and outside backs are expected to do a lot of the grunt work up the middle of the park early in the tackle count.
There is no constant impact on the body in union like there is in the NRL, it’s not to say collision injures don’t occur in union, but not at the frequency of the NRL.
The battering Slater and Inglis have endured compared to Folau is testament to the heavy toll league can take on an athlete compared to union. It’s quite possible Folau will prolong his career and earning capacity if he remains in union, mention earning capacity to the next generation of junior talent and watch the ears prick up.
The winter professional sporting landscape in Australia is like no other country in the world, where three professional codes all compete for elite junior talent capable of forging a career in either profession. For a long time now union has fallen behind the NRL and AFL in nurturing and developing this talent.
It is time to for the ARU to get creative and start promoting and selling the advantages it can offer the elite junior talent in this country.
The single biggest reason we have consistently failed to challenge the All Blacks for the best part of a decade, is the lack of junior talent coming through the ranks. When I look at the All Blacks bench and throw in a couple of other players not even in the squad who would all make the Wallaby starting 15, I think to myself the Australian rugby has a problem.
There is no question the ARU needs to restructure the competition pathway for grassroots rugby and the school system. However, the ARU could develop the perfect blueprint for all competitions from the junior level through to professional rugby, but what is the point of the perfect pathway if you haven’t sold what’s at the end of the rainbow for talent you want to enter the pathway or more importantly remain on the pathway.
The ARU needs to ask itself what is our product, what are its advantages, what can we offer elite junior athletes and how can we communicate this to them. Utilising Israel Folau and the wonderful opportunities the game has afforded him would be a good place to start.
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.