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Riding a wave of rugby public goodwill and support, the ARC has defied expectations of being the dead man walking of the Australian sporting landscape. In barely three weeks the ARC has shown that it is capable of producing the quality of rugby required to fill the cavernous gap between Super 14 and club rugby. But should the competition be trying to achieve more?
First and foremost the role of the ARC is to provide a national competition that better prepares more players for Super 14 honours and higher. No doubt this competition will also go one step further in reducing the ‘league dropout’ that has robbed so many players from Australian rugby over the years. Fundamentally however, the ARC is set up to aid other teams in the competitions above it. Should the administrators of this competition have set their sights so low?
A realistic and long term goal should be to one day raise the standard of each ARC team until they are competitive with the New Zealand and South African Super 14 teams. By the time this happens the Super 14 competition will most likely have changed dramatically. Whatever shape the new Super rugby competition should take it must be the ARU’s focus to eventually enter the ARC teams into that competition. That is, to replace the current Super 14 teams with new ARC teams.
This would allow Australian rugby supporters to follow the same team in Super rugby at the start of the season and then in the ARC later in the season. This idea borrows heavily on the northern hemisphere model of using multiple competitions to fill a season. Contrary to what some Australian rugby commentators have written this is not really that difficult a concept for Australian supporters to grasp.
What this would mean is a reduction in the exposure of the state teams. It would not, however, mean an end to them. Interstate competition could still be contested however in a much reduced capacity. If we expect those at the bottom of the food chain, the clubs, to accept a shift in their traditional position in Australian rugby, why shouldn?t we expect those at the top, the states, to eventually do exactly the same?
Its all for the good of the game.
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.