Before anyone says anything, yes, this is another ‘what if’ regarding some sort of national Rugby competition. This time around, the focus has changed to using some of our existing development infrastructure to achieve this aim.
We currently have four Academy set ups with the likelihood of a fifth to be established in the not too distant future. This likely occurrence, along with the bids from Western Sydney, the Gold Coast and NSW country, can provide Rugby an opportunity to establish a third tier of a high standard as well as involving the three failed bids plus a couple of targeted regions.
An Academy based championship could alleviate several issues that currently hinder Rugby’s development in Australia. Issues such as depth, opportunity and the warehousing of talent have all presented challenges that Rugby has had a difficult time dealing with.
The model I envisage runs similar to that of the NPC. A one round championship with a five team finals series similar to the final series now runs in the Shute Shield, run directly after Super Rugby during the Tri- Nations. Again, similar to the NPC.
The teams are simple, though I’d suggest that a slight name change of the current academies. NSW could be Sydney, QLD to Brisbane, ACT to Canberra and Force to Perth.
In addition to the current set up, the Victoria academy would enter under the moniker of Melbourne. Western Sydney, Gold Coast and NSW country would also be included to this championship. Furthermore, QLD country would be a worthy entry, with an outsider in the form of Adelaide to round out the numbers.
Going down this path would eliminate the issues that brought an end to the ARC. The major issue being the club involvement that reared its ugly head in 2007.
Even though the IRB has made its ruling regarding the ELV’s, preferably, such a championship would be played under those ELV’s. Let’s face it, where competing for the entertainment factor and Rugby under the ELV’s can be very entertaining (The Shute Shield has been a wonderful to watch). Considering the teams will be manned by non-Wallaby professionals and the academy contracted player, as well as the very best from club Rugby, the standard would be of a considerable standard.
With any luck, such a championship would feed off the current supporter bases as well as break ground with new demographics. It could also be a viable TV product for someone like ONEHD to broadcast.
This set up would involve many more stakeholders, create more defined pathways for young players, help develop the necessary talent for any current and future teams to be and remain competitive. Plus it will make any transition for semi-pro to professional a lot easier for expansion into Super Rugby from an Australian perspective.
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In 2007 he was inducted into the Australian Rugby Hall of Fame and in 2013 the IRB Hall of Fame, acknowledging his reputation as one of Australia’s greatest flyhalves.
