There is an incorrect perception that rugby union in New South Wales is restricted to Sydney’s North Shore and the eastern suburbs.
These areas may be the heartlands but the game is played throughout the state, from Byron in the North to Bourke in the west and Illawarra in the South.
The Waratahs were once the representative side for the state and as the HSBC Waratahs they should represent all of us.
Some New South Wales rugby supporters no longer identify with the Waratahs. To them it’s Sydney’s team, and given that all Waratahs’ home games are played at the Sydney Football Stadium and ANZ Stadium it is understandable why they feel this way.
There are however those who drive several hours just to watch to a game; that’s how much the Tahs mean to them. The Waratahs must re-engage with the State so that this passion is ubiquitous.
First up the HSBC Waratahs must rebrand themselves and the game in this state. Rugby is not a game for the ‘upper class’ in New Zealand, South Africa, Wales or France; it doesn’t need to be in this State either.
I am certain that Kurtley Beale, Wycliff Palu, Kane Douglas, Berrick Barnes, Sekope Kepu, Atieli Pakalani, Tatafu Polota-Nau and Sitaleki Timani do not think of themselves as Eastern Sydney ‘toffs’.
Not one of the Waratah players has leather elbow patches on his jacket. Union is a game for all shapes and sizes and must be a game for all social classes as well.
In Sydney, the west is the flavour of the month for expansion. The NRL is protecting its turf, while the AFL and A-League are at varying stages of setting up operations.
Union followers feel it is imperative to launch a Super rugby side in Western Sydney so the code doesn’t ‘miss out’. I believe this would be a foolish move.
The AFL and A-League will have a tough job making their new franchises successful. The AFL has the money to weather the storm. Rugby Union does not have the financial resources to support a second Sydney Super Rugby franchise.
However we can still have a strong professional and semi-professional footprint in Western Sydney and Country New South Wales.
The Waratahs can engage with all of New South Wales by several means.
First, spreading the love. The Waratahs play some of their pre-season games in country New South Wales. This is a good start, but the administrators need to go further.
Take one Super Rugby game a year to a country area. Look at the wonders it has done for the Crusaders franchise in 2011.
Admittedly it has brought a financial shortfall, but I’m not asking the Tahs to take all their games to smaller venues, just one country venue a year.
Take another game per year to Western Sydney, beyond ANZ stadium! The 21,000 seat capacity Parramatta stadium is ideal for games against the Force or the Chiefs.
If the eastern suburbs members don’t want to travel, offer them memberships without these games. Take the players to the people when they play in these regions. Visit the schools, the shopping centres and drum up support.
Second, bring all the New South Wales Unions to the party. Brand all the teams in the State with the Waratahs emblem (similar to what League does with the ARL logo). Give the players a tangible connection. All roads lead to the Waratahs.
Third, elevate Rugby in the schools. Bring Union to more schools throughout the State through development officers.
Elevate the Waratah Shield (the state knockout championship) and the State 7s competition in the media.
Make these championships the pre-eminent school trophies in the state, of any sport. If the GPS and CAS schools do not want to participate, antagonise them by declaring the winners the greatest rugby schools in the state.
Promote the Rugby Union successes of schools such as Westfield Sports High, The Hills Sports High, and Matraville High School.
To encourage more schools to enter, offer substantial financial rewards to the winning school.
Fourth, increase the Academy set up. The Waratahs currently have an academy side, but they should set up two more (semi-professional); one in Western Sydney and another representing country New South Wales.
Include these teams in the ARUs National Academy Competition against the other Super Rugby academies.
This will ensure that Western Sydney and country New South Wales get more high quality rugby fixtures while developing a pathway for more New South Wales players into professional rugby.
I believe it’s imperative for the Waratahs to engage with New South Wales. How do you think the Waratahs can become the team of its state?
AngrySeahorse
Guest
Agree with you Rickety. I'm a born & bred Country NSW Rugby fan and for me its too late for the Tahs to win me over. Its not enough to have one or two games in country NSW & then say alright now everybody follow us. The whole comp structure in NSW Rugby is Sydney orientated & doesnt include all of NSW, the Shute shield is Sydney, the schools Rugby players have to come from are mostly elite private schools from Sydney. I'm not ignorant like many non-rugby commentators who think Rugby is an elites persons sport, working class people like me love & play the game but the rep structure at the top is for elites & that is holding the game back, particularly its image. Go the Saders 2012! Please come to Newcastle!
Katipo
Guest
Great quotes pTah. Theyll come in handy at the office. And with the Tahs v Auckland super final only having 10,000 pre sold tickets (more pre sold for game 2 in nelson) maybe that game should have gone somewhere in the Auckland region? ... The locals being asked to support so many world cup matches already at Eden park... which is still such a disappointment with higgeldy piggeldy stands and empty seats so far from the action... It's no wonder they struggle to fill it really.
Crazy Horse
Guest
What I don't get is what has the ARU got to do with it? Doesn't the NSW Rugby Union run rugby in NSW? Rugby WA runs all Rugby in WA. We hardly even hear from the ARU.
p.Tah
Guest
I'm not aware of other codes doing something like this. You have to take your hats off to the AFL, they are very innovative
p.Tah
Guest
Me too and I'd travel to each one of them. For Sydney based families it'd help if the Newcastle and Wollongong fixtures were day games.
Working Class Rugger
Guest
jameswm That spread of games would suit me just fine.
jameswm
Guest
I'm pretty sure the Tahs are under contract to play most of their games at the SFS, but not forever. They play 16 games a year, so 8 home games. I'd say: - one at ANZ - Brumbies or Reds - one at Parra/Penrith stadium - one at central Coast/Newcastle - one at the Gong - 4 at SFS That would certainly be a very radical change from what they currently do. One other comment - the Swans have an Academy for elite kids from age 10 or so. They include kids from other sports. I wonder whether rugby should try the same, but I don't know that there are enough professional rugby players to support it.
Damo
Guest
Katipo, pTah - spot on. Kill the snake NOW.
p.Tah
Guest
Having a Western Sydney academy and possibly a Country academy as well playing in this tournament would go a long way to help develop players who could cover for injuries in the Waratahs squad. Hickey is calling for larger SR squads, this would be an ideal solution.
p.Tah
Guest
Reminds me of a quote from Ross Perot 'if you see a snake, don't appoint a committee to discuss the snake, just kill it'. Next time the SFS contract is up for renewal ensure you can take some games to other venues. Walt Disney once said ' don't tell me why it cant be done, find a way to do it' I agree with your supply and demand comment. The Tahs best attended seasons occurred when there were less home games. Not that I'm complaining about a longer season. The more rugby the better for me, but not everyone wants or can go to every game... so spread the love!
Katipo
Guest
This is just another example of the rugby unions generally being too slow to respond to what the fans want. Taking the Tahs to gosford or parramatta etc should be a simple enough decision. I think the crusaders earthquake relocation has shown the value of playing rugby in small stadiums in regional centers. You lose a few bucks at the gate but you build enormous brand equity. Just get on with it. We don't need five years of meetings to decide this sort of thing. The fans are telling you now. And, I bet if tahs moved a couple of super games from sfs the interest and crowds would go up for the remaining games- which has been a problem has it not - supply and demand yeah.
tubby
Guest
I'd far rather go to parramatta stadium than ANZ for a game. ANZ is great for AFL where you get a view across the span of the park, but horrible for a game like rugby where it's largely in the details. Try to spot ruck infringements from 80 metres away like most seats. comparing crowd figures though - the SFS games didn'thave any real drawcard opponents this year. Brumbies and reds were at ANZ, at SFS they had all the lowest teams in their conferences. no stormers, bulls,sharks, crusaders or blues. i must say I miss the old days of proper tours by incoming teams. have great memories of boks vs a sydney team at penrithabout 15 years back. the waratahs are probably pretty sensitive about any further drops in revenue, the falling attendances hit the bottom line so far
p.Tah
Guest
Next year! I believe the games at ANZ were 35k (Reds) and 28k (Brumbies) from memory. I know quite a few people who go to ANZ because they are members of the stadium, a few of them are Leaguies. At the game on Saturday I saw plenty of NRL caps (bulldogs etc.) and State of Origin jerseys. I was standing next to one family who were decked from head to toe in Newcastle Knights gear and membership scarfs. I wondered if they'd come to the wrong game until they called out 'C'mon Tahs!!' There were by far more Tahs and Brumbies gear but it was an interesting observation. You rarely see the NRL gear at Tahs games at the SFS. I think the fact that these games are blockbusters explains why the numbers are higher than the SFS. I agree it's only cash that's holding us back! A small matter really :) Perhaps it's time for the Tahs to look at a part private ownership model to inject some funds into the state.
Next year!
Guest
The crowds at ANZ have been way bigger than the SFS .....not sure how many free tickets were given away to the ANZ games but hey as they say in the classics ................LOOK AT THE SCOREBOARD With this I am sure a stack of people will complain .....but the question remains ...why don't you go the SFS then and why are the crowds so low at the SFS and consistently higher at ANZ ?? Believe it or not there IS a demand for Rugby in Sydney's west ...it's a lot more than people think. As for the other idea's - they all sound great ....BUT they will co$t ca$h and the Waratah's are bleeding ca$h at the moment because crowds are down ........ I suggest you all get a few more games next year and then maybe the oppurtunity to move a few games may be feasible . Unfortunatley it is a professional sport now and the bottom line rules ...................
Damo
Guest
Biggest, the point about the WS franchise is that it is future talk. And it requires agreement from SA and NZ admins to expand the SR comp. The Tahs, theoretically could be there next autumn. No need to discuss with any other national union. ( Don't the Kiwis and Saffas just love to support Aussie rugby expansion. BTW in case some folks think this thread is about expansion in an imperialist sense. It is not. These places are traditional rugby regions in the oldest rugby state in Australia. These places are now occupied with other codes. Rugby needs to act ASAP to stem the potential flow out of the game. And to bolster our quality teams with grass roots support.
Damo
Guest
Dear Mr O'Niell, We, the above, more or less agree that the time has come for top-level rugby to be taken to the said neglected locations. This expansion is envisaged for the sake of the fans, but also for the spirit, encouragement and player depth it would bring to elite rugby. If you have plans to act on this immediately please inform us. If not, please explain why not. Regards, The Crowd
Worlds Biggest
Guest
agree with most of this piece however disagree with the comment arguing against having a Super team based in the West. At the moment there isn't a lot of dough in the ARU coffers however how long before the next expansion, 2-3 years ? In that time surely the right consortium can gte it up and running. Rugby has a presence & following in many parts of the West and Greater West of Sydney. It may not be in the Schools yet but it should be on the ARU agenda if it's not already. Why cede this area of great population and in some area's wealth to AFL, Soccer and Rugby League. Rugby needs a Super team based in Parramatta / Penrith full stop. As for the Tahs playing 1 game a year outside of Sydney. I think it's a great idea with Gosford or Newcastle logical destinations.
Working Class Rugger
Guest
Damo It is in theory but in practice currently the Tahs are under certain contract agreements (.ie. ANZ) but it would just be nice to see it happen a little more often.
Working Class Rugger
Guest
simon Exactly, if the Tahs actively look to engage the Western Sydney community then the need for a Western Sydney team would fall away in my opinion, but, it has to happen. Setting up a Western Sydney Rugby Academy expanding on the one they have out of the Hils Sports High would be a good start. Queensland would be wel advised to look to do the same with the Gold Coast. Both these would be good additions to the expanded Pacific Rugby Championship we saw this year that from next is supposed to include not only the three PI domestic teams but all the Aus and NZ SR academies. Or that's what I have have read from a source (anonymous) who was on the money about the fixtures this seeason. Sought of a SR reserve grade.
Damo
Guest
PTah with respect to the marketing professional- this is an infrastructural issue. A marketing person can only polish the proverbial ---- so far . At some point and I believe we are past it, an executive needs to make a structural decision. And not to decide is a decision in itself. To this point the Tahs Czars have decided that rugby fan and player markets are best suited to the current eastern based systems.?!!??!! No I don't think they even look at it this way because they are caught up with old allegiances in the east and lower north. Simply put what we are proposing is in conflict with those who want a short trip to a nice night at the rugger. I hope Someone can prove me wrong but I fear that I am right.