Two articles this week struck me as particularly interesting. First, Jake White’s outspoken statement regarding the lack of feeder systems in Australian rugby. Second, the announcement of the Cheetahs’ squad.
Despite being ousted from the most recent major tournament by the Wallabies, few could argue that Springbok depth at the World Cup wasn’t superior to almost any other side in world rugby.
The All Blacks’ renowned depth went a long way to securing their World Cup triumph. However, the Boks had back ups in several positions that were more dangerous than the All Blacks equivalents. And perhaps with better coaching in the years leading up, those players would have had a more significant role to play. But that’s another story.
Regardless of results, New Zealand and South African rugby have shown greater depth of talent in the last 10 years or so. Australian rugby enjoyed a bumper year in 2011, with the Reds taking out the Super Rugby tournament and the Wallabies finally lifting the Tri Nations trophy.
But despite the Reds’ success, the other Australian Super Rugby teams languished well behind their South African and New Zealand rivals, much as they have done in the past 10 years. Much of the Reds’ success can be put down to the skill of coach Ewen McKenzie in developing promising players, rather than superior depth.
The 2012 Cheetahs team contains a large chunk of players who have come up through the Currie Cup (the SA National Provincial Competition), the Varsity Cup (a televised national university competition), and the Vodacom Cup (the feeder division for the Currie Cup).
All of these sides are made up of guys who have come up through a nationally competitive school rugby system, which feeds into junior versions of the provinces that make up the Currie and Vodacom Cups and therefore, the Super Rugby teams.
My knowledge of the New Zealand system is limited, but from what I can gather, the set up is similar. The aim is to create a large network of talented players that feeds into an ever-growing player development system.
While South Africa’s superior rugby systems may have not been brought international success outside 2007-2009, this is more down to operations at a first XV level than any issue with player development. With the right coaching staff, South Africa can become a permanent powerhouse of franchise and international rugby.
South Africa’s superior junior systems make the All Blacks’ continued dominance all the more admirable. South Africa, with a stronger set up and close to three-fold the number of registered players, has failed to dominate Super and international rugby to the extent New Zealand has in the professional era.
Just think, when was the last time a New Zealand Super Rugby team received the wooden spoon? Even more importantly, what’s the longest time the All Blacks have not been ranked number one in world rugby?
All international rugby unions have a lot to learn from the strength and depth of New Zealand and South African rugby. With respect to Australia, my focus is the South African Varsity Cup, which has enjoyed phenomenal success despite being relatively new. It is starting to grow into an equivalent of the American college football scene, on a less sensationalised scale.
Considering the strength and wealth of the major universities in Australia across the major states, and the added bonus of players receiving an education, the Australian Rugby Union must invest in a system like the Varsity Cup.
A university-based system may be the key to developing young players and creating an adequate feeder system in Australia, picking up the slack from the failed Australian Rugby Championship.
Universities in the major rugby states of NSW, WA, Victoria and Queensland would take part in a national multi-team comp that would be played in the background of Super Rugby during the academic year. This could be helped by a high school level varsity rep system, whereby local students to the teams could be picked in an u19’s team that would help select Australian Schoolboys and give young men the chance to get educated through rugby at top universities around the country.
It’s only an idea, but Australian rugby needs a shake up.
Coming from one of the most experienced coaches in the world, who went from a school first XV coach to a World Cup winning mastermind, the idea has some merit.
We should all take note and try and put some pressure on the ARU to act on what could be the only reason for Australia not lifting as much silverware as it could in the next decade of professional rugby.
State club systems, both in major comps and subbies, have hundreds of players who could take the next step given the opportunity that this system would provide. Many would also benefit from the added bonus of offering a quality education to secure their post-rugby lives.
It’s time for Australian rugby to grab the other codes by the preverbial bollocks, show them how its done, and deliver measured success.
teddy
Guest
Regardless of the idea, the notion that australian rugby somehow needs a makeover to improve its embarrasing lack of depth is spot on. Having just watched the Force/Waratahs game I cant believe the best we have behind Quade is Halangahu and Stannard. No disrespect to those players, but they just arent top class. I looked at NZ conference and with Dan Carter still out, Sopoaga Barrett Bleyendall, Cruden, Slade have all stepped up. Its not like that in Australia. We need to do something to create more depth, and if we cant sustain another competition like the ITM cup or Currie Cup, then looking into something like this is a good thing.
Bakkies
Guest
Does the NZRU have the finances to run a loss making women's NPC considering they are struggling to support the mens comp?
ruggerman
Roar Rookie
how is it ridiculous?!?!?! you say it and then you don't have an arguement mate...give me a better alternative to create a consistent, streamlined mode of development? If the concept has the backing of the aru, obviously they would be contributing to the scholarships of players earmarked by the ARU through the schools development ranks. And noone said anything about non-rugby playing states being part of it., that would be stupid. if it were based through universities located near super rugby teams, i don;t see how it would 'make no sense'. You make no sense mate. Instead of coming out of the blue and fobbing off the article and the idea as if there is no solution to a problem that has been highlighted by both your national coach and a world cup winning coach who now operates in the australian system, how about you either write your own piece on whatever phenomenal idea you have up your sleeve, say something constructive or go have another pie and F*&^ off
Sharminator
Roar Rookie
More than 80% of Austrlaian Super 15 players are originally from NSW or Queensland, and get signed to super contracts after playing in the Sydney or Brisbane club competitions. The idea of a Varsity cup simply does not fit in with the realities of Australia´s player numbers and where players come from. In conrtrast in South Africa or US college sports players are spread fairly evenly between different regions. Australian Universities are not going to fund or give scholarships to rugby players so the Australia can have a University Championship, and I cant see budding young rugby talent voluntarily relocating to Adelaide or Melbourne to play for a university team .. when they could be playing getting top level coaching and be playing with ex test players and with super rugby players in Brisbane or Sydney club rugby. You are all talking pie in the sky. Im all for some form of intermeidiate level .. a sustainable second tier between club and super rugby .. but this university rugby idea simply makes no sense.
Nathan of Perth
Guest
Scholarships aren't the hugely important commodities over here that they are in the US because of HECS/FEE-HELP. So that is something of a stumbling block.
Sharminator
Roar Rookie
ummm .. in under 20 worlds cups 2nd, 3rd and 4th in the last 3 years .. which is actually better then our performance in the last 3 Rugby World Cups (2nd 2003, quarterfinalists 2007 - equal 5th, and 3rd 2011). In terms of the system working ... Last year a young Qld side won the Super 15 and if you look at the most exciting young talent in world rugby today .. Beale and O´Connor would be among the top 5. Australia has never had a huge pool of rugby talent ... but on the other hand we have had a tradition of backing young players for the wallabies, perhaps before they woudl have been selected if they were from NZ/SA or England.
Sharminator
Roar Rookie
What is called a scholarship? Not a particularly enlightening contribution ruggerman. Maybe you expect universities in non rugby playing states to start providing rugby scholarships so Australian rugby has a 2nd tier? Never going to happen. Trying to impose a university competition on Australian rugby to become some form of super rugby pathway is simply ridiculous, it has no tradition, and makes no sense, especially based on the distribution of players in Australia.
ruggerman
Roar Rookie
again, it's called a scholarship, guys. If the university structure came to the fore, scouts would obviously not only be looking at private school players. The school representative system takes players from all sorts of schools and then comes up with state and then national teams. why would it not be a feasible concept to have university clubs selecting out of those talent pools, offering scholarships to their universities and playing contracts?! that's hardly what you could call shortsighted
ruggerman
Roar Rookie
sharminator, it's called a scholarship mate.
ruggerman
Roar Rookie
The South African Varsity cup only allows player with 3 or fewer super rugby caps to be eligible to play for their uni....players with more caps play in the vodacom or currie cups......As Australia does not have the same provincial set up, alternative eligibility rules would need to be established, but seeing as you'd want the comp to be running in behind the super rugby comp, it wouldn;t be a major issue, but a great way to identify young guys playing at a near professional level in the instance of an injury crisis or a period of rebuilding for a super rugby franchise.
ruggerman
Roar Rookie
it works does it? Just enlighten me on how the australian u20's team have done at the u20's world cup in the last 5 yrs...
scottmit
Guest
From what I've seen the private schools are not interested in playing sport outside the competitions they've been part of for over a century. They are intensely conservative. Their world does not revolve around rugby - the rowing is equally important - and the mantra is about participation not just the elite. The winter competitiion, which generally includes Rugby, Soccer, Aussie Rules plus a number of minor sports, operates for only 12 or so weeks. They are not the competitions or teams to hang your development on.
Sharminator
Roar Rookie
exactly ... I moved to Sydney Uni when I was 17 .. from Tasmania .. because I wanted to play a higher standard of rugby ... that sa,e year there were also players from Victoria, SA, and Northern Territory who had all played schoolboys for their state, who moved to Sydney Uni too .. for the same reason.
Bakkies
Guest
Sydney Uni also gets a lot of the talent from other states that move to Sydney to play club rugby.
mania
Guest
chiris - u seem to have the right idea. with all the money aru makes you'd think they'd be able to implement it. 100 years of rugby and 15 years of super you'd think someone would've thought of this by now. until aus get a grass roots structure going they'll always be a country that can find 15 good to great players that can get to the top. the hard part is staying at the top and for that you need player depth i hope that ARU's first strategy for getting to the masses isnt thru varsity. its shortsighted and only lends to the meme that rugby is for the ric private school snobs
AngrySeahorse
Guest
Maybe the rules are different from one uni to the other. My Uni (Newcastle) allows students & non students to play for its Rugby club. Perhaps other Unis would just need to follow this. Uni's should be community clubs, there should be benefits for those playing for the Uni if they are a student (our Uni gives rego discounts for eg) but really, the Uni's should be open to whoever wants to play there regardless of education. Lots of people follow college teams in American football who have never had anything educationally to do with that particular college.
Bakkies
Guest
Ireland has university rugby teams in national comps like UL-Bohs, UCC, TCD, UCD and I think Queens University in Belfast have a side too. I am not sure if Galwegians are tied to a school or a college. The National University (NUI) is in Galway so probably provides a fair amount of players. Schools old boy sides are strong in Dublin (Belvedere, Terenure, Old Wesley, Blackrock) and play in high standard competitions. The Leinster schools cup prob the equivalent of the Waratah Shield is a strong competition.Clongowes in Kildare is producing a good amount of players. There was an element of elitism in Dublin rugby particularly in the D4 postcode however Leinster has branched out province wide and is reaping the benefits in terms of interest and quality of players coming through (O'Brien is from Carlow, Kearney brothers from Louth, Heaslip from Kildare for instance) . The Waratahs need to look at how Leinster has reached out to the masses and turned in to a powerhouse. Munster has a schools cup but the club base is strong Australia only really has three strong university sides. Queensland Uni, Sydney Uni and QUT. ANU-Norths wouldn't be able to compete against the first two teams. It's no coincidence that the Brumbies tying themselves together to Uni of Canberra came under Jake White's watch (he is a former teacher too). It is possible that the Brumbies operations will completely move out to UC. Munster, Ulster and Leinster use university facilities for training and the benefits have been obvious.
allblackfan
Guest
The link is here. It's contained in a NZRFU online publication called Onside. Open the pdf document and turn to p18, headlined women's rugby. Other interesting development tidbits in Onside as well http://www.nzru.co.nz/about_us/publications
Ian Whitchurch
Guest
Alternatively, rugby union could extract the digit and actually, like, make a national club competition. The NEAFL is a really good model to follow, but this would involve competent administration, so the odds of it happening in rugby are somewhere between zero and nil.
Ian Whitchurch
Guest
"lets not forget they are getting a $25,000 per year in education and books for FREE." And once you're cut, then not only your scholarship but also the coaching through your classes, the tutors and the various assistance disappears. Oh. You failed. Ahh well, you spent all your time learning how to be a footy player and none of it learning how to be a student so you failed. Oh well, you didnt make the team and theres another crop of high schoolers on scholarships next year, and, frankly, we dont give a damn. Keep lying to yourself about full time, if unpaid, professionals being "student athletes". Heck, the NCAA wont even pay workers comp.