Super Rugby has kicked off again for another season. The competition is often billed as the best rugby competition in the world, but unless you’re an ardent fan, or one with more than a passing interest, you’d hardly know it had started.
This underwhelming feeling is certainly the case in New Zealand, and it happens year after year. Amazing, considering it’s the so-called ‘home of rugby’.
Testament to this feeling of being underwhelmed are the poor crowds seen at Wellington and Melbourne, which in my opinion, were a disgrace and should have the administrators running searching for answers.
The Hurricanes crowd in particular was unacceptable. There is no other word for is. Next month, at Newtown Park in Wellington, there will be a bigger, more raucous and more passionate crowd at the McEvedy Shield game.
For those of you who don’t know what the McEvedy Shield is, it’s an annual athletics competition between the top four boys’ schools in Wellington (Rongotai College, St. Pat’s Silverstream, St. Pat’s Kilbirnie, and Wellington College).
Have a look at footage of the competition on Youtube to see what I mean.
There looks to be a serious disconnect between the Hurricanes’ franchise and its fan base, possibly brought about by the continual failure of the team to win any silverware, although Upton Park (capacity 35,000) still sells out each week despite the fact West Ham United have never won the premiership, nor have they won the FA Cup since 1980.
There are countless other examples of clubs in various codes across the world who are not successful, but still retain a passionate following – the New Zealand Warriors are a good example of this.
The Hurricanes’ disconnect has been in place for a number of seasons now, and looks so serious that I don’t think winning any silverware will solve the problem for the franchise.
I don’t know who is to blame for the crowd, but the Hurricanes are seriously lucky there is no NRL club based in the capital to show them what marketing professional sports is all about, if there were, there wouldn’t be anyone turning up to watch the boys in yellow.
In any event, the Hurricanes head honchos will get a lesson in the art and science of professional sports marketing later in the year when the AFL juggernaut arrives on ANZAC Day, with the St. Kilda Saints and Sydney Swans game already watering my eyes with anticipation and excitement.
It’s not as if the Hurricanes don’t have any stars either. Just look at Vito, Conrad Smith, TJ Perenara, the up and coming Brad Shields, Savea and Cory Jane. All of these are highly marketable men, modern day sporting heroes.
A good number of them are also hallowed All Blacks.
I think back too, to the Blues and Hurricanes games of old, whether at Eden Park or the Stadium, and always, a crowd of 35,000 was there on hand to watch one of the great rivalries in New Zealand sport, second only in terms of history and passion perhaps to Auckland and Canterbury fixtures (aka Blues vs Crusaders).
I think about the premier traditional clashes in other sports, such as Collingwood and Carlton, or Rangers and Celtic, or Wigan and St. Helens.
Would any of these fixtures be anything other than sold out, year after year? Of course not. So why should Super Rugby settle for anything less, especially if it’s supposed to be ‘the world’s best rugby competition’?
Although I don’t know the exact attendance figure, there looked to be about 5,000 to 10,000 people at the Hurricanes game.
In a stadium built for 36,000, and in a game that has its roots in a fierce rivalry datng back to the 1880s, the rows upon rows and sections upon sections of empty seats looked disheartening.
To have so many empty seats was also unbecoming of the title of ‘world’s best rugby competition’. It took the hype out of the season’s commencement.
Hang on a minute… Did I say the word ‘hype’. What hype?
Oh, that’s right! There is no hype at the start of a Super Rugby season.
There never has been, and judging by the last 16 years since the tournament’s inception, it looks like there never will be.
Any deployment by SANZAR of basic marketing techniques to promote the competition, if they are deploying any techniques at all, is clearly not working. Because as of the morning of 22 February 2013, the day of the Hurricanes and Blues match, no one at my workplace actually knew Super Rugby was starting.
This unacceptable state of affairs will always be the case as long as the ultra-conservative, male, middle-to-upper-class echelon, who abhor any form of aggressive commercialism in rugby continues to run the game.
These are the type of blokes who would have difficulty identifying with their teenage children, let alone with the predominantly working class sports supporting public.
There was a season launch in Auckland for the New Zealand teams, and one in Melbourne for the Australians. The first time I heard about the New Zealand one was on the six o’clock news the same day it happened, two hours after it finished, and I consider myself to have much more than a passing interest in the sport.
In this context though, the term ‘launch’ is just a flash word for a half-day photo session with captains, coaches and players.
It’s also the time we get the annual press statement from Greg Peters, the SANZAR CEO detailing the organisation’s aspirations to expand into fresh, lucrative markets, with references to North America and Asia often thrown up for discussion.
It happens every year.
If Super Rugby is going to be any kind of success in America, the home and holy grail of professional sports and sporting over-hype, then it seriously needs to get it’s act together in the marketing department.
In fact, Super Rugby seriously needs to get its act together in this department just to maintain credibility in the Australasian market.
Everyone knows the real television ratings and crowd numbers in Super Rugby are delivered by the South African segment.
The fact is, without this powerhouse South African arm, Super Rugby would rank embarrassingly low in the scheme of things in terms of Australasian sports.
It might be king in New Zealand, but that’s only because the NRL is re-building.
You get the feeling something big is going to happen in New Zealand soon, with the NRL. Maybe they smell blood.
The word complacency springs to mind when I think of rugby union nowadays. Besides, any prestige gained from the mantle of being the most popular in New Zealand’s is completely offset by the lack of interest and care for the competition in Australia.
One way to change this is for the administrators to at least try and make an effort to create anticipation, hype and interest at the start of the season, so that any person, whether he or she be a casual observer of the game or someone more serious about it, is under no illusions that Super Rugby is about to start.
Contrast this with the approach of the brilliant AFL and NRL.
In the AFL you have the draft and pre-season NAB Cup. The NRL has the All Stars Game, the World Club Challenge, the Charity Shield, the Foundation Cup, and pre-season fixtures.
The latter are increasingly being televised in their own right and drawing crowds and television viewers, as can be seen in the Warriors and Broncos match in Dunedin last night. It was shown live on television, and it’s just a pre-season match. A good crowd of nearly 17,000 showed up to watch.
The AFL and NRL are also masters at using the media and headlines to arouse interest. That’s fair dinkum, because that is what professional sports is about.
The NRL has also run a series of excellent TV ads in New Zealand promoting club memberships. The Warriors have advertised extensively on the New Zealand Herald web site for weeks. Their ads are always popping up on Facebook too, as well as on radio.
There will also be serious promotion both on a national and local scale by the NRL and its partners in the build up to Round One.
All this means is that by the start of both the NRL and AFL competitions, excitement is at fever pitch, a crescendo of anticipation has been created and is about to explode, and the vast majority of seats to most fixtures will be sold, while millions more will watch on TV.
There is the odd shining example in rugby. For example, it’s no surprise the Reds got 35,000 to their grudge match with the Warratahs, despite their limp opening game against the Brumbies.
This is because the Reds are one of the few, if not the only, Super Rugby outfits that actually knows how to market their team and, dare I say it, ‘hype’ them up.
They are the only ones who make the effort and because of this they get 35,000 to every game. They think and act like an NRL club. They agitate and never take anything for granted.
They owe a lot to Jim Carmichael, who is to me, the greatest rugby administrator in the professional era. He understands this game we’re in, and the people his team needs to connect with in order to deliver 35,000 per game, like the Hurricanes used to.
There is an aversion in rugby union circles to ‘marketing hype’, which I put down to the ultra-conservative, but out-dated, nature of its administrators.
But for me, this lack of hype shows a lack of care for the fans. It’s a refusal to get excited about the game, yet they expect, nay demand, ordinary blokes like me get excited about it.
It’s like paying top dollar to go to a fancy restaurant only to have the waiter throw down a plate of cold steak and uncooked chips while saying ‘eat what you’re given, and to hell with you if you don’t like it.’
The rugby administrators could at least show some care and concern by packaging and promoting Super Rugby more carefully and professionally, like the AFL and NRL and any other half decent sports competitions around the world.
If the administrators cared, then we would too. Our enthusiasm (as fans) is a direct reflection of their enthusiasm which is expressed on a mass market scale through hype.
And the sooner rugby administrators understand that basic cornerstone of professional sports, the better.
Scoot
Guest
well how come they get more people to a rebels match than a storm and the storm are winning but the rebels are not
atlas
Guest
Watching Blues v Crusaders at Eden Park - 'over 30,000' say the commentators If Blues win, could be a good season crowd-wise
Jerry
Guest
The annoying thing about that match is that if it'd been a day game it'd have been perfect rugby weather. It was fine and clear, not too hot as you'd expect in June in Wgtn but a good day for rugby. Then at 7pm, the exact moment I got out of my car in Thorndon to walk to the stadium, the southerly rolled in and the rain came down. Luckily for me I've learned not to trust Wgtn weather so I had layers, but the spectacle of the match suffered.
atlas
Guest
I've seen many tests played at the Wgtn Stadium As for crowd numbers, one that stands out is 2008 test AB v Ireland when 32,127 seats were sold, however actual attendance was approx 28,000. reflective of how the weather can be, and maybe how non-commital Wellington rugby fans can be. That was the 'hypothermia test' about as cold as it can get in Wellington. NZ Herald reported another 500 left within the first 20 minutes Pubs were crowded, people got to the city and decided 'b-this' and a bar and a beer instead. "500,200 people watched on Sky Sport 1. 186,900 people watched delayed coverage on Prime TV."
atlas
Guest
Fairly confident I'm the only ex-Pahiatua man here? Shift all the Hurricanes matches to Mangatainoka - 6km north of Pahiatua, 155km north of Wellington. 'toka has population 137, Pahiatua district about 2400. Hurricanes V Chiefs pre-season last month a sellout of 7800 people, as were the previous once a year matches there, held on a converted farm paddock near the Tui Ale brewery. What more could people want, seriously? ______ and, seriously, having once worked/lived in Wellington for about 9 years, maybe they're just not 'rugby people'. My office overlooked the stadium, about 600m walk. 800 staff, yet try to get people to go to a Friday night match . . . every excuse imaginable. Maybe as far as a pub with Sky tv, but in terms of live sport, far more likely they'd go to a Phoenix (football) match. Since then the core of the workers/spenders has been decimated - the government staff cuts have seen thousands (me included) paid off/lose their jobs. I don't predict any improvement in crowd numbers in the future, from memory the lowest attendance at an (now ITM Cup) NPC match was Wellington Lions v Bay of Plenty, 1700 and that may have been exaggerated..
Mike
Guest
Okay, so SA could go it alone; it just chooses not to - got it!
kid k
Guest
ryan south africans would make alot of money if they did decide to go it alone cause super rugby doesnt bring in the bulk of the money in the first place and nobody said anything about leaving the rugby championship (which brings in the money). Another thing the south african economy isnt rife with corruption, if you said nigeria then noone would argue with you but having said that im not saying that there isnt any corruption (but then again who in the world can say their country is free of corruption) and you forget that rugby is only really supported by +-12% of the population and you cant tell me that the other 88% are all broke and living in shacks, rugby still has long way to grow in this market so the answer is yes we could easily go it alone with no effort at all
Ryan
Guest
Hear hear mate. It is ridiculous to think fans are going to do a 10hr plus round trip to go to a footy match. As you say above as have a few other posters the Hurricanes have become very Wellington focused not that they were ever pro their partners. Also pays to remember that Wellington has a population of approcimately 360k so not exactly a large city by an means. Also Rugby isn't as much of a religion in this country as many would like us to believe unless the All Blacks are playing. Instead of constantly looking at negatives it's time people started focusing on the positives for once. Greg Peters himself that viewership went up and this this can be accredited to the rise in popularity in NZ so why not grab hold of that and work on it? It is unreasonable to judge Australia and New Zealand by what is happening in South Africa where they have over twice the population of NZ and Australia combined. Also it pays to note that the South African rand is barely worth the paper it is written on and whilst a large economy it is rife with corruption and a large portion of the population are living below the poverty line. Anyway that is a political matter not for a sports forum. What many people tend to disregard is the fact their is absolutely no way in hell South African rugby would remain as strong as it is without the regular competition against the ANZAC nations and yes this could be said vice versa. To even think that SA would get anywhere near the amount of money it does now for participatiing in Super rugby if they went on their own is a pipe dream. The broadcasters pay the big dollars because they are competeing against the best teams and players in the world (do note the NH has great players that are world class but you get my point). Even should South Africa go on it's own I would say the NZRU and ARU would be knocking on Japans door very quickly and I would not be surprised to see a PI team admited to the competition as their would be huge support in both NZ and Aus.
Tigranes
Guest
Josiah wasnt rugby league bigger than rugby union in Russia a few years ago?????????? What happened there?
James
Guest
St Pat's Town will take it out again this year
Lippy
Guest
Someone travelling from New Plymouth to watch a night game would need to leave home around 1.30-2.30pm at the latest. To make the game at 7.30 and that would still be a push. Fans travelling from Napier / Hastings would also need to leave at a similar time. Then there are fans further North East in Gisborne where you can tack on another 2-3hrs driving time. Now the game goes for 2hrs all these fans should they leave immediately after the game and encounter no traffic congestion would be lucky to get home by 2.30am at the earliest. Gizzy residents would be getting home in time for breakfast. now when you factor in Petrol, Tickets, Food on way to and from Venue not to mention at the venue it becomes extremely expensive. And as has been.stated already it is a very Wellington centric team fans North of Paekakariki are dwindling.
Malo
Guest
Give me a crack at the marketing. It is crap it targets only the corporate elite and does nothing for the average punter. i saw tahs vs reds at Telstra paid $50 for a crap ticket up the back, the players do not associate or mix with the public only the corporate tools in their boxes and people do not associate with the franchise especially the tahs, reds and brumbies might be diffferent. I was brought up on rugby but have recently been converted to league as the contempt the administrators show their fans shows. The administrators are great at creating administrators. Also many of the club supporters fell alienated by the way the S15 treat them and have little interest in it whereby that should be a large base of supporters. Money for the players is the only real interest and obviously national jerseys, the players dont look that concerned if they win or lose.
On or
Guest
Rugby as an international game brings in the money! in N.Z npc is seen as a filtering tool for super rugby and super rugby a filtering tool for the allblacks! they play 14 or so weeks of international rugby! As do the wallabies and the springboks give or take ... That's almost half an Nrl season worth of internationals... although the ab's don't really need the money so much and are cutting back on their European tour! I think SANZAR really should play test series in Europe, not one off test matches.. Allblacks v France series would be brilliant to see.. And big in terms of money!! The nrl has the nrl! When the irb can get itself sorted and follow through on there idea of a World Series.. Like the 20's competition... The stakes will get even higher!
Reality
Guest
So for the price of two/three canes games, Reds fans get eight games, plus free public transport, and a collection of supporters gear, including an "Exclusive “QC10” t-shirt designed by Quade Cooper"! No wonder the reds have a solid turn out for each home game, it must be the T-shirt!!
Ben of Phnom Penh
Roar Guru
I tend to agree here. In WA and SA union is more popular than league, however in Vic it is much further down the ladder of public interest.
crashy
Guest
The Lions tour thisyear wil actually pup about $80 million into the ARU coffers this year plus the uaual Super Rugby Tri nations and November tests Johnno. So whilst League has more rev than rugby - The ARU will have a huge amount to repenish the gras roots and club comps - Pulver has stated this. Dont underplay Sevens as well. The female player numbers in league are reportedly doppng like a stone as they are moving to Sevens. You play to your strengths and rugby will continue to do so.
blues recovery
Guest
What an absolute rubbish comment. What do you base the comment on that the Rebels are badly run and recruit poorly. In an AFL mad town they manage to draw better crowds than the Melbourne Storm despite the Storms history of on field performnce. Their is no other Super Rugby team including the Force that operates in a city where Rugby is so far down the citys sporting radar. I think they are doing an amzing job so far to promote their game considering the lack of on field success at the moment. The atmosphere at their games surpasses any other in Australian Rugby. In terms of their rcruitment , Hugh Pyle, Caderyn Neville, Luke Jones, Nick Phipps and Nick Stirzaker will all be Wallabies bor and bread out of the Rebels recruitment and development program.
atlas
Guest
I don't know that it is the 'most entertaining 3 minutes of rugby ever' as its title claims, but it certainly is entertaining. Been a lot of criticism of this match and style of play on NH forums - 'showboat rugby' etc. They played well in the indoor conditions, the ref played advantage, and both sides attacked from anywhere. There are many instances in those 3min where in another match, different teams, would have taken a different approach - kicked for touch etc, slowed it down, rather than that manic running play. For an opening match, no signs of 'rust'
formeropenside
Guest
That should include tickets to every home game, and the right to finals seats should the Reds get there.
Reality
Guest
http://www.redsmembership.com.au/family-specials.html Does anybody know if that $420 (silver) family membership includes tickets or is it just "reserved" so you always have your seat???