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There is no weak conference in Super Rugby

15th April, 2013
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The Reds cross the Tasman to take on the Highlanders in Dunedin. (AAP Image/SNPA, Ross Setford)
Roar Guru
15th April, 2013
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1022 Reads

Hands up those of you who like the conference system. Now, don’t all of you bowl me over with your enthusiasm at once.

It is pretty clear that conference supporters are less effervescent about their support of the system than detractors are in their criticism of it.

And the supporters seem to be few and far between.

There are some valid criticisms of the conference system that have been aired on the Roar before. I myself am certainly no fan.

But there is at least one criticism of the conference system that is baseless, and that is conference strength.

You see, there is no weak conference. It is a myth. Even if it ever were to exist, it wouldn’t prevent the right team from winning the competition.

I admit that the new format hasn’t been in place long enough to make a conclusive judgment, but if you look at the results from the seasons past, I don’t think there has been a single undeserved finalist wasting space.

It is true that the Australian conference has produced less finalists than the other two. But is that really a good indicator of conference strength?

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The conference that has produced the most finalists these past two years has not yet won a Super Rugby premiership. As a matter of fact it has only contributed one grand finalist.

And in both years past a team from this conference has finished in the top two, thereby guaranteeing themselves a week’s rest and a home semi-final.

They have not been held back by a strong conference. The kind of representation that they have enjoyed is evidence enough to repudiate any claim to the contrary.

They have only themselves to blame for poor returns.

It’s not as though a weak conference has worked to the benefit of any team yet, either.

Unsympathetic people like to say that the Reds premiership victory in 2011 was tainted by the relative poor performance of three of the other Australian teams of that year.

What they don’t like to point out is that of the three matches the Reds lost that year, two were to conference counterparts.

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Of their six victories over Australian teams they enjoyed that year, four had margins of six points or less. Only two conference matches yielded the Reds a bonus point.

And yet, of their eight cross-conference matches, the Reds lost only one. From those matches, the Reds picked up four bonus points.

Does this indicate a weak conference underpinning their success? No, it does not.

So let’s talk about the present. Right now there are two teams from each conference occupying places in the top six.

The Super Rugby premiership of 2013 is wide open. At this stage there are at least nine teams with a realistic shot of making the finals, and at least four of them are in a good position to secure a top two finish.

This tournament, regardless of any inane banter that suggests otherwise, is going to be won on merit.

Save the nationalist brachiating for the Rugby Championship.

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