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The East is a key frontier for rugby union’s future. And I don’t mean the far east. I am talking about the land of Tsars, vodka and the former USSR. If geography isn’t your strong point, I am talking about Eastern Europe.
For too long now the powerhouse triumvirate of the IRB, SANZAR and Six Nations have been protecting the established nations of the rugby world.
How long did it take Argentina to gain entry to a major annual tournament? How many times do the likes of the Pacific nations get to play established top-tier nations? What exactly is the IRB doing to fast track the establishment of rugby in the next tier of rugby nations?
As evidenced by the growing competitiveness of the second tier during Rugby World Cup tournaments, where previously 100-point scores were regularly dished out, scores are now getting closer and upsets becoming more possible. Just think of Georgia versus Ireland in 2007 and Romania versus Scotland in 2011.
Professionalism has given players from developing nations the chance to gain experience and learn in some of the toughest leagues in the world. The great benefit of this is that it then has a knock-on effect on the international stage.
For some time the IRB has been pinning their hopes on the development of the game happening in Asia. This is a fundamentally flawed concept. Asian nations have historically struggled to compete physically in the high-impact sport and Eastern European clubs would be more suited to dominate the game.
There is a gold mine of talent that the IRB can’t quite seem to grasp in Eastern Europe. If managed correctly the region could be the future of international rugby development.
I’m referring to Romania, Georgia and Russia. Men in this region are born to play rugby – they are big, hulking men who pride themselves on being physical and strong, and have often grown up in a tough and uncompromising environment. They fear nothing. They are made to play the game.
In some ways the Eastern Europeans share the same sort of physical make up as rugby’s greatest talent production line, the Pacific Islanders, and this is something that the IRB can no longer ignore.
I read recently that Georgia qualified for the World Cup in a game against Russia played in front of 55,000 fans. At the time of reading, I found this hard to believe so I logged on to YouTube found out it was true. That would be a huge crowd in any established rugby nation and the potential of rugby still seems to be almost untapped in this region.
Believe it or not but rugby in Romania was once a hugely-followed game. Between 1960 and 1990, Romania beat France eight times, the most famous being in 1990 when Romania marched to a 12-6 victory in Auch, France. This was only three years after France made the Rugby World Cup final.
Romania won rugby internationals over Scotland in 1984 and 1991, and also over Wales in 1983 and 1988, with the 1988 victory coming in Cardiff. In 1981 the All Blacks scraped home 14-6 in Bucharest with the Romanians having two tries disallowed during the game. The talent is there, it just hasn’t been nurtured properly for some time.
Why can’t the Six Nations be expanded to the Seven Nations? Are Georgia or Romania any worse now than Italy were when they were included in 2000?
Why not have a promotion-relegation game between the bottom-placed team in the Six Nations and the winner of the next tier down? Imagine Scotland having to go to Bucharest for a play-off game? Given Scotland’s recent results, I don’t think they would have any right to claim they are above this now.
There would be a strong case that should rugby in Romania and Georgia prosper, then their traditional local rivals such as Poland and Ukraine could potentially follow suit.
There is a sense of irony in the level of hypocrisy spouted from the stakeholders of the Six Nations every time they criticise the SANZAR nations for ignoring the Pacific Islands. After all, what exactly are they doing to promote rugby in Eastern Europe? What’s that old adage about those in glass houses?
It is time for the IRB to stop its short-sightedness, wake up and pay attention to the enormous potential they have in Eastern Europe.
If they do, then who knows, perhaps November tours in the future will pit the All Blacks and Wallabies against the likes of Romania in Bucharest or Georgia in Tbilisi. I for one would love to see this.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.