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2014 has been a year success for the NRL. A successful launch of the preseason nines tournament in Auckland and record-breaking TV audiences for both the State of Origin and the grand final.
So everything inside the game is rosy, right?
Apart from minor irritants such as rules we´d like changed, I would say yes. The NRL is currently an entertaining, competitive comp. However, the storm which approaches is from outside.
Let me say right now, that this is not meant to be a code war article. I love league and play union and long may the Aussie sporting landscape be able to support them both. The thrust of my point is economics, there are bucket loads of cash in international rugby.
For the sake of argument, I´m going to leave Sonny Bill Williams out of the discussion. He may well prove to be a freakish one-off and good luck to him. I´d prefer to look at the case of Sam Burgess and Ben Te’o, especially the latter.
You could argue that Burgess is a special case, also. He is a superstar in the NRL, from a country where league is a minority sport, which will host the Rugby World Cup next year. Given his awesome skill-set, leadership qualities and huge marketing potential, perhaps Bath Rugby Club is taking a calculated risk, perhaps they’ve bought the next big thing in English rugby.
But what to make of Ben Te’o’s move to Leinster?
The brief research I did online suggests he has only limited experience playing rugby. Yet Leinster have signed him to take over from one of their greatest ever players, Brian O’Driscoll. As one of Europe’s most successful teams of recent times, they obviously know something about recognising talent.
“So what?”, you’re asking. The odd player makes the switch from league to union, there are always more stars waiting in the wings and Te’o was never a star. That is all true, however let’s assume Sam and Ben are successful in their new code. What might the consequence be of two league forwards successfully converting themselves into high impact union backs?
If I’m a cashed up union club, suddenly I’m thinking, holy moly, if league forwards can do that, what could a league back do? Israel Folau is already demonstrating that potential. What could Greg Inglis or Jarryd Hayne do on a rugby pitch and how much money would they demand?
Again, no disrespect to either code, I love them both, but union does not seem to generate superstars in the same way league does, for whatever reason. I just wander though, if we begin to see rich union clubs begin to regularly poach league’s golden boot winners, how would that impact the game in Australia? Even Japanese rugby clubs have fat enough chequebooks to tempt big names.
And for those who would argue that the allure of State of Origin and grand finals is what keeps the big names in the NRL, think again. In an interview after one of the big final games, Burgess made a comment about the intensity of NRL and the toll it takes on a player’s body. Without putting words into his mouth, he seemed to be suggesting that a few years in union might help extend his career.
To avoid fuelling code war debates, we’ll take Sam at his word and skip any comparative analysis of NRL and Super Rugby. That said, it is fair to say that Japanese rugby would offer a player with concerns about his longevity a lucrative means of extending his career. As Roarers have already pointed out, a plethora of quality halves come off contract next season. How would the NRL world react if just one or two of these departed for Europe or Japan?
Many young fans are brought into the game and addicted by initially following one favourite player. In my case it was Gary Jack and I still support the Tigers today. Even if only a trickle of high profile players move to union, even to teams overseas, their profile is enhanced and so to their value to advertisers, which means more money and then more buying power.
One last point is status. I know I promised not to mention Sonny Bill Williams, but I can´t help thinking that on one level, Sam Burgess’ move might be a challenge to himself to see if he too can achieve something like Sonny did. How many players have both the Wallaby gold and Kangaroo bottle green hanging over the mantle piece? As much as NRL players love to perform at Origin time, I’d bet they’d also love to have a crack at mixing it with the All Blacks.
So all the best for Sam and Ben and congratulations to the NRL for a cracking season. And here’s hoping that the records set in 2014 are broken again and do not come to be seen as a high-water mark for the game in Australia, because the big bucks overseas aren’t going away anytime soon.
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