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As the pool stages of the World Cup wind down this weekend, the smaller (some bigger) nations will be wrapping up their tours and heading home. Barring a spectacular run of luck, not even the incredible Springbok-slaying Japanese team will be pushing on into the quarter-finals.
This is disappointing, but the last three weeks of rugby and conversation have given world rugby’s confusingly named governing body, World Rugby, plenty of opportunity to continue to address the intertwined issues that face the development of the game globally.
The communication around the lower-ranked teams needs to be reinvigorated. Outside of vaguely condescending nicknames, the teams outside of the top 10 have been consistently referred throughout the World Cup as Tier 2 nations-an outdated (as of 2008) IRB designation to separate the top 10 countries from the next 13.
2008 saw a change in the banding of nations, but it has clearly not flowed over into perception. No team has been on the end of the sort of true one-sided thrashings that were a feature of previous cups, and each team has produced genuine stars and exciting rugby-consistently pushing top teams for much of their matches.
It must be part of World Rugby’s edict to change the way that world rugby is perceived, and like any product that starts with communication.
The financial situation of the game is complicated, but World Rugby must be more proactive in finding better ways to give these nations players exposure to top-level rugby.
More money has been going into the wider development of the game, but it must continue to increase. At the World Cup, the best performed players among the lower ranked sides have been playing professionally-that is, their development is being funded by clubs in nations other than their own.
A growing problem as these nations continue to produce better players will be that the big nations are going to become less willing to fund this development, and those that do play professionally will be increasingly pressured to make themselves unavailable for their national team.
High level exposure at a national level is a key to player development. The countries in the Rugby Championship and Six Nations need to be playing more often against the smaller nations.
Promotion and relegation into these competitions should be on the table. Given the packed playing schedules and precarious financial situations across the globe, World Rugby is going to need to be proactive and creative to achieve this. Something like the Future Tours Program employed by the ICC in cricket should be considered, with every team in the top 20 playing at least once in a five-year cycle.
The World Cup tournament itself has come under much criticism. The schedule and early draw of pools has been especially criticised. However, if the standard of international competition continues to rise, there are less and less likely to be easy pools which top nations can coast through.
Far from a problem, this has to be the goal. Japan showed what this future could look like when they threw pool B wide open with their win over the Springboks on the first weekend. This schedule of matches was far more balanced than in 2011, and to keep tournament lengths down midweek games are unavoidable on the current format.
The real solution is to alter the format of the competition. Japan 2019 seems to be locked in to be the same as this one, but there are myriad options. Twenty-four teams across eight pools and a round of 16 as the Football world cup has, or alternately decreasing the tournament to 16 teams and running a parallel tournament for the next 8 nations are both potential options.
Adding a plate or bowl would be another way to increase the meaning and exposure of the nations who don’t qualify out of their pool in the current format.
The opportunity is there, and now more than ever the global game seems ready for change. If it is approached properly and the inherent self-interest of the stronger nations can be shelved, this World Cup can mark a true turning point for world rugby.
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.