I’m a long-time Roar fan, first-time contributor, however this subject really needs to be addressed and posted to Bill Pulver’s Mosman address!
The confirmation that one Super Rugby team will get cut from 2018 onwards is a great shame to the growth of the game in Australia. Even though I don’t agree with the decision, I fully understand that the results from both the Rebels and the Force just haven’t been satisfactory, and a tough decision needed to be made.
However what I can’t understand is how the ARU can honestly give an answer into how Aussie rugby has reached this point that we can’t even sustain five teams?
Currently the AFL have 18 teams, the NRL 16, A-League 10 – hell, even the NBL can sustain eight teams. The argument posed by some pundits is that rugby in Australia simply doesn’t have the players or resources to support five teams. This is true as shown in the results of Australian teams over the past couple of years in Super Rugby, and the Australian U20s having not reached a final since 2010.
However what needs to be addressed is why Australian rugby cannot sustain five teams when every other sporting code in the country can support such a higher number of sides? The major issue that is preventing the code from growing in Australia and of its current position in the sporting landscape is the current and continuing demise of addressing the grassroots, across a local, state and national level.
The ARU is currently adhering to a top down sporting administration method, where it is providing the majority of funding and attention to the Super Rugby sides and the Wallabies to ensure that they achieve success.
This strategy is due to the fact that Australia has an extremely competitive sporting market, and success is essential to achieving popularity and support across fans, sponsorship and stakeholders.
Furthermore the ARU has a much smaller budget than that compared to the NRL and AFL and needs to be smart about distributing its budget. However this strategy can only work if the Super Rugby teams are successful. As shown over the past few seasons with a reduction in sponsorship money, attendances and the results of the super teams, a rapid alteration of the ARU expenditures need to be made.
The ARU needs to look at why other codes in the country are more successful and are able to support many more teams. The main issue in my opinion is that rugby has basically ignored the grassroots throughout the country, with the strategy of hoping the local clubs can organise themselves while the ARU supports the state and national team.
Rugby especially needs to open itself up to more of the market in offering it as a sporting option to school kids in public schools. The majority of kids in Australia attend public schools and this is an area of huge potential growth in the game, and it can eliminate the stigma that rugby is only played by rich private school kids.
The Wallabies have a proud history of public school players including the Ella Brothers, Steve Price etc. and really need to increase participation levels by directing funding to developing a state and national schoolboy competition. This is one of the reasons for success of the All Blacks, as rugby is viewed as egalitarian in New Zealand as its offered to the whole country to players from all races, gender and socio-economic backgrounds, and its played at a very high standard in both public and private schools.
Furthermore the ARU needs to make the radical decision of cutting the NRC, which does have its benefits and the aim to develop players from club to state level.
However as shown in the attendances and TV viewers there is a much higher interest in local club rugby which has over 120 years of history and rivalry. Crowds at Manly home games constantly sell out and attract 8-10 thousand, and the atmosphere is much more intense than any NRC game across the country.
A nationwide club rugby comp, like the NPC, with clubs from Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Melbourne should replace the NRC as it will serve two purposes. It will reduce the costs of funding separate provincial competitions around the country, and money can be re-directed to help fund the ailing Shute Shield and other national provincial clubs.
Clubs in Sydney have been operating on a shoe string budget since the inception of professionalism, where Parramatta and Penrith have nearly been placed into receivership and Eastwood was forced to sell its own home ground in order to secure its financial future.
By incorporating a bottom-up administration model, as used by the NRL and AFL, by taking care of the games grassroots providing higher funding at a local level, whether it be in junior rugby, across public schools, developing more country rugby clubs, providing more school clinics from Wallabies, increasing players development officers to Western Sydney, rugby can increase its player numbers and support to sustain five teams in Super Rugby.
There are more than enough players in the Australian sporting market to sustain five teams, the ARU just needs to incorporate a new strategy to address these issues. If the grassroots are going to be continued to be ignored, and with the continual growth and expansion of rival codes, we could be back to the Super 12 in the near future.
Max
Guest
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Oblonsky‘s Other Pun
Roar Guru
Wow. That's shocking. Cheers for that info. I'm at a loss to why anyone listens to a thing that Papworth and Co say if that is the type of rubbish they are putting out.
Train Without A Station
Roar Guru
Nope that's exactly what I am saying. His criticism is that the ARU is looking to invest in it's own program in schools, rather than funding clubs to do as they see fit.
Paul D
Roar Rookie
You cannot compare the past with now on equal footings. The pull factors are different now as there is much more money on offer in the foreign markets. Also, I'd be interested to see a comparison of the volume of players leaving now as a percentage of the volume of professional players staying. We have 5 teams developing and showcasing talent. I'd be surprised if the percentage of players leaving now is much different than before. We have players, even with the exodus. What we do not have is quality coaching at the 5 franchises. Who out of the current coaches comes close to Rod McQueen, Eddie Jones, Ewan McKenzie, Jack White or Michael Cheika? We have always had at least 1 quality coach at one of the franchises that's had them at the pointy end of the competition. This coaching group is probably our least experienced ever across the board.
Rhys
Guest
Obviously don't get down to see Subbies rugby much mate, would agree it's less serious than shute shield, but its fair to say that most higher grades at subbies clubs are training 2 nights a week, with those players also keeping themselves fit on the side. And if you still think its not serious to those guys, maybe step out there at 3:15 on a Saturday afternoon and find out...
Oblonsky‘s Other Pun
Roar Guru
TWAS, am I misinterpreting you or do you mean that Papworth and co didn't want the ARU investing in public schools??? I am seriously hoping that I am misinterpreting you and this was not the case!
Browny
Roar Rookie
Thanks, for that TWAS. I didn't realise Laloifi was Victorian. Shame about him heading north. Same goes for Sauni and 'little' Uelese heading across the ditch, hopefully we can lure them back before they go do something stupid like set ambitions to represent the darkness... I agree, the next 2 or so years are going to be pretty interesting witnessing the progress of these guys. Exciting times (despite all the current doom and gloom).
Train Without A Station
Roar Guru
Yeah but that ignores the reason for the Wallaby top ups - to benefit the Wallabies. Rugby is in a unique situation (similar to cricket except stronger domestic game) where there are domestic team and national team interests that are almost just as important, both having their own season in its own right. The purpose of the Wallaby top up is to ensure the players wanted for the Wallabies are kept, but not binding them to any particular team in Australia. Forcing players to play in cities they have no interest in may just encourage them to leave. Imagine if we said, no Wallaby top ups, every team just gets $2M more. Then because a good THP prop isn't necessary to win Super Rugby but good halves are, all 5 franchises spend $1M of that extra $2M on their 9 and 10. That would mean half of the Wallaby top up money would be tied up in 10 players (2 at each franchise), only 2 of whom will start, and only 6 max of which will even make a 30 man squad. With limited funds, not at all the best use of them.
Browny
Roar Rookie
All teams should have exactly the same salary cap and ARU top ups should be included in that. Super Rugby has no true equalisation methods for the teams. The AFL use the salary cap and the draft to spread the current talent on market value and distribute the young talent where it's needed most (granted that's been a little skew-whiff the last few years with a major component of the draft heading to the expansion clubs, but for the most part it holds true).
Train Without A Station
Roar Guru
He's a big boy now. Having played with both, I think he's got more naturally ability than Fereti, but Fereti just has that hunger and desire that's a level above even most good players. 9 if you count Rob Valetini certainly. But then also that doesn't consider the others coming through like Moli Sooaemalelagi who played Aus Schoolboys and then missed almost all the next 2 seasons due to injuries so missed a chance to play 20s. Though he did make his NRC debut for Brisbane City last year. Junior Laloifi is another one in that age group. JP Sauni is another from the Rebels 20s, Vic Schoolboys and JGC Cup Program. He played Rebels 20s last year, went to play Mitre 10 Cup and has made the NZ 20s squad for this year. I think he is eligible being NZ born. There's been a couple of the young prodigies at Fereti's age or a year older that didn't quite kick on for various reasons like Brendan Westney (health problems then stopped playing) and Kemu Valetini (was good when he was a big kid but hasn't shown anywhere near the same ability against men) but they are certainly starting to see the benefit coming through now. Jordan Uelese is a 120kg hooker and his little brother still in high school, is already bigger and has gone to Wellington on a rugby scholarship with a top school there so it appears there are more coming through. Personally I'm interested to see how some of the first year 20s go next year.
Browny
Roar Rookie
I coached RJ in U16s... granted he was 13 or 14 at the time and probably the most dominant prop in the comp age grade by a healthy margin. He was a pretty big kid back then, I'm assuming he and his brother are probably comparable in size by now. Fereti was playing at 8 at the time in the senior first grade team because at 16 (?) he was deemed too young to be prop against the older year 12 kids. So that's 8 kids all in the 18 to 22 year age bracket with Fereti, 9 if you count Valetini, meaning they were all between 12 and 16 when the Rebels arrived and the development programs and pathways were subsequentially strengthened. I'd say that's a pretty good indication of the Rebels' positive influence on rugby in Victoria and imagine those numbers should continue to improve going into the future. 3 backrowers, a lock, a prop, a hooker, a centre, a winger and a flyhalf means that group is fairly forward dominated but a reasonable spread none the less. Good signs.
Train Without A Station
Roar Guru
From what I've seen Manly are doing a decent job. It's not necessarily about providing money to clubs either. For example Manly do a lot of schools work and clinics to try and stimulate interest. I get the impression they are the exception, not the norm though.
Train Without A Station
Roar Guru
They haven't chosen to though. The Force applying for an interim injunction has prevented it being resolved.
Train Without A Station
Roar Guru
No mate Semisi is a Brisbane product. I'd actually not even noticed Ta Hosea was another Aus 20s rep for Vic last year. That makes 7 in total I believe. 1. Ah-Mu 2. Ikapote 3. Jordan Uelese 4. Rob Leota 5. Billy Gray 6. Sione Tuipolotu 7. Trevor Hosea Not bad at all. There's a very good chance Rjay Sa'aga may have also made the squad had his ACL recovery not kept him out until the team returned. He represented Aus Baa Baas the year before with his older brother Fereti in his first year out of school.
The Bush
Roar Guru
There are NRL clubs in Sydney that average 10,000. No way in the world does a Shute Shield team average anything like that. The Waratahs barely average more than 10,000 at the moment.
Browny
Roar Rookie
Quite a few in the wings too, making their way up through school/club, into Vic/Aus U20s, into the EPS and I imagine most will have full contracts sooner rather than later. Ikapote Tupai, Ah-Mu Tuimaleali'ifano, Trevor Hosea and Billy Gray are worth mentioning there, as is Rob Valetini who moved to the Brumbies. Also, is Semisi Tupou homegrown?
Daz
Guest
That's exactly what I mean. They already know which team they want to cut so they should grow some and just decide and be done with it. Not go through this farcical process.
Irish Snake
Guest
I love hearing the phrase grassroots rugby ie club rugby. The real grassroots rugby is junior rugby. Not one cent has ever been delivered from a senior club to a village club EVER. The rubbish that is spouted by Eastwood and Randwick is a joke. Most of the solid foundation of rugby is on the Northshore and junior clubs that once could field 3 teams can only field 1. This is the area that needs addressing not the "snouts in the trough" of shute shield rugby. this is why the game is going nowhere because of the lack of mental agility to understand the problem.
BeastieBoy
Guest
We need a ADRU Australian Domestic Rugby Union to run the grass roots. Let the new ARU board run the international games and super rugby.
AndyS
Guest
You could, but the stupidity of it is apparent when put in the NZ context. It would be equivalent to eliminating the M10 and Heartland teams, and instead using playing with the amateur regional winners from each location. That would certainly bring the NZ teams back to the pack in a hurry. But it is where Australian rugby has always been and, as you can see, where a lot of people would like to keep it. They'll even cloak it as for the "good of Australian rugby".