How to save Australian rugby

Yeh we would. Aust is the 11th/12th largest economy in the world and already supports 2 pro comps that have billion$+ tv deals. The NRC could easily secure itself a deal over $100m if done right. Enough cash to grow the comp and keep the players. nz isn't big enough. They need super rugby more than we do. No wonder their opposed to the Aussies doing their own thing. An Aussie NRC (sans super rugby) with plenty of money would wreck nz rugby. Bring it on.

When Super Rugby dissolves and the Kiwis reject our approach to add our SR teams to the their NPC The best option is to create our own National League using the SR teams as a base and add the regional NRC sides Queensland Reds Queensland Country NSW Eagles NSW Waratahs Western Sydney Rams ACT Brumbies Melbourne Rebels Western Force Winner of the Pacific Cup - Tonga, Samoa, Fiji Sunwolves We can go it alone, whilst supporting and developing the emerging nations in the Pacific and Japan Foxtel will still buy this product and crowds would return both on TV and in the stands

Johnno, we have dealt with the GPS rugby issue so many times but you just want to ignore reality. Your claims and comments suffer from rugby-centric thinking. As if GPS schools owe something to the game. There are many games out there and rugby isn't really that important to them anymore. It is not the 1970's mate. GPS schools are not the answer you are looking for, move on. In football (soccer), the FFA has developed the National Premier Leagues in each state and this is where the development of under age elite players from age 10 up occurs. (Boys and girls) There is a vibrant competition in each capital city. Many GPS schools work closely with the NPL clubs, sharing coaches and development plans. This is the model you should look at. GPS and other private schools are not the answer, the club based development pathway is. Open your eyes, look past New Zealand and see what the rest of the world is doing in sports that are easily surpassing rugby as far as development goes. NZ is the big fish in a very small pond, and has a unique rugby focussed culture that will never exist in Australia. Look at the the way football is doing it if you want to see the best way to developed the game. Football is absolutely annihilating rugby in development. We just watched the Matildas defeat Brazil three times in a row. Think about that.

Nah, You wouldnt say that if your teams were winning their share. So when oz rugby picks up again via the NRC and oz is atill losing to the ABs everyone will say we need that next level of competition to prepare better as NZ and SA have. Ooh i know...

Force is gone, long gone. For goodness sake crazy horse , how long are you going to keep going on and on about it. You could barely attract a crowd and nobody wanted to watch you on tv. On top of that, you were losers on the pitch. Put your hands up like a man and finally accept the decision and move on for crying out loud.

The emphasis on schools rugby is a bit perplexing to someone from WA where the junior club competition is the main contest with schools rugby a very poor second.

Who does Mickey play for? My interest in seeing that is very high. TBH the NRC IS the Golden Goose.......With a successful NRC you have that semi pro comp between club land and SR so YES Jock its an important link from grassroots

Well then your Senator needs to brush up on the rules for Senate inquiries. A Senator cannot run rough shot over whatever they feel like, even commercial confidentiality. It still exists and genuinely CiC information is respected by the Senate. A witness compelled to reveal CiC information must be afforded the opportunity to do so in a private session. Only after this can the committee make a judgement on whether it is indeed in the public interest. Requests for CiC documents can be answered with a detailed outline of the genuine reason for the CiC claim for review.

1) Sydney private schoolboy rugby must merge into one comp. Playing standard have to increase at the expense of outdated traditions. The NZRU controls nz schoolboy rugby programs and rugby domination is being helped being achieved by the schools surrendering there independence with regards to rugby and turning there schools into rugby factories a bit. The GPS schools currently don't care if the wallabies are ranked no 1 or 100 and seemingly are resisting any pressure by the ARU to change there competition structures. They are being stoic and won't be pressured to help australian rugby be dominant which is a shame. In that case club junior rugby needs more funding and the rugby factory culture created if the private schools can't be worn down and surrender to the ARU, like in NZ where the NZRU have commercialised schoolboy rugby e.g. tv deals,sponsors etc and strong competitions put first not outdated traditions. The sad thing is, is kids and parents don't even care about GPS traditions they just want highest playing standard possible e.g. blockbuster matches e.g. scot's vs waverley schooled have been playing for the sydney title this year and beamed on pay tv but no the GPS/CAS headmasters don't want all that hype and attention placed on the boys and there rugby teams and outside rugby fans not connected to there isolated school culture.. 2)Bring in indo-pacific comp. 3)more foreign imports for OZ super rugby sides, has anyone thought if the floodgates on imports were opened e.g. unlimited the western force could of been saved and done better all these years. but no the ARU would prefer having no team in perth, than having a team in perth full of unlimited foreign imports. Well they got that..

Yep, i agree. Oz should exit Super Rugby and create a new national rugby comp. With the right brains and people behind it, it will work.

My computer dropped out at the critical moment just as Pulver was trying to claim "Commercial-in-Confidence" for something and a Senator was I presume explaining to him that there was no such thing in respect of a Senate Inquiry. Did anyone get the details?

Solution moving forward: 1. The current EARU Board in its entirety is forced to resign. 2. That the EARU is forced to return the Western Force intellectual property to Rugby WA. 3. Whatever it takes to keep WA Rugby alive and in a position to compete at the highest level. 4. That Rugby WA declines to engage beyond the minimum requirements with the EARU until the Administration of Australian Rugby is restructured on a genuinely national basis. 5. That we do what we have always done in WA and just get on it despite the EARU.

BOMBSHELL: Evidence to the Senate Inquiry that the ARU was told in writing and Cameron Clyne personally by phone "that Twiggy Forrest was !00% behind the Force" in April 2017.

I don't support the culling of SR either. I suggest that AUS, Asia and the Pacific draw teams for a revamped SR comp from my suggested NRC.

"SA wont allow it neither will NZ as both still want to play against each other…" Perfect P2R2. Let em play each other. With Twiggys money, and a little help from FTA, we have a new national competition, that the broadcasters will finally see is a worthy replacement of the NRL.

I know the feeling Crazy Horse, my heart would like to burn the place to the ground as well, especially after hearing Pulver admit to the senate inquiry that the Rebels have never been solvent and had recently received 3 times the level of funding that the Force have. Furthermore that there may have been suitors other than the Imperium group who were looking to buy the Rebels that may have not required the ARU to write off $13 million dollars. Anyway it won't bring our team back but it will out the board for what it is (cue the ARU's fan boy). Be that as it may, what is the best solution for the game moving forward?

Not sure that we want NSW and Qld involved at least initially. IMHO it would be better to get the IPRC up and running on our terms before we let the self-entitled Sydneysiders anywhere near it.

Zero public interest. The several thousand people at the games I've been to say otherwise.

sorry - it will never replace SR.....SA wont allow it neither will NZ as both still want to play against each other....try another option???

Listening to the senate inquiry live, Pulver should be an Olympic gymnast. He clearly excels at ducking and diving, dodging and weaving. The best way to save Australian rugby would be for the rest of the current EARU to follow this shyster out the door.