Dear Rugby Australia, make the NRC the main game

Unfortunately i suspect you are correct, this debate will rage on until there is a successful model - and that will take longer than a COVID-19 vaccine to develop. I also think you're half way there - we need to find ways to evolve the ewxisting third tier Shute Shield (proxy for club comp) while KEEPING the parochialism - the conflict (if set appropriately) is the foundation stone of good tribalism. e.g. how sweet would it be if the Wallabies beat the ABs this year. There are any number of problems with the search for a 'solution' to Aussie rugby, but one observation i would make is that every solution i've ever read here, begins and ends with tearing down something that doesn't actually have a problem and is actually working - be it, GPS rugby, Shute Shield rugby...if it is working, someone here will talk about how to tear it to pieces for their own benefit while blaming it for their own problems. I'm advocating for our primary national competition to continue to consist of our 5 Super Rugby teams - in whatever form their competition takes from here. And from there, i'm suggesting is that we should focus on building on what is showing promise, emulate what is working and invest in making our communities stronger - very selectively, very accurately and with great bias toward what we think has the most chance of working. And after a decade of ARC/ NRC - that clearly begins with club rugby in Sydney. The third tier needs to be club-driven, not representative. I think that is absolutely essential. Clubs need to be supported and provided with incentive's to thrive or fail. They need to be driven to engage and inspire their own communities to gather support from minis to juniors, through schools and into seniors. All Super players and coaches (other than specific exceptions eg. allotment of marquee players) should come from Aussie clubs.

As soon as you start talking City sides, you invite the Brisbane and Sydney clubs to torpedo the teams and that has been the problem for a long time. It was even an issue in Canberra when the Vikings formed the NRC team, but since no one else had the money to do it, it saw the light of day. If you make it state-based and allow the state governing bodies to run it, you have clear and defined pathways. Rest of Oz would be a Barbarians Side, that doesn't have to be a settled squad. You could rotate players in and out. Good as an idea, but can you really make that work in a semi-pro or professional setting?

If the Shute Shield is so all welcoming and all powerful why don't they look at expanding outside NSW? Parochialism keeps Rugby small-minded and all the wonderful suggestions on this site, made by the great Roarers come to nothing because of the intransigence of Sydney and Brisbane clubs - don't get me wrong - I love my Sydney Club, but we need to find ways go make the competion national without the parochialism. I have always maintained that Rugby people are their own worst enemies because they always want instant results. If the original ARC had been left alone, it would have improved by evolution and osmosis, but we were all too ready to kill if off before it could establish a supporter base. Here is my prediction - Covid will have come and gone and we'll still be having these conversations in 10 years time.

You would think that would work, but that how the NRC restarted, essentially: North Hbr Rays - Manly, Rats, Norths & Gordon Sydney Stars - Uni & Balmain Western Sydney Rams - Western Sydney team & Eastwood Didn't work, Manly & Rats players ended up all over the place due to coaches form those two teams poaching players to other teams - nothing wrong, just didn't work.

Who said anything about origin? Even NSW has Queenslanders playing for it.

Would have to be a Brothers supporter :) Expect no less Good article Jeznez.

Jeznez you're absolutely right. RA should back an Australian Comp. Sydney City, NSW Country, QLD Country, Brisbane, ACT all have long and fascinating histories to draw upon and bring together a fan base. IF someone spent time creating content and sharing it and engaging the crowd. Any players that should get a run and don't in their city team should be placed into a country team (Surely they have a grandfather that was born in Wagga Wagga to make them eligible :) ). Centralise training for some of these teams to develop talent and reduce costs. Still take games to regional areas - but live and train with the other teams in the Super Rugby Facilities of the sates to enable development (catches, players, staff) and reuse costs. Some ideas for teams for the National Competition: Sydney City Brisbane City Victoria Perth Canberra NSW Country QLD Country Northern Australia (QLD Country Far North, Northern Territory & PNG) Australian Barbarians (Players from anywhere that should get a go - play a Barbarians style as well - why not) Again just throwing ideas out there - if we all keep doing this it adds fuel to the fire in our bellies and eventually we will find the right path forward. Cheers

A Brisbane team in Shute Shield. A you trying to start a Civil War? You guys don't understand Queenslanders. We would succeed before doing that.

My statement was tautological. I happy to stop here. We obviously agree on the core benefits of NRC (player development) which is enough for me. This thread started with someone saying that basically the NRC achieved nothing blah blah blah. That statement is a fallacy. Hope whatever come next is as good at player development because what we had before the NRC obviously wasn’t very good at all.

Sorry. Did you just shift your argument? You’ve made a few statements of fact, which when you get called out on, shift to another argument, but I’ll address your latest rationale. League Divisions aren’t tiers – they are divisions in one the best of one division don’t get selected to play in the tier above it – winning a division will likely see them playing in the higher division the best year. I can think of 2 countries (SA and NZ) that have the ‘extra’ tier (Currie Cup and NPC) you claim is universally adopted, which makes these examples in my humble opinion, the exceptions and not the norm.

True Jez, 5 provincial teams is unappetizing, but it is here we must start. In reality, we will probably only ever get to 8 provincial teams, even with extremely hard work. If rugby were to enjoy another boom period, then we can always reassess. But at present we must cut our cloth with the material available.

Okay mate. 2011 we won SR and TRC but it was a bad year. That’ll do me.

I get your point. I do believe many would miss out, but that’s one of those trade-offs - personally I think the NSW v QLD SOO would make good money and generate enough interest to offset the others sitting on the sidelines (players and supporters). Then again, maybe the complexity of rugby doesn’t allow for players that don’t each other to come together quickly and produce good footy. I think league makes $15m from the tv rights per game, so I’d be keen to try.

I don’t want one season - i just want it as simple as possible. If it was up to me, we’d have a 20+ week pro comp plus the Wallabies. That’s 2 layers or seasons of the pro stuff.

Your statement is a logical fallacy. Many of the best players from club rugby got picked for the NRC because they are obviously better than the others - why wouldn’t they be the guys to play super rugby? It would be bizarre if they didn’t kick on and most likely would of anyway, just like everyone else that has made it. I didn’t say the NRC hinders the development - I said there is no evidence that it is necessary, and the relative success of the SR and test side of trophies since it’s inception supports my belief.