If you’re anything like me, Rugby Australia announcing their new rugby rights deal out of the blue would’ve completely thrown you.
Shoutout to Raelene Castle, because without her taking the rights to market earlier in the year, we would likely have another run-of-the-mill Super Rugby competition, played at shocking hours, packaged up for a minuscule price on Foxtel, which ain’t gonna attract any new fans.
I love that, after years of fans throwing around competition concepts, Rugby Australia have shown themselves to be right up there with the most ambitious and open minded of us in terms of competition structures.
It’s a massive turn of events after years of just submitting to whatever SANZAAR suggested. And I’m not criticising, I get why they valued that union.
Something that stood out was the sheer amount of content RA threw onto the table and how they emphasised that no broadcaster needed to snap it all up – a network could pick and choose what fits their needs.
Anyway, let’s try and make sense of it all.
Much as I can appreciate a vast number of formats and competitions, a lot of them won’t appeal to broadcasters, especially with the state of the media industry. Reports earlier in the year were that Optus were interested in showing at least some rugby, albeit for a much lesser price, before that fell through.
As for the only free-to-air commercial network not already swamped with primetime content from the other codes, Channel Ten, they’re hardly in a position to be spending money, after announcing multiple big-name redundancies. And in May they let go of their head of sport, Matt White, before opting not to televise Supercars anymore.
The reality is that at this point in time, the sporting public don’t watch rugby week in, week out. Bledisloe Cup matches get some interest, as do World Cups, Lions Tours and maybe the odd Super Rugby game.
But which networks or streaming services will want to throw millions out the door for a weekly Super Rugby game, which, in the short run at least, will struggle to crack 50,000 viewers?
Michael Hooper. (Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)
First cab off the rank are the Wallabies’ Rugby Championship and Bledisloe Cup games.
The latter is the jewel in the crown – without it, these rights look a lot less impressive. The Rugby Championship can be dull and predictable, but the Wallabies’ games will bring in viewers. Home games will all be at TV-friendly times, as will games in New Zealand.
If you can embrace a Sunday morning (AEST) kickoff in Argentina, the only real blemish is what would be a 1am start in South Africa, especially with half the Wallabies’ games produced overseas.
This is a broadcaster-friendly competition, especially with anti-siphoning laws, I’d expect these games to get on FTA.
The next product announced are Wallaroos Tests. As of yet, 15s rugby hasn’t seen the meteoric rise that the other women’s sports have. Really, the best RA could offer would be the sevens series. Unless a network could snap these up and get some kind of grant for doing so – similar to what Foxtel have recently been given – you’d expect these to end up being streamed via RA’s social channels, or maybe stuck behind a paywall.
The next point addresses the void Super Rugby has left – suggesting either a trans-Tasman competition or a domestic comp like Super Rugby AU.
Make no mistake, a trans-Tasman comp is the most beneficial from a broadcasting point of view. Five games weekly, Friday and Saturday primetime covered, double-headers on both of those days, and the extra game could be shoved over to Sunday so as not to clash with club rugby.
Again, with half the games produced overseas, with locally relevant teams and New Zealand powerhouses, this is another safe model. The likelihood is for one or two games to be screened live weekly in primetime, on FTA or Optus.
The suggested Super Eight competition is the wildcard in all of this. Not too many people envisioned a Champions League-style playoff between the two best teams from South Africa, New Zealand and Australia, along with representatives from Japan and South America.
Would I watch it? Yes. Would I be in the minority? Also yes. And I’d predict that Foxtel, at least, would have some interest.
A club Championship model sounds decent. One of the (many) obvious arguments against letting club rugby fill the void after Super Rugby is that it has niche appeal. While that will still be the case for this competition, at least it’ll tap into multiple markets of club rugby fans.
I love showing the Shute Shield and Queensland Premier Rugby, but given the unique timeslots of these competitions, Shute Shield in particular, you’re limited in broadcast options. Any deal would have to be limited to one, maybe two games per comp. In what is already a niche market, diluting the audience too many ways will only harm you in the long run. Maybe a game or two weekly will make it on air, but either broadcasters will demand to be reimbursed, or it’ll come cheap.
The final aspect of the deal refers to “A showcase of the best schoolboy rugby in Australia”. Cryptic.
Make no mistake about it, there’s some interest in schoolboy rugby, and I’m not just talking about the thousands of schoolboys and old boys who flock out to every match. But YouTube highlights reels getting 50,000 views is one thing, the general population watching each week is another. Don’t hold your breath.
I love what Rugby Australia has done here, and how open minded they’ve shown themselves to be. However, cash-strapped broadcasters (the ones that matter anyway) will glance over the vast majority of what they’re offering, and toss that media release right into the bin.
Micko
Roar Rookie
Because they have a policy of selecting players based on racial and ethnic heritage in the year 2021! :shocked: :thumbdown:
fiwiboy7042
Roar Rookie
HM, it's like this. These "principles", of the Aratipu review, were published at the start of the season before we had even heard of coronavirus. (Apparently the NZ Super franchises expire this year). The review simply adapted COVID-19 into its review. It is also also very hypocritical of McLennan to reprimand NZ Rugby for wanting less than 5 Aussie teams THEN offer to take surplus Kiwi players for their sides. Can you not see that? NZ may as well say "stuff that, let's just have a sixth team". After all, Aust and RSA have both had Super rugby teams added already. (what Jacko said). And NZ Ruby now has every right to throw that same outrage in Aust Rugby's face regarding the S8 concept. Aust signing Kiwi players is different to other countries because of the SANZAAR alliance; we are all in this together -- so the theory goes. Aust already signs Kiwi players and coaches, anyway! McLennan is trying to turn Aust rugby into a poacher! NZ is not big enough to survive sustained poaching raids on multiple fronts. (As a former News Corp journo who was among the 500-800 who lost their jobs in June, let's say that I am significantly underwhelmed by McLennan's management style. Contrary to what people think, Covid didn't cost us our jobs; News Corp used it as a pretext.) And asking for 4 Bledisloe Tests will kill the concept off given that Aussie Bledisloe game crowds were already dropping. Not to mention that Aust asking to host 2 Tests involves a month of quarantine. NZ would be happy to at least entertain the request to share revenue for a 4-Test BC series in NZ (NZR Rugby had issues with this with England as well) but I imagine they might feel like that if Rugby Aust keeps behaving this way.
Honest Max
Roar Rookie
Scrums used to break necks and yet had half the power of today’s. The reds 2020 scrum would destroy anything 20 years ago. In fact, send the weakest 2020 pro scrum back in time and they destroy the British Lions scrum. It’s so low now that a hooker cannot get his foot to the middle to hook it. It’s literally impossible. The players are way stronger, 5 times fitter and know 100 more tricks. Yet, today’s scrums see far less players at all levels end up quadriplegics. I agree that too much time is lost at the scrum and believe the clock should be stopped. I also believe that judiciaries should review scrums and suspend cheating props - like they do with jockeys in horse racing. But please, don’t tell me about the scrums of yesteryear. You might as well be telling me how awesome the internet was back then.
Honest Max
Roar Rookie
You are imagining what Hamish said and then getting angry about the phantom comments. Hamish did say that those NZ players that couldn’t make the 5 NZ teams could play in Oz, and that they could remain eligible for NZ selection. He’s also telling NZ that they can have a bigger share of the money. He’s doing a series of favours for the NZ game. Why don’t you just admit that your angry that he didn’t agree to the demands from NZR? The fast is, this guy knows what he’s doing, has the region’s richest man behind him and still isn’t acting like a bully. If I was a kiwi, I would put aside the rivalry and ignore Fox and Sky and actually listen to what he’s offering. It would be the best comp in the world and NZ would have so much money they’d never lose another star overseas again. But as he said, because it’s not NZR’s idea, they probably won’t go for it. You guys don’t even know why you don’t want it. You’re just blindly and irrationally angry.
Jacko
Guest
And bigger...
The Late News
Roar Rookie
Dunno mate. My favourite Malaysian Country and Western singer Salim Dustee had a smash hit with the "Tent with no beer"!
Jacko
Guest
Max Aus can already sign as many OS players as it want...No one says they cant. Wht irks me is that McLennan wants to tell NZ they are having 5 teams then tell NZ that NZ will provide players to those teams and still make them available for the ABs and wants a draft so Aus can get some of the best guys from NZ. If Aus cant provide 5 teams worth of decent talent why are they demanding that they have the 5 teams in the first place? Aus wants to attach its self to NZ because it will be financially better for them than if they dont but they want half the rewards for providing 35% of the product.
Jacko
Guest
I think the Maori ABs is legal Max and lots of countries have teams based around their indigineous backgrounds.
Malotru
Roar Rookie
Indeed TLN, but it's probably arguable that most are run better than RA. Saying that it shouldn't be hard to run a decent pub.
Muglair
Roar Rookie
I try and avoid Malcolm Knox but his headline likening McLennan to V'Landy with no pants, did get me in. He was pointing out that fans want to watch the best AFL/NRL players in the best AFL/NFL competitions in the world and rugby can't match it. You don't need to attract hundreds of thousands of TV subscribers to watch one game. You just need to attract a couple of hundred to each of thousands of games each week filmed by the clubs and supplied for free. Can somebody please tell me what I am missing? The NRC could be a tremendous competition if it was designed to promote club rugby and attract club rugby fans to attend. A costly afterthought running in opposition to the Rugby Championship tagged on to the end of the rugby season which was cut short for every club player and supporter in the country accordingly. Then they televise only one game a week and wander around moaning about nobody being interested. Should be run during the season, home and away, Sundays and throwing discounted tickets around like confetti on Saturdays at all rugby venues.
Honest Max
Roar Rookie
Awesome. You’ve been on google and found the 3 exceptions. Why not address the core of the post if you can? It’s a fact that the overwhelming majority of major sporting teams are private. This in itself isn’t even the same as PE in the sense Hamish is talking about it. Maybe I shouldn’t have sidetracked things by smacking down an obvious myth about private ownership in sport. It seems we can’t help drag every discussion into some rhetorical pedantry.
Honest Max
Roar Rookie
NZR pubished their principles 4 weeks ago - also in the age of corona. So let’s move on from that excuse. Again, why are you angry that Oz clubs might sign NZ players? Is it different from the other countries? Hamish said he wanted the players NZR couldn’t keep - so that’s not better than France, UK and Japan signing current stars? Can you articulate why this is arrogant and why it angers you? It makes no sense to me. And, if you think NZ should get all the revenue from home matches, why do you think it’s unfair that Oz rugby has 2 of the 4? Do you think NZ should demand all 4 and most of the money? What is the reason for this? How is asking for a fair go insulting? I cannot understand why you have any anger and I’m not sure if you understand it either. But your angry is real.
Honest Max
Roar Rookie
Richmond, eh? I didn’t say top 1000,000. Come on then - go start the research and I’ll sit here smugly.
Yeah, uncertain times for us.
Drew
Roar Rookie
I feel for you guys because your only hope is something domestic in the short term. Your COVID numbers arn't great, was somewhere around 4000 new cases last I looked so I don't see much being viable anytime soon. Silver lining is probably that you have some many players abroad and some of those comps like Premiership Rugby restarting means you'll get to see some of them running around soon. The timing couldn't be worst in that you loose some of that bump you'd expect for the sport after winning a World Cup.
fiwiboy7042
Roar Rookie
Well, we are in the age of coronavirus so plans, and principles, need to adapt. As for stopping Test rugby, that may not be their call. Again: coronavirus. And you're right _ I am furious. I am furious at the way in which NZ Rugby has been called out as arrogant (which they are not) over this whole review while Rugby Aust over the last 2-3 days are showing that same arrogance that NZ has been accused of. How can a country of 5 million people bully a country with 25 million people? Rod Kafer's new article is the latest but it's Hamish McLennan's proposal for a draft to take in Kiwi players that really infuriated me. On hand, RA says it needs 5 teams than on the other says it will be all too happy to fill those sides with surplus Kiwis (which it is already doing BTW). Then don't even get me started on the four test Bledisloe proposal (of which RA wants two on home soil) and the 50-50 revenue sharing if all 4 Tests are held in NZ -- insulting your partner is really going to make that happen! :-(
The Late News
Roar Rookie
Our wonderful country is full of one pub towns mate! Probably more than not I reckon.
Malotru
Roar Rookie
Well if it's the only pub in town it might have half a chance TLN!
Malotru
Roar Rookie
I'm with you completely on that Tree Son, and how good has SR Aotearoa been?
ScottD
Roar Guru
A few good points there mate. I particularly agree with the call for less replacements and the national footprint to be a priority. I don't necessarily think that goal kicking is a blight on the game (my words) though. I actually think there isn't as much goal kicking now as there used to be. cheers