If we’ve heard it once, we’ve heard it a thousand times: Australian Super Rugby teams are just a no-good sorry bunch, losing 92 per cent of trans-Tasman matches in 2021 with an average points differential of 19.
Our little Aussie battlers are no match for the fast and the furious on the other side of the ditch.
But if we look at it from a different perspective, it’s clear that it’s not Australia letting everyone down, it’s New Zealand. This is why.
Across business, technology, industry and the arts, increasingly the focus is on trying stuff, failing, learning and growing. This, the theory goes, will give you the best chance of success in the future.
The one thing you don’t do is nothing because, however good you are now, standing still will get you nowhere.
Unfortunately for our Kiwi cousins, they’ve been frozen in time since 1996.
(Photo by Mark Tantrum/Getty Images)
Count their teams and it doesn’t take long to realise that they’re still stuck in the dark ages with five, the same number they had at the start of professional Super Rugby. Australian Super Rugby teams, on the other hand, have seen a devilish 66.6 percent expansion. We had three teams in 1996 – Queensland Reds, New South Wales Waratahs and the newly formed ACT Brumbies – and added the Western Force and Melbourne Rebels from 2006 and 2011 respectively.
Australian rugby could’ve stood still too. After all, we were pretty hot stuff back in the day, what with winning the 1999 Rugby World Cup on the back of three well-resourced Super Rugby teams. We could’ve remained just as we were, polishing old Bill every day, content within our east coast stronghold. Yet we chose the great unknown. We gazed at far horizons and took a chance. We looked failure in the eye and said, ‘Bring it on!’.
Sure, failure has looked back at us once or twice, but that’s okay if we’re learning from our mistakes. Trying and failing can be embarrassing and painful and expensive. It’s usually far more comfortable to do nothing than something.
But did the Vikings gaze out over the ocean and think, ‘Well, there might be something out there, but our boat’s a bit leaky and raiding’s quite dangerous, so we’ll just stay home and farm instead’? No, they went forth and plundered.
Did Douglas Mawson’s Antarctic expedition let a bit of wind and ice deter them? Of course not. They packed their thermal undies and got on with it.
Australian rugby could’ve decided that trying to conquer the savage, untamed AFL lands to the west and south was a mite too ambitious and ended our expansionary plans in Canberra. But we didn’t; we gave it a red-hot go.
(Photo by Mark Evans/Getty Images)
There were all sorts of reasons for this, including the lure of more broadcast money. Fundamentally, though, it offered the opportunity to strengthen rugby’s presence, increase opportunities, improve depth and show more people how great rugby can be. We did it with an eye not to the now but to the future, and we can see the reward in Western Australia’s passionate Sea of Blue and Melbourne’s proud Burn Boyz.
On the other hand, New Zealand chose not to expand and provide more Super opportunities. They probably just looked in the mirror and were so dazzled by all that reflected perfection that they could see no way of improving it.
Frankly, their lack of bold ambition has been disappointing. When you think about it, New Zealand’s decision to sit on their Super Rugby hands is like South Africa saying that they like their Test No. 1 ranking too much to risk it by playing Test matches, which of course they’d never… wait, what?
Sure, sometimes we Aussies plunge in without thinking things through. But that can actually be a good thing, because thinking too long can turn into procrastination and then paralysis. No-one can accuse us of that.
Look at it from this perspective: Australia is the rugby power that makes things happen. We’re open to change. We’re innovators. We’re daring.
So let’s not waste energy by beating ourselves up or trying to turn back the Super Rugby timepiece to three-teams-o’clock the instant things go a little awry.
Instead, let’s pull on our figurative thermal undies, get back in our metaphorical leaky boat and keep building those junior and club pathways in Western Australia and Victoria so that by the end of this decade at least 50 per cent of Force and Rebels players come through them. Let’s support the reinvigorated Waratahs to do their famous 1920s namesakes proud. Let’s free the Brumbies to gallop at full pace again and propel the Reds to build a dynasty on the back of their outstanding young talent.
Eventually it would be great to have another two Aussie teams in order to create (with the Fijian Drua of course) a professional eight-team Super Rugby AU competition, but that time isn’t now. Apart from anything else, New Zealand needs us for just a bit longer.
In particular they need us to hold up that mirror and show them why it’s not us, it’s them. They’re the ones letting Super Rugby down by having only five teams instead of the seven they need to spread their wealth of talent and stop killing each other. With seven New Zealand teams plus Moana Pasifika, they too could have a substantial Super Rugby tournament of their own, with just enough time left for a short, sharp crossover competition with Australia at the conclusion.
Given the Kiwi aversion to innovation, it might take a while. But what better country to hold their hand during the process than daring, open-to-change Australia? Meanwhile, as we Aussies look forward to Super Rugby Pacific 2022, let’s treasure our five fabulous provincial teams, work hard to ensure our competitiveness and – importantly – give ourselves a well-deserved pat on the back for our derring-do.
Sorry you are in error
Guest
Slavishly following everything Australian rugby league does, years later, is not what one calls innovation.
Muzzo
Roar Rookie
As I said Mate, not benefitting himself, as in financial rewards, but just sponsoring the side. There was no mention, by me, of him being a bad guy.
Perthstayer
Roar Rookie
and how has he been benefitting himself? The expectation of Twiggy being a bad guy far outweighs the evidence
Lichtfield
Roar Rookie
An interesting take. I guess, in one sense, they might be learning, given Moana Pasifika is an Auckland based team that, while populated with people from Islander backgrounds, who have mostly be players from the NPC.
mpg
Guest
Rugby in NZ is in increasingly dire straights and has been for a decade at least. Super Rugby is a real issue as it is either helter skelter school boy rugby or boring predictable meathead rugby. Add in commentators who are calling it for a blind person or lack any proper critical analysis plus games played in too large, substandard, too expensive to enjoy attending stadiums and you have a product that would not last in a proper open market. I know too many who switch to watch the league or the A-league or the NBL because the NZ game is so dire. Lots of points do not make a great game of footy. We forgot the secret of rugby was that of being an amateur game played professionally in attitude.
Matt O'Connell
Guest
Muzzo, agree with everything you have said. NZ selectors and Hansen's hubris have cost NZ dearly. Foster is a poor quality copy of the same Betamax DVD. Does NZ have a young, vibrant, relevant coach with a cabinet full of silverware? How could they find someone who was as RAZOR sharp as that?
Kiwikrs
Roar Rookie
Fantastic article. I loved it. Some truth and some excellent tongue in cheek humour which unfortunately seems to have been missed by many
Ken Catchpole's Other Leg
Roar Guru
Yes Frankly, and a large part of the NZ market resides in Australia. Does the 5million count the owners of the silver ferned utes driving around Sydney?
Armchair Halfback
Roar Rookie
Hi JC, bit late to this - and a cat among the pigeons as well. I reckon NZ rugby could easily have 8 Super rugby sides. The five existing teams plus Tasman Makos, a Hawkes Bay or Bay of Plenty team and an extra team, from the Auckland catchment area...
Muzzo
Roar Rookie
Carry on Bro !! Honestly!!
scrum
Roar Rookie
I do not live in Sydney. I am actively involved in Community rugby in Aussie. I hold Life memberships in 2 Rugby organisations because of my work with them So all the people I know in community rugby in NZ- both NI and SI know nothing. Why has NZR allowed junior teams with only 10 players compete for competition points, why have they also banned Junior rep rugby until U15. I have never attacked you personally- only addressed the issues but somehow you perceive that as a personal attack. On the other hand you have attacked me regularly- in fact in recent posts it’s all about attacking me and not addressing the issues. You keep on saying I know nothing but never actually address the points i have raised. What ex friends have to do with the conversation I have no idea. So all the media reports over the Licencing aspect of the PI teams are just made up even though there are direct quotes from NZR. Firstly it was down to the Murdoch press but neither link I provided was from Murdoch. Where do you get your information from? Well keep discarding all the evidence , present no evidence of your own and rely on personal attacks . Goodbye.
Muzzo
Roar Rookie
So you know it all. Why don't you at least put that knowledge to the test by joining up with a management committee of one of the main rugby unions in Sydney??? You might add to your repertoire, in that regard. Obviously you really don't know as much as you think you do about the game in Aotearoa, as by just visiting doesn't really give you the full picture, that you would get, until you are involved. In fact all that is read from media outlets, are not gospel, as has been proven many times in the past. Actually, a very good Bro of mine, back in the day, hated the media. Sadly he's passed on. RIP Keith Murdoch. So evidently those ' All the people', you know over there, are not talking about the nation as whole, as I've heard far different.
JC
Roar Rookie
The global season seems as far off as ever, Paulo — except for the poor old Springboks (and not in a good way). Playing for their clubs in the northern season and Test matches in the southern season, when do they get a break?
NH Fan
Guest
Has Italy failed by any criteria. Their Women's and u20s are doing well and the money it provides is also better with them then without them. I guess the Home Nations should have scraped France after 20 years too. Italy have more professional teams than Scotland, Wales and Ireland which would all be lost if the 6 nations money was gone. The drop off since 2015 was due to the Europe club civil war that resulted in most players leaving Italy and not getting game time at other Clubs.
Paulo
Roar Rookie
“ Not really blaming anyone, TRN, just having some fun” I think this has largely been lost on, sadly, too many readers.
Paulo
Roar Rookie
The first domino to fall, or piece of the puzzle has to be a global season for any world club comp. otherwise North and South will be out of whack. Until then, we really need to be fishing in our own ‘time zones’. Which is why Japan and the PI countries are a better direction than chasing the SA golden goose. Unfortunately RA and NZR have largely screwed the pooch on that for a while. Albeit with recent attempts to rectify it.
Paulo
Roar Rookie
Wow… just… wow (shakes head and walks away)…
SAKiwi
Guest
And I was under the impression this is a rugby site? Didn't realize it's a comedy forum? Seriously?!!
Anibal Pyro
Roar Rookie
From a far point of view (from Argentina across the planet) Junior male (and female) numbers are growing each day here, and The Pumas are a dream for every boy, but local competitions are stronger each day. Anyway, there is a lot of players from all over the country going to play in SLAR (south american Pro League), MLR and to Europe. even 2nds divisions of France, Italy, Scotland, etc. It´s a kind like soccer exodus. But there are waves and waves of youths on the horizon. Sooner than later, the Pumas will be a big threat, winning Tier 1 nations more consistently. I reckon it´s almost impossible to be part of SR, due to travelling, but a Jaguares' Sidney based team (lot of argies living there) could have been a way out. When the Pumas beat the ABs there were a couple of thousands Argies at Bankwest.
JC
Roar Rookie
Super Rugby’s is just a name. It can be anything we want it to be! But, absolutely, better engagement is at the heart of the solution.