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Rugby News: Will Harrison's heart-breaking double whammy, Tahs 'abysmal failure of leadership', Frost's change of heart on Japan

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24th April, 2022
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Waratahs young gun Will Harrison will be sidelined for the rest of the season after suffering a torn ACL and MCL in the Super Round loss to the Chiefs.

The 22-year-old was hurt late in the first half when Quinn Tupea ran through him for the second of his tries.

Harrison left the field in obvious pain and clutching his knee and a Waratahs spokesman confirmed the diagnosis everyone had feared to The Roar on Monday.

Crusaders link with Melbourne Storm

Crusaders coach Scott Robertson has revealed the inspiration his team has taken from NRL giants Melbourne Storm after visiting the club in the lead up to their Super Round victory over Melbourne Rebels.

The long-time cross-code relationship between the two powerhouse clubs continued in Melbourne at AAMI Park over the weekend.

Robertson and his coaching staff spent time with Bellamy’s NRL team, viewing training and also sat in on their team meeting ahead of their Anzac Day clash with the Warriors.

Bellamy returned the favour before the Crusaders trounced the Rebels 42-17 at AAMI Park on Sunday afternoon.

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The Crusaders have a theme for each season, in 2017 drawing inspiration from Muhammed Ali’s underdog victory in the ‘Rumble in the Jungle’.

Robertson said he had previously used the Storm to inspire his troops.

“They’re just a real great club and one year we use them as our theme – Purple Reign – and a lot of their trademarks and standards or behaviours that they use are really well aligned,” he said. 

“We do a lot of work with them and it’s a great relationship.”

Like Bellamy, who toured overseas in the post-season to learn from other great sporting clubs, Robertson said it was important to keep growing.

“You get in your own four walls a lot and do what you’re used to so each year you’ve got to find a way to get better,” he said.

“When you go to other teams you might only get one or two little things that might tweak some of your philosophy stuff or, be a really big idea that you’re going to run with.”

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Robertson joked there were other ways the two clubs could benefit and that Bellamy was looking to swap Crusaders playmaker Richie Mo’unga for Cameron Munster.

“Craig is trying to sign Richie Mo’unga and exchange him for Cam Munster but I don’t know if we could handle Cam,” he laughed.

White and Frost close to calls

Brumbies pair Nick Frost and Nic White are reportedly set to knock back deals to play in Japan to stay loyal to Australia.

Fox Sports reports that Frost, who had already agreed to join Robbie Deans’ Panasonic Wild Knights, is close to backing out of the deal after receiving encouragement to stay in Super Rugby.

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White, meanwhile, told reporters after the Brumbies’ Super Round win that he wanted his future sorted quickly amid speculation he was mulling a seven-figure deal to play in Japan.

Fox reported that White was also set to ignore the big money on offer in Japan to help drive the Wallabies World Cup campaign.

 “The news hoses down fears the walls are crumbling down around Fortress Australia, with the governing body only tweaking their eligibility laws earlier this year,” wrote Christy Doran for Fox.

Stan Sport’s Sean Maloney joins The Roar experts Brett McKay and Harry Jones for this week’s edition of The Roar Rugby Podcast. Stream it here or like and subscribe in your podcast app of choice.

“A closer examination will see the Wallabies are quickly developing depth in every position, with multiple strong options right the way through the lineup with the exception of fullback and hooker, even if questions around the sustainability of five Super Rugby franchises remain.

“Securing Taniela Tupou and Suliasi Vunivalu is next on the agenda, with Rugby Australia confident both men will remain in the game.

Vunivalu is said to want to appear at next year’s World Cup, while RA wants to pin down Tupou sooner rather than later.”

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‘Abysmal failure of leadership’

The Waratahs women’s team narrowly lost the Super W final to Fijiana on the weekend, without any of the men’s team sticking around to cheer them on.

The Tahs have said they were victim to scheduling issues. Michael Hooper was in Melbourne but had another engagement, according to Georgina Robinson in the Sydney Morning Herald, who took aim at the Tahs hierarchy over the issue.

“No one in Tahland thought it was an important enough occasion to change a few flights,” wrote Robinson on Monday.

“That’s an abysmal failure of leadership. Sure, the players posted a video on the team ‘socials’ wishing the women well.

“Then the NSW captain and the Wallabies captain stayed behind in Melbourne and didn’t go to the game. You know what that looks like?

It looks like the solidarity was for show, but when the rubber hit the road the Waratahs’ priorities were clear. Tah tough? It wasn’t the Waratahs men this weekend.”

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NZR on future of World Cup

New Zealand will struggle to host the Rugby World Cup again if the comments from New Zealand Rugby boss Mark Robinson are anything to go by.

New Zealand won the 1987 and 2011 tournaments as hosts and Robinson told Newstalk ZB radio the size of the competition made it a challenging event to host.

With Europe hosting the men’s and women’s tournaments in 2023/25, and Australia and the USA likely to follow, 2035/37 is the next World Cup hosting bid opportunity for New Zealand.

“I guess it comes up in passing, but not a formal discussion point,” said Robinson.

“It’s really interesting, the stage of the World Cup, the size of the tournament, for a country like New Zealand to be able to host it.

“[If you look at] Government support in Australia, the size of stadia, the expectation World Rugby has to drive revenue to reinvest in the game across the world, it will be really challenging for New Zealand. We’ll have to be very creative as a country if we are ever to broach that subject again.

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“Look how big France is going to be in the revenue generation, what’s been talked about in Australia, and we know in America the size of stadium and the massive commercial grunt behind sport.

“The context and expectation is shifting all the time. We’ll keep it on the radar but we’ll have to be very innovative to bring something like that to New Zealand in the future.”

(With AAP)

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