A one-stop solution to improve the structure of rugby in the Southern Hemisphere

Before I introduce the solution, let me highlight the problems with the professional rugby competitions in the Southern Hemisphere.

The problem with SRP is that it doesn’t engage the Australian sporting market very well, especially when competing for spectators with the NRL and AFL. This is why many Aussie rugby fans want the ‘Super Rugby’ space to feel more like a domestic competition – ideally with an Aussie winner each year.

This is what grabs people in Australia. An Australian team has only won Super Rugby twice in the last 25 years.

However, many Kiwi fans want Super Rugby to feel *less* like a domestic competition. Super Rugby was not designed to be a domestic competition. It’s not actually good for the NZ set-up or their players. NZ already has a domestic competition. NZ doesn’t need another one.

Even a short Super Rugby Aotearoa followed by a short SRP—to allow for a short SR AU—isn’t very appealing to a lot of Kiwi fans. Besides, the Super Rugby season is only 18 weeks long from the end of February to the July Test. Trying to fit a decent mini version of each competition with a rest week in-between is a tight squeeze.

Sevu Reece of the Crusaders celebrates after scoring a try (Photo by Phil Walter/Getty Images)

Another problem with SRP is that it’s not an even competition between the Australian and New Zealand teams. If a player’s skill and ability level is marked out of ten, NZ simply has more eight-out-of-ten players in their SR teams. Australia has more six-and-seven-out-of-ten players in their teams.

This is not NZ’s fault, but it’s not good for the competition. In fact, NZ would love the Australian teams to be more competitive almost as much as Australia would, but there is no real solution in sight.

Establishing an ideal NRC in Australia is financially and politically difficult. Further, Australia—for good reasons—insists on maintaining five Super Rugby teams rather than concentrating their talent into fewer teams.

And other solutions, such as NZ sharing more of their revenue or their playing talent with Australia, are potentially harmful to NZ rugby, and even outrageous to the ears of many Kiwi fans.

Having said all that, SRP still offers potential commercial value and high-performance outcomes that may be diminished if there is too little of the international component.

Aussie fans might claim that SRP is not really delivering anything good at the moment, so what is there to lose? And that’s fair enough, but things could also potentially get a lot worse.

So the situation remains very unpleasant for many Aussie fans. But any changes would make things unpleasant for many Kiwi fans, and maybe even *more* unpleasant for Aussie fans in the long run.

Then there is the issues with the Rugby Championship. Many Aussie and Kiwi fans want to keep the Rugby Championship, but they don’t want it to feel stale. They want it to feel as exciting as the Six Nations does for Northern Hemisphere rugby fans.

There are also fears that South Africa will eventually leave the Rugby Championship to join the Six Nations. This is a very realistic scenario and the drums won’t stop beating until it happens.

Then what? Then the spotlight is put more and more on the Northern Hemisphere, and less and less on the Southern Hemisphere. We feel like we’re dying a slow death. We might survive, but we can never get back to the glory days.

Then there’s the third tier—a vital piece missing from the Australian rugby system, but also a vexed issue. How to make it appreciated, enjoyable, and helpful to the rugby system at the same time?

There’s a lot to like about NZ’s NPC, but even now, some 25 years since Super Rugby began, some NZ fans still long for the glory days when the NPC held pride of place, but feel they have no choice but to accept that the NPC will always be a shadow of its former glory.

I know it sounds ridiculous, but the solution to all these problems involves one big step. This step might cause you to balk at first, but if you can get your head around it, it starts to become quite attractive.

Bear with me as I tell you what the one big step is and why its benefits far outweigh its downsides.

As Paul Cully suggested recently: the one big step solution is to move the Rugby Championship to the start of the season to be played late February and March. Include Fiji and Japan, and play a single round robin with a mid-competition break for travel rest.

It will significantly overlap with the Six Nations but won’t start any earlier than the season already starts for Super Rugby. Under this proposal, if the Six Nations were to start a week later, it would finish on the same weekend as the Rugby Championship.

(Photo by Anthony Au-Yeung/Getty Images)

Before you balk at starting the season with Test rugby, and worry about player injuries, etc., listen to all the benefits and then tell me if you think these things are not obstacles that can be overcome.

First, the season starts with a bang in the Southern Hemisphere (including Japan). There is increased attention for rugby. I imagine New Zealand and Australia preparing themselves with a return to something like the old Probables v Possibles concept.

Second, the Rugby Championship is exciting again. Six teams with three games each weekend over five rounds. Every game is meaningful. Every game is a must-win, winner-take-all. No second chances against the same team. Just like the Six Nations.

Third, shifting the Rugby Championship to run alongside the Six Nations is probably the only hope of keeping South Africa in the Rugby Championship long-term.

Fourth, Fiji get better access to their European players during the Six Nations—adding value to the competition. Australia also gets better access to their European players should they need them in the future.

Now here’s where it gets really good…

This change allows Super Rugby Pacific to be played from April to June, then following the July internationals, each country’s domestic competition is played from August to October—with all test players available!

Australia gets a proper commercially viable NRC or SR AU without diminishing the benefits of SRP.

Similarly, NZ gets SRP and the NPC—with all their test players available! The glory returns to the NPC and also adds significant value to it. There is no catch. It really will be as good as you hoped.

The space taken up by the Rugby Championships will mean SRP turns into a simple 12-team round robin competition, which is fairer for the NZ teams. The slight decrease in revenue is made up by the increased value of each country’s domestic tournament.

NZR is able to rest All Black players during the NPC instead of SRP, adding value to SRP.

NZR will have no real issue with Fiji Drua (or even Moana Pasifika!) playing in Australia’s domestic competition, because NZ will be busy playing their beloved NPC at the same time.

Besides, a commercially viable NRC or SR AU builds the cohesion of those teams along with the Australian SR teams, making them more competitive for SRP. This also benefits NZ’s Super Rugby teams and adds further value to SRP.

If Australia were to play both SR AU and SRP, it would allow each Australian SR team to have a minimum of 10 or 11 home games each year! The increased revenue would allow the Australian teams to better retain their players, adding even more value to both competitions. Fiji Drua and Moana Pasifika could similarly benefit.

In Australia, an average non-Test professional rugby player will be able to play a minimum of 22 professional rugby games each year, rather than 11 at the moment. That’s double the amount, making the lure of going overseas less attractive.

Ellis Genge of England breaks through. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

It’s the best of all worlds. There is no major loss of revenue for any competition. In fact, value is added to each of the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd tier competitions.

And finally, there is the structure of the season itself. It just feels more engaging. Fans will know that SRP starts on the first weekend in April each year. And fans will know the NRC/SR AU and the NPC starts on the first weekend in August.

There is also a nice spread of test rugby throughout the season, at the start, in the middle, and at the end. Lots of peak events for spectators and broadcasters to get excited about.

And the season is simple and flows seamlessly. Each competition gets it’s time in the sun:

Late February—March April—June July August—October November
TRC SRP Tests NRC/SR AU & NPC Tests

A small alternative is to switch SRP with the NRC/SR AU & NPC so that the NRC/SR AU & NPC is played from April-June, and SRP from August-October. But NZR would need to be happy to do that.

So there you have it. It all starts with one big step and being able to adjust to the season starting with the Rugby Championship. A small adjustment to make in comparison to the benefits.