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Opinion
A strange phenomenon has happened this year in Super Rugby. When faced with the proposition of facing a Kiwi side on New Zealand soil, Australian teams have conceded defeat before a whistle has been blown.
I wonder what Jake Gordon or Jed Holloway were thinking when they saw the team announced on the Thursday before the match. Would it have been better to simply forfeit and not risk injury? It was a complete mismatch only reinforced further by the Waratahs’ marketing team’s bizarre decision to highlight a key matchup being Beauden Barrett vs Ben Donaldson.
With Michael Hooper, Mark Nawaqanitawase, Lalakai Foketi and Langi Gleeson all being rested at home, the bookies set the line for the match at a whopping 24 points and from the opening whistle, it was clear the Blues were going to cover it in a canter.
The Blues forwards collected the kick-off, walked their maul 30 metres before earning a soft penalty. From there, it wasn’t a contest.
The handful of Blues supporters who showed up to watch the game are probably the same devoted fans who would show up to a trial game because that was what it ended up being.
Had the Waratahs taken a full strength side over to Eden Park, it is unlikely they would have won. But there is something deeply unsatisfying about seeing Australian sides rest their star players for the tough games and save them for the easy ones. Perhaps ANZAC weekend was the weekend to have a genuine crack at a seemingly insurmountable task.
The opposite strategy seems to be adopted by the Kiwi sides which is to rest players for the easy (Australian) games and save them for the tough Kiwi contests. Whilst a less shameful strategy, this doesn’t benefit the competition either.
In a hyper-competitive sporting landscape, Super Rugby seems to tell fans, “there are other more important things down the track to focus on.”
How can fans remain engaged in these games when they flick over to the NRL or AFL and see packed stadiums watching full-strength sides battle each other to earn those all-important points for a win?
These leagues don’t rest players at anywhere near the level of Super Rugby. The outcome of each game is critical and the teams (and fans) treat them in such a way.
It is not clear what the perfect solution is. Clearly, Australian sides need to become more competitive. The Kiwi discarded players plying their trade for Aussie sides are doing well (Taleni Seu, Charlie Gamble, Vaiolini Ekuasi) and there is opportunity there.
It benefits Australian players to win with higher quality foreign players even if it means fewer Aussie players in the teams. There are simply more good New Zealand rugby players than Australian players and we cannot expect five Australian sides to be as competitive as five New Zealand sides with no assistance.
Perhaps we start with the eight-team finals series. If the Waratahs could not coast into the finals by finishing 8th, perhaps they would have treated the Blues fixture with a bit more interest and we as fans would have provided ours.
In the meantime, surely the preference is for each team to throw everything they have at each other and see what the outcome is. We, as rugby supporters, want to give our devotion to our clubs but it is hard when, at times, the clubs do not seem as devoted to win.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.