Roar Rookie
Joined May 2021
11.1k
Views
4
Published
90
Comments
Published
Comments
Franklin Roosevelt once said “virtues are lost in self interest as rivers are lost to the sea”. For the last two decades Australian rugby’s…
Rugby is back in the headlines, but very little of the coverage has said anything about actual rugby. Strap yourself in as we speculate…
As we're all aware rugby in Australia has faced its fair share of challenges over the last decade, but we have an opportunity to…
Australian rugby made some real strides during the COVID period. The Reds and Brumbies have been strong, the Force and Wallabies improved, and the…
hey lizlot, the issue for me isn’t that the rebels were poor/ Australian super rugby was poor this year, its that we have been sub par for a long time. My view is that we can’t afford to expand currently and so we should consolidate.
cheers for reading
Consolidate to survive: Five teams must become four if Super Rugby is to survive
I can’t believe the Tahs board haven’t been sacked on mass! they are a disgrace, the sooner they’re gone the better, viva le Revolution!
Consolidate to survive: Five teams must become four if Super Rugby is to survive
I know reducing to 4 teams decreases exposure but what’s the alternitive? Compete in a comp with the kiwis and get beaten each week? Never win premierships? how is that going to help put the game on the public’s radar?
Consolidate to survive: Five teams must become four if Super Rugby is to survive
Fair enough Greasegum, I personally think playing the NZ sides makes us stronger, but I would be interested to see how a full Australian domestic comp would go
Consolidate to survive: Five teams must become four if Super Rugby is to survive
cheers for reading flickpass,
I guess the Wallabies improvement comment was a subjective judgment. I did think we were better last year despite the mixed results, in particular, i thought tacitly we played far better in 2020 than we did under chekia, and also thought we had a few key injures last year (particularly at 10) which mitigated some of the results.
Consolidate to survive: Five teams must become four if Super Rugby is to survive
I actually cut some of this out of the article for length but the general point I was going to make was that Aus rugby is at its weakest now with 5 teams, was stronger 10-12 years ago with 4 teams and stronger still 15-20 years ago with 3 teams.
I agree with you on the absence of legitimate player development pathways, but even with proper development pathways I don’t think we have the same depth as NZ and so it doesn’t make sense to me that we should field the same amount of teams
Consolidate to survive: Five teams must become four if Super Rugby is to survive
RA actually did sell the rebels to private investors who sold it back to RA. The storm have been very successful but they had significant financial assistance from the NRL to become established (something the rebels have not received from RA).
In terms of foreign players, Australia can’t afford to lure foreigners of significant quality. Any foreign player leaving their home nation can get paid more in Europe or Japan and so we will recruit average players. eg George Worth
cheers for reading
Consolidate to survive: Five teams must become four if Super Rugby is to survive
— COMMENT DELETED —
Consolidate to survive: Five teams must become four if Super Rugby is to survive
I actually cut some of this out of the article for length but the general point I was going to make was that Aus rugby is at its weakest now with 5 teams, was stronger 10-12 years ago with 4 teams and stronger still 15-20 years ago with 3 teams.
I hear what your saying about Rugby Australia not preparing well for expansion, I think it would cost big dollars to rectify this now and frankly think it might be better to consolidate 🙂
cheers for reading
Consolidate to survive: Five teams must become four if Super Rugby is to survive
cheers for reading JD,
I’ll have to look up the percentages again
Consolidate to survive: Five teams must become four if Super Rugby is to survive
Hey Ex Force Fan, I agree that having a broader rugby presence helps to grow the game, I just don’t think we the finances or player depth to achieve that right now.
I actually support the (possibly even more controversial) idea of merging the rebels and brumbies. Would give Brumbies financial exposure to the Melbourne market and maintain a professional connection to Victorian rugby
cheers for reading bro
Consolidate to survive: Five teams must become four if Super Rugby is to survive
hey Wheelbarrow, I think the Rebels have been uncompetitive for more than 1 season (arguably 10), and although we have talent we don’t have the finances to keep that Talent in Australia.
I’m not sure giving young players a go will allow us to compete with the Kiwi’s
Consolidate to survive: Five teams must become four if Super Rugby is to survive
bugger! i’ll jump on ESPN thanks anyway mate
Coach's Corner Issue 17: Do the Wallabies have what it takes in the second row?
Outstanding article! Gave me a real appreciation for Phillip. This might be a rookie question but I was wondering where you source your stats? I’ve been looking for decent free rugby stats for a while
Coach's Corner Issue 17: Do the Wallabies have what it takes in the second row?
What Twiggy is doing in WA is Amazing but it is only possible because he is a billionaire. RA doesn’t have the money Twiggy does, they are not investing in Victorian grass roots the way twiggy invests in WA grassroots because there is simply no money to invest.
The rebels do not have the same connection to the rugby community the force had when they were cut. It wouldn’t be a repeat of 2017, particularly if the team was merged rather than destroyed.
Consolidation is not a quick fix, its about developing a sustainable, vibrant competition for the long term. If our super rugby teams continue on their current path they will continue to wither, and the game wont grow
Consolidate to survive: Five teams must become four if Super Rugby is to survive