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Joined September 2022
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Love the idea of a national club competition, however I cannot see how clubs could afford to participate. Most clubs run on a fairly tight budget and are based around volunteers doing a lot of work. The costs of interstate flights, accommodation, food etc., may be a step too far for some, if not most, rugby clubs.
To have a properly funded national competition that sits under Super Rugby, you will need significant financial investment and television coverage in an attempt to attract sponsors.
I have previously suggested on this site, that a national university rugby competition, run similarly to college sport in the USA, could be developed in AUS.
I note that 4 out of the 5 SR teams in AUS have a university as a jersey sponsor. This is a strong indicator that universities want to be involved in rugby. I also note that many universities in AUS have rugby teams competing in the Prem Rugby competitions in their respective cities. These rugby clubs already exist and have a supporter base – they don’t need to be created from scratch.
Rugby needs a carrot to dangle in front of young school levers. The chance to play ‘college rugby’ for one of the ‘Big 8’ universities in Australia and gain a degree (or part of a degree), on a full/part scholarship, could be the carrot to keep them in the game.
Looking at the annual revenues of AUS universities, they can easily afford to fund a ‘college’ rugby team. Based on AUS universities history with rugby and their current sponsorship of SR teams, they WANT to be involved in rugby. I also believe that a televised competition would get good ratings. Many alumni would tune in, as would current students. That’s a lot of potentially influential people taking an interest in their old university, and most importantly, in rugby.
Australia’s onshore international education sector is forecast to grow from 650,000 enrolments today to 940,000 by 2025. This means that a national ‘college’ rugby competition could also gain international exposure from international students that return home.
It's time for a national club competition - these teams have the biggest following
Sounds like a good idea Joe. SR players not on international duty should definitely be playing more rugby at a higher level than club after the SR season concludes.
I also agree with Don. Junior rugby numbers seem to be great, although I am not as knowledgeable with the actual numbers as Don is. However, there is a problem keeping our best talent once they complete high school. While the Colts system is good, it’s not great and the top high school 1st XV talent are usually contracted by league clubs prior to completing high school.
Would it possible to create a university (or college), rugby competition in AUS, similar to the college football/basketball in USA?
I note that 4 out of the 5 SR teams in AUS have a university as a jersey sponsor. This is a strong indicator that universities want to be involved in rugby. I also note that many universities in AUS have rugby teams competing in the Prem Rugby competitions in their respective cities. These rugby clubs already exist and have a supporter base – they don’t need to be created from scratch.
Rugby needs a carrot to dangle in front of young school levers. The chance to play ‘college rugby’ for one of the ‘Big 8’ universities in Australia and gain a degree (or part of a degree), on a full/part scholarship, could be the carrot to keep them in the game.
Looking at the annual revenues of AUS universities, they can easily afford to fund a ‘college’ rugby team. Based on AUS universities history with rugby and their current sponsorship of SR teams, they WANT to be involved in rugby. I also believe that a televised competition would get good ratings. Many alumni would tune in, as would current students. That’s a lot of potentially influential people taking an interest in their old university, and most importantly, in rugby.
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Sorry, I may have missed it somewhere along the way amongst all the other comments, but who’s funding this competition? Without adequate funding, the best ideas will never get off the ground.
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