Roar Guru
Joined January 2019
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It is said that the bar that sits atop the northern stand at Headingley Stadium in Leeds is one of the only places in…
Both rugby codes in Australia have walked a similar path recently as the economic realities of the COVID-19 pandemic hit home. Both have tangled…
Since the NRL stopped play in March, there hasn’t seemed to be one slow news day. The media machine, starved of actual footy talk,…
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Looking back over State of Origin results in the last decade, the fixture should be extinct or at least a mere shadow of its…
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The UK Super League recently completed their Magic Weekend at the iconic Anfield stadium in Liverpool, and with almost 57,000 people filing through the…
They won’t do it mate, fans wouldn’t even travel to a World Class stadium at Parramatta for the Grand Final.
Shute Shield is a fantastic competition but it really only exists in the heartlands.
The Penrith Emus are building a future in western Sydney
Have they found employment elsewhere ?
Are France hiring?
Can anyone even travel to Europe at the moment?
Reds trio refuse to take pay cut, stood down by QRU
I hope they get treated better by the Sydney Rugby Union this time, because I’m the past both Penrith and Parramatta/Western Sydney have been overlooked to the point of extinction.
The Penrith Emus are building a future in western Sydney
But at least a national club Comp would be well supported, when Randwick play Brothers people would actually come and watch, does attendance mean nothing to Union administrators in this country??
To save Aussie rugby we must scrap the states
But as an outsider the problem I have with the NRC is that it has absolutely no tribalism, they are constantly changing teams names, brands and identities leaving fans confused and even alienated.
They talk about Western Sydney being a key area for growth and then cut a team, they talk about getting the NSW fans excited then they change the Sydney team last season, if they want things like that to work they need fans to buy in.
To save Aussie rugby we must scrap the states
Is there still going to be an NRC?
The game is broke and needs to find cost cutting at some point.
To save Aussie rugby we must scrap the states
You are right Roberto, the new NRL deal is diminished severely, we are in a recession and everyone had to tighten their belts.
Codes aren’t just competing with each other, they are competing with milk and bread.
Can FFA save a few pennies and overcome a slashed budget?
The question is how does RA recoup those costs? Will sponsors come back? Do any broadcasters want to pay to show Rugby Union? Will the crowds return and buy merchandise? This report proves that the current business model is unsustainable and needs tweaking.
The Wrap: Overreach stops Rugby Australia coup dead in its tracks
So two refs, quicker scrums, fairer result for the defending team after a held up in goal and a Captains challenge TMO of some sort?
If only there was a game in Australia that already had these rules in place?
Which laws of rugby union need changing?
Agree that World Rugby probably won’t let Australia fall over but I think you are underestimating how dire the situation is in Australia for Rugby Union. Even before the pandemic the sport had falling ratings and crowds, underwhelming results and was losing money.
What would a combined rugby league and union broadcast package be worth?
As far as I know the last Rugby World Cup was extremely lucrative, but even if it is a lock for Australia getting it that’s a long way off.
Both League and Union need to find a way to keep the lights on in the immediate and Union are really going to have issues doing that with the borders being shut.
What would a combined rugby league and union broadcast package be worth?
It’s a share, it won’t be anywhere near $158 million and RA won’t be seeing much of the SA and NZ money if they aren’t playing them this year.
As I said both sports are in a precarious position but Union is in for a really tough 12-18 months. The World Cup will be a great earner but it’s a long way off and they have to get there first
What would a combined rugby league and union broadcast package be worth?
You make a reasonable point although for the immediate future players code switching is irrelevant as the borders are shut and RU have no money but it will be an issue later on.
Union fans worldwide don’t care about League, so a good showing at the World Cup won’t mean squat to the NRL.
What would a combined rugby league and union broadcast package be worth?
Origin is Leagues strongest brand, why would it let Union anywhere near it? It already sells out and rates its socks off, it doesn’t need Rugby to try and replicate it. Rugby’s strength is in its big tours from Northern Hemisphere powerhouse teams, and it will find it hard with that being almost impossible for the foreseeable future.
What would a combined rugby league and union broadcast package be worth?
NRL has a broadcast deal, which will be limited because of the virus, but still has a broadcast deal and before this crisis had money In the bank.
Rugby Australia made a loss last year and has zero assets and no current broadcast deal, both sports have been hit hard by COVID but I think League is in a far healthier position in Australia.
What would a combined rugby league and union broadcast package be worth?
Interesting article so thanks for that, would never happen though.
I don’t see any upside for the NRL, Union at present brings little value. We are almost at a point now where a well marketed Kangaroos Test against another tier 1 nation can almost rate as well as the Wallabies.
What would a combined rugby league and union broadcast package be worth?
Thanks Geoff, always the friendly expert.
Do we really need to play the Kiwis in the present scenario? Wouldn’t it be better to go ahead with an Aussie only conference, that way we don’t have to worry about crossing borders or isolating teams, which is the reality at present.
Look at the Warriors And all the hoops they had to jump through and they are only one team.
The Wrap: No easy answers for Australian rugby
These are certainly fascinating times at present for Rugby Union in this country.
I enjoyed reading this article and many of the comments too, as I’ve said before I come from a public school and working class background not a Rugby background so l look at things through a different lens.
And In my experience Rugby has consistently to its own detriment underestimated tribalism and rivalry in this country, particularly in Super Rugby. What the most supported teams have shown us is that if you build passion and fan the flames of rivalry and get your players to buy in it doesn’t matter if you are successful or not fans will lap it up. Look at teams like the NSW Blues and particularly Collingwood in the AFL, even though success over the last twenty years had been thin, their support has never waned because no matter what happens their fans know they will show up and tear into their rivals.
RU in Oz seems like it goes out of its way to be inaccessible, Super Rugby has been diminishing in this country because it’s so hard to relate to, you have ready made rivalries between the states and also the Kiwis but I see no one buying in, if they can help us General sports fans relate to the Rugby teams perhaps the sport will grow again, another convoluted comp like Super Rugby or the NRC will just isolate more fans, bring the passion and the people will come.
The Wrap: No easy answers for Australian rugby
You have put in a huge amount of thought, effort and time into this piece and that is admirable so well done.
I think that the RU community is drastically underestimating how significant the loss of South African revenue will be and a some serious thought needs to be put in on how to mitigate this fallout.
Australian rugby: A blueprint for the future
They haven’t even found a builder for Homebush yet, so fingers crossed they may push that project back. The fact that it has massive overlap with the SFS project is ludicrous in my opinion.
While these two stadiums were out of action they should have opened it up to a SuperBowl style hosting arrangement, had one in QLD, one in Auckland and one in Perth.
It's time for a Queensland NRL grand final
One thing I will always admire about Castle Is how she came out publicly and tried to address declining crowd numbers, Will this be an issue that will be rectified in the future?
The Wrap: Unravelling Australian rugby’s unholy war
Plus I’m also dubious as to how big the offer really was, it just doesn’t make sense that it would it any way be bigger than their current deal as, fewer people are watching TV, fewer people are watching RU and there is less money than ever in media at present.
I could be wrong but I think any combined Ten/Optus bid will be on the low side.
The Wrap: Unravelling Australian rugby’s unholy war
It feels like Australian Rugby Union has been having reviews since Wilkinson kicked that field goal in 2003.
Right then Australian rugby, let’s get on with things, shall we?
I get where you are coming from Waitemata and I think people are being a touch harsh on you. For a while now people on this site have been pushing the narrative for a TT comp with little regard of whether the Kiwis actually want it. Australian Rugby needs to work out how it will get people from all walks of life engaged and not rely on other countries to lift them out of this financial black hole.
SANZAAR fighting a losing Super Rugby battle on two fronts