So NZR are anticipating a big cut and want to sugarcoat it by hyping up some FTA nonsense that will simplify not pay the bills.
You’ve lost the plot. Again.

But if you think the current commercial and grass roots outlook for the game in NZ is rosy I think you need to scratch beneath the surface a bit more
NZR has already “scratched” beneath the surface”. That is why the meeting held last week was about completely changing the rather ancient, but very democratic, governance structures of NZ rugby where delegates from every province get to vote on everything.

I disagree with your assertions that somehow NZR rugby operates in a tiny market. The All Blacks are the biggest brand in rugby. That didn’t come about by having a tiny market. NZR’s market is the rugby world.

Here is a quiz:
A. Gregor Paul is a foolish hack aiming for clicks as is typical with Murdock controlled media. Doom and Gloom sells.
or
B. Gregor Paul is a cunning operative of NZR that wanted to spread doom and gloom to influence the crucial vote where NZ’s provincial unions agreed to give up most of their power and let NZR modernize its governance structures.

@JamesD
Did you see the statement from the new commission CEO that taking less money from a broadcaster in exchange for a lot more free- to- air coverage is also on the cards. The concerns that rugby has been locked behind paywalls for too long is being taken seriously.

Temporarily cashed up, courtesy of NZ Rugby’s private equity deal with Silver Lake, concerns have already emerged that this cash is being devoured at a much faster rate than anticipated, without anything tangible or lasting to show for it.
This is absurd, an almost throwaway paragraph. There seems to be a trend that whenever some new horror is discovered in RA finances, there is an attempt to equate it to something NZR does. Gregor Paul’s (NZ Herald) “concerns” are meaningless drivel.

The PE money has obviously been used for something “tangible”. NZR has been able to put women’s rugby on a professional footing, create a professional women’s competition, make contributions to all NZ provinces to upgrade facilities, establish a new streaming platform, and used a large chunk of money to restore NZR’s reserves back to pre- Covid levels.

The piece of scaremongering by the clueless Gregor Paul in the NZ Herald was based on the notion that NZR will make no alterations to current policies up to 2030 and that NZR will just sit back twiddling their thumbs until all cash reserves have been eaten up. Paul must have been envious at all those “clicks” Australian journalists have been getting with their doom and gloom articles and decided to join the circus.

Paul’s article looks particularly stupid when we see that NZ rugby administrators have agreed–just last week– to completely overhaul rugby’s governance structures to better face the challenges in the future.

The NZRU is as bad at running their game as RA is over here…
Oh really?
Answer these questions”
Which union has large cash reserves
A. RA
B.NZR
Which union has completed a very favorable PE deal?
A. RA
B.NZR
Which union negotiated a broadcast deal worth 3x the other one?
A.RA
B.NZR
Which Union has won more Tri Nations/RC/Super Rugby titles than all the others put together?
A. RA
B. NZR
Which Union has an NPC?
1.RA
B.NZR
I could go on…

All unions, bar none, have issues confronting them. NZR is fortunate that it faces them from a position of strength where various options are available. To suggest that NZR is as bad as RA at running the game is idiotic. RA is nothing like NZR.

More afternoon games would make that easier.
That is a real issue. Super Rugby is essentially a made-for-TV competition. The games are scheduled to satisfy the broadcasters, not spectators.

If the SR clubs arranged their own schedules you would think they’d opt for more “afternoon games ” because the crowds would be bigger. The question then becomes what model will bring in the most revenue. Every season the clubs do get a few afternoon games. In NZ, they tend to be held in the smaller towns. The attendances are surprisingly good, but the TV viewing numbers suffer accordingly

The Australian clubs seem to have the worst of both worlds: schedules mainly unfavorable to paying spectators… and a rugby union that will not pay them adequately for providing the content to broadcasters.

No question that Eden Park or Jade Stadium when it was still functional were not adequate cricket grounds, but people did not attend them.
Stop your nonsense. In the past Eden Park had huge crowds…I know, because I was there.
In NZ, much like England, it still struggles to get it’s prominence on the back page.
That’s just silly. The cricket Test was the major sporting event of the month and was covered closely by the media.
A day after the finish of the Test, three out of the five main articles on the Stuff sports section are still about Test cricket.

League One is six games in. This is the first pre season tune up for the Chiefs.
It was evident that Saitama were a very well-drilled side. Tactically they were spot on. The canny Deans knew the Chiefs would be vulnerable at the breakdown with so many fringe players and newcomers. Saitama just wrecked all the rucks with players coming in from all directions. The ref was very lenient. What little ball the Chiefs received was slow and just kicked aimlessly away.

What I took from the game was that those relatively unknown NPC journeymen that made up the numbers for the Chiefs were substandard. I don’t expect to see most of them again.

The best player on the park: Lachlan Boshier, ex Chiefs.

History could judge the Wild Knights’ victory on Sunday so important, non-competition game or not.
A rather fanciful idea. The last thing Deans would want is to have his players believe they’re better than they really are.

The Chiefs last played eight months ago. The rabble that took to the field in Japan is nothing like the Chiefs team that will start SRP.
Missing: Ratima, Taukei’aho, McKenzie, Stevenson, ALB, Lord, Nanai-Seturo, Vaa’i, Jacobson, Thompson, Narawa. (Eight All Blacks)

Test cricket has NEVER been popular in New Zealand.
That is not remotely true. Eden Park, for example, used to get huge crowds for Test cricket. In more recent times, people follow the cricket by internet or TV rather than go to the ground. That is what has changed. The smaller venues are actually far better cricket grounds than dual-use grounds like Eden Park.

There very small crowds watching Test cricket in India. You’d have a hard job convincing anyone that Indians don’t like and follow cricket.

So rather than defend your baseless assertions, you’ve decided to move the goal posts and create a different narrative.
Do you get some kind of thrill out of predicting doom and gloom?

Not sure where you get your Irish/ French figures from?

The Irish figures relating to deficits are from the IRFU 2022 financial report:

By way of comparison, this year’s result compares with combined losses of almost €47m in the preceding two years

On Govt. assistance:
Secondly, the receipt, in arrears, in December 2021, of €18 million of special assistance from Government for Covid-19 Income losses across Irish Rugby during 2021.

On the French Rugby Union (FFR), 2023:
This Saturday, following a general and financial meeting held at the Marcoussis National Rugby Center, the French Rugby Federation announced that it was suffering an operating deficit of 40 million euros in two seasons. The examination of the FFR accounts “underlines an extremely tense economic situation for the Federation”.
(https://globalhappenings.com/sports/454031.html)

You seem to have confused/conflated the financial position of some clubs with the financial health of the parent unions.

Why have they not sent their test team to the West Indies in more than 13 years? Why have they not sent their test team to SA in 11 years?
Are you suggesting that it is up to NZ to invite itself to WI and SA? Are you really that stupid?

The question that should be asked why RA hasn’t distributed the $7-8mil per year they receive from NZR for SRP to their SR sides
The NZR money is hidden in RA’s accounts under “increased broadcast revenue”. This allows RA to look more competent than it is. McLennan used the money to create a bogus profit for RA last year… while pointing the bone at the SR Clubs.

NZ cricket is selfish and greedy and exposed for not willing to make a sacrifice for the good of test cricket.
The schedule for the Test series against SA was agreed some time ago by SA. There is no scope for NZC to suddenly rearrange the whole thing with Australia touring soon after.

SA cricket has sold its soul. It is now just a toy for Indian moneymen.

Yet another foolish article which is big on baseless assertions and conflation of unrelated issues. The real world barely intrudes on this narrative.

Super Rugby is no longer the world’s premier provincial competition. Its market is dwarfed by Europe

Is this the “market” that has sent three (!) English clubs broke? Or the French Union near broke? Or the Irish Union running a near $100 million deficit over the last two years and only able to create an operating surplus LFY courtesy of a $40 million handout by the Government?

EVERY union has financial challenges post Covid. It looks like only in Australia is there an active group trying to destroy the game. Shame on Roar for promoting this agenda.

RA has failed and its nothing to do with SR.
It’s amazing how many refuse to believe this obvious fact.
What on earth makes you think Japan want to join RA in a comp?
Indeed. Just what Japan rugby needs: a near bankrupt partner.
What makes you sure NZR doesnt decide to enforce the SR contract RA signed?
NZR would most definitely sue RA. The damages would be huge. It would be the end of RA.

There is no way NZR would pay enough money to an Australian based club to keep it viable and competitive.
There’s evidence that NZR could. That $8 million NZR is gifting RA each year could be transferred to one or two Australian clubs. I’m sure that would be gratefully received. That’s probably more than they receive from RA now.
Remember: NZR’s broadcast contract is worth nearly 3X RA’s.

Do an Albo and break the promise with NZ to stay in SR.
It is a contract, not a promise. Break that and RA would cease to exist.

Work with NZR…
So after breaking a contract, RA (if it still existed) would work with NZ? What gave you the impression NZR would then want anything to do with RA? NZR has no intention of destroying its own rugby systems and competitions just to prop up rugby in Australia.

The scenario described by Brett Impey (NZR board), prior to SRP being established, where NZR runs Super Rugby and invites two or three Australian teams to participate is a more likely outcome than anything you’ve described. I can’t see the Reds turning it down. NZR can guarantee them an income, RA can’t.

NZ rugby as a whole has succeeded despite, not because, of NZR.
You were putting some of those myths about NZ Super Rugby to bed…but then finished with a very stupid statement. Is that a Canterbury thing: never give credit to anyone except those in Red and Black country?

Goes to show that even winning cant save you…
…if you budget on receiving a promised amount from RA and then find the chairman of RA reneged on the deal so he could crow that RA itself made a profit.

To set a Superugby franchise up to be the whipping boys of the competition surely is not a formula for sustainable business success.
True. This is exactly what the South Africans did. It fatally undermined previous iterations of Super rugby.

Ironically, McLennan was the one who publicly supported the Rebels and had the financial acumen to deliver on their future prosperity.
Thanks for the best laugh I’ve had so far in 2024.
Imagine if your hero hadn’t squandered a fortune on a dud coach, paying off a good coach, ridiculous over- the- top wining and dining of rich listers in Paris, signing some league player and had instead made that sum available to Clubs that needed it to stay alive.

SA took half the SR income with them
Why do you keeping making stuff up?
NZ was the biggest contributor to the revenue pool in the final years of SR. NZ + Aust was far greater than half. On the other side of the equation, not travelling to SA stripped out massive costs.
If they had taken the pain in covid like most other Unions they would of had less debt…
More nonsense.
The Guardian:
The agreement between Rugby Australia and the Rugby Union Players Association for players to take 60 per cent pay cuts will provide critical short-term financial relief for the struggling code during the coronavirus pandemic.

Rob Kearney was so far over the hill when he played for the Force he was an embarrassment. He had to come up with some excuse. I wouldn’t take that blowhard’s word on anything.