It's time for a National U/25 Rugby Competition
The ARU has welcomed the new broadcasting deal which sees 35 per cent increase in funding and an increase of local derbies in Australia…
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Joined March 2009
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Started life of as an Australian Army Officer (11 years) - then worked at Coopers & Lybrand and for the past 30 years been a senior marketing executive in IT. I am both a junior rep and senior rugby coach, and a Level 1 Cricket Coach
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The ARU has welcomed the new broadcasting deal which sees 35 per cent increase in funding and an increase of local derbies in Australia…
In 2009, had the Waratahs scored just one more try, they would have made the Super 14 semi finals. Ironically, previous coach Ewen McKenzie…
[caption id="attachment_1797" align="alignnone" width="400" caption="Australia\'s Stephen Larkham is tackled during the All Blacks v Australia tri nations rugby match at Eden Park, Auckland, New…
[caption id="attachment_15738" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Waratahs\' Wycliff Palu comes under pressure from the Highlanders\' defence during round 3 of the Super 14 Rugby match at…
Every now and then a sportsman with amazing talent and unlimited potential arrives on the scene. I am talking about Phillip Joel Hughes, a…
John O’Neill recently stated ”leading ARU officials would meet Deans to conduct a review of the season to work out what improvements had to…
The pain of watching Scotland gallantly defeat the Wallabies was palpable. The Wallabies had taken some steps forward with their performances against England and…
Dan Vickerman played some 55 tests for the Wallabies before leaving at his prime to follow an academic career. Some would say that he…
There was a time once when Australia produced rugby players with such silken skills that in the twinkle of any eye they could mesmerise…
Through concentrating its growth strategy around its four Super 14 franchises, the ARU has limited the Wallaby selection pool to just 60 players. The…
The “Metro-Male” is known to carry a man-bag, use hand lotion, get facials, hair tints and also get his nails done. The same metro…
Despite Jonathan Kaplan providing the Wallabies with many favourable refereeing decisions, the Wallabies were not able to prevent a surging All Black team from…
Two divergent schools of thought are set to clash. The clash has its origins in the acrimonious relationship that England has with its disowned,…
The Suntory S27 Atlantipac Competition of 2020 has been outstanding success. Divided into three conferences – Western (six teams from South Africa and three…
The front and back pages of the tabloids this year have been littered with stories of players from rugby league, rugby union, AFL, football…
Games of rugby are seldom won when the forward pack does not turn up to play the full 80 minutes, as evidenced on Saturday…
More and more, rugby is competing with other sports for a slice of television's revenue pie. Whether the dottering old fools of the IRB…
The fallout from the recent Test between the Wallabies and All Blacks has been the Robbie Deans quote, "we are still be penalised for…
In 2005, Australia was beaten by the odd run and the odd umpiring howler. But by and large, it was our struggling pace attack…
It has been a tough weekend for this cricket and rugby tragic. I have been through the pain of watching both the Wallabies and…
Thanks Nufty, you have identified the problem – the antiquated RA board and it’s structure that has presided over the demise of Australian Rugby. The buck stops with those bastards!
CONFIRMED: Peter Wiggs resigns from Rugby Australia board
Wiggs is a no fuss, highly respected, successful, media shy business man who apparently paid out of his own pocket to have the RA books assessed, so that he could figure how to right the RA ship. He wanted Carroll as his man. Dynamic – straight to the point – get the job done. In typical fashion he called a spade a spade and walked.
CONFIRMED: Peter Wiggs resigns from Rugby Australia board
The mess that Rugby finds itself in requires swift action by people in the know who can get the job done. It is a matter of survival but no the dullards raise concerns about due process – “lets take our time to make sure that it appears to all and sundry that we are doing the right thing”. In other words let’s count how many matches are in the packet whilst Rugby burns to the ground.
There are none so blind as those that will not see.
CONFIRMED: Peter Wiggs resigns from Rugby Australia board
Spot on Gatsey. The TMO in both the Wallabies matches were overly officious and disruptive to the flow of the game. I am still shaking me head about the penalty for Kerevi’s carry. The game is killing itself.
World Rugby and the refs are killing the game
One Swallow does not a summer make!
Will revisit this after the Chiefs game.
Is 2018 the new 2014 for the Waratahs?
A moot point given that test attendances are declining
There’s new life in the old line yet…
Hi Brett,
This is a reflection of the totally muddled way that Rugby is organised, evolving from local fiefdoms across the globe with little thought being given to the strategic direction of the game. The connected myopically gazing at their navels whilst sipping their G&Ts..
The driving revenue force in Rugby comes from TV and showing local derbies in time zones that can be watched live. This is the problem with the Super Rugby competition which is spread from Argentina to NZ (i.e. who in Australia watches South African matches at 3am in the morning!)
Now is the time for a conference competition, one that is rationalised around time zones. It could look like South American Conference, African Conference, Pacific Conference and The Americas Conference. With finals play offs between the four. Whilst revenue would also be rationalised, the major logistic cost of travel would also be reduced. National teams would be selected from the global player pool.
Paul Culley’s clinical financial dissection of the ARU has shown that it has fat catted itself at the expense of who it represents. The risk of rationalising and reducing revenue will not sit well with those that control the game (from their various fiefdoms).
There’s new life in the old line yet…
Agree PK – setting up conferences in time zones and then playing finals is the way to go. Also really like your thoughts on promotion and relegation for Sydney Rugby.
Super Rugby should shelve any grand plans for US expansion
Hey Big Dog. I can understand that a KPI was created and not achieved. I am questioning the notion of killing of a club after 4 rounds. What wisdom is there in doing this? Why not give them notice of termination for the end of season and then let them be the master of their own destiny. The collateral damage in the district by this short sighted strategy could not have been greater!
Rugby is withering on the vine
TWAS – so CS calls you on being an apologist for the ARU and your reply questions his intelligence. Who is playing the man now? The hypocrisy is stunning!
Rugby is withering on the vine
G’day Melon – yeah mate haven’t been around for a while. Just tired of rabbiting on about the cluster f…k rugby has become. Got fired up about this one, as the callousness has now hit an all time low. No matter what is thought about Penrith, they did not deserve to be treated in this manner.
Rugby is withering on the vine
TWAS – from your profile 4 articles and 17,490 comments – you must be employed by one of the unions to be able devote that effort on rugby matters or are you the self appointed rugby truth police with nothing better to do?
Rugby is withering on the vine
Penrith’s unique demographics was never fully comprehended by the Fiefdoms. Located about 35km west of Parramatta in the middle of a working class area with no historical connection to Rugby and next to no private schools playing the game it was always going to be tough. It is an NRL patch that the AFL assaulted and won with the now successful GWS. What have the Fiefdoms done for the Penrith Rugby Club historically – sweet FA. ARU and Waratahs have embraced a top down strategy which – like trickle down economics – does not work. So the club struggled and has now been tossed away without being given the opportunity to be the masters of its own destiny. Life does not get much more callous than this.
Rugby is withering on the vine
Me too. I have known Jim for more than 40 years – a policeman – he is an honourable man
Rugby is withering on the vine
TWAS – the Sydney Uni alumini tentacles pervades all the Fiefdoms!
Rugby is withering on the vine
Why didn’t they let Penrith finish the season and then be masters of their own destiny??????
Rugby is withering on the vine
Then the control of juniors and DO’s back from the ARU has only recently changed. Too late apparently for Penrith
Rugby is withering on the vine
I think you will find that all DO’s are employed by the ARU
Rugby is withering on the vine
Thanks Celtic334 – IMHO they are all in this one way or another, hence I have collectively labelled them the Fiefdoms
Rugby is withering on the vine
Forwards win matches. It is the backs that determine by how much. Until the forwards start hunting like a pack it will be an exercise of pissing into the wind and getting very wet.
'We're better conditioned': Dave Rennie still confident Wallabies can match Springboks despite Bledisloe loss