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Regarding the Super Rugby format, to put it frankly, the ARU has made a laughing stock of rugby in this country.
I am embarrassed every time I am asked by family, friends and colleagues about the format of Super Rugby and why a team needs to be cut from the competition.
The ARU directors should be ashamed of the way they have handled this whole sorry affair.
The abysmal underperformance of all Australian teams, particularly the Waratahs and the Reds, is simply a reflection of the unfocused and directionless board of directors not only in recent times but over last decades.
If the Force or indeed the Rebels are cut from the competition, it further demonstrates the eastern states-centric nature of our sport’s administration.
Our game absolutely needs a national footprint, especially when under such pressure from AFL. The ARU should review how the VFL went about morphing into a national game.
Here in Western Australia, thousands of men and women have made a huge voluntary commitment to growing rugby in Perth and around the state. Their efforts have never been stronger than since the Western Force came into being, and we’re striving, successfully, to produce our own Super Rugby players and Wallabies. To drop the Force would effectively kill off the game in Western Australia.
I ask you to consider what happened to the rugby league here in the West when the Western Reds were dropped from the NRL. In simple terms, a majority of clubs simply closed their doors and disappeared. Many of their supporters moved across to rugby.
I for one – and many others I know – will not attend and support the Wallabies Test match against South Africa at NIB Stadium on 9 September if the Force are excluded from the Super Rugby competition.
Further, my subscription to Foxtel will be cancelled immediately if the Force are to leave the competition. I have Foxtel for only two reasons: to watch Super Rugby and the team I support, and to watch the Wallabies.
I am aware that most of my rugby colleagues are considering the same action. Without the Force, I will have no further need for pay TV as the AFL and the ABC are available on free to air.
It is my view that the ARU should go back to SANZAAR and inform them that Australia is united – we will have five teams or no teams.
A second-best scenario for rugby across Australia is to merge Canberra and Melbourne. Consider the difficult but successful decision of the AFL to merge or relocate teams from Melbourne to the northern states.
Mr Clyne, there are thousands of disappointed sports fans in Western Australia and Victoria. Do what you know is right. Engage all your board members in this most important decision regarding the future of our game. Use all the skills and best efforts of your entire board to maintain five teams and focus on growing the game through junior development. In doing so consider the great work and extremely successful model implemented by RugbyWA.
I have sent a copy of my correspondence to your fellow directors as well as Nick McArdle at Foxtel.
I respectfully anticipate a response to my correspondence.
Yours sincerely,
Robert Harper
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.