A move to the Six Nations would be all positive for the Springboks - but what would their opposition think?
The Springboks heading North will be great for South Africa.
But what about the Six Nations?
All Blacks maverick Carlos Spencer was never one to play an inhibited game:
There have been loads of talk and debates around the prospect of the Springboks joining the Six Nations competition.
Over the past weeks, speculation has been floating around that South Africa could join the Northern Hemisphere tournament as the seventh team – ‘Seven Nations’.
The ‘developing’ tournament which will comprise of South Africa, England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales, is rumoured to kick-off after 2025 when SANZAAR’s current broadcast cycle deal expires.
For some pundits and even stars, like former Springboks and Stormer centre Jean de Villiers, the idea is innovative and certainly a good one that has the potential to boost rugby as a product.
Which is the goal for World Rugby.
For South Africa Rugby joining an expanded Six Nations could be a great move.
First, the two-hours time difference will not only provide the South African audience with more attractive kick-off times but travelling to Europe rather than Australasia will be ideal for player welfare.
Secondly, playing in Europe will not be unfamiliar territory to SA Rugby, with two provincial teams in the form of the Cheetahs and Southern Kings already playing in the Pro14.
In addition to that, there is already a large number of elite South African players currently based at European clubs hence making the idea even more viable.
With all that being said, on the other side of the spectrum, how will the move affect the Six Nations?
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There are certainly some positives for the competition, like having a three-time World Cup champion will for sure be intriguing and will attract a new audience.
However, in the long run, how will it influence the current fanbase?
Many loyal Six Nations supporters, including England head coach Eddie Jones, have voiced their dissatisfaction with the idea.
The outspoken England coach stated that adding more teams would make the competition lose its allure, similar to Super Rugby.
In all fairness, Jones’ concerns are valid.
The Six Nations as a whole is not flawless. However, aside from the World Cup, it is the most prestigious international tournament and therefore tinkering with a winning format could dilute the value as a product.
SANZAAR made that mistake when they continuously revamped the Super Rugby competition resulting in a vast array of lopsided results and a decreased quality of competition.
The recent change has seen the competition move from 15 to 18 teams in 2016 and then back to 15 teams in 2018, while 2021 will see the Sunwolves cut and the competition returning to a 14-team format.
A coach who has tasted life on both sides of the hemisphere aisle has been blown away by the Six Nations. https://t.co/4NJBfZmQOs
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) April 2, 2020
The Rugby Championship was not spared from SANZAAR’s creative formats as the introduction of Argentina in 2012 spelt the end of the highly regarded Tri-Nations. All these expansions was an effort to attract more interest from sponsors and fill up stadiums.
However, similar to Super Rugby, it seems like the Rugby Championship is facing loads of problems, while the Six Nations continues to gather lucrative interest as a brand.
The different Six Nations teams, in particular Italy, may not have the player tenacity or skill level compared to the South. However, when it comes to crowed attendance, thousands of supporters flock to Twickenham, Stade de France, Stadio Olimpico and others to watch matches.
It is something that has been gradually evaporating in SANZAAR’s competitions.
The travelling factor is another aspect that could have dire consequences for the Six Nations.
The current Six Nations teams are in very close proximity to each other with Scotland and Italy just over 2000 km apart. However, adding a trip to South Africa would be accompanied by a whole set of new logistical issues for players and fans.
In the end, SA Rugby sits with a huge decision that has the potential to be a great plan for South Africa.
However, for the Six Nations, opening the door to the South could have dreadful ramifications for the historic European competition.
– Leezil Hendricks, Rugby365
Comments on RugbyPass
Honestly, I am a bit lost here …. Ireland - RSA was (at least in my opinion) perhaps (from a purely technical / rugby-skills-show point of view) the pinnacle of the RWC2023 - almost flawless playing (putting aside the kicking of RSA which was the difference between the two teams), rugby at it’s very best …. if I were a Bok and after the game some Irish lads came around saying “see you in 5 weeks same place”, I definitely wouldn’t have thought of it as being in any way “arrogant”, rather a sort of jolly “if we both continue to play like this, no one could stop us” - besides, few of us fans would have, at that time, been surprised to see the same teams playing on 23 september and 28 october 2023 ….. well, we all know Ireland chose to hit a slump to keep the QF curse alive …..
133 Go to commentsThere’s value gleaned from having an All Black star running and training with your team. How many games he starts (or even where he plays in the backline) will be decided on a week by week basis based on the needs for that week. But the overall learning and growth for all concerned, I’d think, is massively beneficial. Especially for Irish players.
8 Go to commentsSon, whith just " raw athlete “ , you are able to beat “ better rugby players “ by 74 points…. May be England should recruit in athletics….
1 Go to commentsPffft. It’s not a one-way street bud and Irish teams don’t seem to have had an issue taking kiwi players previously.
8 Go to commentsParticularly great to have captain Scott Barrett back after going off last week for the Crusaders. Codie Taylor a real leader and mighty Tamaiti Williams join Fletcher Newell in the front row. Those 2 will make a big difference. Great bench with the likes of Tom Christie, Jamie Hannah etc who are playing well. Should be a great derby.
1 Go to commentsDoes a blitz defence not have a weekness against a well-placed grubber kick, perhaps angled cleverly. All the defence is up and the full-back can only cover so much ground. Thoughts?
28 Go to commentsWhile Iose is destructive in the Canes set-up, he is not big for an international 8 and could struggle against the top teams. With his speed, he could be developed into a seven but, as Ben points out, he doesn’t show a scavenging game with the Canes or make dominating tackles. Sotutu has shown a step up this year and attitude plus motivation seems to be the big areas of growth. Deserves another AB shot imo.
3 Go to commentsNaholo is my only question mark for this side. He wasn’t the only one who had a forgettable game against the Brumbies but he was passive, defensively poor and generally lacked energy. Needs to get a whole lot busier for me. I would have liked to see Sullivan on that wing with Higgins on the bench (if staying with a 6-2 as BeegMike points out on here!)
3 Go to commentsWell, I am sure that Eben said exactly what he meant to say, exactly how he meant to say it. Does he strike you as a man that doesn't know arrogance when he sees it. He should know it because he has shaken the arrogance out of many foes before.
133 Go to commentsPls get it into your thick arrogant heads that the final was played by two Southern Hemisphere teams. The best against the best and that Argentina was just unlucky otherwise non of the Northetn Hemisphere teams would have seen the light of day.
133 Go to commentsAs long as New Zealand youth are involved in sport they are passionate for, and are well supported, it’s all good. I love league as well as rugby. NRL clubs have long since scouted the First 15 competitions, the NH and Japan scout super rugby and NPC. It’s a miracle there’s any players left for the all blacks to pick from.
4 Go to commentsI'm a Bok fan, so I don't say this lightly, but he is one of my all time favourite players. I am really going to miss watching him play. Thanks for many great memories. You are a true legend of the game.
3 Go to commentsBest way to deal with all of this is to play another game.
133 Go to commentsIt’s 12-15 games Luke. Ringrose has barely played in 2024 and Henshaw and Keenan have also been out for spells in the same time period. There are always injuries and for younger players to play with the likes of Barrett will be great for them. It’s just looking for negatives where there are none.
8 Go to commentsAndy Goode pushing his own agenda with very dubious considerations on refereeing performances. Luke Pearce speaking a bit of French doesn’t make him a good and adequate referee for the Champions Cup final; his latest refereeing performance in particular was not so great.
4 Go to commentsJordie knows that he has to earn the right to put on the jersey, whatever that jersey might be.
8 Go to commentsThe best outside centre in the world at one point. He will be greatly missed.
3 Go to commentsYip his great for the big moments when needed as a safa really enjoy watching him
4 Go to commentsOne that will start to come up from now on is penalties for back pushes during kick chase scrambles. Very difficult to detect. In Croke Park if you replay the Hendy NH try, you will see Furbank push Porter in the back, who collides with Larmour knocking the ball across into Hendy’s path to dot down. A more significant example was in the RWC QTR final where Arendse pushes Fickou into two other French players for the ball to spill into Arendse’s path for him to gather and run in to score SAs first try. Not cheating if you are not caught and very difficult to spot but with kicking becoming so critical I feel its an area that will referreeed/TMO-ed more.
4 Go to commentsWhat a pathetic little twit Andy Goode is, as if we care what he thinks…..😂
133 Go to comments