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Fans point fingers after Fox Sports ends 25-year association with Australian rugby
Fox Sports’ decision to end its 25-year association with rugby union in Australia has led to fans pointing fingers at what is to blame.
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The broadcaster has shown union ever since the game went professional, but now Rugby Australia is seeking a new deal.
This is yet more damaging news for union in Australia after suffering over the past years, and this is indicative of the dwindling popularity of the sport.
RA CEO Raelene Castle and soon departing chairman Cameron Clyne have been singled out by many fans, with waves of criticism for how they have run the organisation.
The entire debacle surrounding Israel Folau proved hugely divisive amongst fans last year and while Castle and Clyne were doomed to face censure for whatever action they chose, it only added to the criticism over how RU has been run.
(Continue reading below…)
Israel Folau’s first interview for Catalans Dragons
Castle is still not looked upon favourably after her stint with the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs in the NRL, and decisions in union have also not helped her cause.
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Opting to keep Michael Cheika on as head coach after a poor run of results a couple of years ago was controversial, and this is yet more bad news.
Rugby has self-destructed under a woeful administration
— Rhys ☦️🇦🇺 🇷🇺 🇮🇱 God Save the King (@mckenzie_rhys) February 5, 2020
https://twitter.com/Elvatodelasud/status/1225007750972751872?s=20
It’s no surprise that Fox has walked away. Castle and Clyne are poison and effectively are standing over the death of RU in Australia. Such a shame that a game can be destroyed by incompetence of the governing body.
— Cam Williams (@camjohnwilliams) February 5, 2020
Raelene Castle next career move surely must be in demolition.
Seems perfect at imploding organizations.— The Woodsman (@TheWoodsmanTree) February 5, 2020
How does Raelene have a job? See left Bulldogs in tatters and now RA in tatters… Nearly every pub and club has Fox Sports…How many have Optus? Wont even get the casual viewers watching anymore
— Michael Lennon (@MichaelLennon23) February 5, 2020
However, fans have said that Fox Sports’ decision has to do with performances on the pitch as the Wallabies are not necessarily the force they have been in the past and neither are their Super Rugby teams.
The results of the national team do, however, tie in with Cheika and RA’s decision to retain him. The question is now whether a potential revival under new coach Dave Rennie could reignite some interest across Australia.
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Equally, the entire Super Rugby competition has been lambasted, as Australia face similar problems to South Africa in terms of dwindling viewing numbers. The lack of success of their teams is partly to do with that, as well as the multiple time zones.
It's clearly linked to the woeful on-field performances by the Wallabies and Aussie-based Super Rugby teams. Who wants to watch the matches on Fox Sports when the teams consistently lose?
— Johnson Leung (@johnsonleung) February 5, 2020
The death nell of Australian rugby. Optus will kill the code as no one will sign up. The real problem is not the broadcast rights, it’s the poor performance of Australian teams. We are now so poor it’s hardly worth turning up to play any Kiwi sides.
— David Evans (@calledeya2) February 5, 2020
Cause super rugby is a stupid competition, have a national competition in each of the countries that compete would make competition so much better and create rivalries.
— interests (@boxingandstuff) February 5, 2020
Optus has been lined up as a potential broadcaster of union in the future once the current Fox deal ends in 2020.
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Comments on RugbyPass
Dagg is still trying to get enough headlines to make himself relevant enough to get a job. The Crusaders went back to square one at all levels. Shelve this season and nail the next one.
4 Go to commentsHe was in such great form. Sad for him but only a short term injury and it will be great to see him back for the finals.
1 Go to commentsAfter their 5/0 start, I had the Crusaders to finish Top 4 only…they lost the plot in Perth but will reload and back themselves vs 4th placed Rebels…
3 Go to commentsBoth nations missed a great opportunity to book a game that would have had a lot of interest from around the world. I understand these games can’t be organised in 5 minutes but they should have found a way to make it happen. I don’t think Wales are ducking anyone but it’s a bad look haha.
3 Go to commentsIt will be fascinating to see the effect that Jo Yapp has. If they can compete with Canada and give BFs a run for their money that will be progress
1 Go to commentsFollowing his dream and putting in the work. Go well young fella!
3 Go to commentsPerhaps filling Twickenham is one of Mitchell’s KPIs. I doubt whether both September matches will be at Twickenham on consecutive weekends. I would take the BF one to a large provincial stadium so as not to give them the advantage and experience of playing at Twickenham before a large crowd prior to the RWC.
3 Go to commentsvery unfortunate for Kitshoff, but big opportunity potentially for Nché to prove he is genuinely the best loosehead in the world, rather than just a specialist finisher. Presuming that if Kitshoff is out, it will also give Steenekamp a chance to come into the 23? Or are others likely to be ahead of him?
1 Go to commentsA long held question in popular culture asks if art imitates life or does the latter influence the former? Over this 6 nations I can ask the same question of the media influencing the thoughts of its audience or vice versa. Nobody wants to see cricket scores in rugby, as a spectacle it is not sustainable. With so many articles about England’s procession and lack of competition it feeds the epicaricacy of many looking for an opportunity to pounce. England are not the first team to dominate nor does it happen only in rugby, think Federer, Nadal, Red Bull or Mercedes, Manchester Utd, Australia in tests and World Cups. Instead of celebrating the achievements why find reasons to falsify it pointing towards larger playing pool, professional for a longer period or mitigate with the lack of growth in other nations. Can we not enjoy it while it is here and know that it won’t last for ever, others coveting what England have will soon take the crown, ask the aforementioned?
6 Go to commentsShame he won’t turn out for the Netherlands now they’re improving. U20s are Euro champs and in the U20 Trophy this year. The senior sides gets better every year too.
3 Go to commentsWill rugbypass tv be showing these games?
1 Go to commentsWell where do you start, the fact that England have a professional domestic league and Ireland’s is fully amatuer, that they have fully seperated professional squads at Fifteens and Sevens (7’s thinly disguised as GB), and Ireland have fully pro Sevens squad who loan some players back to the Semi-Professional Fifteens squad (moved from amateur for only a year or so) for a few games at 6N & RWC’s. The Women’s games is a shambles, and is at risk of killing itself by pushing for professionalism when the market isn’t really there to support it outside one or two countnries..
6 Go to commentsWayne Smith's input didn't have as much impact on the last final as Davison's red card for Thompson. England were 14 points up and flying when that happened.
6 Go to commentsBilly's been playing consistently well for 2 - 3 seasons now and deserves a look in at the top level. Ioane and ALB are still first choice but there needs to be injury cover and succession. His partnership with Jordie gives him first dibs you'd think. Go the Hurricanes.
3 Go to commentsIt’s not up to Wales to support Georgian Rugby. That’s up to International Rugby and Georgia. I sympathise with Georgia’s decent attempt to create this fixture. But for Wales the proposed match up is just a potential stick to beat them with and a potential big psychological blow that young Welsh team doesn’t need. (I’m Irish BTW.)
3 Go to commentsCale certainly looks great in space, but as you say, he has struggled in contact. At 23 years old, turning 24 this year, he should be close to full physical maturity and yet there exists a considerable gap in the power and physicality required for international rugby. Weight doesn’t automatically equate to power and physicality either. Can he go from a player who’s being physically dominated in Super rugby to physically dominating in international rugby in 1 or 2 years? That’s a big ask but he may end up being a late bloomer.
36 Go to commentsIf rugby wants to remain interesting in the AI era then it will need to work on changing the rules. AI will reduce the tactical advantage of smart game plans, will neutralize primary attacking weapons, and will move rugby from a being a game of inches to a game of millimetres. It will be about sheer athleticism and technique,about avoiding mistakes, and about referees. Many fans will find that boring. The answer is to add creative degrees of freedom to the game. The 50-22 is an example. But we can have fun inventing others, like the right to add more players for X minutes per game, or the equivalent of the 2-point conversion in American football, the ability to call a 12-player scrum, etc. Not saying these are great ideas, but making the point that the more of these alternatives you allow, the less AI will be able to lock down high-probability strategies. This is not because AI does not have the compute power, but because it has more choices and has less data, or less-specific data. That will take time and debate, but big, positive and immediate impact could be in the area of ref/TMO assistance. The technology is easily good enough today to detect forward passes, not-straight lineouts, offside at breakdown/scrum/lineout, obstruction, early/late tackles, and a lot of other things. WR should be ultra aggressive in doing this, as it will really help in an area in which the game is really struggling. In the long run there needs to be substantial creativity applied to the rules. Without that AI (along with all of the pro innovations) will turn rugby into a bash fest.
24 Go to commentsSouth Africa rarely play Ireland and France on these tours. Mostly, England, Scotland and Wales. I wonder why
2 Go to commentsIt was a let’s-see-what-you're-made-of type of a game. The Bulls do look good when the opposition allows them to, but Munster shut them down, and they could not find a way through. Jake should be very worried about their chances in the competition.
2 Go to commentsHats off to Fabian for a very impressive journey to date. Is it as ‘uniquely unlikely’ as Rugby Pass suggests, given Anton Segner’s journey at the Blues?
3 Go to comments