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'I'm really proud of Joe, it's a tough challenge being authentic'
Days after the World Cup had finished in Qatar, Ugo Monye was still wearing a baseball cap embroidered in homage to Lionel Messi. The Argentine wizard had wowed people from around the globe with his on-pitch exploits, as had France’s Kylian Mbappe in a demonstration of football at its beautiful best. They each lit up their sport in an imaginatively skilful way, gripping the attention of fleeting fans never mind the already besotted fanatics. Ex-England and Lions wing Monye was in thrall to it all.
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“The World Cup was driven by the quality of football that we saw on the pitch,” he enthusiastically told RugbyPass. “It’s very rare as a broadcaster when you can sell a match Mbappe against Messi and the result is down to those two key players. Mbappe, a (2018) World Cup winner who scores a hat-trick, unbelievable performance, and then you have got Messi, one of the greatest players of all time.
“I’m wearing this baseball cap in homage to him. He is the greatest of my generation who does what he does and drags his team through. It was a phenomenal game, so absorbing and the best final I have ever seen. There are lots of conversations around Qatar and everything else but if I am strictly to stick to what we saw on the pitch it was phenomenal and I have got to say, I’m not comparing the Gallagher Premiership against the World Cup but this season the quality of rugby every single week, the jeopardy.
“You look at Saracens, their last two or three matches in the Premiership, coming back from a 22-point deficit to Northampton. You can look at the table and the quality of rugby we are seeing from the teams at the bottom of the table against the teams at the top.
“Harlequins versus Bristol is third against eleventh but it doesn’t feel like a top-four team against a bottom-of-the-league team. So long as we can keep the quality of the competition like that then that should absolutely appeal to more eyeballs for sure.”
Sorry Messi but we prefer Etzebeth's version ? #Rugby #Messi pic.twitter.com/nDOWNvusMG
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) December 22, 2022
If only it was that simple. “Fix the global calendar,” reckoned Monye when asked what initiative rugby must undertake to sharpen its appeal. “The rugby season would easier to follow when you have non-competing tournaments and events and no overlaps. You have got the autumn internationals competing with the Gallagher Premiership, Six Nations competing with the Premiership.
“In the Premiership, we have got some of the world’s best players and you don’t get to see them all the time. Once we get a global calendar for everyone and most importantly the players and the fans, then we will incrementally or exponentially get more eyeballs, more engagement in our game.”
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Out-of-favour England loosehead Joe Marler has played his part in recent times in encouraging publicity for English club rugby. First, there was that endearing live TV post-match interview on BT Sport following a man-of-the-match effort for Harlequins at Bath. Then there was the teddy bears picnic video he directed and starred in to help promote Big Game 14, humorously naming the bears Ellis and Kyle before feeding them to the lawnmower.
Monye first got to know Marler more than a decade ago when the front-rower was making his way through the Harlequins academy. “He was just a big human being and I’m really proud of Joe. Not just in terms of what he has gone on to achieve on the pitch, I’m proud of him being himself off the pitch as well.
“That is quite a tough challenge, being authentic. It shouldn’t be a challenge but sometimes it is because especially in the social media age, when you can connect to people and people can get at you so easily and everyone has an opinion which is fine, to keep the authenticity for so long shows Joe being himself. Some people absolutely love it, other people don’t but it actually feels like it doesn’t matter to Joe. He just continues to remain himself which is a compliment to him.
“It [the picnic video] is a credit to Harlequins as well because they are having fun with it. Bristol responded to it with a Home Alone video, which is fantastic. When the whistle goes (next Tuesday) it is going to be a massive rivalry but outside of it, it’s that collaboration and thinking, being slightly less non-traditional and just having fun with it.
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“You have got Joe Marler who knows Ellis Genge and Kyle Sinckler really well and they are having light-hearted fun about it. The build-up to it is about celebrating that and allowing people breathing space to show who they are because we focus a lot on the talent on the pitch. You wouldn’t be wearing a Harlequins or a Bristol shirt if you weren’t talented, we know that.
“But the human behind the talent, everyone wants to see and engage in that. It’s hard to engage with Joe Marler’s body position in a scrum but it’s easy to engage with him and his personality and his sense of humour as it is with Kyle Sinckler, Ellis Genge, Danny Care, Marcus Smith, whoever it is – people connect with people more so than they connect to their talent.”
It was last May, in a letter to Rugby World magazine, that Marler outlined his fears that rugby is shrinking, that the sport must act fast to encourage people within the game to show more of themselves in order to attract new fans from outside. It’s a tricky balancing act, reckoned Monye. “There are loads of characters but do the players want to show their characters? Not all do,” he suggested.
“And also when people show themselves to be themselves, is the world willing to embrace them, every type of character because the rugby world is no different from the real world? In your office place, my workplace, there are introverted characters, extroverted characters, confrontational characters, people who are fun, deep thinkers – it has all of it but they [rugby players] have public-facing jobs. They can all show themselves to be who they are and what they want to be but is the world ready to accept all of it?
“I’m a fan of all sports and I have seen across a number of different sports where players are deeply honest and show their full selves and get hammered for being themselves. Then they close up and don’t reveal anything. As long as we are willing to accept them for who they are, I am all for it – I want people to be themselves. And by the way, I won’t like every character but you are not meant to as well, you’re absolutely not meant to.”
The grave pity about the Marler teddy bears picnic video, which was released by Harlequins on December 8 to encourage a final push on ticket sales for December 27, is that the match is no longer taking place at Twickenham as a planned rail strike resulted in the Premiership club changing the venue to The Stoop which has reduced the capacity from 82,000 to 14,816.
The Big Game will now be the March 4 match against Exeter and the switch had the potential to be a very damaging PR disaster. However, calling it early on December 16, eleven days before the Twickenham date, left Monye believing that Harlequins had done their best in trying circumstances. “They handled and dealt with it as well as they could,” he insisted.
? An open letter from our CEO @LaurieDalrymple to Harlequins and Bristol Bears supporters.
? Full story: https://t.co/mrN8dP9cUo #COYQ #BigGame14 pic.twitter.com/WnTODFWSZT
— Harlequins ? (@Harlequins) December 16, 2022
“Knowing Laurie Dalrymple and the club and the history of the Big Game, I played in those games and loved it – would they have sold it out? Absolutely. This community of people has been at Big Games over the years and it feels like a real landmark moment over the Christmas period where it is more than just the game, which is fantastic.
“You look at the demographic of people in the crowd. Some are rugby traditionalists. Some just want to get out of the house. Some just want to enjoy the lights show and the entertainment as well as the rugby. Now that it is gone and that is a shame. The economic hit for Harlequins will be massive, absolutely massive.
“They can probably generate four times the revenue than they can at The Stoop, and we saw last season when they had two big games with Craig David in May. With this one displaced to March, it’s not just the loss of revenue this time but it is also the opportunity lost in March to be able to double up so it’s massively disappointing.
“Harlequins had no alternative but to do what they did but when they relocated it [the Bristol fixture] back to their traditional home of The Stoop, the game was quickly sold out so there is a massive appetite. Harlequins have sold out for every game this season, which is a brilliant place to be, but I’m just disappointed that the Big Game isn’t going to be in its usual place at Twickenham.”
Given the demand for tickets for every Stoop match, is there a debate to be had that Harlequins need a mid-level ground providing a capacity greater than their current home but less than the huge capacity of Twickenham which requires a massive marketing drive every time they play there? “You want your home to be your home and people to have that sense of familiarity,” said Monye.
"They were kicking for poles in that Baa-Baas game which was obscene actually…"
"Jack Walker coming back, the king of Bath as he calls himself…"
– Post-match TV gold from Joe Marler on BT Sport. #BATvHAR #GallagherPrem https://t.co/eWITSbLTcd
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) December 3, 2022
“They have expanded their in-game atmosphere, the pre-match, the concourse has been widened with more bars. It’s a real community, an unbelievable experience to go there. As to finding a mid-level ground, I don’t think that is potentially right.
“Let’s not forget that Harlequins were the first in this country to have a Big Game which is now being replicated by other clubs like Saracens. To go to the two matches in a year was ambitious but it was a massive success. You couldn’t buy a Harlequins jersey online, at the shop, or anywhere.
“I know that from friends that went to the match and wanted to buy a Marcus Smith shirt and couldn’t get it, so we know the legacy impact that it [Harlequins at Twickenham] has to supporters. It’s brilliant, it’s massively successful and I’m so thrilled that their ambition is being met with the appetite of the public.”
- BT Sport is the home of Gallagher Premiership rugby. Watch Harlequins Women vs Bristol Bears Women, followed by Harlequins vs Bristol Bears from 1pm on December 27 exclusively live on BT Sport 1 bt.com/sport/rugby-union
Comments on RugbyPass
Make what step up? Manie has a World Cup winner’s medal around his neck and changed the way the Springboks can play. He doesn’t have anything to prove to anyone. The win record of the Boks with him in the team is tremendous. Sacha can be wonderful and I hope he has a very succesful Bok career, but comparing him to Manie in terms of the next Bok flyhalf is very strange. Manie is the incumbent (not the next) and doing pretty incredibly.
1 Go to comments00 😍 U
1 Go to commentsSabbaticals have helped keep NZ’s very best talent in the country on long term deals - this fact has been left out of this article. Much like the articles calling to allow overseas players to be selected, yet can only name one player currently not signed to NZR who would be selected for the ABs. And in the entire history of NZ players leaving to play overseas, literally only 4 or 5 have left in their prime as current ABs. (Piatau, Evans, Hayman, Mo’unga,?) Yes Carter got an injury while playing in France 16 years ago, but he also got a tournament ending injury at the 2011 World Cup while taking mid-week practice kicks at goal. Maybe Jordie gets a season-ending injury while playing in Ireland, maybe he gets one next week against the Brumbies. NZR have many shortcomings, but keeping the very best players in the country and/or available for ABs selection is not one of them. Likewise for workload management - players missing 2 games out of 14 is hardly a big deal in the grand scheme of things. Again let’s use some facts - did it stop the Crusaders winning SR so many times consecutively when during any given week they would be missing 2 of their best players? The whole idea of the sabbatical is to reward your best players who are willing to sign very long term deals with some time to do whatever they want. They are not handed out willy-nilly, and at nowhere near the levels that would somehow devalue Super Rugby. In this particular example JB is locked in with NZR for what will probably (hopefully) be the best years of his career, hard to imagine him not sticking around for a couple more after for a Lions tour and one more world cup. He has the potential to become the most capped AB of all time. A much better outcome than him leaving NZ for a minimum of 3 years at the age of 27, unlikely to ever play for the ABs again, which would be the likely alternative.
1 Go to commentsJake White talks more sense than anything I've read in the last 5 years. Hope someone's listening.
9 Go to commentsThe Springboks tried going down the road of only picking home-based players and it was an unmitigated disaster in 2016 and 2017. Picking overseas-based players has been one of the main reason the Boks have done so well since 2018, not only because of the quality Rassie could call on, but because of the knowledge and experience those players brought into camp from England, France and Japan. With some of the big names playing abroad it also gave younger players in SA the chance to break through at franchise level. Would we have seen the emergence of a Ruan Nortje if RG and Lood were still at the Bulls? Not so sure. I understand why Jake would want to block players leaving since his job depends on good results but it’s an approach that would take Bok rugby back to the bad old days and no South African wants to see that.
9 Go to commentsExeter were thumped by 38 points. And they only had to hop on a train.
38 Go to commentsI am De Groot.
1 Go to commentsHad hoped you might write an article on this game, Nick. It’s a good one. Things have not gone as smoothly for ROG since beating Leinster last year at the Aviva in the CC final. LAR had the Top 14 Final won till Raymond Rhule missed a simple tackle on the excellent Ntamack, and Toulouse reaped the rewards of just staying in the fight till the death. Then the disruption of the RWC this season. LAR have not handled that well, but they were not alone, and we saw Pau heading the Top 14 table at one stage early season. I would think one of the reasons for the poor showing would have to be that the younger players coming through, and the more mature amongst the group outside the top 25/30, are not as strong as would be hoped for. I note that Romain Sazy retired at the end of last season. He had been with LAR since 2010, and was thus one of their foundation players when they were promoted to Top 14. Records show he ended up with 336 games played with LAR. That is some experience, some rock in the team. He has been replaced for the most part by Ultan Dillane. At 30, Dillane is not young, but given the chances, he may be a fair enough replacement for Sazy. But that won’be for more than a few years. I honestly know little of the pathways into the LAR setup from within France. I did read somewhere a couple of years ago that on the way up to Top 14, the club very successfully picked up players from the academies of other French teams who were not offered places by those teams. These guys were often great signings…can’t find the article right now, so can’t name any….but the Tadgh Beirne type players. So all in all, it will be interesting to see where the replacements for all the older players come from. Only Lleyd’s and Rhule from SA currently, both backs. So maybe a few SA forwards ?? By contrast, Leinster have a pretty clear line of good players coming through in the majority of positions. Props maybe a weak spot ? And they are very fleet footed and shrewd in appointing very good coaches. Or maybe it is also true that very good coaches do very well in the Leinster setup. So, Nick, I would fully concurr that “On the evidence of Saturday’s semi-final between the two clubs, the rebuild in the Bay of Biscay is going to take longer than it is on the east coast of Ireland”
11 Go to commentsWhat was the excuse for the other knockout blowouts then? Does the result not prove the Saints were just so much better? Wise call to put your eggs in one basket when you’ve got 2 comps simultaneously finishing.
38 Go to commentsReally hope Kuruvoli and his partner rock the Canes.
1 Go to commentsI wonder what impact Samson has had on their attack, as the team seems less prone to trundle it up the middle, take the tackle and then trundle it up again. I lost faith in the coach last year as the Rebelss looked like a 2nd/3rd rate South African team. I also disliked Gordon standing back, often ignored as the forward battle went on and on. Maybe its our Aussie way of not getting off our A***’s until the enemy is at the gate.
86 Go to commentsThanks for the write up. Great to see the Rebs winning, I am a little interested in how they will go against the remaining kiwi teams, I think they’ve only played Hurricanes and Highlanders but how great to see these players performing!! I also see Parling has a job beyond June 30! A good move by RA? Also how do you fix the Rebels previously scratchy defence?
86 Go to commentsbe smart - go black
13 Go to commentsNext week the Crusaders hopefully have Scott Barrett back. Will be great to have the captain back. Hopefully he will be the All Black captain as well.
12 Go to commentsExciting place to be for the young fella. I expected he was French Polynesian when I saw him included in the France 6N squad (after seeing him in NZs), and therefor be strong grounds we might loose him to rugby down here. Good, in that he is good enough to warrant such a profile, and from a journalism’s fan interaction aspect, to finally get a back ground story on the fella. Hope he has settled into NZ OK and that at least one rugby country will fit with him to help his development, which, if so, he should surely continue for a few years, and then that he can experience France to it’s fullest with a bit more maturity and less reliance on family than you would have at his current age. A good 3 or 4 years before he would be ready for International duty if he wanted to wait. Of course he already sounds good enough to accept a call up, and to cap himself, in the more immediate future (he’d have to be very very good in the case of the ABs), and he’ll get a great taste of that being with the Canes who have a bunch who are just a few years further into their career and looking likely Internationals themselves.
13 Go to commentsI remember towards the end of the original broadcasting deal for Super rugby with Newscorp that there was talk about the competition expanding to improve negotiations for more money - more content, more cash. Professional rugby was still in its infancy then and I held an opposing view that if Super rugby was a truly valuable competition then it should attract more broadcasters to bid for the rights, thereby increasing the value without needing to add more teams and games. Unfortunately since the game turned professional, the tension between club, talent and country has only grown further. I would argue we’re already at a point in time where the present is the future. The only international competitions that matter are 6N, RC and RWC. The inter-hemisphere tours are only developmental for those competitions. The games that increasingly matter more to fans, sponsors and broadcasters are between the clubs. Particularly for European fans, there are multiple competitions to follow your teams fortunes every week. SA is not Europe but competes in a single continental competition, so the travel component will always be an impediment. It was worse in the bloated days of Super rugby when teams traversed between four continents - Africa, America, Asia and Australia. The percentage of players who represent their country is less than 5% of the professional player base, so the sense of sacrifice isn’t as strong a motivation for the rest who are more focused on playing professional rugby and earning as much from their body as they can. Rugby like cricket created the conundrum it’s constantly fighting a losing battle with.
9 Go to commentsOh wow… “But as La Rochelle proved in winning in Cape Town this season, a cross-continental away assignment need not spell the end of days.” La Rochelle actually proved quite the opposite. After traveling to Cape town and back they (back-to-back and current champs) got mercilessly thumped the next week. If travel is not the reason, why else would a full-strength powerhouse like La Rochelle get dumped on their @r$e$ one week later?
38 Go to commentsYou know he can land a winning conversion after the full time siren is up. (Even if it takes two attempts.)
5 Go to commentsA very insightful article from Jake. I would love to know how South African’s feel about their move to Europe. Do you prefer playing in Europe or want to go back to Super Rugby?
9 Go to commentspure fire
1 Go to comments