Money no object, a New Zealand-only replacement for Super Rugby is the way forward
The current, widespread suspension of rugby across the globe is forcing a massive re-think of how the game is administered, organised and played and New Zealand Rugby must be seriously considering going it alone in the future.
Super Rugby in its current form is coming to an end. The Sunwolves will be culled from 2021 and may have already played their last match.
Instead of the broken, somewhat confusing and entirely unfair set-up of the current conference system, Super Rugby will be reverting to a round-robin format.
There will still be fairness issues, no doubt; it’s hard to envisage that SANZAAR will stop the top ranked nation from each country progressing through to the finals because that would harm the ever-important viewership figures.
But even ignoring that, there’s a considerably greater problem at hand: the audience just don’t like Super Rugby.
Cross-country competitions work incredibly well when it’s the best of the best on display. The Heineken Cup and football’s Champion’s Cup are so popular not just because they’re European wide competitions but because teams actually have to regularly prove they belong in those competitions. That’s rarely been true for Super Rugby.
Super Rugby is no Southern Hemisphere Heineken Cup, as some folks will suggest. That may have been the case when the competition first kicked off in 1996 and the three original SANZAR nations were arguably the top three nations in the world, but now South Africa, New Zealand and Australia have as many of their players turning out for foreign clubs as they do for their local sides and the Wallabies in particular are a shadow of their former selves.
If you want to compare competitions from the two Hemispheres then Super Rugby is much more akin to the Pro14, a tournament which incorporates five nations in an unusual conference format where the end result is inevitably that an Irish team will finish with the trophy.
Sound familiar to any Southern Hemisphere purists?
The Pro14 holds some significance, especially for the teams that don’t have a place in the Heineken Cup, primarily because it’s the only professional non-international rugby on offer in a calendar year. For a team like Leinster, however, who regularly rest their top players in order to keep them fresh for the considerably more illustrious Heineken’s Cup, the Pro14 is simply a sidequest.
Back to New Zealand and it’s easy to see why Super Rugby is losing it’s appeal, except when two Kiwi sides face off.
That’s not necessarily because the skills are better and the rugby itself is of a higher quality in those fixtures – though that certainly comes into it.
It’s simply because the players are more recognisable and familiar and viewers actually care about their success.
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There’s also the major factor that almost every player on display in a New Zealand derby is a potential All Black – and that’s what the viewers want to see; All Blacks.
It’s a powerful brand, that silver fern – the most powerful brand in world rugby, in fact. There’s a reason why NZR are so keen to slap the All Blacks moniker on every New Zealand rugby team.
Super Rugby has been heading downhill for a long time with New Zealand’s domination evident for everyone to see and now is the time to kick things up.
Conveniently, New Zealand’s provincial competition has also lost its shine in recent years, which creates a serious opportunity for NZR if they’re willing to take a risk.
If Super Rugby and the Mitre 10 Cup on both thrown on the scrap heap, New Zealand could produce the greatest domestic rugby competition in the world – one that cannot just rival but best England’s Gallagher Premiership and France’s Top 14.
As it currently stands, there are plenty of talented Kiwi players that are either forced to sit on a Super Rugby bench every week or head to other countries for game-time – players that would more than match-up to many of the men who are propping up some of the Australia and South African franchises.
The Mitre 10 Cup, which boasts 14 teams, probably stretches New Zealand’s talent a little too far. There’s a fine medium that could be found between the 14 provinces and the five Super Rugby franchises that would allow for a competitive competition that would provide enough variety, rivalry and tribalism for all to enjoy.
Merging provinces has had mixed results in the past. It’s gone very well for Tasman, who were formed by an alliance between two second division sides, Nelson Bays and Marlborough, and are now a powerhouse in the provincial game.
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Back in the 90’s, it didn’t work so well off the field for Hawke’s Bay and Manawatu when they were merged into the Central Vikings with financial issues eventually causing the side to split, but better planning and professionalism could likely solve that problem in the current day.
The major problem with this, of course, is the money factor. South Africa and Australia both have populations dwarfing New Zealand. Even if rugby isn’t quite as popular in either of those countries, the number of viewers far exceed those in NZ, particularly in South Africa, which is why the NZR are so keen to have them involved in some form or another.
But that’s overlooking the fact that a premier provincial club competition is considerably more marketable on a world scale than the current Super Rugby product.
If NZR can take their new product to America, Asia or Europe and illustrate that the rugby is of the highest quality and the All Blacks are on display in almost every fixture (especially if we’re taking the wider definition of the brand and including sevens players and B-team members), then the audience for the competition is actually significantly larger than Super Rugby’s.
It also opens the door for other complementary events such as the much-discussed North Island v South Island clash, a game between New Zealand’s Possibles and Probables, and a few one-off matches against Australian and South African teams.
It’s desperate times around the world right now and that’s forced rugby unions to start re-thinking their strategies. New Zealand Rugby could do a lot worse than focussing on their own backyard and reinvigorating the provincial game.
Comments on RugbyPass
Thanks Brett, love your articles which are alway pertinent. It’s a difficult topic trying to have a panel adjudicating consistently penalties for red card issues. Many of the mitigating reasons raised are judged subjectively, hence the different outcomes. How to take away subjective opinions?
4 Go to commentsYes Sir! Surprising, just like Fraser would also have escaped sanction if he was a few inches lower, even if it was by accident that he missed! Has there really been talk about those sanctions or is this just sensational journalism? I stopped reading, so might have missed any notations.
4 Go to commentsAI is only as good as the information put in, the nuances of the sport, what you see out the corner of the eye, how you sum up in a split second the situation, yes the AI is a tool but will not help win games, more likely contribute to a loss, Rugby Players are not robots, all AI can do if offer a solution not the solution. AI will effect many sports, help train better golfers etc.
45 Go to commentsIt couldn’t have been Ryan Crotty. He wasn’t selected in either World Cup side - they chose Money Bill instead. And Money Bill only cared about himself, and that manager he had, not the team.
26 Go to commentsYawn 🥱 nobody would give a hoot about this new trophy. End of the day we just have to beat Ireland and NZ this year then they can finally shut up 🤐
13 Go to commentsTalking bout Ryan Crotty? Heard Crotty say in a interview once that SBW doesen't care about the team . He went on to say that whenever they lost a big game, SBW would be happy as if nothing happened, according to him someone who cares would look down.. Personally I think Crotty is in the wrong, not for feeling gutted but for expecting others 2 be like him… I have been a bad loser forever as it matters so much to me but good on you SBW for being able to see the bigger picture….
26 Go to commentsThis sounds like a WWE idea so Americans can also get excited about rugby, RUGBY NEEDS A INTERNATIONAL CALENDER .. The rugby Championship and Six Nations can be held at same time, top 3 of six nations and top 3 of Rugby championship (6 nations should include Georgia AND another qualifying country while Fiji, Japan and Samoa/Tonga qualifier should make out 6 Southern teams).. Scrap June internationals and year end tours. Have a Elite top six Cup and the Bottom 6 in a secondary comp….
13 Go to commentsThe rugby championship would be even stronger with Fiji in it… I know it doesen’t fit the long term plans of NZ or Aus but you are robbing a whole nation of being able to see their best players play for Fiji…. Every second player in NZ and AUS teams has Fijian surnames… shame on you!!! World rugby won’t step in either as France and England has now also joined in…. I guess where money is involved it will always be the poor countries missing out….
84 Go to commentsNo surprise there. How hard can it be to pick a ball off the ground and chuck it to a mate? 😂
2 Go to commentsSometimes people just like a moan mate!
4 Go to commentsexcellent idea ! rugby needs this 💪
13 Go to comments9 Brumbies! What a joke! The best performing team in Oz! Ditch Skelton for Swain or Neville. Ryan Lonergan ahead of McDermott any day! Best selection bolter is Toole … amazing player
12 Go to commentsI like this, but ultimately rugby already has enough trophies. Trying to make more games “consequential" might prove to be a fools errand, although this is a less bad idea than some others. Minor quibble with the title of the article; it isn’t very meaningful to say the boks are the unofficial world champions when it would be functionally impossible for the Raeburn trophy not to be held by the world champions. There’s a period of a few months every 4 years when there is no “unofficial” world champion, and the Raeburn trophy is held by the actual world champions.
13 Go to commentsIts a great idea but one that I dont think will have a lot of traction. It will depend on the prestige that they each hold but if you can do that it would be great. When Japan beat the Boks (my team) I was absolutely devestated but I wont deny the great game they played that day. We were outclassed and it was one of the best games of rugby I have seen. Using an idea like this you might just give the the underdog teams more of an opportunity to beat the big teams and I can absolutely see it being a brilliant display of rugby. They beat us because they planned for that game. It was a great moment for Japan. This way we can remove the 4 year wait and give teams something to aim for outside of World Cup years.
13 Go to commentsHi, Dave here. Happy to answer questions 🥰
13 Go to commentsDon’t think that headline is accurate. It’s great to see Aus doing better but I’m not sure they’ve shown much threat to the top of the table. They shouldn’t be inflating wins against the lousy Highlanders and Crusaders either.
3 Go to commentsSuch a shame Roigard and Aumua picked up long term injuries, probably the two form players in the comp. Also, pretty sure Clarke Dermody isn’t their coach. Got it half right though.
3 Go to commentsOh the Aussie media, they never learn. At least Andrew Kellaway is like “Woah, yeah it’s great, but settle down there guys” having endured years of the Aussie media, fans, and often their players getting ahead of themselves only to fall flat on their faces. Have the “We'll win the Bledisloe for sure this year!” headlines started yet? It’s simple to see what’s going on. The Aussie teams are settled, they didn't lose any of their major players overseas. The Crusaders and Chiefs lost key experienced All Blacks, and Razor in the Crusaders case, and clearly neither are anywhere near as strong as last year (The Canes and Blues would probably be 3rd & 4th if they were). The Highlanders are annually average, even more so post-Aaron Smith and a big squad clean out. The two teams at the top? The two nz sides with largely the same settled roster as last year, except Ardie Savea for the Canes. They’ve both got far better coaches now too. If the Aussies are going to win the title, this is the year the kiwi sides will be weakest, so they better take their chance.
3 Go to commentsThe World Cup has to be the gold standard, line in the sand. 113 teams compete for what is the opportunity to make the pool stages, and then the knockout games for the trophy. The concept is sound. This must have been the rationale when the World Cup was created, surely? But I’m all for Looking forward and finding new ways for the SH to dominate the NH into the future. The autumn series needs a change up. Let’s start by having the NH teams come south every odd year for the Autumn/Spring series games?
13 Go to commentsWhat’ll happen when the AI models of the future go back in time and try to destroy the AI models of the past standing in their way of certain victory?
45 Go to comments