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New Zealand Rugby boss reveals why Pasifika team was snubbed for Super Rugby Aotearoa 2021

By Online Editors
(Photo by Fiona Goodall/Getty Images)

New Zealand Rugby chairman Brent Impey insists the proposed Super Rugby schedule for the next two years will deliver the best possible outcome, despite the omission of a Pacific team for next year – and criticism around the credibility of three additional teams from 2022.

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Impey confirmed the Herald‘s report that the hugely popular Super Rugby Aotearoa will return next year, with the addition of a final, and the hope of then staging crossover matches with the five Australian teams.

The NZ Rugby board opted to reject the addition of a Pasifika side next year due to concerns around its immediate competitiveness in such a compressed timeframe, and apparent insufficient corporate support to prove a self-sustainable future.

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New Zealand’s five existing Super Rugby franchises are also thought to be concerned that a sixth team could cannibalise the talent base, support and commercial market.

Sir Bryan Williams, Jerome Kaino and Joe Rokocoko are among those to call for the inclusion of a Pasifika side in Super Rugby.

The national body will, however, continue to engage separate bids from Moana Pasifika and Kanaloa Hawaii for one of three additional teams from 2022.

“We’re still committed to getting that across the line at some point but the board believes we must get this right,” Impey said. “The board wasn’t satisfied that any of the applicants at this point are able to get a team or provide the necessary financial assurances. The last thing we want is for any team to come in and get smashed. Yes, there are teams that wanted licenses for 2021 but we considered both on the field and off the field none were ready.”

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Rugby Australia took great offence to NZ Rugby’s expressions of interest approach to Super Rugby next year and, therefore, other than the Western Force, did not apply to join the competition.

NZR’s original pitch was for an eight-to-10 team competition next year, which left room for two-to-three Australian sides.

Negotiations between the two fractured parties are expected to continue before any crossover matches in 2021 and the 2022 format are confirmed.

“The situation with Australia has kind of been beaten up a little bit,” Impey said over the near constant bickering with the trans-Tasman neighbours, which includes the Rugby Championship scheduling debacle that may force the All Blacks to quarantine through Christmas.

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“They didn’t want to be involved in our expression of interest process – that’s entirely up to them. We have the door open to them around a crossover competition once Super Rugby Aotearoa is over in 2021, and we’ve also got the door open on a trans-Tasman-type competition.

“They’ve got their own challenges, though. Their difficult financial position has been well publicised. As we speak, they haven’t got a broadcast deal so we’re leaving the ball in their court to open up that dialogue. We’re pretty relaxed.”

NZR plans to add a minimum of three additional teams to Super Rugby Aotearoa from 2022. Impey would not reveal the groups NZR is negotiating with but the Herald understands they are Moana Pasifika, Kanaloa Hawaii, the Fiji Drua, Western Force and the South China Lions, who would be based in Bay of Plenty.

The Force and South China Lions are both backed by Australian mining billionaire Andrew Forrest.

“Our view is to encourage private investment in any teams that get added to our competition,” Impey said.

NZR has endured criticism over the way they have handled their expressions of interest process but Impey said they were attempting to map out a future in an extremely challenging financial climate.

“I would hate to think we were arrogant. We’re in a situation with massive change – we’ve never seen the likes of it before. Pre-Covid the model here was broken so we were starting to do work about what NZ Rugby was going to look like and Covid has accelerated the process. We can’t continue to run multi-million dollar losses.”

News of New Zealand’s Super Rugby plans comes one day after South Africa announced their exit from Super Rugby, with confirmation they will send four teams – the Bulls, Sharks, Stormers and Lions – to compete in Europe’s Pro16 competition from next year, leaving New Zealand and Australia to sort out their own futures.

NZ Rugby plans to make a decision by November 30 on which teams will join Super Rugby Aotearoa from 2022.

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J
Jon 6 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

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j
john 9 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

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A
Adrian 10 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

35 Go to comments
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