RuggaMatrix episode 251 - The woeful Wallabies

World Champions for 2082 days. Please & thank you.

You agree that the Top14 was sticking within the rules. Describing it as ‘attack’ing international rugby isn’t fair. It’s simply doing it’s own thing, which benefits many other rugby nations too, more of which below. NZ rugby has one system of earning money, the French have another, and it looks to me like theirs is more successful, but that’s no reason to try and shoot it down. Unlike some NZ commentators, I haven’t heard any of the French expressing the wish to interfere with how NZ organise their domestic competition and finances. Different circumstances require different arrangements.

The way you talked about earning money from home internationals, it sounds as if you think the French B team are depriving NZ of income. Really? Instead accusing the French of acting badly, wouldn’t it be better to think of ways of improving the NZ system, even it’s just being more careful who’s invited on tour. It’s well known France never send out their top players in summer.

In any case, the charge of loss of income doesn’t seem to be backed by the facts. As far as I’m aware there haven’t been any complaints about the size of the TV deal. It’s been reported that the NZ- France summer internationals are sell outs, and since you or another New Zealander - I can’t remember which set of comments it was - was complaining about how outrageously high the ticket prices are, it doesn’t sound as if NZ rugby has lowered prices and been hit in the pocket - NZ can’t have it both ways.

If NZ were to have a rethink and follow the example of SA and Scotland to allow players who sign on with a Top14 team to play for the ABs, I think NZ could use the Top14 for its own benefit. Players often improve through being exposed to different approaches, and previously hidden talent can come to light. Cheslin Kolbe was overlooked by the SA main team, until his immense talent was showcased during his time at Toulouse. More recently, Jack Willis and Blair Kinghorn have both acknowledged that Toulouse has helped them broaden and develop their skills - Willis has done quite a lot of interviews which are freely accessible online, if you want to hear what he says. Scotland have benefited, but England haven’t because of their self-imposed rules. From what Willis said around the time of the WC when he had special dispensation to play for England in consideration of the Wasps debacle, it seems Toulouse encourage their foreign players in their international ambitions, rather than acting as an insurmountable obstacle.

I don’t see where your point about home grown talent is coming from. The vast majority of the French team IS home grown talent. Listen to Squidge’s or 2 Cents podcasts on the subject before the last WC. Mauvaka and Moefana both were born in islands which are part of a French overseas territory, came to France young, trained there and have French nationality, Meafou was rejected by Aussie clubs as too large, and was advised to go to France where they appreciate size to get an opportunity to continue his career - do you think he should have been left on the scrap heap in Oz? The only French international I can think of who came from NZ is Uini Atonio, he doesn’t seem to have been appreciated in NZ and has played his entire senior club career at La Rochelle, where he’ll become a player/coach next season; he’s actually of Samoan heritage. I’ve read that NZ was interested in Patrick Tuifua, but he was born in the French territory of New Caledonia, not NZ and is moving to Toulon. Marchand, Aldegheri, Baille, Gros, Cros, Jelonche, Alldritt, Ollivon, Dupont, Penaud, LBB Lucu, Ramos, Fikou, Barrassi, Villiere etc, are all indisputably French, Ntamack is French on his mother’s side, 2nd generation French on his father’s side and has played for Toulouse since infancy, Pasolo Tuilagi has lived in France since the age of 3 and is French, similarly Joshua Brennan. I believe they have both declared their desire to play for the country where they grew up, not Samoa or Ireland. Flament, it’s true, is from Belgium, but his talents could hardly have flourished fully in a team which almost certainly isn’t fully professional. A rugby side is 15 with 8 on the bench in France as everywhere else, packed with all these talented native players, they’re not going to suck the life out of other nations. In fact, there’s a counter example. Capuozzo was born and raised in France, and I’ve heard it said both that he began playing for Italy is because he didn’t think he’d make the French team, or alternatively, that he preferred to play for the country of his paternal grandparents.

I can’t see why you say NZ, England and Ireland are more homegrown than that. De Groot, Lomax (Aus), Frizzell, Fainga’anuku (Tonga) and Christie (Scotland) and other ABs weren’t born in NZ, some of them played for other countries at U20 level, and isn’t your new guy from the Netherlands? England welcomes players born abroad, eg Manu Tuilagi, and Feyi Waboso (born and grew up in Wales who could really do with his talent). And as for Ireland, they are arguably the least home grown of the lot, as Jamison Gibson Park, James Lowe, Bundee Aki and Mack Hansen were not only not born in Ireland, they weren’t brought up there either. This is not a criticism, as I don’t think it’s an issue to get hung up about.

If you’re referring to the number of foreign players in the Top14, ProD2, I reckon it’s a good thing. Players from upcoming second tier nations like Uruguay, Spain and Portugal are exposed to top flight competition and can play fulltime - where else would they get such a good chance to hone their skills? Argentina too is strengthened when it comes to the WC, even if not all their Top 14 players can play in every set of internationals - they still play in a lot of them. Then there the ex-internationals who get a chance to earn decent money before they retire, and enjoy thrill of French rugby. I reckon they deserve that and it shows good money can be earned from rugby, which must help stop talented youngsters from turning to other sports.

I don’t think the Top14 should be charged with making rugby financially unsustainable. I don’t think its existence was the reason Wasps, London Irish and Worcester Warriors went bust. Covid, the English system and the clubs themselves were to blame. I don’t think the Top 14 is the threat you think it is to other nations - the Top 14 and Pro D2 may be large and wealthy, but they’re not infinitely large mopping up all the top players from across the world, they have to obey strictly enforced rules about a compulsory number of Jiff players and a salary cap, which if you count the special allowances for marquee players etc, is comparable in size to the English one. That’s not to say some of the French clubs aren’t very rich, have excellent facilities etc., it’s just they can’t spend all their money on players wages.

To best one of the best teams in the world in a world cup in their own backyard isn’t really lucky though is it, especially if you go on to win the world cup. Stick to your theory though, it makes for good reading.