Provincial unions at risk of pulling out of Mitre 10 Cup due to player payment concerns
Four provincial unions – Taranaki, Northland, Southland and North Harbour – may be forced to pull out of this year’s Mitre 10 Cup competition over fears they will not be able to pay their players.
While eight other unions have committed to the competition, Wellington and Otago are also understood to be “on the fence” in similar precarious positions.
North Harbour Rugby chairman Gerard van Tilborg says the situation is dire and can be saved only by the players agreeing to take far less than they are now.
“Harbour is absolutely committed to playing in a provincial union competition provided it can be adequately funded,” van Tilborg said. “The situation in negotiations between New Zealand Rugby and the Players’ Association are making that marginal.
“The cuts aren’t big enough. We’ve had staff take cuts between 45 and 30 per cent salary. We’ve spoken to most of our players who have been very supportive but we obviously can’t go outside the collective and we need to provide a similar bottom-end ratio of roughly a 30 per cent cut to make [fielding a team] viable.
“If we can’t, we’ll consider what our options are when and if we see what the competition looks like. With teams potentially pulling out what is it going to look like?
“We’re not going to wreck the union for something that is unsustainable.”
Provincial unions have been locked in negotiations with the Players’ Association for the past month as attempts continue to agree a wage-cut figure that will allow the tournament to progress with all 14 teams involved.
As it stands, significant concessions are required for all teams to make the revised September 11 start line.
Provincial union sources have told the Herald that they and the Players’ Association are “10 per cent apart” over an agreed wage cut, but Nichol disputes this, saying that meetings today between his organisation and New Zealand Rugby will make a lie of that.
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“What we have is a situation with a lot of moving parts,” Nichol said. “A lot of the modelling done to date was based on the assumption we’d have no rugby so this is a rapidly changing space.”
Nichol said the aim was still to have fully stocked Mitre 10 and Farah Palmer Cup competitions, “but how the revenue flows through to the provincial unions is the key”.
“The player payments at provincial level are part of the equation. The players have to play a part in the [recovery] and we know this, but there are other things we need to understand too.
“There’s the Government wage subsidy to consider. There’s also the rescue package announced this week for sport. Is this relevant in this space? At this stage we don’t have a clue how that money is to be distributed but there’s a chance it could ease the pressure on the unions.”
The ongoing standoff comes after NZ Rugby cut provincial unions’ annual grants of $650,000 by 15 per cent and at a time when all unions are making redundancies to ensure their survival.
Nichol is arguing that provincial wages will be cut by 30 per cent when the government provided wage subsidy is factored in. Those at-risk provincial unions say that is not enough to get them over the line, and are instead demanding a 30 per cent cut on top of the wage subsidy.
“We’re doing everything we can to take the pressure off the provincial unions’ wage bill,” Nichol said. “But at the same time we’re looking at how much the players can be cut. NZR has to look at the way it distributes its revenue and the provincial unions have to look at what they’re doing.”
Nichol said many PUs had already “significantly” mitigated their contracting behaviour by signing fewer players.
Last month the Players’ Association and NZ Rugby agreed a 50 per cent freeze on forecasted player payments for the last eight months of this year which covers Super Rugby and All Blacks players.
Provincial union contracts sit outside the player payment pool and must, therefore, be separately negotiated. This year, across the unions, there is about $15 million worth of contracts due to be honoured.
How big a boost would Aaron Cruden be to the @ManawatuTurbos' fortunes in 2020? #Mitre10Cup #SuperRugbyhttps://t.co/N3yXivlX0C
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) May 20, 2020
In many ways the provincial union standoff has further underlined New Zealand Rugby’s deeply flawed player payment model, with the 14 unions operating under a $1.2 million salary cap contributing to the unsustainable future of the game here.
While the Mitre 10 Cup does not start for four months the wage cut agreement is a matter of urgency as some provincial unions are paying players now and honouring contracts as they stand.
The worst-case scenario could see some provincial unions walk away from negotiations and go to the players individually.
“Very soon we need certainty,” van Tilborg said. “With Covid we’ve been planning a number of different scenarios but we’ve got to the stage where everything is out of our control so we can’t plan or implement and that’s the difficulty.
“Unless we can get through this season in reasonable condition we’re better off considering the offer from New Zealand Rugby to pull out of the provincial competition to preserve our ability to compete 2021 and beyond.”
Van Tilborg said he’d had a personal assurance from NZR chairman Brent Impey that Harbour would not be penalised for pulling out of this year’s competition.
“We need the RPA to recognise that even their players understand getting through 2020 is the key here so we have a future beyond that. There’s no point in bankrupting unions this year… and leaving them in a vulnerable position for 2021 and beyond,” van Tilborg continued.
Cuts are being looked at elsewhere, with the prospect of teams flying in and out on match days raised – as Super Rugby teams will do – which allows for savings on accommodation.
Comments on RugbyPass
Bar the injuries, it’s pretty much their top team …
2 Go to commentsDon’t disagree with much of this but it appears you forgot Rodda and Beale, who started at the Force on the weekend.
9 Go to commentsExcept for the injured Zach Gallagher this would be Saders best forward pack for the season. Blackadder needs to stay at 7, for all of Christies tackling he is not dominant and offers very little else. McNicholfullback is maybe a good option, Fihaki not really upto it, there was a reason Burke played there last year. Maybe Havilli to 2nd five McLeod to wing. Need a strong winger on 1 side to compliment Reece
1 Go to commentsTo me TJ is clearly the best 9 in the competition right now but he's also a proven player off the bench, there's few playmaking players who can come off the bench as calm and settled as he is, Beauden can, TJ can and I doubt any of the scrumhalves in contention can, if they want to experiment with new 9s I want him on the bench ready to step in if they crumble under the pressure. The Boks put their best front row on the bench, I'd like to see us take a similar approach, the Hurricanes have been doing similar things with players like Kirifi.
35 Go to commentsROG has better chance to win a WC if he starts training and make himself eligible as a player. He won’t make the Ireland squad but I reckon he may get close with Namibia (needs to improve his Afrikaans) or Portugal. Both sides had 1000:1 odds to win the RWC in 2023 which is an improvement on ROG’s odds of winning a RWC as a coach. Unlike Top 14 teams, national teams can’t go shopping and buy the best players - you work with the available talent pool and turn them into world beaters.
2 Go to commentsthat backline nope that backline is terrible why would you have sevu Reece when he’s not even top 5 wingers in the comp why have Blackadder when there’s better players no Scott barret isn’t an automatic the guy is more of a liability than anything why have him there when you have samipeni who’s far far better
35 Go to commentsAh, good to find you Nick. Agree with everything about Cale. So much to like about his game
49 Go to commentsNot too bad. Questions at 6, lock and HB for me. The ABs will be a lot stronger once Jordan and Roigard return. Also, work needs to be made to secure Frizzell back for next season and maybe also Mo’unga; they’re just wasting time playing in japan
35 Go to commentsOn the title, i wonder for many of those people it is a case something like a belief in working smarter, not harder?
1 Go to commentsForget Sotutu. One of those whose top level is Super Rugby. Id take a punt on Wallace Sititi Finau ahead of Glass body Blackadder.
35 Go to commentsI’m a pensioner so I've been around a bit. My opinion of SBW is he is an elite athlete and a great New Zealander and roll model. He has been to the top and knows what he's talking about. To all the negative comments regarding SBW the typical New Zealand way, cut that tall poppy down.
17 Go to commentsI'm not listening to a guy moralise over others when this is the guy who walked out mid season on Canterbury RLFC when he had a contract with them, what a hypocrite. All the Kiwis sticking up for this unprincipled individual because they can't accept justified criticism, he has zero credibility or integrity. Those praising him are a joke.
17 Go to commentsI’d put Finau at 6 instead of Blackadder but that’s the only change I’d make. Can’t wait to see who Razor picks.
35 Go to commentsTamati Williams, Codie Taylor, and Same Cane? Not sure about Hoskins Sotutu at test level. Wasn’t that impressive last season. Need a balance between experience and talent/youth.
35 Go to commentsInteresting insight. Fantastic athlete, and a genuine human being.
17 Go to commentsThey played at night in Suva last weekend and it’s an afternoon game forecast for 19 degrees in Canberra this weekend. Heat change is a non issue.
2 Go to commentsWishing Rosie a speedy recovery
1 Go to commentsObscene that SA haven’t been knocking
1 Go to commentsChances of Blackadder being injured seem too high to give him serious consideration. ABs loosie combination finally looked good with 2 committed to tackling and clearing rucks in the centre and Ardie roaming. Hoskins/Ardie together would force one of them into where they don’t excel and don’t get to use their talent, or require a change in tactics. If we continue to evolve last years systems I would take Papali’i and Finau at 6 and 7 (conceding that Blackadder will be injured) and Ardie at 8.
35 Go to commentsArdie’s preferred position 7? Where do they get these writers from? I've no idea where he's playing in Japan, but the previous two seasons he wore the 7 jersey exactly twice.
17 Go to comments