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Rugby Australia appoint Phil Kearns Executive Director of their Rugby World Cup 2027 bid

By Online Editors
Kearns has issued a warning to Rugby Australia. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

Rugby Australia Chairman Hamish McLennan has revealed that two-time World Cup winner Phil Kearns AM as Executive Director, Rugby World Cup 2027 Bid.

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Kearns, who played 67 Tests for Australia, will lead the Rugby World Cup Bid team in engaging with Federal, State and Local Government as well as international stakeholders including World Rugby Member Unions and he will be a key conduit for the Rugby World Cup 2027 Bid Advisory Board.

Following a storied playing career, Kearns held previous posts as Chief Executive of Centric Wealth as well as Managing Director at InterRISK Australia while he also serves as Board Director for AVJennings, Venues NSW and Coolabah Capital.

Following 12 years on the board of the Childhood Cancer Institute Australia, Kearns is now Patron of the Zero Childhood Cancer campaign alongside Professor Dame Marie Bashir AD CVO and David Gonski AC. The former Wallaby hooker also started the ‘Balmoral Burn’ in 2001, which has since raised more than $30 million to buy equipment for Children’s Hospitals around Australia.

Rugby Australia Chairman, Hamish McLennan said: “Phil has an impeccable international reputation both in the corporate sector and with his network of contacts throughout the rugby world.

“Phil will be front and centre of Rugby World Cup bid team and will lead our international relations to put Rugby Australia in the strongest possible position to win the right to host the 2027 showpiece.

“As part of his role, Phil will be spend time overseas to be a key contact with the World Rugby Member Unions, to showcase our bid and to highlight why we would be a tremendous host in 2027,” McLennan said.

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Rugby World Cup 2027 Bid Advisory Board Chairman, Sir Rod Eddington said: “I’m really pleased to welcome Phil to the bid team and know his experience will prove invaluable as we prepare over the coming months.

“Phil has proven himself to be a high profile Rugby leader and coupled with his history in game, will be instrumental for Rugby Australia’s bid,” Eddington said.

Executive Director Rugby World Cup 2027 Bid, Phil Kearns said: “I’m very proud to accept the role and want to thank Hamish and Sir Rod for their consideration as we prepare our bid to host the Rugby World Cup in Australia in 2027.

“I know what it takes to win a World Cup on the field in Wallaby Gold and now I’m enormously excited to put in the work to win the right to host a World Cup here in Australia.

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“The World Cup in 2027 would be transformational for the game in this country. The financial windfall it would bring would spark the Australian economy as we rebuild from the impact of COVID-19 and then gives us the opportunity to invest back into the grassroots of the game,” Kearns said.

Kearns will start on September 7 and will report into Rugby Australia Chairman Hamish McLennan as well as Bid Advisory Board Chairman Sir Rod Eddington AO FTSE.

Rugby World Cup 2019 created 46,000 jobs and proved to be the most economically successful Rugby World Cup ever. The event attracted more than 240,000 international visitors to Japan and generated over $7.5 billion in economic output.

Phil Kearns AM
A Wallabies captain, Phil Kearns AM won two Rugby World Cups for Australia (1991 and 1999) before starting a hugely successful corporate career. Kearns has served as Chief Executive of insurance broker InterRISK Australia and Centric Wealth. Prior to that, Kearns worked with Investec’s Corporate Advisory and Capital Markets divisions. Kearns is also a Director of AV Jennings, Coolabah Capital and Venues NSW.

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Jon 5 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 8 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

30 Go to comments
T
Trevor 12 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

21 Go to comments
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