Super Rugby star backs SBW's radical plan to fix Australian rugby
Crusaders halfback Bryn Hall has backed the plan put forward by Sonny Bill Williams to help revitalise the Wallabies and rugby union in Australia.
Speaking on Stan Sport last week, Williams said the Wallabies could benefit if Rugby Australia [RA] allowed more top local-based players to play club rugby abroad.
The 58-test international said getting RA’s biggest earners off its payroll would enable the national governing body to reinvest its funds into schoolboy rugby and help rugby union thrive at grassroots level.
“What do we want to get out of the Wallabies at that level? We want them competing against the top-tier nations, we want them beating them consistently, we want them winning the Bledisloe Cup consistently,” Williams said.
“How do you do that? For me, I think we’ve got it wrong in the sense we think by hoarding the top-earned players, it’s not going to happen. The source of the problem is the footy at school.”
Williams, who who won two NRL Premierships and played 12 tests for the Kiwis in rugby league, said the 13-man sport is the more dominant rugby code at schoolboy level in Australia due to its accessibility in public schools.
The 36-year-old argued that by making rugby union more prevalent in public schools, the Wallabies and RA would be able to build more depth at the higher levels of the game.
“The majority of public schools all play rugby league, and it’s the majority of private schools that will play rugby union,” he told Stan Sport.
“How do we change that? Well, I wouldn’t mind that rule going where we get some top-earned players going overseas.
“Say a player that’s on 500 grand that could go overseas and get $1 million, go overseas and get that, and that 500 grand goes back into Australian rugby union.
“Australian rugby union is struggling at the moment, so the money that’s left over from that, where does that money go? It goes into schoolboy footy.
“Rugby league will never die in public schools, but if they can just open a little bit of space and create a bit of space for rugby union to thrive, I think that’s where you’ll see the depth in the higher ranks come into play.”
The weekend suddenly got much bleaker for Kiwis. https://t.co/DEyMIBj6bs
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) August 17, 2021
Since then, RA have toyed with the idea of scrapping the Giteau Law, the union’s eligibility rule that allows overseas-based players with at least 60 test caps and seven years of professional experience in Australia to play for the Wallabies.
The law was established in 2015 as a means to allow the Wallabies to select a few key players based abroad while encouraging less-experienced players to stay in Australia.
RA chief executive Andy Marinos has revealed the governing body will rethink its stance on the rule as pressure mounts from numerous ex-Wallabies, such as David Campese and the law’s namesake Matt Giteau, to abolish the law.
Such a move may allow the Wallabies to select any Australian in the world rather than just those based domestically, a tactic that has proven successful for the Springboks, who won the World Cup in 2019 and recently defeated the British and Irish Lions.
However, other former Wallabies, including Stirling Mortlock and Ben Darwin, have warned RA against dropping the Giteau Law as they believe doing so would set the national side, which is ranked seventh in the world and hasn’t won the Bledisloe Cup since 2002, back further than it already is.
Speaking on the Aotearoa Rugby Pod, Hall voiced his support for Williams’ proposal to cut funding to top-earning players on RA’s payroll and reinvest that money into the lower echelons of the game.
Hall, a three-time Super Rugby and two-time Super Rugby Aotearoa champion with the Crusaders, said ditching the Giteau Law could work in the short-term.
More significantly, the Maori All Blacks halfback noted RA and the Wallabies would benefit greatly by reinvesting funds saved by allowing Australia’s top player to go overseas back into schoolboy rugby and the revival of the now-defunct NRC.
Australia is without a semi-professional feeder competition between Super Rugby and club rugby after the NRC, which ran from 2014 to 2019, was scrapped last year as a result of the financial implications brought on by Covid-19.
The Wallabies can already select two overseas players regardless of their test experience… So what exactly are RA looking to change? #Wallabieshttps://t.co/p4Ki9r44Iu
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) August 17, 2021
Hall said it was important RA re-established that competition to help bring Australia’s lower-level players up to speed with their counterparts in New Zealand, which has the NPC below Super Rugby, and South Africa, which has the Currie Cup below the United Rugby Championship.
“I think possibly short-term, being able to get the players to come over, but I think the reason why we’re so successful is that we keep our players here, more so at the lower level,” Hall said as he compared the state of New Zealand rugby to that of Australia.
“Sonny Bill actually made a pretty good point when he was talking on Stan Sport about sorting the younger levels out with the school systems, being able to get the development up.
“Putting it all into the international [level] can be the short-term [plan] and they can bring players in from overseas, because there are some great Wallabies playing overseas that can’t play, but I think it’s probably a bigger level around the structures in behind.
“Especially with the younger school-grade system and then even trying to sort the NRC, the equivalent of the NPC.
“Those are the two things I think they need to sort out because I think it’s probably a little bit of an issue where we have such a great strength, and even the South Africans with the Currie Cup and their school-grade system as well.”
According to last year’s Annual Report, RA spent $11.7 million on player payments and Rugby Union Players’ Association costs in 2020, down by almost $9 million from 2019 due to wage cuts forced on by Covid-19.
The Wallabies currently have three overseas-based players in their Rugby Championship squad – Quade Cooper of the Hanazono Kintetsu Liners, Samu Kerevi of Tokyo Sungoliath and Duncan Paia’aua of Toulon.
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Comments on RugbyPass
Havili, our best 12 by a mile, will be in the squad, if he stays fit. JB is the most overrated AB in the last 50 years.
61 Go to commentsWe had during the week twilight footy, twilight cricket, tw golf plus there was the athletics club. Then the weekend was rugby 15s plus the net ball, really busy club scene back then but so much has changed and rugby has suffered. And it was all about changing lifestyles.
6 Go to commentsIn the 70s and 80s my club ran 5 Senior sides plus a Vets. Now it is 2 sides with an occasional 3rd team. Players have difficulty getting to training now, not sure why and the commitment is not there. It seems to me more a problem of people applying themselves and not expecting to turn up and play whenever they want to.
6 Go to commentsROG’s contract is until 2027. The conversation about a successor to Galthie after RWC 2027 may be starting now. We can infer that Galthie’s reign stops then. He is throwing the Irish Coaching Job angle in because he is Irish. The next Irish coach MUST be Leo Cullen. As well as being the best coach available, coaching the vast majority of Irish Internationals week in week out, he has shown incredible skill at recruiting the best coaching staff for the job in hand. That was a failing in France. Cullen is a shrewd guy and if there is a need for foreign coaches underneath him he won’t hesitate. Rightly so. Ireland does need to start to bring Irish coaches through. Not just at the professional level but we need to train coaches to man new pathways for developing kids from schools/clubs up through the divisions.
7 Go to commentsNo Islam says it must rule where it stands Thus it is to be deleted from this planet Earth
18 Go to commentsThis team probably does not beat the ABs sadly Not sure if BPA will be available given his signing for Force but has to enter consideration. Very strong possibility of getting schooled by the AB props. Advantage AB. Rodda/Skelton would be a tasty locking combination - would love to see how they get on. Advantage Wallabies. Backrow a risk of getting out hustled and outmuscled by ABs. Will be interesting to see if the Blues feast on the Reds this weekend the way they did the Brumbies we are in big trouble at the breakdown. Great energy, running and defence but goalkicking/general kicking/passing quality in the halves bothers me enormously. SA may have won the World Cup for a lot of the tournament without a recognised goalkicker but Pollard in the final made a difference IMO. Injuries and retirements leave AB stocks a bit lighter but still stronger. 12 and 13 ABs shade it (Barret > Paisami, Ione = Ikitau, arguably) Interesting clash of styles on the wings - Corey Toole running around Caleb Clark and Caleb running over the top of Toole. Reece vs Koro probably the reverse. Pretty even IMO. 15s Kelleway = Love See advantage to ABs man for man, but we are not obviously getting slaughtered anywhere which makes a nice change. Think talent wise we are pretty even and if our cohesion and teamwork is better than the ABs then its just about doable.
11 Go to commentsCompletely agree. More friday night games would be a hit. RFU to make sure every club has a floodlit pitch. Club opens again Saturday to welcome touch / tag. Minis and youths on Sunday
6 Go to comments1.97m and 105Kg? Proportionately, probably skinnier than me at 1.82 and 82kilos. He won’t survive against the big guys at that weight.
55 Go to commentsThe value he brought to the crusaders as an assistant was equal to what he got out of being there. He reflected not only on the team culture but also the credit he attributed to the rugby community. Such experience shouldn’t be overlooked.
7 Go to commentsGood luck Aussie
11 Go to commentssmith at 9 / mounga 10 / laumape 12 / fainganuku 14
61 Go to commentsBar 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.
11 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.
61 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.
7 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
61 Go to commentsAh, good to find you Nick. Agree with everything about Cale. So much to like about his game
55 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
61 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 comments