The Nations Championship is a novel idea but won't fix the real problem
What happens when we get bored of playing England and France all the time?
What happens when the novelty of the Nations Championship wears off?
What happens when it becomes clear the competition’s a closed shop and our Pacific neighbours fall further and further behind and more and more of their elite talent turns out for tier one nations instead?
I’m not against the Nations Championship concept. Not against the idea of the All Blacks playing Northern Hemisphere opponents in a meaningful context.
Games between Rugby World Cups have to be more than just revenue-generating exercises and, in time, the so-called Nations Championship might become a competition of consequence.
But let’s not overlook why countries such as New Zealand need it.
It’s because fans are bored.
The problem is, though, that they’re not bored because regular foes Australia and South Africa can’t cut it.
The Springboks are as formidable as ever and Australia are on the rise, so it’s not as if familiarity has bred contempt.
No, the fundamental flaw in all this is that fans are actually bored of rugby.
We can play whoever we like and, for a short period at least, playing new teams might help renew interest. But it won’t alter the fact that the game itself has become a bore.
As I say, I’ve nothing against the idea of a Nations Championship. I just have concerns about where we turn when that no longer excites fans either.
The folk at Fifa, for instance, have mooted the idea of a football World Cup every other year. Why wait four, when you can cash in every couple?
But then what? Annual World Cups?
Now that’s just an issue of greed. Whatever football’s flaws might be, waning fan enthusiasm is not among them.
The game is brilliantly played and supporters, in the big football nations, can’t get enough of it.
Sadly, folk here in New Zealand appear to have had their fill of rugby.
The professional game is utterly unwatchable live.
Where replays and talking heads help make the television experience tolerable, you simply cannot stay engaged and connected to games in person.
Almost every burst of play is followed by a break for water. Then a couple of scrums go down or a Television Match Official wants to have a look at something and, before you know it, five minutes have gone by without the ball being in play.
You can’t take a child to that; they simply don’t have the attention span.
Plus, thanks to inventions such as PlayStation, they’re used to seeing all the stars in action. Try explaining to a 10-year-old that in real life players have rest weeks and sabbaticals.
With no atmosphere in grounds, they pound you with music to the point where you can barely talk to the person next to you. By the time you’ve been to the loo or bought another beer, to stay occupied during the breaks in play, you feel like watching the second half in the pub.
That’s if you can be bothered to go to a game in the first place.
We have to be honest here and accept that the product isn’t actually good enough. If it was, people would watch it.
How often does a whistle blow during a match? Sixty times? A hundred?
And if you’re at a game in person, it’s impossible to know why. All you see is a pile of bodies, 50 metres away.
The game is mystifying and pedantic and pedestrian right now and until the ball’s in play more often and the laws are more easily understood, it’s going to continue struggling to attract an audience.
The powers that be waste so much time on things that have nothing to do with rugby.
Commercial and broadcast deals, social-justice gestures, format changes, media training, anthem singers, halftime entertainment, mascots, marketing, craft beer and healthy eating options. Could we just concentrate on improving the footy?
I wish the proposed Nations Championship all the best. I hope it’s a roaring success and attracts legions of fans everywhere.
I just worry it’ll be let down by the game itself.
Comments on RugbyPass
Lets compare apples with apples. Lyon sent weak team the week before, but nobody raised an eyebrow. Give the South African teams a few years to build their depth, then you will be moaning that the teams are too strong.
41 Go to commentsDid footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
10 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
9 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
10 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
22 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
4 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
9 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
35 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
35 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
14 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
4 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to commentsWhat a player! Not long until he’s in the England side, surely?
5 Go to commentsHe seems to have the same aura as Marcus Smith - by which I mean he’s consistently judged as if he’s several years younger than he actually is. Mngomezulu has played 24 times for the Stormers. When Pollard was his age he had played 24 times for South Africa! He has more time to develop, but he has also had time to do some developing already, and he hasn’t demonstrated nearly as much talent in that time as one would expect. If he is a generational talent, then it must be a pretty poor generation.
6 Go to commentsThe greatest Springbok coach of all time is entirely on the money. Rassie and Jacques have given the south african public a great few years, but the success of the springbok selection policy will need to be judged in light of what comes next. The poor condition that the provincial system is currently in doesn’t bode well for the next few years of international rugby, and the insane 2026 schedule that the Boks have lined up could also really harm both provincial and international consistency.
22 Go to comments