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'We've been left out of the loop': Wallabies star Dane Haylett-Petty vents frustration as coronavirus pay cut talks lag

By Online Editors
(Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)

Melbourne Rebels captain Dane Haylett-Petty has pointed to a rival code for their handling of the coronavirus-enforced cost cutting as talks between players and Rugby Australia (RA) go in circles.

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In a week RA announced a $9.4 million 2019 loss, the Rugby Union Players’ Association (RUPA) has held firm on its request for the organisation to reveal a clearer financial picture before negotiations can continue.

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So far RA have refused to do so, arguing they have done enough to satisfy what’s needed for decisions around player pay cuts to be made.

Haylett-Petty said he was frustrated and disappointed with the stalemate.

“We care about the game as much as anyone else,” the Rebels and Wallabies outside back told AAP.

“We’ve been left out of the loop and left out of the decision making process to date … hopefully that’s changing and we’ll know a bit more in the next week.

“I felt like the AFL the very next day went straight to their players to sit down and talk about where they are at and how we’re going to fix it … (for rugby) it’s been probably over a month now.

“The players want what’s best for the game and the whole game from grass roots up to the international level.

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“We are only one of the stakeholders but we feel like we can add a lot of value in the process.”

Under pressure RA chief executive Raelene Castle will take a 50 percent pay cut, her executive will lose 30 per cent of their wage and 75 percent of their staff have been stood down without pay for three months.

But former Wallabies coach Michael Cheika is among those backing RUPA boss Justin Harrison’s call for more transparency, he also challenged Castle to follow NRL counterpart Todd Greenberg’s lead and take the same cut as the players.

Harrison said on Friday they wouldn’t be able to resume “open and honest negotiations” without a clearer picture of RA’s finances.

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“Our players approach this long-term transformation with a collegiate and team approach and with an acknowledgement the game has to change,” Harrison said.

“We see no reasons why RA refuses to engage, despite the provision of protection under a non-disclosure agreement.

“At a time when governing bodies in the other major football codes have been open and transparent with their players RA continues to refuse our requests.”

– AAP

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Flankly 2 hours ago
The AI advantage: How the next two Rugby World Cups will be won

If rugby wants to remain interesting in the AI era then it will need to work on changing the rules. AI will reduce the tactical advantage of smart game plans, will neutralize primary attacking weapons, and will move rugby from a being a game of inches to a game of millimetres. It will be about sheer athleticism and technique,about avoiding mistakes, and about referees. Many fans will find that boring. The answer is to add creative degrees of freedom to the game. The 50-22 is an example. But we can have fun inventing others, like the right to add more players for X minutes per game, or the equivalent of the 2-point conversion in American football, the ability to call a 12-player scrum, etc. Not saying these are great ideas, but making the point that the more of these alternatives you allow, the less AI will be able to lock down high-probability strategies. This is not because AI does not have the compute power, but because it has more choices and has less data, or less-specific data. That will take time and debate, but big, positive and immediate impact could be in the area of ref/TMO assistance. The technology is easily good enough today to detect forward passes, not-straight lineouts, offside at breakdown/scrum/lineout, obstruction, early/late tackles, and a lot of other things. WR should be ultra aggressive in doing this, as it will really help in an area in which the game is really struggling. In the long run there needs to be substantial creativity applied to the rules. Without that AI (along with all of the pro innovations) will turn rugby into a bash fest.

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