[…]Sports Leader » Tony McKeever » A snapshot of the rugby landscape over the next 5 years[…]…

(Report abuse)

Frustrated players save Sanzar
4:00AM Sunday May 17, 2009
By Gregor Paul

Player intervention is understood to have saved the Sanzar alliance.

Frustrated by the inability of administrators to strike a working deal, players from all three Sanzar nations, through their professional associations, are believed to have stepped in.

They quickly agreed on a compromise on how to restructure Super Rugby and presented their vision to administrators.

It’s understood the nations reacted differently but were put under severe pressure by the players’ associations to accept the deal.

Sources have said the alternative transtasman competition being worked up as a fall-back option lacked detail.

They also said it was unlikely to capture the imagination of TV executives or sponsors and that New Zealand and Australia would have been facing a significant drop in income had they gone down that route.

Sanzar executives were at an impasse over the start date of an expanded competition and how to structure games during the June test window.

Details on the new agreement will not be revealed until relevant stakeholders have been briefed but it is widely expected the competition from 2011 will have 15 teams.

Advertisement

Advertisement
Those teams will be split into three geographic conferences with decisions still to be made about where the 15th team will be based. It is also thought the new competition will start in early March and all conferences will begin simultaneously.

Details of how Super 15 will be structured during the June test window is not known. However, the Springbok players are believed to have agreed to be less involved in the early stages of the Currie Cup.

One of the major sticking blocks in the negotiations has been South Africa’s desire to protect the Currie Cup and not allow the expanded Super 15 to overlap it. They have already sold TV rights for the Currie Cup.

Because the South Africans have compromised over their domestic competition, it is thought the season will run into early August and the number of games played during the June window will be limited.

The players decided they had to get involved as they had no desire to see the alliance split. While travel has been labelled a problem, the players were adamant on retaining the link with South Africa. The new format will cut the time spent away from home as more games will be played in New Zealand.

All three parties have agreed to not make public any details of the new format until they have been presented to their respective boards and agreed. That is expected to be done this week and, assuming sign-off is granted, Sanzar will then present its plans to News Corporation and other broadcasters at the end of June.

An extended Super 15 will further decrease the importance of the provincial championship as the overlap will be greater. If Super 15 runs until early August, followed almost immediately by the Tri Nations, All Black involvement is going to be zero.

Discussions are scheduled to restructure the provincial championship with the chances now high that the number of teams will be cut to build a shorter, tighter competition. It may also be time to revert to the old format of two divisions with promotion and relegation.

(Report abuse)

Secret’s out: more Super derbies from 2011
Josh Rakic | May 17, 2009

DESPITE top secrecy since last Thursday’s successful SANZAR meeting - at which South Africa confirmed it would remain in the Super rugby competition - The Sun-Herald can confirm a 15th team will be included in an extended competition from 2011.

Reds rugby boss Peter Lewis last week demanded Australian teams play each other twice in the regular season to boost patronage and revenue with local derbies. A source close to the SANZAR camp confirmed that this would, in fact, be the case.

All 15 teams will play each other once, while the regular season will be extended by three rounds, during which teams will play three other sides from their respective pools for a second time. This means the Waratahs would be likely to have home and away matches with the Reds, Brumbies and Force.

Instead of having six home games one season and the seven the next, it’s believed all teams will have eight home matches a season, creating three extra revenue-making opportunities over two years.

The good news for Wallabies coach Robbie Deans - who last week gave his public support to expansion - is that the 15th team is all but certain to be based in Melbourne.

The length of the Super season was a big talking point at the meeting, Australia making no secret of its intention to extend the season and start it later to compete with the NRL and AFL.

South Africa was opposed to the suggestion, which would affect its prized domestic Currie Cup season, but the two nations and New Zealand were able to agree on a likely four-week extension.

Final details are still to be nutted out but it’s believed the season could be pushed back a week to start on the second last weekend in February.

If the bye rounds remain as expected, this would push the regular season back until the final weekend of May - the same weekend on which this year’s grand final will be played.

Regardless, all three nations have agreed on an overhaul of the finals system, doing away with the four-team structure to make a six-team finals series.

In the model, teams No. 1 and No. 2 would automatically progress to the grand final qualifiers and teams No. 3 and No. 4 would play teams No. 6 and No. 5 respectively. The winners would go on to battle for a grand final berth against the top two teams.

To accommodate the extra two teams, the finals series will be extended by one week, meaning the Super rugby calendar could run until the end of June, or at least into the third week.

Daar’sy!

(Report abuse)

The new franchise is the Southern Kings and then what? Is it in name only?

Here are the problems:

1.They have but one match scheduled for the 16th June

2. There is no tournament or fixtures planned to include the Southern Kings in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 & 2015.

3. As a consequence no sponsor can or will buy in for philanthropic reasons to give money to the Southern Kings without a confirmed set of fixtures.

4. The Super 15 will exclude the Southern Kings and it will go to Melbourne - GUARANTEED - that gives each the SANZAR nations 5 teams a piece.

5. Unless South Africa implement a relegation & promotion series now (after the 2009 Super 14), in which the last placed team plays a 3 game Play-off to determine who plays in 2010, why launch a new franchise.

6. SA Rugby have been unable to deliver a coherent tournament fixture or plan for Super Rugby, be it Super 15, with Promotion Relegation & another tournament outside of the Super 15, for the Southern Kings, except establish a so-called committee to establish structures for the new franchise - this just puts the franchise into a coma, induced by SA Rugby.

GEEJAY - the point is here if SA Rugby can whip together a R3bn bid document for either the 2015 or 2019 Rugby World Cup and submit this 2 days ago to the IRB in Dublin, which would be a comprehensive and thorough study, why on God’s Green Earth, can they not do the same and establish a tournament structure for all the 6 South African franchises in a week?
These Super Rugby tournament fixtures and a 5 year plan can be nailed inside 3 days.

You answer that question please!

Nothing would give me greater pleasure than to assemble a powerhouse team based in the Eastern Cape from 2009 onwards and demonstrate the playing ability of the region. You watch these players every week and still you do not realise how many come from the Eastern Cape and are playing for other provinces.

Here they are:

BULLS

Name Province Birthdate Place of Birth Position Height Weight
Rayno Gerber 28/1/1981 Port Elizabeth Prop 1.89m 118kg
Zane Kirchner 16/6/1984 George Fullback 1.84m 92kg
Bandise Maku 24/6/1986 King Willm’s Town Prop 1.87m 111kg
Tiger Mangweni 20/6/1980 East London Fullback 1.77m 89kg
Akona Ndungane 20/2/1981 Umtata Wing 1.82m 92kg
Dewald Potgieter 22/2/1987 Port Elizabeth Eighthman 1.94m 108kg

CHEETAHS/GRIQUAS

Name Province Date of Birth Place of birth Position Height Weight
Bjorn Basson 11/2/1987 King Willm’s Town Wing 1.87m 83kg
Kabamba Floors 15/11/1980 Oudtshoorn Flanker 1.75m 89kg
Bevin Fortuin 6/2/1979 George Fullback 1.79m 97kg
Fabian Juries 282/1979 Grahamstown Wing 1.73m 75kg
Jongi Nokwe 30/12/1981 Keiskammahoek Wing 1.83m 84kg
Trompie Nontshinga 24/9/1983 Fort Beaufort Wing 1.82m 90kg
Wayne v Heerden 29/3/1979 Graaff-Reinet Eighthman 1.97m 111kg

LIONS

Name Province Birthdate Place of Birth Position Height Weight
JC Janse van Rensburg 9/1/1986 Prins Albert Prop 1.84m 115kg
Chris Jonck 16/6/1980 Port Elizabeth Scrumhalf 1.76m 89kg
Michael Killian 22/11/1983 Uitenhage Utility back 1.81m 91kg
Jano Vermaak 1/1/1985 Graaff-Reinet Scrumhalf 1.72m 78kg

SHARKS

Name Province Birthdate Place of Birth Position Height Weight
Skipper Badenhorst 1/12/1978 Oudtshoorn Hooker 1.84m 104kg
Nikolai Blignaut 10/1/1985 East London Lock 1.95m 101kg
Keegan Daniel 5/3/1985 East London Flank 1.88m 92kg
Ryan Kankowski 14/10/1985 Port Elizabeth No 8 1.93m 105kg
Rory Kockott 25/6/1986 East London Scrumhalf 1.80m 92kg
Sikholiwe Ndlovu 13/2/1985 na Flank 1.80m 90kg
Odwa Ndungane 20/2/1981 Umtata Wing 1.84m 95kg
Francois Steyn 14/5/1987 Aliwal North Flyhalf/centre 1.91m 100kg
Riaan Swanepoel 14/1/1986 Cradock Centre 1.83m 98kg
Stefan Terblanché 2/7/1975 Mossel Bay Fullback 1.87m 95kg

STORMERS

Name Province Birthdate Place of Birth Position Height Weight
Gcobani Bobo 12/9/1979 King William’s TownCentre 1.80m 95kg
Schalk Burger 13/4/1983 Port Elizabeth Flanker 1.93m 110kg
JJ Engelbrecht 22/2/1989 Port Elizabeth Wing 1.89m 90kg
Wylie Human 26/2/1979 Uitenhage Wing 1.80m 95kg
JC Kritzinger 4/12/1987 Humansdorp Prop 1.84m 112kg
Luke Watson 26/10/1983 Port Elizabeth Flank/NO 8 1.84m 100kg

(Report abuse)

(Report abuse)

Sanzar top-brass agreed overnight on a shared vision for the future of Super Rugby, with an expanded Super 15 set to be created for the 2011 season.

See

http://nz.sports.yahoo.com/rugby/news/article/-/5568847/tew-super-rugby-deal-best-nz

(Report abuse)

This morning in Dublin, South Africa, England, Japan and Italy will bid for either the 2015 or 2019 Rugby World Cups. This decision will be declared on the 28th July and 2015 will go to ____________ and 2019 will go to _____________.

Tomorrow, also in Dublin, is a SANZAR meeting and in spite of the brouhaha that has gone on, with all sorts of posturing with ghost competitions and kite flying of new age style tournaments, there has been a multi billion investment in Super Rugby over the years and the broadcasters will surely not abandon that. There is a residual equity here that is enormous. I would expect that there will be some revisions of Super Rugby and a tweaking of the start and finish of the tournament by some 2 weeks or so, added with the spice of some relegation and promotion and you have a great recipe for success.

Kenya will continue to excel at “Sevens” and move up the ladder of the IRB 15-man log. Let’s see them in 2011, 2015 & 2019.

(Report abuse)

(Report abuse)

- Message clear for South African rugby
http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/opinion/2398960/One-out-of-the-Boks

- South African bluff could backfire: O’Neill
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/sport/union/south-african-bluff-could-backfire-oneill-20090512-b0q5.html

- Super 14 could be kicked into touch at IRB summithttp://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/feedarticle/8500218

(Report abuse)

The only way to make the Super Rugby a HOT competition is reward performance and penalise mediocrity.

That is - drop the non performing team or head into playoffs with a Tri-Game series that will attract more spectators than a Final only because the teams cahone’s are on the line.

That means the SANZAR chaps must on Thursday each grow a pair and get this Relegation & Promotion accepted and in the system.

That makes the broadcasters happy as this then becomes all about performance performance performance and suddenly you have to fight for your place to be in Super Rugby.

Then Gee Jay you have your money and more of it. It spawns additional rugby competitions. Three Country playoffs in each of the SANZAR members and then a compettion for those that do not make the Super Rugby cut and this is where a lot of goodwill and PR can be done with Argentina, Northern Hemisphere teams, Africa, Pacific Islands and perhaps even Japan, if they can deal with the travel.

The ‘Travel Argument’ - Ooh it is too far and we are away from home for 4 weeks sometimes 6 weeks, is so lame. Consider what the top elite sportsmen have to do week in and week out for golf, F-1 and tennis. These guys criss cross the world in a week, play 4 days and then head for the other side of the planet, 50 weeks of the year.

Do we hear Roger Federer, Nadal, Tiger Woods, Lewis Hamilton or Jenson Button complain that they are away from Mommy for too long?

I was in the USA last year and saw 3 broadcasters about this very same formula. The trick would be to get the SANZAR broadcasters involved in this, as they know the game, cover it brilliantly and can take their TV product (and investment in it) and shop/syndicate it in the States, in key rugby markets (New York, Miami, Chicago, Boston, Los Angeles, Houston, Denver, San Diego) for additional rights and residual fees.

Newscorp is Headquartered on the Avenue of the Americas and 53rd Street in New York and all the top TV guns are Australian.

(Report abuse)