Rugby Championship - what's the point?
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The draw shake-up can't come soon enough.
That's the main issue for me, the whole thing just follows the same predictable pattern year in, year out.
Round 1 - NZ roll over Australia, and SA get off to a good start against the Pumas
Round 2 - NZ roll over Australia, and SA play out a tight one in Argentina
Round 3 - NZ roll over a plucky Argentina (who bring their A game), while SA and Aus play out a fairly tight, dire match in Brisbane
Round 4 - NZ roll over SA who look decent for 30 minutes but then fade, while Aus beat an underwhelming ArgentinaThen we actually get to the more variable games, with Australia and NZ going to SA and Argentina.
It's just so damn predictable. Why can't we start with NZ in South Africa? Australia in Argentina? Change it up.
I'd love a Bledisloe towards the end of the tournament, where NZ have more to play for and Australia may have a bit of momentum.
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@barbarian was chatting to someone last week and he reckons the Saffas are extremely difficult to get dates out of for scheduling (he runs a tour business and tries to plan tours around the matches there and the Saffas are notoriously slow and inflexible)
That said, yep, it'd be nice for a bit of variance, or throw the current format and making home and away alternate years, either 1 match v each opponent, or make it 2 but both in one country?
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The problem isn't one of scheduling. it's one of competitiveness. If any one of these \four teams could win at home against all opposition, it would be a thrilling comp.
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@machpants said in Rugby Championship - what's the point?:
Blame Ozzie for that, they set the program of Bled 1&2 first, starting in Oz, under Pulver. He thought it was a great way for Ozzie to get the excitement going in rugby for Oz - sadly Oz have played like spastics since, a flaw in his grand plan
But like all things doesn't it require SANZAAR approval?
I don't deny the push could have been done by the ARU, but everyone has to sign off on this, surely...
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@machpants Do you have a source for that? Not necessarily doubting you, but I'd be interested to read more about that decision.
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Would love the ABs to start TRC in South Africa. Hostile environment, travel factor would be a real test.
Right now the Bledisloe has no real build up or momentum behind it. Have it at the end could do that.
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@barbarian said in Rugby Championship - what's the point?:
@machpants Do you have a source for that? Not necessarily doubting you, but I'd be interested to read more about that decision.
My mistake it was Pulver's predecessor. A quick Google gives:
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If you take us out if it, it's a pretty good competition. The other teams are all pretty close, and tend to split their results (except for Argentina's strange mental block against Aus).
Do you think the 6N would benefit from having us in it? (ignoring the huge geographical issue). You would end up with the same thing, and even competition with a runaway leader (less so because every team only plays us once).
Which ever way you look at it, we're the anomaly.
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@mariner4life good points.
Fucken love being an anomaly!
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@act-crusader In the earlier draws (Tri-Nations) we seemed to often start in SA, then play Australia in Australia before playing the return games in NZ. It was reasonably challenging.
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Honestly, there isn't a point. Training run for the All Blacks every week.
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@beardie said in Rugby Championship - what's the point?:
@act-crusader In the earlier draws (Tri-Nations) we seemed to often start in SA, then play Australia in Australia before playing the return games in NZ. It was reasonably challenging.
Definitely. I recall in 2005 after the Lions series we went to SA first and lost
