Aussie Pro Rugby
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@Nepia said in Aussie Rugby:
As long as you do a better job with your one free punch than Cannon you'll be fine.
He's a Queenslander - so like @mariner4life he's weak as piss.
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'tis true. i fight like old people fuck
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Rugby broadcast deal worth $10m a year, after Raelene Castle rejected $125m offer
The tough financial reality for Rugby Australia is that their next broadcast deal is likely to be worth no more than $10m a year for its domestic competition.
All up, a deal could be valued at $20m adding in $10m for Test matches. If RA secures a broadcast deal like this, it is $15m a year less than the deal offered by Foxtel to the Raelene Castle-led administration last November.
Back then a five-year $US125m deal was tabled and RA walked away in the hope of starting a bidding war. It never materialised.
RA interim chief executive Rob Clarke is left dealing with a harsh economic reality that means inevitable change, cost-cutting across the board and agility when it comes to developing a new competition model.
Clarke told The Australian he is working towards presenting a competition model with some “new assets” — possibly a “State of Union” series (like State of Origin) and an Anzac Day Bledisloe Cup — which he is hoping will generate additional TV broadcast interest and value.
He said there are parties outside of Foxtel who are interested in the broadcast rights but would not disclose them.
“My job is to do the best deal for the game and it’s incumbent upon me to pursue all potential partnerships that could lead to the best outcome for the game,” Clarke said.
The TV ratings for Super Rugby AU have been paltry with 69,000 viewers tuning in to the NSW v Queensland season opener (but 95,000 inclusive of Kayo and Foxtel Now). When rugby was humming, a match like that could draw 175,000 sets of eyeballs on Foxtel. The 2011 Super Rugby final won by Queensland over the Crusaders broke records when it reached 518,000 on Foxtel.
Today, in an effort to revive the sport, there are three competition models being considered by RA management for season 2021 and beyond.
“In the COVID environment with the restrictions and challenges being presented to us, it is critical we explore all avenues for competition structures, because that will help to establish a solid and profitable foundation for the future,” Clarke said.
“To that end, we have looked at a potential dismantling of the entire Super Rugby structure and going back to first principles.
“We have looked at different iterations around a domestic competition with an international crossover element. We are looking at the trans- Ta$man competition as a foundation for expansion into the Asian Pacific. And a number of other iterations that involve new directions.
“The determining factors are not necessarily straightforward, they are influenced by existing SANZAAR partnerships, potential broadcast revenue and the ability to ensure whatever we do builds towards a sustainable and successful Wallabies program.”
Clarke stressed that the Wallabies were the jewels in the crown for Australian rugby. He is also keen to explore the option of boosting club rugby, noting competitions such as the National Rugby Championship failed to spark the tribalism among fans.
“If you went back to first principles in an ideal world, you would build on existing brands … that have reach and deep history. You would be mad not to build on those,” he said.
“The learning through the NRC and the ARC before that, it’s difficult to build fan tribalism with concocted teams. It would be great to have a competition where we liberate the top club rugby teams in the country and bring them into a competition where we are getting the best of the amateur game on show.
“If we can create a financially stable model here, it doesn’t preclude us still doing the club model and elevating that at the same time as a new model for Super Rugby … It’s is not an either or, it’s an and, and to do that, we really need to bring significant investment in the game.”
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Fox effectively has RA over a barrel. It really is a perfect storm for RA.
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You gotta love the Murdochracy - the bidding war never materialised, yet let's ignore that Optus were interested before
A. Covid and
B. Micropenis measuring contest at RA
C. Complementary undermining from Fox employeesOh and let's ignore that Fox's offer was for SUPER RUGBY, not a domestic-only competition.
The fact that The Australian is writing this like Fox isn't part of its stable.
Solid.
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@Number-10 said in Aussie Rugby:
“The learning through the NRC and the ARC before that, it’s difficult to build fan tribalism with concocted teams. It would be great to have a competition where we liberate the top club rugby teams in the country and bring them into a competition where we are getting the best of the amateur game on show.
Cool cool. So the top clubs in the country are about... oh I dunno - 30,000 interested people?
I'm actually keen to see just how these clubs will piss away the money, given they've found almost every way to piss away money to day.
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@Bones I really do worry about you at times bro
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@Paekakboyz says the guy reading a thread titled "Aussie Rugby".
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oh look, another former player personality with another article long on "lets do it differently" and very short on just what that looks like
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@mariner4life said in Aussie Rugby:
oh look, another former player personality with another article long on "lets do it differently" and very short on just what that looks like
Kafer says:
"Looking at the first weeks of Super Rugby AU, people are watching and watching in similar numbers to previous years."And yet:
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@voodoo said in Aussie Rugby:
the thing is though it's not going to go UP from there, if this is the Covid dead-cat bounce figure when you have no live attendance, you're only going 1 way from here.
Unless of course the Reds become successful again, in which case they turn up in droves.
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Is Kafe wrong? Not entirely - in fact he's entirely right that things can't continue the way they are, because Super Rugby has run its race. We got fucking lazy with Super Rugby, and ignored the fact that a bunch of really good players came together at the same time to win things, or at least be competitive. That probably would have happened if Super Rugby didn't exist.
Nobody actually gave a flying fuck about the supporting systems, and here we are.
He is definitely wrong in thinking that Back To The Future will just work - the club system gave us a platform for great players to dominate the local scene, and then occasionally beat the ABs.
He, among others, suggests a national club competition as one option. And again: it isn't wrong, but it is hardly going to bring along people who didn't grow up with those clubs. As I've mentioned (many times) most of the Sydney Clubs aren't even as well-run as your average chook raffle, so how they're going to create a competitive national player pool running their clubs out of something you wouldn't house your dog in should be keenly watched.
I would love the concept to get up, just so it can fail miserably like those before it, and the Sydney Club cognescenti can shut the fuck up at last.
....
... before blaming other parts of the club scene for getting it wrong and "they should have listened to me!"
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@mariner4life Lou Ransome on the FB Live feed for Shute Shield
