The Current State of Rugby
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Article is good. I doubt if it will lead to this being addressed. Because at present the ongoing Crusaders dominance is bad for SRP. And its got much worse in recent years. And its getting boring now. One way to address this is to give the weaker teams more money. Rather than the opposite now with the stronger teams in effect getting a lot more money to pay their players when they become ABs
Aust having too many teams is another issue. I don't really see an answer though but NZ could start by trying something to have 5 teams when every fan thinks their side has a chance of winning (as it was 6 years back for NZ sides but not Aussie sides. At present as a Hurricanes fan I believe my team hasn't a hope in hell of winning. Likewise most Aussie teams and the Highlanders. And the Chiefs and Blues have only a small chance.
Nelson says sporting utopia is reached when every fan thinks their side has a chance of winning, but the challenge is to convince those who are used to unfettered success that dominance is bad for business. “You can be a winning business without winning the title. If you build a winning business you’re building sustainability and a destination. You build a story and a solid future. “That was the most important message I had to get across to the NBL teams when I arrived. Domination wasn’t good for business, it wasn’t good for commerciality, it wasn’t good for viewership or fans in the stands.” Are you reading, Crusaders fans? -
Weird, I don't find the Crusader dominace boring. What's wrong with you lot?
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@Crazy-Horse said in The Current State of Rugby:
Weird, I don't find the Crusader dominace boring. What's wrong with you lot?
TBH I don't either, but the man is talking about the soft fans, not hardcore. And these days there are a lot less hardcore rugby supporters than days of yore
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How the forward pass has tied rugby up in knots
Rugby needs its continuity but if a ball is clearly caught ahead of the point it was passed can we not turn a blind eye
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@Bones said in The Current State of Rugby:
How the forward pass has tied rugby up in knots
Rugby needs its continuity but if a ball is clearly caught ahead of the point it was passed can we not turn a blind eye
Physics is not his strong point
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@Bones said in The Current State of Rugby:
How the forward pass has tied rugby up in knots
Rugby needs its continuity but if a ball is clearly caught ahead of the point it was passed can we not turn a blind eye
What a halfwit.
When I ref I make it very simple to determine a forward pass if the passer isn't tackled: Does the pass move forward relative to the passer or do they always stay in front of the ball? If the pass doesn't look like it catches them (and they're not noticeably slowing) then it isn't forward.
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@antipodean put it this way …. world rugby released a video a few years ago explaining it.
All the NH journalists “debunked” it saying it was full of shit.
None so blind as those that will not see.
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While I follow all rugby from pretty passionately from college to international, I wonder if I seem to be getting more enjoyment out of college to NPC rugby, because the professionalism is taking a little too much of the skill/excitement factor from the game. I was listening to Bryn Hall and James Parsons talking about kicks etc, and they were saying a lot of time is spent analyzing how opposition players kick etc every week , from 9s to 15s, and players actually go through best way to hold hands etc when attempting charge downs etc, conversation was started after Schalk Burger talked about how it, so would seem pretty widespread. Not sure I don't think it just puts me off a little and makes me think we are turning players into robots etc the higher level they play. The game at slightly lower levels may have a few more mistakes, but seeing how teams take advantage off the cuff is the real beauty of the game or most sports I think.
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after watching some club rugby and some NPC over the weekend....i feel better. "Rugby" is still good....its just to top level thats suffering...so im going to watch more club/NPC/1st XV...simple
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@Kiwiwomble said in The Current State of Rugby:
after watching some club rugby and some NPC over the weekend....i feel better. "Rugby" is still good....its just to top level thats suffering...so im going to watch more club/NPC/1st XV...simple
Yep kiwi, come and join me mate, it reminds you why a lot of us love the game so much. Well it does for me anyway.
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Another ref jumps fence to join a professional side
Another referee has put awayt his whistle to become a consultant for a professional side in what's becoming an increasingly frequent...
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Slightly segueing to The Current State of the Rugby In New Zealand.
The story about Addington Stadium not selling out (yet) for All Blacks test in 400k Christchurch (already being discussed in the match thread).
There will be several factors and explanations.
At a Chch level:- The temporary stadium.
- Plus the numpty coach cuckooing his way into the job which should actually be their local hero's rightful place.
- The weather.
At an NZ level.
- Decline of broadcasting in NZ and no shared culture.
- The night rugby booze culture leaving the next generation at home (since 20 years ago) playing xbox until bed at 9 while Dad commits to an 11pm homecoming and gets a night out pissed with his mates.
- Too much All Blacks level concentration, disengaged public for the other months, breaking a century of habits, culture.
- Terrible in-stadium atmosphere., the DJ destroying the (admittedly limited ) active fan engagement .
At a state of the game level.
- Almost entirely the red cards.
- But also some of the other rules and trends, but that is more at the anorak level, not the masses.
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@Rapido said in The Current State of Rugby:
On this subject, sort of.
I saw highlights of Wellington NPC game. Played at Porirua Park. Rather than caketin.
Beervana right? I mean, if you made me choose between Rugby and Beer, I'd shoot you, but can udnerstand one weekend
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@nzzp said in The Current State of Rugby:
@Rapido said in The Current State of Rugby:
On this subject, sort of.
I saw highlights of Wellington NPC game. Played at Porirua Park. Rather than caketin.
Beervana right? I mean, if you made me choose between Rugby and Beer, I'd shoot you, but can udnerstand one weekend
Ah, ok
I was about to elaborate, but was wondering if there was a venue clash.
Porirua Park. Rather than The Caketin. A suburban club ground, with presumably free admission. etc etc
Because, after watching this, I then saw .........
Then I saw highlights of South Canterbury playing at Temuka, rather than at Timaru. Admittedly a good looking crowd and atmosphere at a pretty looking venue, but I wonder if it was paid admission?
I then saw highlights of Wairarapa Bush playing 'home' at Palmerston North as a curtain raiser to an NPC game as the sky cameras already set up., assessed as being a better option than playing a game at home in front of paying spectators.
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It's about now. When I look at the double whammy of poor NPC crowds AS WELL AS poor All Blacks test crowds being played in the same window as the NPC.
I then think back to the first decade of professional rugby. When the calendar fitted together, Super 12, Test window, NPC. With no overlap and fantastic crowds for all of them.
Then think about some of the decisions.
Expanding to Super 14.
Expanding the Tri-Nations to 3 tests each. (eventually a moot quibble once Argentina added, as that expansion meant same amount of games anyway)
The 3rd Bledisloe.
Out-of-window revenue sharing tests.Those above all ate into the NPC and left it as the empty carcass it is today.
They could all be justified at the time, mostly by explaining how they kept top All Blacks in the NZRU central contracting system in face of increased overseas pressure.
But. now .....
While the NPC is shadow of its former self.
So are home All Blacks tests (Even Nelson and New Plymouth can get home test matches FFS, main centres not selling out).
So is Super Rugby, well before the covid reset. It declined in NZ from the 2007 R & R decision, I think. Not something I recognised at the time as being as pivotal as it was.It's the worst of all 3 worlds, now. Rather than 1 world sacrificed for the successful health of the other 2 worlds.
God knows how you fix that. Actually, I don't think you can.
