NZR review
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It seems obvious to me that's why I've been talking about a consolidated professional competition to replace both
I'm pleased about that line being in the report because it makes it clear that there will not be 20 professional teams (a semi pro team is just a pro team that doesn't pay it's players much)
There's lots of terrible ways to cut teams. Time to think of good ones
Also worth noting was the line about how 6 provinces can band together and block any reform. The governance changes have to happen before any competition changes can pass
My guess is ultimately unions will focus on the amateur & community rugby. They will have more autonomy about how they achieve their goals. However I think high performance/pro rugby will be run differently
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There's plenty of corporate fluff in the report too
I did chuckle at the 67% player retention goal in mens rugby and the same 67% retention goal in womans rugby. Given the significant overlap between playing years and fertile ages, woman will never hit the same retention number. I think it's frowned upon to play contact sport while pregnant.
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@Duluth said in NZR review:
It's a governance review so it's mostly about changes to the board etc
I think this will be stage one before they consider changes to the competitions etc
Good to see this line in there:
Few—if any—would contend that a country of five million people can support six professional franchises and 14 NPC teams.That's a hint about the tough decisions that will need to be made soon
Cut the NPC and go straight from club to super rugby?
Or reduce down to 6 NPC teams that are straight feeders for the super team?
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@Windows97 or ditch super and find a way to fund the top 7-8 NPC team each year, get promoted get extra funding, drop down and loose it
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@Kiwiwomble I'd say from a continuity of coach and player development they would want their professional teams to stay rather stable.
With SA out of super rugby that leaves a yawning revenue gap.
For the life of me I don't know why they didn't keep Japan involved in super rugby, while it's great that the Pacifica and Dura teams are there they certainly aren't the cash cow that Japan has to offer.
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@Windows97 i agree re japan but i kind of feel their control over the teams and development of players and coaches is kind of why we are were we are, there are very few upsets or surprises in super rugby because every year is just slight variation on the year before
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Yeah it's just the rule of intended consequences.
When super rugby first came out as a long suffering BOP supporter I was delighted that players could still play for the BOP and play super rugby instead of always leaving for bigger unions to get better chances.
I'm not sure of the exact stats/percentages but I think first year of super rugby there were some 30 players from second division teams picked in super rugby teams (lot less teams in the first div then).
95% of these div 2 players went to a div 1 team after the first year...
In reality it simply made it easier for the super unions to ID talent in div 2 and smaller unions and draw them into their NPC team.
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@Windows97 thats kind of my point though, at least some of those players might hang around in the home union if there is a chance, even if small, of leading them up the ladder, especially locked in AB's as they have less to prove, or worst case they might go away to a bigger union to get into the AB's...and them come back
keeping super rugby means we almost never see AB's play for their home unions
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formation of the Stakeholder Council. “A maximum of 15 is proposed, including an independent chair, and nominees from: Annual meeting of NZR (3), NZ Māori Rugby Board (1), NZR Pasifika Advisory group (1), Super Rugby clubs (1), NZ Secondary Schools Rugby Union (1), NZ Rugby Foundation (1), Women in Rugby Aotearoa, (1) Local Government NZ (1), Sport New Zealand (1),”
From my reading of that make up there's no representation of community rugby. Schools get a bigger say than clubs.
Where do the provinces and clubs sit in this?
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It is widely accepted that a key responsibility of Provincial Unions is to maintain the health of the community game. Yet, on average, NPC unions spend 59% of their turnover on high performance and only 21% on community rugby, where most rugby players (and the future black-jersey wearers) can be found. Based on that damning statistic, it is to the credit of one NPC union that told us they have given up on any thought of being competitive in the NPC. The choice for them was stark: it would be financially crippling to invest enough to win the NPC. They have chosen to invest in supporting and developing grassroots rugby. As far as we know, no other NPC union has confronted this trade-off head-on and moved in favour of growing the game from the ground up.I wonder which union this is? Maybe Southland based on comments from them about preferring the old two tiered NPC?
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question, If the NPC was no more, Unions MIGHT put together Rep teams but say no formal NPC comp...do the Super franchises have the infrastructure to scout club comps? is that what we'd expect them to go looking for talent in club comps?
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@Duluth said in NZR review:
A link to the review pdf: https://www.nzrugby.co.nz/assets/NZRU-Governance-Review-31-August-2023-web.pdf
It’s actually not a bad report. Some candid observations and a bit of meat on the bones of what we have known about for some time.
Whilst I’m all for reducing bureaucratic processes within organisations, I thought the recommendation to form a separate Appointments panel from the NZR Board was good.
Also the 3 year terms of NZR board members. We need a bit more dynamism to ensure things don’t get stale / comfortable.
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@ACT-Crusader said in NZR review:
Some candid observations
That was a surprise. Things like this:
Everything the PUs (provincial unions) complain about is a direct or indirect result of their own actions. Arguably, regular international success, even when not particularly convincing, has enabled the decline in rugby to be glossed over. As a result, vital changes needed to address the game’s fundamental challenges have routinely been parked until the need for the next review becomes unavoidable. -
@Kiwiwomble said in NZR review:
question, If the NPC was no more, Unions MIGHT put together Rep teams but say no formal NPC comp...do the Super franchises have the infrastructure to scout club comps? is that what we'd expect them to go looking for talent in club comps?
They are generally scouting out of schools rugby. Club rugby and to a certain extent provincial rugby are missed steps. Very few guys come through who have not previously been identified and ear marked. Lio-Willie and Moorby are a couple from the last few years. But, most are earmarked as Super potential players by the time they are 17 or 18. The steps of prem colts, provincial colts, prem rugby, provincial rugby and then super are long gone.
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“The NZR board needs directors with skills, knowledge and experience relevant to the level its challenges demand,” it said. “However, many of those who spoke with us from the perspective of provincial union affiliations are convinced the formation of the New Zealand Rugby Commercial (NZRC) subsidiary means that the NZR board can now, in a sense, be ‘slimmed down’ and make a fundamental shift to being a more ‘PU-oriented’ or ‘rugby’ board. One, it seems, that would be drawn largely from current and past Provincial Union directors. In our view, this would be highly irresponsible.”
“The assumption that ‘non-rugby’ matters have been transferred to NZRC reveals a fundamental misunderstanding of the structure and process of corporate governance in the organisation. While legally structured as a limited partnership, NZRC is a subsidiary of NZR. As the ‘parent’ entity, NZR remains accountable for the performance of its commercial offspring and signs off on many of its important decisions. NZRC is no more than a tool for NZR to use to achieve certain objectives. NZRC is not independent. Its strategy is a subset of, and a way to achieve, the NZR strategy.
“For that reason, the NZR board continues to need directors who are competent to oversee the relationship, provide strategic input, ensure that the subsidiary performs as required, and manage the challenges and risks accompanying the partnership with private equity and, perhaps ultimately, other external investors.”
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@SouthernMann said in NZR review:
@Kiwiwomble said in NZR review:
question, If the NPC was no more, Unions MIGHT put together Rep teams but say no formal NPC comp...do the Super franchises have the infrastructure to scout club comps? is that what we'd expect them to go looking for talent in club comps?
They are generally scouting out of schools rugby. Club rugby and to a certain extent provincial rugby are missed steps. Very few guys come through who have not previously been identified and ear marked. Lio-Willie and Moorby are a couple from the last few years. But, most are earmarked as Super potential players by the time they are 17 or 18. The steps of prem colts, provincial colts, prem rugby, provincial rugby and then super are long gone.
I disagree Southern, they are certainly scouted at schools but the vast majority learn their rugby at provincial rugby. I not saying there couldn't be a few less provincial teams, but I firmly believe if we want to kill depth in NZ rugby cutting provincial rugby is first place to start.
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@Dan54 said in NZR review:
@SouthernMann said in NZR review:
@Kiwiwomble said in NZR review:
question, If the NPC was no more, Unions MIGHT put together Rep teams but say no formal NPC comp...do the Super franchises have the infrastructure to scout club comps? is that what we'd expect them to go looking for talent in club comps?
They are generally scouting out of schools rugby. Club rugby and to a certain extent provincial rugby are missed steps. Very few guys come through who have not previously been identified and ear marked. Lio-Willie and Moorby are a couple from the last few years. But, most are earmarked as Super potential players by the time they are 17 or 18. The steps of prem colts, provincial colts, prem rugby, provincial rugby and then super are long gone.
I disagree Southern, they are certainly scouted at schools but the vast majority learn their rugby at provincial rugby. I not saying there couldn't be a few less provincial teams, but I firmly believe if we want to kill depth in NZ rugby cutting provincial rugby is first place to start.
Nah, @SouthernMann is correct. I've been told that by a former SR coach not four years ago.
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@Kiwiwomble said in NZR review:
@Windows97 or ditch super and find a way to fund the top 7-8 NPC team each year, get promoted get extra funding, drop down and loose it
Promotion relegation doesn't work when there's such a discrepancy in funding. I agree with the premise that most unions should focus on community rugby. It would be nice to have a 10 union professional NPC, but is that likely to be financially viable in such a small market?
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@SouthernMann said in NZR review:
They are generally scouting out of schools rugby. Club rugby and to a certain extent provincial rugby are missed steps.
Yes, the best 1st XV players are usually signed to a PU's academy while still at school, and that feeds into the SR academies. They are mostly still participating in club rugby, whether the U21s or premiership teams.
The average age of an NPC player is much younger than it was a decade ago, and one of the consequences of that is that these players aren't learning from experienced veterans as much as they used to, even at club level.
'Not fit for purpose': Changes recommended after NZR governance review
