Blues 2023
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@Stargazer said in Blues 2023:
@Nepia I don't think Super Rugby Academy players usually have a choice to stay available for their home province, if that home province is in another SR franchise's catchment. Not a realistic one, anyway. I've never seen a player move to, say, Dunedin after leaving school and be part of the HB Academy. They always play their age grade rugby - and if they make it - NPC for Otago first. Same with players ending up at the Crusaders Academy, who'll end up playing U19s and NPC for Canterbury (or Ta$man) first. If they move back and play for their home province, it's usually after they have already played for another province. Think the likes of Caleb Makene, Gareth Evans or someone like Jack Goodhue. It would be nice if it was different for players ending up at the Blues Academy, but I don't expect it.
That's a bummer, but it's partly our fault for not leaving the shit franchise like the Naki did (even though they were the favoured non Wellington province). Maybe we should try set up an agreement with the Highlanders.
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@Stargazer said in Blues 2023:
@Nepia I don't think Super Rugby Academy players usually have a choice to stay available for their home province, if that home province is in another SR franchise's catchment. Not a realistic one, anyway. I've never seen a player move to, say, Dunedin after leaving school and be part of the HB Academy. They always play their age grade rugby - and if they make it - NPC for Otago first. Same with players ending up at the Crusaders Academy, who'll end up playing U19s and NPC for Canterbury (or Ta$man) first. If they move back and play for their home province, it's usually after they have already played for another province. Think the likes of Caleb Makene, Gareth Evans or someone like Jack Goodhue. It would be nice if it was different for players ending up at the Blues Academy, but I don't expect it.
Southland currently has an active acadamey in Dunedin. Players play club rugby in Dunedin and return to Southland. Within franchise. But it is happening.
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@Stargazer said in Blues 2023:
@Nepia I don't think Super Rugby Academy players usually have a choice to stay available for their home province, if that home province is in another SR franchise's catchment. Not a realistic one, anyway. I've never seen a player move to, say, Dunedin after leaving school and be part of the HB Academy. They always play their age grade rugby - and if they make it - NPC for Otago first. Same with players ending up at the Crusaders Academy, who'll end up playing U19s and NPC for Canterbury (or Ta$man) first. If they move back and play for their home province, it's usually after they have already played for another province. Think the likes of Caleb Makene, Gareth Evans or someone like Jack Goodhue. It would be nice if it was different for players ending up at the Blues Academy, but I don't expect it.
I'm sure they have a choice, but if you are a young guy who has made the decision to transfer to a different Super Rugby region, the benefits of staying there year round with access to their coaches, facilities etc. as well as just general ease makes sense to me.
As you say, a lot of the players end up going back to home base eventually, it really just means that in theory, teams like Hawke's Bay should be slightly older/more stable.
I get the frustration, but you often talk about the Sullivan brothers. If they wanted to, they could come back and play for Hawke's Bay, I have no doubt, but Zarn in particular is settled in Auckland, plays for the Blues, has a girlfriend there, why upsticks for 15 weeks of the year?
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@frugby The Sullivan brothers are slightly different as they played their last few years of 1st XV rugby in Auckland, and the Chiefs lured Bailyn south to Hamilton. They played younger age grade rugby for HB. They are both regularly back in HB and I don't think it would bother them to temporarily move back to HB more than it does other players who regularly do the same. Remember we have over 20 SR players and the majority of them don't play for the Canes!
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@Stargazer said in Blues 2023:
@frugby The Sullivan brothers are slightly different as they played their last few years of 1st XV rugby in Auckland, and the Chiefs lured Bailyn south to Hamilton. They played younger age grade rugby for HB. They are both regularly back in HB and I don't think it would bother them to temporarily move back to HB more than it does other players who regularly do the same. Remember we have over 20 SR players and the majority of them don't play for the Canes!
Well if it doesn't bother them, why don't they? Don't forget also, with those 20 SR players, are lot of them are effectively the reverse situation to what we are talking about.
Just thinking about the Highlanders ones alone, MMT, Fakatava, Lowe, all of those boys were signed from the NPC, rather than as academy players. They were coming to Dunedin with the sole purpose of playing for the Highlanders, in a temporary sense.
For example, take Jordie Barrett when he briefly played for Canterbury. Yes he was down there to play rugby, but he was also studying at Lincoln, and living in Christchurch as a permanent base. This concept has been around since the NPC days... even pre-professionalism, when guys played for Otago because they were living there for University.
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