'Super Rugby' 2021
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Southern hemisphere rugby could be set for a major shakeup , with doubts emerging over the ongoing existence of SANZAAR. Sources tell Newshub that the governing body could disband altogether to leave international unions to go it alone, in one of a handful of key recommendations to come from the 'Aratipu' report commissioned by New Zealand Rugby in April. Newshub can reveal that SANZAAR's days of running the competition appear to be over from next year. As it stands, Super Rugby involves teams from New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and Argentina. The draft 'Aratipu' review recommends major changes from 2021 - namely a trans- Ta$man competition with the addition of a team from the Pacific. Without teams from South Africa and Argentina, SANZAAR's governance of the competition would inevitably cease. The proposed changes to the competition have been welcomed by those involved. "As long as it keeps the qualities that are making this competition really successful," says Blues coach Leon MacDonald. "Strong teams right across the board, strong games... there's a little bit of a recipe here that as long as they don't deviate too far away from would be well received." It's understood that is what's seen as the missing piece to the Super Rugby puzzle and was identified by review chair Don Mackinnon from the outset. "Do we look at a Heineken cup type playoff model in the short to medium term whereby we're looking at the best of the best playing," Mackinnon queried at the announcement of the review in April. Crusaders coach Scott Robertson has also expressed his desire for there to be something more for the Super Rugby winners. "I love the idea of how we can connect up if we have a competition down here and then we can link to the north, that would make it pretty special," Robertson suggested in May. SANZAAR's sole purpose moving forward would be to oversee the Rugby Championship. But Tuesday's developments suggest that after quarter of a century, southern hemisphere rugby's united front could soon be over. -
How would a sixth NZ Super Rugby team look? It'd be based in North Harbour and Northland, and the Blues would be based on Auckland and Counties Manukau. If the region got its NPC players, and a few players from each squad (esp. those with a connection to the region), it might look like this:
- Karl Tu'inukuafe
- James Parsons sharing starting duty with Ricky Riccitelli
- Sione Mafileo
- Josh Goodhue
- Gerard Cowley-Tuioti
- Tom Robinson
- Dillon Hunt
- Teariki Ben-Nicholas/Sione Havili
- Bryn Hall
- Josh Ioane
- Braydon Ennor
- Michael Little
- Jack Goodhue
- Mark Talea
- Shaun Stevenson
- Luteru Tolai
- Reuben O'Neill
- Siate Tokolahi
- Jacob Pierce
- Ethan Roots
- Sam Nock
- Bryn Gatland
- Matt Duffie
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could they ground share with the Blues? wold make for some big grudge matches
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We don’t have the depth to dilute the current 5 teams and maintain the high performance he talks about in that article. Introducing more teams will be a disaster. Poorer quality in the name of expansion does not make for a more entertaining product. We saw that with the endless expansion of super rugby.
If the saffa’s are gone and a NZ only comp is not an option then an ANZ comp with the quality of teams kept as high as possible is the only option.
@pukunui said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
We don’t have the depth to dilute the current 5 teams and maintain the high performance he talks about in that article. Introducing more teams will be a disaster. Poorer quality in the name of expansion does not make for a more entertaining product. We saw that with the endless expansion of super rugby.
If the saffa’s are gone and a NZ only comp is not an option then an ANZ comp with the quality of teams kept as high as possible is the only option.
Super 8 - 5 Kiwi and 3 Aussie teams. It is the only way to proceed with a trans- Ta$man competition IMHO.
At the same time, the structures under the Aussie fully pro teams need to change in order to provide more players an opportunity to make a living out of rugby.
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@pukunui said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
We don’t have the depth to dilute the current 5 teams and maintain the high performance he talks about in that article. Introducing more teams will be a disaster. Poorer quality in the name of expansion does not make for a more entertaining product. We saw that with the endless expansion of super rugby.
If the saffa’s are gone and a NZ only comp is not an option then an ANZ comp with the quality of teams kept as high as possible is the only option.
Super 8 - 5 Kiwi and 3 Aussie teams. It is the only way to proceed with a trans- Ta$man competition IMHO.
At the same time, the structures under the Aussie fully pro teams need to change in order to provide more players an opportunity to make a living out of rugby.
@NTA said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
Super 8 - 5 Kiwi and 3 Aussie teams. It is the only way to proceed with a trans- Ta$man competition IMHO.
Good idea - dump the Brumbies.
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@NTA said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
Super 8 - 5 Kiwi and 3 Aussie teams. It is the only way to proceed with a trans- Ta$man competition IMHO.
Good idea - dump the Brumbies.
@antipodean said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
@NTA said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
Super 8 - 5 Kiwi and 3 Aussie teams. It is the only way to proceed with a trans- Ta$man competition IMHO.
Good idea - dump the Brumbies.
After spending a weekend there in the freezing cold, it is no shock that nobody turns up to Bruce Mausoleum for rugby at night.
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@NTA said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
Super 8 - 5 Kiwi and 3 Aussie teams. It is the only way to proceed with a trans- Ta$man competition IMHO.
Good idea - dump the Brumbies.
@antipodean said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
@NTA said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
Super 8 - 5 Kiwi and 3 Aussie teams. It is the only way to proceed with a trans- Ta$man competition IMHO.
Good idea - dump the Brumbies.
can we dumb a team that has won the comp previously? wold feel werid, Canberra doesn't have a AFL team so feels a better location to try and re grow rugby than melbourne
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@antipodean said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
@NTA said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
Super 8 - 5 Kiwi and 3 Aussie teams. It is the only way to proceed with a trans- Ta$man competition IMHO.
Good idea - dump the Brumbies.
can we dumb a team that has won the comp previously? wold feel werid, Canberra doesn't have a AFL team so feels a better location to try and re grow rugby than melbourne
@Kiwiwomble said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
@antipodean said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
@NTA said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
Super 8 - 5 Kiwi and 3 Aussie teams. It is the only way to proceed with a trans- Ta$man competition IMHO.
Good idea - dump the Brumbies.
can we dumb a team that has won the comp previously? wold feel werid, Canberra doesn't have a AFL team so feels a better location to try and re grow rugby than melbourne
I couldn't care if they were as successful as the Crusaders. It's their public servant supporters I want to see punished. They irritate the piss out of me.
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Putting a PI based team in Auckland is a stupid idea. Racially based selection? Exclusion from NZR contracting and New Zealand representation?
Why would NZ do that?
@antipodean said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
Putting a PI based team in Auckland is a stupid idea. Racially based selection? Exclusion from NZR contracting and New Zealand representation?
Why would NZ do that?
There has been plenty of talk about having a PI-based team in any future SR competition but that has many more hurdles to overcome like logistics and finances. This proposed team would solve those problems, with little or no cost to NZR, like the Force in Aust at present. There would be enough Fijian, Samoan and Tongan talent around, and they would add some variety to the competition. I would assume that this team wouldn't be under NZR control so those players wouldn't be eligible for the ABs. From the articles they would be targeting PI players currently in Europe and Japan as well as domestic PI players (the islands, NZ, Aust).
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@antipodean said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
Putting a PI based team in Auckland is a stupid idea. Racially based selection? Exclusion from NZR contracting and New Zealand representation?
Why would NZ do that?
There has been plenty of talk about having a PI-based team in any future SR competition but that has many more hurdles to overcome like logistics and finances. This proposed team would solve those problems, with little or no cost to NZR, like the Force in Aust at present. There would be enough Fijian, Samoan and Tongan talent around, and they would add some variety to the competition. I would assume that this team wouldn't be under NZR control so those players wouldn't be eligible for the ABs. From the articles they would be targeting PI players currently in Europe and Japan as well as domestic PI players (the islands, NZ, Aust).
@Bovidae said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
I would assume that this team wouldn't be under NZR control so those players wouldn't be eligible for the ABs
Inoke Afeaki was interviewed about this on the Breakdown. He wanted it to be under NZR control
The reasons for this was the expertise that NZR has of running successful teams. Also, the corruption in problems that the PI unions have had since going pro.
He also said he wanted it to be based in Fiji. I think all the chat about it being in Auckland is just to make the articles more clickable in NZ
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@Bovidae said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
I would assume that this team wouldn't be under NZR control so those players wouldn't be eligible for the ABs
Inoke Afeaki was interviewed about this on the Breakdown. He wanted it to be under NZR control
The reasons for this was the expertise that NZR has of running successful teams. Also, the corruption in problems that the PI unions have had since going pro.
He also said he wanted it to be based in Fiji. I think all the chat about it being in Auckland is just to make the articles more clickable in NZ
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@antipodean said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
Putting a PI based team in Auckland is a stupid idea. Racially based selection? Exclusion from NZR contracting and New Zealand representation?
Why would NZ do that?
There has been plenty of talk about having a PI-based team in any future SR competition but that has many more hurdles to overcome like logistics and finances. This proposed team would solve those problems, with little or no cost to NZR, like the Force in Aust at present. There would be enough Fijian, Samoan and Tongan talent around, and they would add some variety to the competition. I would assume that this team wouldn't be under NZR control so those players wouldn't be eligible for the ABs. From the articles they would be targeting PI players currently in Europe and Japan as well as domestic PI players (the islands, NZ, Aust).
@Bovidae said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
@antipodean said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
Putting a PI based team in Auckland is a stupid idea. Racially based selection? Exclusion from NZR contracting and New Zealand representation?
Why would NZ do that?
There has been plenty of talk about having a PI-based team in any future SR competition but that has many more hurdles to overcome like logistics and finances. This proposed team would solve those problems, with little or no cost to NZR, like the Force in Aust at present. There would be enough Fijian, Samoan and Tongan talent around, and they would add some variety to the competition. I would assume that this team wouldn't be under NZR control so those players wouldn't be eligible for the ABs. From the articles they would be targeting PI players currently in Europe and Japan as well as domestic PI players (the islands, NZ, Aust).
That would just be the worst possible case. So any governance issues, players opting to represent NZ, malfeasance etc. would have NZR lambasted by all and sundry for no benefit.
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@Duluth said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
Inoke Afeaki
He's not part of the consortium that runs it tho, as far as I can see, so that's just another opinion - of many!
@Machpants said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
He's not part of the consortium that runs it tho, as far as I can see, so that's just another opinion - of many!
The Hawaii thing? They sound like they have a lot of work before being ready for the USA comp
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@Bovidae said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
I would assume that this team wouldn't be under NZR control so those players wouldn't be eligible for the ABs
Inoke Afeaki was interviewed about this on the Breakdown. He wanted it to be under NZR control
The reasons for this was the expertise that NZR has of running successful teams. Also, the corruption in problems that the PI unions have had since going pro.
He also said he wanted it to be based in Fiji. I think all the chat about it being in Auckland is just to make the articles more clickable in NZ
@Duluth Afeaki's comments don't agree with what has been published in the media.
Kanaloa Hawaii chief executive Tracy Atiga told Radio New Zealand on Tuesday they had already discussed their Super Rugby credentials with New Zealand Rugby with a team that could be based in south Auckland. "We would essentially set up our satellite programme which is here in south Auckland to accommodate a second team," she said. "So we are not talking about one team that plays in the MLR and then they come and play in Super Rugby. We are talking about two pro teams that would have equally competitive athletes at that level and we would own and operate them in co-ordination with each other." -
@Duluth Afeaki's comments don't agree with what has been published in the media.
Kanaloa Hawaii chief executive Tracy Atiga told Radio New Zealand on Tuesday they had already discussed their Super Rugby credentials with New Zealand Rugby with a team that could be based in south Auckland. "We would essentially set up our satellite programme which is here in south Auckland to accommodate a second team," she said. "So we are not talking about one team that plays in the MLR and then they come and play in Super Rugby. We are talking about two pro teams that would have equally competitive athletes at that level and we would own and operate them in co-ordination with each other."Sure he was talking in general about a PI SR team.. which has been a possibility for years.
I think the chat out of the Hawaii group is hopeful at best. Why would NZ rugby give so much to an unproven group who haven't done anything but gain a US license?
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How would a sixth NZ Super Rugby team look? It'd be based in North Harbour and Northland, and the Blues would be based on Auckland and Counties Manukau. If the region got its NPC players, and a few players from each squad (esp. those with a connection to the region), it might look like this:
- Karl Tu'inukuafe
- James Parsons sharing starting duty with Ricky Riccitelli
- Sione Mafileo
- Josh Goodhue
- Gerard Cowley-Tuioti
- Tom Robinson
- Dillon Hunt
- Teariki Ben-Nicholas/Sione Havili
- Bryn Hall
- Josh Ioane
- Braydon Ennor
- Michael Little
- Jack Goodhue
- Mark Talea
- Shaun Stevenson
- Luteru Tolai
- Reuben O'Neill
- Siate Tokolahi
- Jacob Pierce
- Ethan Roots
- Sam Nock
- Bryn Gatland
- Matt Duffie
@Tim said in 'Super Rugby' 2021:
How would a sixth NZ Super Rugby team look? It'd be based in North Harbour and Northland, and the Blues would be based on Auckland and Counties Manukau. If the region got its NPC players, and a few players from each squad (esp. those with a connection to the region), it might look like this:
- Karl Tu'inukuafe
- James Parsons sharing starting duty with Ricky Riccitelli
- Sione Mafileo
- Josh Goodhue
- Gerard Cowley-Tuioti
- Tom Robinson
- Dillon Hunt
- Teariki Ben-Nicholas/Sione Havili
- Bryn Hall
- Josh Ioane
- Braydon Ennor
- Michael Little
- Jack Goodhue
- Mark Talea
- Shaun Stevenson
- Luteru Tolai
- Reuben O'Neill
- Siate Tokolahi
- Jacob Pierce
- Ethan Roots
- Sam Nock
- Bryn Gatland
- Matt Duffie
How would this leave the Blues? Following similar criteria, perhaps they could produce the following squad and XXIII:
- Alex Hodgman
- Kurt Eklund (he's spent the off-season practising his throwing)
- Ofa Tu'ungafasi
- Patrick Tuipulotu
- Scott Scrafton
- Akira Ioane
- Dalton Papalii
- Hoskins Sotutu
- Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi
- Otere Black
- Caleb Clarke
- TJ Faiane
- Rieko Ioane
- Tanielu Tele’a
- Stephen Perofeta
- Andrew Makalio
- Marcel Renata
- Angus Ta'avao
- Jack Whetton
- Blake Gibson
- Finlay Christie
- Harry Plummer
- Salesi Rayasi/Vince Aso
Props
Ezekiel Lindenmuth
Marco FepuleaiHookers
Ray Niuia
Locks
Aaron Carroll
Sam CairdLoose Forwards
Waimana Riedlinger-Kapa
James Tucker
Tony Lamborn
Nico Jones/Adrian Choat
Cameron SuafoaHalves
Jonathan Taumateine/Jonathan Ruru/Taufa Funaki
Zarn SullivanMidfield
Vince Aso
AJ Lam
Matt VaegaWing
Salesi Rayasi
Emoni NarawaFullback
Jordan Trainor
Jared Page -
Sure he was talking in general about a PI SR team.. which has been a possibility for years.
I think the chat out of the Hawaii group is hopeful at best. Why would NZ rugby give so much to an unproven group who haven't done anything but gain a US license?
Obviously there is a lot of work to be done if this eventuates, but all the risk is with the Kanaloa Hawaii ownership group if the team is 100% privately owned. Remember we are talking about an Oceania SR competition, not a NZR competition. I'm sure NZR (and RA) would want the MLR team operational first so they are confident the owners have the infrastructure and expertise in place.
