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And just to push the point, the AFL have just signed a new broacast deal $642 Million a year (just get your head around that) with the big statement that it will now have the money to target grassroots participation. So who do you think they are going to target.

Its the same catch 22 for Australian rugby (Kelly) just represents the majority of the audience, the AFL will throw millions at the AFWL over the next few years to make sure it totally dominates the Female sports market in this country. Australian rugby will face the same issue as with the mens...

I agree, but you have to ask why that is. For 20 years they have treated the domestic market as some sort of optonal extra, so we should not really be surprised that it ratings are crap and there isn't much interest in it.

Much of the framework that Half suggested is setting up basic structures in place to ensure that the competition has a chance to grow and become viable, the issue has always been that any 2nd tier competition is so compromised because it is essentially just a feeder comp for the national teams...

The thing is that saturated market has shown a clear prefernce for supporting genuine domestic leagues, the lack of preofessioanl rugby sporting leagues are primarily a thowback from the amateur days. It is a complicated issue, but the game here should have pushed for a domestic league 20 years...

I live on the Sunny Coast, rugby has a good presence up here but a long way behind AFL & league, There are a few good clubs that really do a good job and quite a few private schools that it is prominant. The Dolphins starting next year are going to target the coast for support, and the Sunshine...

It may need to be an elite competition and continue to evovle, but that is the one thing the last 25 years has shown will not happen. NZ & (Aus to a lesser extent) treat this as an extension of there All Black program as such it pretty much ensures the competition will not evolve.

An interesting part of that article was from Ben Kimber (head of Stan Sport) who mentioned Two clubs in both QLD & NSW, finally someone stating the obvious issue the game has here of losing out to the other codes in regards to cross town rivallries & the ability of having a presence each weekend...

https://www.sen.com.au/news/2022/06/22/rugby-australia-chairman-explains-reasons-behind-potential-super-rugby-split/ This was actually a really good listen, before it I just thought this was really more just a bargaining postion (could still be). But you really get the sense that he is serious...

Great Point

I do wonder how much does Stan come in to all of this, if the original broadcast deal takes them until 2024 then maybe there has been some talk in the background about after that. The point is last Saturdays Final was not worth a lot to Stan when it was predominantly a NZ product, and with that...

Maybe that was NZRU hedging there own bets, there must have been a certain level of uncertainty about how the Drua/Pacifika were going to go, even whether the whole competition would be viable. pretty much wanted a get out clause.

Well this is pretty much McLennan's point, Super Rugby is no longer paying the fiddler all that much money.

Only having 5 teams is the issue, but that is a result of commiting 25 years to the Super Rugby structure that has returned you pretty much zero growth. To me the difference this time is as McLennan has highlighted, there is no compelling financial reason to stay with Super Rugby anymore. You...

https://www.smh.com.au/sport/rugby-union/joined-at-the-hip-why-even-john-o-neill-believes-australia-should-stick-with-kiwis-20220622-p5avtm.html That absolutely seals it we have to go domestic now, John O'Neill reckons we should stick with the Kiwis.

Agreed it comes down to money, but IMO what McLennan is now saying is that there is no compelling financial argument to stick with Super Rugby.

But why would it be ther prefered option to continue the status quo, which is delivering limited benefit to the game here. Yes maybe steady as she goes considering the Lions Tour & World Cup, but how do you really deliver growth to the game here domestically. To me what McLennan is saying is...

So if I am reading between the lines what RA are saying is. The current Super rugby competition while acceptabe is no longer enough of a financial neccessity. So they maybe getting $30M from Stan, walk away from Super rugby and they may still get a similar figure (with a domestic component) and...

And it wouldn't surprise me considering the political atmosphere involving China right now, that sports funding for the Pacific nations maybe easier to achieve, financially aiding teams like the Drua & Pacifika will not cost huge amounts but the goodwill it would generate could be well worth it.

Yes, but next year is the World Cup, so everything is viewed through that lense. the big issue could be 2024 if they continue with Super Pacific. Thats when a lot of front line players will be looking at overseas contracts, lets see what Aussie viewers think if you take 6 or more of its top...