So here to my actual question: How can one support the Rebels and forget about their previous allegiances, did you not have a team before they came along? Or was the urge of supporting a locally based team greater than your original team?
Personally, I followed the Reds pre-Rebels, for the simple fact that I lived in Qld for 5 years and that was about as close to a provincial alignment I could get. I never went to a game as I was based in Townsville.
But it never felt like "my" team. It just suited my needs given I love Super Rugby and I need a team to support.
However, the very second the Rebels came into being, I dropped the Reds like a hot potato.
I finally had a team that came from "my" hometown. A team that represented "my" province. A team that I could go to watch week in and week out. A team that I could interact with at functions, training and post-game.
A team to cheer for, and mean it.
That is why I have finished my season at the same time as the Rebels, and why I am relatively indifferent to the other Australian provinces still in the pointy end.
I wish them well, of course, but it's all a bit blah to me. I didn't give a rat's about them all year, and I may have even disliked them a bit from time to time when they played my lads, so how can I pretend to care about them now?
I understand if others feel differently. That's perfectly fine. It's just not me.
Once the Wallabies come back online though, so will I. Big time.
My passion is two-fold; For Super Rugby I am a Rebels man, and for the international season I am a Wallabies man. I prefer to keep my passion concentrated and focused, not sprayed around like a tom cat on heat.
To me that is pretty cut and dried.
I hope that explains it a bit for you.