ARU fee structure change for 2015

[TSR]

Yeah - quite possible.

 

[Quick Hands]

SJRU registrations opened on the weekend for most if not all clubs. All registrations by Buddha at our club, so I assume everywhere else too.

 

[Crashy]

Enrolled my fella in one of the under 8s teams at our local club. 150 bucks for the season and Mrs crashy completed a paper form. No idea how much the club is losing (if any) but can't see droves leaving at that price especially as soccer last season was way more than that and was an ordinary experience for a budding sport star. Anyone else get a take on the process and costs for the youngsters?

 

[Chris McCracken]

Enrolled my fella in one of the under 8s teams at our local club. 150 bucks for the season and Mrs crashy completed a paper form. No idea how much the club is losing (if any) but can't see droves leaving at that price especially as soccer last season was way more than that and was an ordinary experience for a budding sport star. Anyone else get a take on the process and costs for the youngsters?

U8s were $50 at our club last year. Yet to be confirmed, but $80 this year and the club will ostensibly lose around $9 per player because of other costs going up as well. We'll make some up with the per team insurance, though.

 

[Braveheart81]

It seems like a false economy when kids are being charged that little for a season of rugby.

It is completely out of step with the costs of pretty much everything else and is no wonder that rugby is going broke.

I realise that clubs may attract juniors in some areas because they are a cheaper alternative to soccer and rugby league but surely it's part of the reason the game is now broke in Australia.

 

[I like to watch]

Don't take it the wrong way,but not everyone that plays Rugby are from your demographic.
The Northern Beaches is a reasonably affluent area,but I am confident that every village club,has players on their books that can't afford rego fees.
Pricing is a real factor IMO.
Rugby League is rarely dearer,and their giveaways are normally far in excess of any rego fees that are collected,so that puts pressure on Village clubs as well.

 

[Chris McCracken]

It seems like a false economy when kids are being charged that little for a season of rugby.

It is completely out of step with the costs of pretty much everything else and is no wonder that rugby is going broke.

I realise that clubs may attract juniors in some areas because they are a cheaper alternative to soccer and rugby league but surely it's part of the reason the game is now broke in Australia.

I take exception to the idea that it is part of the reason the game is broke. Our club is completely self sufficient and has never seen a cent from outside that wasn't paid for by the club. It is clear that it doesn't contribute to any loss outside the club itself.

The club is run on a basis that sees costs met and minimal outlay for what is a community on the lower end of the socio-economic spectrum. We get good support from our council and we compete on price with Rugby League. We are behind in that battle before price is considered, but it is an important consideration on the ocassion where the players have no allegiance to either code.

We have also been the fastest growing junior club in NSW for two of the past four years.

It's not a false economy. And it is certainly not out of step with the costs of everything else. It is a very well considered business model. In fact, we were in the process of evolving the model to provide more services to members until the new initiative came along.

I have no idea what it is like in the city. But judging smaller clubs and ones which operate differently due to the nature of their local economy is exactly what is wrong with the NPF/NIL in the first place.

Oh, and travel. When you're asking the parents of 7 year olds to drive upwards of 300km a week to get them to a game, you don't mind cutting them a break.

 

[Braveheart81]

Don't take it the wrong way,but not everyone that plays Rugby are from your demographic.

I completely realise and accept that but the state of the game in this country is not at the point where it is financially sustainable to price things that way.

The professional side of the game is not making the surpluses anymore to funnel a lot down to the lower levels and the amateur game is not priced in a way that creates funding for re-investment.

Effectively things are set up in a way that makes it entirely reliant on volunteers which means there is no pathway for expanding into areas where rugby isn't available.

When has just trying to be the cheapest option been a good long term strategy for anything?

 

[RugbyReg]

Wow, just paid around $270 for each of my boys (U8, U10 and U12).

 

[Braveheart81]

I take exception to the idea that it is part of the reason the game is broke. Our club is completely self sufficient and has never seen a cent from outside that wasn't paid for by the club. It is clear that it doesn't contribute to any loss outside the club itself.

The club is run on a basis that sees costs met and minimal outlay for what is a community on the lower end of the socio-economic spectrum. We get good support from our council and we compete on price with Rugby League. We are behind in that battle before price is considered, but it is an important consideration on the ocassion where the players have no allegiance to either code.

We have also been the fastest growing junior club in NSW for two of the past four years.

It's not a false economy. And it is certainly not out of step with the costs of everything else. It is a very well considered business model. In fact, we were in the process of evolving the model to provide more services to members until the new initiative came along.

I have no idea what it is like in the city. But judging smaller clubs and ones which operate differently due to the nature of their local economy is exactly what is wrong with the NPF/NIL in the first place.

Oh, and travel. When you're asking the parents of 7 year olds to drive upwards of 300km a week to get them to a game, you don't mind cutting them a break.

What association are you part of?

I accept that country teams are in uniquely difficult positions because the commitment both financial and time wise for parents to get kids to games can be extreme.

Brendan Hume has posted a lot in this thread and is from a club in the seemingly very well run and growing Townville District Rugby Union organisation.

According to the TDRU annual report, they received 225k out of a total of 664k in 2012 in grants and subsidies and 74k out of 484k in 2013. How much of this money is from the QRU?

Your club is self sufficient from a funding perspective, but how much do you send up to the association and how reliant are they on funding from elsewhere?

There is a gap somewhere that is being funded by NSWRU/QRU depending on location and seemingly the lack of those funds being available is what is the cause of these changes and subsequently all the angst.

 

[Inside Shoulder]

I completely realise and accept that but the state of the game in this country is not at the point where it is financially sustainable to price things that way.

The professional side of the game is not making the surpluses anymore to funnel a lot down to the lower levels and the amateur game is not priced in a way that creates funding for re-investment.

Effectively things are set up in a way that makes it entirely reliant on volunteers which means there is no pathway for expanding into areas where rugby isn't available.

When has just trying to be the cheapest option been a good long term strategy for anything?

I missed the funnelling - other than into JON's trousers - when was that?

 

[I like to watch]

It's not the pricing of regos village clubs that is the problem for the game,it's the ARU's unsustainable business model,whereby they budget for year on year losses,and get by on surpluses from BL tours etc.
They have always been heavily reliant upon volunteers,but up to this point of time have not gone out of their way to alienate them.
Just as you say trying to be the cheapest is a poor strategy,I say refusing to invest in your future in the grassroots is ensuring the pie will continue to diminish,at the expense of the code.

 

[Chris McCracken]

When has just trying to be the cheapest option been a good long term strategy for anything?

Aldi? Proton?

It's not the point, anyway. Price is simply part of the competitive package. It is not the be all and end all. The issue is having the ability to regulate price completely removed from our hands without appropriate warning.

In our case, there has been a considered strategy over the last four years to build base and product at a low price point. We are now approaching a critical mass where we are seen as the preferred option over Rugby League for players 11 years and under. I can't stress how much of an achievement that is in this area.

There is nothing so one dimensional about our strategy as to say "we're the cheapest". We will not remain the cheapest this year and we would not have anyway. Because we aren't stupid. We have a few smart people in our club who really understand strategy and growth.

Our prices would have risen this year, as part of our long term strategy, anyway. They are planned to rise at above CPI until the club is sustainable without external sponsorship. We plan. We execute and we grow the base.

Six years ago, a $5 price rise in our club would have netted a $200 windfall for the club. Next year, with our projected membership, that number would be $750.

That's how strategy works. Just because you don't see it, it doesn't mean it's not there. Now, I can't say the ARU has thought it through that well. And that is at the heart of this issue.

 

[Chris McCracken]

By the way, I am happy to accept that the community should contribute financially up the chain. My problem (and that of the vast majority of complainants) is that the methodology is flawed and that there needs to be flexibility in delivery of the ARU initiative.

Unfortunately, the discussion keeps getting bogged down in simplistic rhetoric. Fortunately, NSWRU has understood and come up with a way that is pretty much win-win. Or at least no real loss to anyone. Everyone gets their money and I can keep my membership happy without having to make it completely unaffordable for the 30% who would not be able to afford it up front.

 

[Braveheart81]

I missed the funnelling - other than into JON's trousers - when was that?

The ARU and the Super Rugby sides provide annual funding to the state unions.

The gap seems to be that no clubs whether they are village juniors or Shute Shield or subbies or whatever believe they are getting anything whatsoever because they get little or no direct funding.

 

[Chris McCracken]

What association are you part of?

CJRU

Your club is self sufficient from a funding perspective, but how much do you send up to the association and how reliant are they on funding from elsewhere?

We send an amount which varies from $11 for the younger kids to $17 for the older ones up to CWJRU and CJRU.

There is a gap somewhere that is being funded by NSWRU/QRU depending on location and seemingly the lack of those funds being available is what is the cause of these changes and subsequently all the angst.

Yes. NSWRU provides a grant to CRU each year. However, that does not filter down to the players in the CWJRU competition. This competition is self funded. Our rep players see a small benefit, but it pales into insignificance compared to the costs they incur to play.

I fully understand the workings of the entire system. I've served as the Zone President and as a delegate to CRU and CJRU. I'm a professional who understands operational budgets and I know pretty much where all of the gaps are.

 

[Chris McCracken]

The ARU and the Super Rugby sides provide annual funding to the state unions.

The gap seems to be that no clubs whether they are village juniors or Shute Shield or subbies or whatever believe they are getting anything whatsoever because they get little or no direct funding.

I'm afraid if you're still on that line, you've missed the point.

The issue is having transparency, working with the people delivering the service on the ground (rather than treating them like imbeciles) and showing some strategic nouse.

 

[Braveheart81]

I'm afraid if you're still on that line, you've missed the point.

The issue is having transparency, working with the people delivering the service on the ground (rather than treating them like imbeciles) and showing some strategic nouse.

That reply was in response to Inside Shoulder's suggestion that no money is ever forthcoming.

I completely agree that the way the ARU has handled this and their inability to explain why everyone has to eat a shit sandwich is a huge problem and probably the chief cause of all the angst.

 

[JFT]

Southern Districts has requested players not to self-register with the new Rugby Link system until further notice from the GM. From the FB Page

 

[Chris McCracken]

Southern Districts has requested players not to self-register with the new Rugby Link system until further notice from the GM. From the FB Page

This is the advice we are passing on as well. The club will register players manually and the registrar will manage the process.