The Ghost of Raelene
Simon Poidevin (60)
I'd go with the latter. They have the resources to throw around and if it works great but if it doesn't...who cares. This will produce the occasional gem.
Aussie Player Exodus
- Thread starter swingpass
- Start date
Doritos Day
Johnnie Wallace (23)
I doubt it, many players are on the record (Beale the latest) discussing how if anything they thought the French S&C set-up was behind Australian rugby... which itself is behind the AFL/NRL, which are behind the actual elite sports like NFL/EPL
As for lack of players - they currently have two professional divisions and are about to have a third. They do look for JIFF potential in prospects but not because they're short of troops internally.
I think it comes down to the same issue it always does - Australian players don't play enough games compared to their international counterparts. Its a lot easier to get better - and less pressure coming from above - when you have twice as many chances
RebelYell
Arch Winning (36)
As far as I am aware, there's not a single Super Rugby club in AU who provide all of their players meals. I've also heard Angus Brayshaw (Melbourne Demons AFL) talk about how when the Demons train in Casey (eastern Melbourne), there is a 'Subway' crew among the players that go there after trianing. I don't think there are many sports in AU which would have the full EPL/NFL style catering for all players, all the time.
swingpass
Peter Sullivan (51)
this
Highlander35
Steve Williams (59)
Indeed: the french have 14 Top division pro sides and 16 second division pro sides: both of whom will play a minimum of 30 games this season (H&A for both + 4 european games for Top14) before European and domestic playoff: the 45-50 man squads before academy/WTS is absolutely necessary for management, and a player in that 30-45 group can still reasonably expect to get at least 8-12 games pro games under their belt each season.
By contrast: the only way a domestic player would even get to 30 pro games in a non wc year is to play every wallabies international (assuming 14: 3 inbound tour, 6 Rugby Championship, 5 outbound tour), every Super Rugby game (14) and at least two Super Rugby playoffs. There is far less player management required: and as such players who find themselves outside a team's best lineup can often only see 3-5 bench appearances in a season without long term injury
By contrast: the only way a domestic player would even get to 30 pro games in a non wc year is to play every wallabies international (assuming 14: 3 inbound tour, 6 Rugby Championship, 5 outbound tour), every Super Rugby game (14) and at least two Super Rugby playoffs. There is far less player management required: and as such players who find themselves outside a team's best lineup can often only see 3-5 bench appearances in a season without long term injury
all meals? I think they provide meals while they are at the facility, they aren't sent out to grab their lunch, the Brumbies even had sleeping pods
Marce
John Hipwell (52)
The kid is a freaky, if you are 203 cm and 145 kg should not be easy to get fit. I mean, he isn't the average Joe
You can hire me, a true diehard rugby supporter. Not many in Australia. I have attitude and I'll be one more spending money in memberships, tickets and all the stuff around
Ignoto
Peter Sullivan (51)
Which is ridiculous when you think about it. It's not easy understanding exactly the type of food you should be eating to help ensure you're properly fueled for the day.
Given we have a large portion of our player group who come from large families which often have to feed at a price point i.e a KFC/Domino's family combo is per $ a cheap way to 'feed' a family, they may have no idea how to balance to a gram level, how much protein they should have, how much carb and fat should be on their plate.
From what I've been told, a lot of these players don't know what and how to cook, so they need the club to help teach them what type of food they should be eating and how to prepare it.
Hell, even our ingame management was bad. Players weren't utilising gels and water based drinks with mixes to ensure their taking on appropriate amount of carbs during a game.
For a country that has pundits always saying they miss the days of playing "smart" rugby, we sure as hell in the past didn't give our players the tools to help perform at the level required.
Adam84
Rod McCall (65)
I don't know if still exists. but RUPA/RA were taking new signings and academy players are taken through nutrition lessons and cooking classes, Reds used to do similar for academy players.
Clubs don't cater for the players, none of them have had the commercial cooking facilities suitable although Reds and Waratahs might be able to in their new facilities. The easy option these days is to sign deals with companies like Muscle Chief, which provide boxes of meals for the players to take home, and are actually a pretty good alternative all things considered.
Clubs don't cater for the players, none of them have had the commercial cooking facilities suitable although Reds and Waratahs might be able to in their new facilities. The easy option these days is to sign deals with companies like Muscle Chief, which provide boxes of meals for the players to take home, and are actually a pretty good alternative all things considered.
Members Section
John Thornett (49)
Jed Stuart has been named on an extended bench for the Raiders in a trial this week.
Jimmy_Crouch
Peter Johnson (47)
In a similar vein I was going to point out total opportunity. 1500 odd pro players in France, NRL has 510+ and we have about 180 odd (5xSR + 7s). In Australian rugby you don’t have the chance to take a flier on a guy who might be good. Your talent ID must be focused on players with a higher propensity to make it
Marce
John Hipwell (52)
So if you want a longer career is better to stay playing in southern hemisphere
Highlander35
Steve Williams (59)
I mean, purely theoretical Calendar years yes: particularly for the right type of player in terms of position played, body type, overall skillset & early developer, you could see them playing 20 or more Calendar years of pro rugby if you stay out of Europe: with a chunk of that being made up of Japan & MLR towards the end of your career with maybe some Sevens towards the start.
But that definitely doesn't take into account either (a) amount of rugby you actually get to play, or (b) the amount of money you're getting paid to do so, both of which will be major motivating factors for most individuals who WANT to play rugby for a career. For your average, shall we say, "non-elite" player, the 8-10 seasons you would get from 4 to 6 years of European Rugby after 3 to 4 seasons in Super Rugby (Aus in particular, as NZ's NPC alleviates a lot of the lack of "professional" gametime arguments that are relevant here) is going to end up giving you significantly more total matches played and more money earned than the 10-14 seasons grinding out another 3 to 6 years in Aus then having a few semi-retirement years in Japan/MLR.
Indeed, there's arguably more of an opportunity to stay a part of a pro team for longer since, as more rotation is required in the squads to manage bodies, it's also much easier to carry an older player who you know who's body needs a lot more rest time: particular for your tight five and stand offs. Here there seems to be far less variability in expectation at pro level: you're either a Wallabies player who may need management to ensure they can play all 14/15 tests if required, you're a developing talent who can make some bench appearances when needed, or you're a mostly developed player who needs to be capable of showing up and playing every single game if required, but is not too valuable to not drop when a youngster breaks out or a Wallaby comes back from injury.
And of course, nothing stops you from going to Japan/MLR for that career extension after a European career either. 37 year old Greig Laidlaw played 340 games for Edinburgh, Gloucester, Clermont, Scotland & Scotland A across 14 seasons, moved to Japan and is about to begin either his 3rd or 4th season with a side there.
Rebel man
John Thornett (49)
Most AFL clubs have a chef that prepares their meals
The Ghost of Raelene
Simon Poidevin (60)
You post this at 11:30 while I'm thinking about lunch.
You work for the Colonel?
You work for the Colonel?
MelbourneRebels
Herbert Moran (7)
We provide 2-3 meals a week for players and a dietician on staff.
The Ghost of Raelene
Simon Poidevin (60)
That leaves at least 18-19 opportunities to engage with your recent sponsor.
Gotta match those big ol Tahs
Gotta match those big ol Tahs