New ARU Contracting post 2016

[Braveheart81]

http://www.rugby.com.au/News/NewsAr...on-approve-changes-to-player-contracting.aspx

From 2016, the ARU will have the ability to offer players the opportunity to play one season in a foreign domestic competition during the course of a long-term contract with Australian Rugby.
In addition, players who represent Australia in Rugby Sevens at the 2016 Olympics will be granted permission to play the 2016/17 Japanese domestic season without affecting their eligibility for the Qantas Wallabies upon their return in 2017.
Flexible contracts allow the ARU and Super Rugby provinces to reward players deemed to be making a significant contribution to Rugby in Australia.
Nationally Contracted Players – The ARU will exclusively manage the number of flexible contracts it negotiates with Nationally Contracted Players to ensure the pool of players available for Test selection is sufficiently strong each year.
Non-Nationally Contracted Players – Each Super Rugby team will be permitted one flexible contract per season for non-Nationally Contracted players.


Edit: formatting for the table below didn't work. The first line of each bit relates to Super Rugby, second to the test season and third to an overseas season.

Australia - Provincial​

Test Rugby​

Overseas (Japan)​

2016​

Full season of Super Rugby, including Finals.​

Eligible for Qantas Wallabies selection during the June Test Window.​

Participates in the Japanese domestic competition following Super Rugby.​

2017​

Returns to Super Rugby in April/May, also includes eligibility for Super Rugby Finals.​

Eligible for all Qantas Wallabies Test matches.​

N/A​

2018​

Full season of Super Rugby, including Finals.​

Eligible for all Qantas Wallabies Test matches.​

N/A​

Australia - Provincial​

Test Rugby​

Overseas (France)​

2016​

Full season of Super Rugby, including Finals.​

Eligible for Qantas Wallabies selection during the June Test Window.​

Participates in the French domestic competition following Super Rugby.​

2017​

Returns to Australia midway through the year and, following a rest period, will not eligible for Super Rugby in 2017.​

Eligible for Qantas Wallabies selection during the Rugby Championship and Spring Tour.​

N/A​

2018​

Full season of Super Rugby, including Finals.​

Eligible for all Qantas Wallabies Test matches.​

N/A​

 

[hammertimethere]

Holy shit

 

[Slim 293]

Well, this has certainly flown under the radar..........

 

[Braveheart81]

Well, this has certainly flown under the radar....

I believe the working name of the project was Operation: Izzy Staying?

 

[Pfitzy]

Does not define anywhere the definition of "long-term".

Simple solution: offer 3 year contracts only to the players threatened by foreign money. Anything else is short-term.

 

[Jagman]

I would prefer players heading overseas keep their eligibility for the first two Bledisloes, not just the June tests, cause these are the tests where we need our strongest team anyway.

 

[Braveheart81]

Does not define anywhere the definition of "long-term".

Simple solution: offer 3 year contracts only to the players threatened by foreign money. Anything else is short-term.

I think it's saying that long term is 3 years.

 

[MarkJ]

Guess they're trying to avoid a mass exodus of players after RWC 2015

 

[Slim 293]

I would like to also see inflated contracts for tight 5 players..........

 

[SevensPhD]

I think the exodus of players may be one part, but it also sets up players wishing to play in the Olympics a chance to recoup income they may lose by missing some Super Rugby in 2016.

The ARU is not in a position to pay 7s contracts to the same level as Super Rugby, so allowing them to go to Japan after the Olympics negates some of the player salary issues.

 

[Deputy Van Halen]

Absolutely the right move, we can't compete with France and Japan money otherwise. Even more impressive is they're allowing club players to do it also which is great for those fringe wallaby level players.

It's a big turn around from having 'no appetite' for sabbaticals only a few months ago though.

I think this and the NRC are some great moves made this year, really shaking things up. They won't have immediate impact to the national team but there is potential for the future.

 

[Braveheart81]

This seems like the smart move to me. It still maintains the integrity of the Wallabies and Super Rugby by ensuring that players are playing in Australia.

It will give a few players the chance to push for Olympic selection by playing on the IRB Sevens circuit in 2016 and also set up a contract in Japan afterwards to ensure they are still rewarded financially.

I think it is the right move not to open up seletion to players playing solely overseas.

 

[Bowside]

Well thought out and pragmatic move by the ARU.

 

[KOB1987]

a very good and necessary thing for Aus rugby

 

[TOCC]

Great move by the ARU...

However, cue claims of parochial bias when 'player x' is offered a sabbatical and 'player y' isn't...

 

[KOB1987]

hopefully there will be some sort of yardstick(s) implemented..

such as players who have fulfilled "either 30 tests or 3 full seasons of Super rugby whilst under ARU contract"..

that's just an example, not a suggestion..

 

[BDA]

I've been one of the people asking for this type of concession for a while. Great idea that will give the ARU better bargaining power without actually increasing player payments. We'll still lose some players but this will ensure that we lose less

 

[TOCC]

So tin-foil hat time, the timing of this press release aligned with Karmichael announcing his departure from AFL and the Reds squad announcement for next year has all seemed to align fairly well.

The ARU have previously refused to offer Karmichael a top-up to secure him for the Reds, yet the new contractual rules allow Super Rugby teams to offer one sabbatical per player per season. Are we going to see Karmichael head to Japan in the 2015-2016 window for a sabbatical?

Theory 2 is replace Karmichael with JOC (James O'Connor).. The ARU might have refused JOC (James O'Connor) a ARU top-up and the QRU have decided to use the sabbatical offer as a substitute.

 

[KOB1987]

I'd hate to think that this has come about to secure the signing of Karmichael Hunt..

if its to keep players like Folau, Douglas, Cummins, etc wearing the gold then thats an entirley different story..and an acceptable and important one..

 

[TOCC]

Of course it hasn't come about for the signing of Karmichael and thats not what i was suggesting.

If you read the article there are two categories, one for Wallabies and nationally contracted players and then another for Super Rugby(non-wallaby players).

The allowance of sabbaticals would first and foremost be for the longer term retention of the top Wallabies, but if this rule helps Super Rugby teams recruit players like Potgeiter and Karmichael then so be it.