I'm with the sports writer from the SMH.
After waiting for so long to see the Waratahs finally win the Super 10, 12, 15's, the stage was set for a great international season. What a miserable time be be a Wallaby supporter. Who is going to bother watching the Wallabies get smashed this week-end?
At a time when the other codes seem to be going from strength to strength, AFL and soccer are infiltrating the schools and winning over the mums, League is pouring money into junior development (and fighting back against AFL and soccer), rugby seems to be disappearing up its own fundament with parochial provincials pulling it in their own self serving amateurish state oriented direction. I'm sad to say it's not the League Media that is the issue, its the leather patches wearing tweed jacketed port swilling old boys who have hijacked rugby and continue to use it as their own private amateurish plaything. Until all the bumbling amateurs get a bit of professionalism about them and employ some decent management/marketing/media/coaching/etc etc etc...people, then they can all get stuffed. The fans and the sponsors are already voting with their feet, so unless the ARU heeds the warning signs, its only got a few years left to suck the rest of the blood out of the already dying carcass. The players are falling away, our depth is drying up, the other codes are pinching our players.
For goodness sake, having the Argies (no. 10) beat the Wallabies (no.4) is like having Ireland (no. 10) beat the Kangaroos (no.1). However, in rugby land this is going to get even worse unless the leather patch bridage do something drastic, and quick (which they wont).
So, respectfully to those who love the game, rather than rail against the conspiratorial "League Media", how about decrying the sad lack of any coherent, sensible, and energetic "Rugby Media"?