It isn't because of Will Genia being dropped, but I do believe that the reds being utterly shit is a pretty big part of it.
If the reds are winning then rugby us on the minds of the populace, if they suck then rugby is not on the minds of the populace.
No one at my work knew that there is a test match on this weekend, but half of them went to the reds 2011 final.
Agree. But, if it transpires at 29,000 on Saturday, that's a rolled gold disaster-zone for the ARU both financially and in terms of the general market vibe around rugby.
And btw, ARU marketing of this Test here has been virtually non-existent, big mistake.
The very lowest crowds at Suncorp for _any _ Wallaby Test in recent years have been low 40,000s. High 20,000s has been unheard of for Tests.
Finally, many, many rugby fans I know here came to hate the Deans Wallaby style of play. In recent years, Deans' name was routinely boo-ed when read out at the end of the team list at Suncorp.