Thursday’s Rugby news reports on Hooper continuing as Wallabies skipper, as Dave Rennie’s squad prepares to travel to New Zealand, while Rugby Australia look for a new sponsor for the national team, and more rumours out of South Africa.
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Captain Hooper
After weeks of speculation, Dave Rennie has officially confirmed Michael Hooper as the Wallabies skipper for the upcoming test season.
The incumbent captain did enough to impress the new Wallabies coach during training camp in the Hunter Vallley, with Rennie getting his first chance to get his hands on the squad.
With such a young team picked for the upcoming tests, Rennie has opted for the stability and continuity of a Hooper captaincy as the Wallabies move forward into a new era.
Previously, critics of Hooper have claimed that his selection as skipper was down to Cheika’s favourism towards Waratahs player, but Rennie’s decision seems to put pay to that thinking.
“I’ve been really impressed with Hoops,” Rennie said. “We’ve spoken a lot over the past nine months and it’s highlighted his passion and commitment.
“He’s a good man with an outstanding work ethic and he’s a great role model for our young men coming through. He’s keen to lead, and is highly respected by the Wallaby family. In the end his appointment was a straight forward decision.”
Hooper is set to lead the Wallabies out against the All Blacks on October 11 at Sky Stadium in Wellington for his 100th Test, becoming the quickest player in Test history to reach that milestone.
“It’s an absolute honour to be the Wallabies captain and I want to thank Dave, the Wallabies management team as well as Rugby Australia for their support and endorsement,” said Hooper.
“It’s a privilege to wear the Wallabies jersey, I feel proud to lead my teammates and to represent those players that have before and all Australians.
“I’m really excited about this group and the direction we are heading. We have already spent some quality time together, defining who we are and what we stand for and what we play to achieve in the coming months.”
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Travel plans
In some more positive news, the Wallabies are expecting that all of their players that are under injury clouds will be fit to play the team’s two Bledisloe tests against the All Blacks in New Zealand.
In particular, there were fears that Jordan Petaia could miss the plane to New Zealand after injurying his hip in the Super Rugby AU final, but coach Dave Rennie was optimistic he would make the journey across the ditch.
“Jordan’s got a little bit of a hip flexor issue, but not as bad as first feared so he’ll be OK,” confirmed Rennie.
Also in doubt is the Rebels trio of Dane Haylett-Petty, Matt To’omua and Jordan Uelese, and Rennie will have to give some thought to the make up of his squad.
“Obviously we’ve had guys like Dane Haylett-Petty and Matt To’omua and Jordan Uelese who got injured in the semi-final and they’re still rehabbing back, so we’ve got a handful of guys who we’re managing at the moment but they should all travel on Friday.”
The Wallabies will travel to Christchurch this Friday, and once there will have to isolate from one another for three days before they begin training. Special compensation has been given to the team in order for them to train in larger groups, but the players and staff will still be under quarantine for two weeks leading up to the opening Bledisloe Test in Wellington on Sunday arvo, 11 October.
The second test is set for Auckland on 18 October, but the test could be moved to Dunedin if Auckland remains under stricter coronavirus restrictions than the rest of the country.
Currently Auckland currently is under Level 2 lockdown rules, meaning the test at Eden Park would be played without fans.
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Wallabies grounded
Australian airline Qantas has re-evaluted some of its key sports sponsorships, and has chosen not to renew its deal with the Wallabies beyond 2020 after seeking significant cost savings across the board as it battles with the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.
The announcement sees an end to a 30-year association between the Wallabies and Qantas.
“Qantas has had a very long association with Rugby Australia and the Wallabies, and we’ve stuck with each other during difficult times,” read a statement from the airline.
“Unfortunately, this pandemic has been the undoing. Like all Australians, we’ll continue to cheer them on from the sidelines.”
Apparantly Rugby Australia broke their partnership with Qantas because they need cash and cannot afford to keep a major sponsor on contra alone.
“While it is obviously disappointing to lose such a loyal partner, it is understandable given the world we are all now living in, and the challenges we are all facing,” Rugby Australia’s interim chief executive Rob Clarke said.
It leaves RA searching for a new sponsor, but chairman Hamish McLennan has hinted that there has already been interest from other companies.
“This doesn’t change our plan because we will replace Qantas, so the plan we’re executing remains intact,” McLennan said.
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Wandering eyes
Another week, another report suggesting that South Africa are ditching Super Rugby.
PRO14 officials issued a statement regarding the involvement of South African teams in the five-nation tournament, with a interesting quote that would indicate that competition would try and lure the SA Super Rugby franchises to Europe following the exit of the Kings and the Cheetahs.
“PRO14 Rugby and SA Rugby are in early discussions about potentially expanding the tournament and deepening our partnership to include more South African franchises from 2021,” the statement said.
This has lead to speculation that the Bulls, Lions, Sharks and Stormers are all set to join the Pro14 competition, signalling the end of South Africa’s invlovement in Super Rugby.
The Southern Kings went into voluntary liquidation on Saturday after announcing an accumulated deficit of R55million, with zero income expected for the remainder of 2020.
Mark Alexander, SA Rugby president confirmed that they would not be helping the Kings organisation.
“The history of the Kings has been one of expectation and anticipation but unfortunately the parallel story of commercial failure couldn’t be wished away any longer,” he said. “The debts the organisation has accumulated over the years are considerable and in the current environment, the only certainty was that they would grow.
“The membership of SA Rugby has invested heavily in the Kings project but it is now time for a re-examination of what is the appropriate and sustainable pathway for rugby in the Eastern Province.”
Its all but decided that the Cheetahs will be kicked out of the Pro14 to make way for the four other franchises if the competition was to expend next year.
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