Tuesday’s rugby news has Genia pulling himself from Bledisloe consideration, Lealiifano given an unusual incentive, the ARU trying to force a TV bidding war and Dean Mumm to face a significant sideline stint.
The Call of the Wallaby
[youtube id=FjrwOV3PWGc width=”400″ height=”235″]A quick first-up reminder to check out the new Australian rugby documentary “The Call of the Wallaby” tonight, featuring Sean Maloney and Andrew Swain seeking to discover what it means to be a true Wallaby supporter. The pair will follow seven fanatical fans from different demographics ahead of the Bledisloe Cup match on August 16. The show premieres Tuesday 15th July, 7pm, Fox Sports 1.
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Genia out of Bledisloe
Will Genia has reluctantly ruled himself out of next month’s opening Bledisloe hit-out, lamenting the fact that his right ankle will not be ready. “I just want to play but I have to be 100 per cent right and that first one against the All Blacks will be a week early,” Genia said. The setback will be damaging for the Reds halfback, who has recently plummeted in the Test ranks, being overlooked for Nic White and Nick Phipps in the June Tests against France.
Genia also emphasised that the Reds will improve from this year’s dismal performance and be a major threat for the title next year, under the tutelage of under-siege coach Richard Graham. [/one_half]
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Lealiifano’s kicking under pressure
Brumbies captain Ben Mowen has resorted to a ‘beer penalty’ to improve Christian Lealiifano’s kicking percentage throughout the finals. Lealiifano has only kicked 49% throughout 2014 (after 78% last season prior to ankle surgery) and Mowen revealed that the centre will be ‘penalised’ two beers each time he misses a kick at goal.
Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham, however, believes that Lealiifano is growing in confidence and is largely back to his best, blaming the kicking slump on the inability to take the necessary reps during the pre-season focus on running rehabilitation. [/one_half]
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ARU looking to improve TV deal
ARU boss Bill Pulver has pledged to grow the code’s television earnings by producing a bidding war between several free-to-air networks as part of the new deal. Currently on a $25 million dollar annual deal with Fox Sports and Network 10 that expires in 2015, Pulver said that he is “confident” rugby union could achieve a significant uplift, akin to the $40-million annual deal that Australian soccer holds with Fox Sports and SBS.
“We have a relatively modest percentage of our revenue coming from broadcast rights…that’s something we are hoping to correct through these current negotiations,” Pulver said. Many networks remain hesitant though due to the inability to attract viewers for certain games in the New Zealand and South African time-zones. [/one_half]
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Mumm out with shoulder injury
Exeter Chiefs captain Dean Mumm has been ruled out of the start of the upcoming Premiership season after undergoing shoulder surgery. The second row forward and former Waratah injured himself towards the end of last season but failed to recover sufficiently enough. “We are hopeful he will be back fully fit relatively quickly,” head coach Rob Baxter said. “It will not be a half-a-season job. Hopefully he will able to play in that first block of six Premiership games.”
The slower than expected recovery is an unfortunate setback for Baxter, who has been searching for another lock to add to his squad after the retirement of second rows Tommy Hayes and James Hanks last season and the departure of Romana Graham to La Rochelle. [/one_half]
