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Former Wallaby Stephen Hoiles made a vital, unmissable point in the immediate aftermath of the Wallabies\u2019 loss to Wales at the World Cup.<\/p>\n
Hoiles said that whenever anyone raised the question of reducing Australia\u2019s Super Rugby teams to three, they were immediately attacked.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s got to stop. Hoiles, in his current role of Randwick coach, would likely personally benefit from the five-team model staying as it is. He would get to \u2018promote\u2019 more of his Shute Shield players into Super Rugby, and there are more coaching roles available (and he is destined for Super Rugby). He is actually acting contrary to self-interest, which should be a principle for others to take note of.<\/p>\n
But let\u2019s park that debate until later. It\u2019s complex, and with so many issues confronting Australian rugby the next steps on the road to improvement should be those which are readily achievable.<\/p>\n
Rugby Australia, New Zealand Rugby and their Pasifika partners can toughen up Super Rugby overnight by getting rid of the eight-team finals series and addressing the lopsided draw that rewards the poorer teams.<\/p>\n
The design was acceptable in the first few years of Super Rugby Pacific, especially as the competition featured two new teams, the Fijian Drua and Moana Pasifika, and the Western Force coming back from a spell on the outer.<\/p>\n
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The Super Rugby competition needs a revamp to boost the southern hemisphere Test teams. <\/span>Credit: <\/span>Getty<\/cite><\/p>\n But, after two years we can see the system for what it is \u2013 the tail wagging the dog, and incompatible to the concept of a professional competition.<\/p>\n In fact, teams on both sides of the Tasman clearly gamed the system last season, selecting their strongest teams for the games they thought were winnable, with the Brumbies even sending a weakened team to face the Crusaders.<\/p>\n We\u2019ve really got to harden up in this part of the world if we want to match the new standards being set in the Northern Hemisphere. At present, the competition that is supposed to prepare players for Test rugby promotes participation over merit \u2013 six teams is enough for the finals series, arguably even four.<\/p>\n If your response to that argument is, \u2018this will mean that hardly any of our teams will be in the finals\u2019, then that\u2019s a piece of evidence to be factored into the five-team-versus-three-team debate isn\u2019t it?<\/p>\n Morally, of course, Rugby Australia can\u2019t cut teams. Chairman Hamish McLennan has already given his word that the Melbourne Rebels and Western Force will continue, so the debate may actually be moot.<\/p>\n But it is still important to state the following: it is hard to make a good Super Rugby footballer.<\/p>\n I watch a lot of the NPC in New Zealand. There are 14 teams, with 28-man squads playing in a competition that most Australians would deem to be good quality.<\/p>\n But a lot of those players just aren\u2019t Super Rugby players: they don\u2019t have the right mix of physical, technical or tactical attributes to make it in Super Rugby.<\/p>\n And there is another group of players who will make it to Super Rugby and sign two- or three-year deals, but for whatever reason fail to kick on and return to the NPC (or move overseas).<\/p>\n Don\u2019t forget what Super Rugby is (or is supposed to be). It\u2019s a competition that sits underneath Test rugby: it\u2019s supposed to be rarefied air, where only a small percentage of your players survive or thrive.<\/p>\n Anyone, not just Australia, would need to have an exceptional development and pathway system to fill five teams, especially these days when there is the well-documented leakage to Japan and Europe.<\/p>\n Sometimes, you also hear the \u201cbut our under-20s are going well\u201d argument. But, frankly, if you get 10 players each year going from that program into being good Super Rugby players, that\u2019s a solid return. It\u2019s only one part of a much bigger puzzle with Australia\u2019s five Super Rugby squads needing about 200 players.<\/p>\n However, let\u2019s take a step back. Cutting teams probably won\u2019t happen, and it certainly won\u2019t happen overnight. A much more realistic step is toughening up Super Rugby by reducing the finals series and putting some real jeopardy into every round.<\/p>\n This is Australia\u2019s first nettle to grasp, and the pending Super Rugby commission should address it as a priority.<\/p>\n