Melbourne forced to wait as Super 15 host decision sent to arbitration
October 21, 2009
Melbourne's rollercoaster ride towards possible Super 15 inclusion will career on for at least another week after an anti-climactic SANZAR meeting on Wednesday.
The highest-ranking officials from South Africa, New Zealand and Australia failed to reach an agreement on the location of the new team, sending a turbulent bid process to arbitration.
The pressure is now on to assemble an independent panel to the satisfaction of all three SANZAR partners to swiftly decide between Melbourne and South Africa's Southern Kings for the 15th licence in the expanded 2011 competition.
The successful franchise has less than 12 months before beginning pre-season training for their inaugural season, and recruitment would need to start early next year at the latest.
In the end, no vote was taken by the SANZAR executive committee at Brisbane's Sofitel Hotel as Australian and South African delegates diligently stuck by their proposed franchises.
With a unanimous decision required by the governing body's six executives, New Zealand's delegates - Steve Tew and Mike Eagle - were saved from showing their hand as both joint venture partners unsurprisingly continued to their bullish approaches.
While Melbourne appears to have an almost cast-iron case for inclusion in the expanded competition - with the new team to play in a five-team Australian conference - South Africa believe the heavily-populated Eastern Cape region deserves its own team.
Broadcasters News Ltd are also believed to be behind a Melbourne inclusion, five years after the Victorian capital was passed over for Perth's Western Force, opening a large, new market.
If they are unsuccessful, the number of matches to be played in Australia in the extended season would be 32 instead of 40.
ARU chief executive John O'Neill and chairman Peter McGrath would not comment after the meeting, which ended before they attended former chairman Leo Williams' funeral in the city.
But an ARU spokesman believed Melbourne's bid would ultimately shine out to the yet-to-be appointed arbitrator or arbitrators.
"Obviously we would have liked a positive resolution out of today's meeting but we remain confident that the Melbourne application is absolutely compelling," he said.
It's been a difficult process for the Victorian Rugby Union who were originally overlooked by the ARU in favour of the VicSuper15 consortium.
Ultimately both groups were upset when the national body decided to take over the bid, pieced together by John Wyllie.
It's understood South Africa are doubly keen to succeed in their quest with their government determined to see the black-populated Eastern Cape included in Super rugby and established teams railing against a promotion-relegation system if Melbourne wins out.
The high-veldt Lions and Cheetahs franchises, from Johannesburg and Bloemfontein respectively, would be most in danger after languishing low on the table in the last four Super 14 seasons.
AAP
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