World Series Rugby set for NSW expansion

[Kiap]

According to the Daily Telegraph Darren Coleman, head coach of the NSW country Eagles and Warringah shute sheild team is set to become the coach of the Western Sydney WSR team.

Wow!

Any chance of putting some of the story up here?

[Transiting]

If true, a very positive development. As is the purported dinner meeting between Forrest, Castle and Tew. Not wanting to get ahead of ourselves, but would appear as though some news will be forthcoming shortly.

[Bakkies]

Wow!

Any chance of putting some of the story up here?

Would have to beat the firewall. Even a subscription to The Australian won't get you in.

[Bakkies]

Warringah coach Darren Coleman sensationally defects to Andrew Forrest’s competition
SEPTEMBER 26, 2018
A WESTERN Sydney team in Andrew Twiggy Forrest’s World Series Rugby competition is moving closer to fruition, and they’ve already lined up a coach.

Respected premiership-winning Warringah Rats coach Darren Coleman sensationally resigned from the club this week and is planning to coach the new Western Sydney team in 2019 if they get approval.

Forrest wants to introduce the team to his World Series, with the potential plan to have Western Sydney featuring predominantly Pacific Islander players.

As we reported recently, the Penrith Emus are set to re-enter the Shute Shield next year and act as a feeder club to the Western Sydney club.

There is resistance from NSW and Rugby Australia about the new Western Sydney team and the impact it could have on the Shute Shield.

Forrest is determined to revive rugby in Sydney’s long-ignored west.

Coleman, who is now coaching NSW Country Eagles in the NRC, famously led the Rats to an emotional 2017 premiership and got them to the grand final this year.

World Series Rugby creator Andrew Forrest. Picture: AFP
Coleman could not be reached for comment but Rugby Confidential has obtained a message he sent to Warringah players confirming his departure.

“Potentially by now you’ve heard that yesterday I resigned from my role at the Rats.

“Firstly, Thanks to the President & executive of the club for allowing me to pursue other opportunities.

“As you can imagine it was a tough decision, I have had some incredible times the last two years and forged some life long friendships.

“What we have done as a group has been so f...ing awesome.

“I regret sincerely that I haven’t been able to speak to you all individually, personally and thank you for everything you’ve done to assist, support and make me feel welcome.

“I had to respect the clubs wishes to announce my moving on first & officially.

“I’ve made this decision at this time for 3 reasons.

“1. To better be able to support my family.

“2. Find and pursue new Rugby challenges.

“3. Allow the Rats as much time as possible to find a suitable replacement.

“(Which I’ll be doing my best to help where I can).

“I will clarify/rectify one point from The Presidents release tonight.

“I have not officially locked away any role with the new Western Sydney franchise in the World Series Rugby.

“There has been lots of positive discussions & it is something I am excited by & focused on but at this point in time this competition does not exist and hasn’t been accredited nor does this franchise officially exist but all going well that is where I plan to be heading.”

***

MELBOURNE’S $1.5 million deal with major sponsor Legacy Property and Investment Group is in danger for next year as the company faces financial woes.

Legacy signed a two-year deal with the Rebels this year to be their major jersey sponsor, understood to be worth a total of $3 million.

But we understand the deal is in doubt for next season.

An ASIC company search reveals that Legacy Property and Investment Group is being wound up, with a “strike off in action”.

Melbourne is building a superstar roster for 2019, with Quade Cooper to join Matt Toomua, Isi Naisarani and Luke Jones to their team, so other sponsors shouldn’t be too difficult to find.

But whether they will match $1.5 million is another question.

***

Israel Folau wasn’t at the Waratahs awards ceremony where he was named player of the year. Picture: AAP
ISRAEL Folau’s no-show at the NSW Waratahs’ club presentation went down like a lead balloon among some players and officials.

Folau won the Matt Burke Cup as the club’s best player this season but embarrassingly for the Tahs, he was not there to collect it and they quickly ended official ceremonies.

The reason given for Folau’s absence was that he was in Melbourne for family reasons.

***

AFTER losing Israel Folau and Marika Koroibete to rugby union, you’d think the last place the Melbourne Storm would be visiting before the NRL grand final is Rugby Australia’s headquarters.

But to show there’s no hard feelings with the 15-man code, Cameron Smith, Billy Slater and the rest of the Melbourne Storm turned up Rugby Australia’s gym at Moore Park for a midmorning workout just three days before kick-off.

Melbourne Storm captain Cameron Smith in Sydney on Thursday. Picture: AAP
With one of Rugby Australia’s nearest neighbours at Moore Park being the Sydney Roosters, conspiracists might well conclude that the Storm were just sticking with the old proverb that you should keep your friends close and your enemies even closer.

But the real reason is Rugby Australia and Melbourne Storm already have close links with Lachlan Penfold, the former strength and condition coach for the Australian men’s seven teams, now working with the Storm and RA having ties with Storm Football Manager Frank Ponissi.

***

WORLD Rugby’s tentacles seem to reach into most places these days but one competition the sport’s governing body is keeping well clear of is Super Rugby.

While no-one in the southern hemisphere seems to be able to agree on the perfect format for the competition, the sport’s global bosses have got no intention of stepping into the debate.

“It’s really not my place to comment on Super Rugby, it’s a SANZAAR property,” World Rugby CEO Brett Gosper said, showing a nifty long after his playing days ended.

***

AUSTRALIA’S men’s teams have handed back most of the trophies that used to fill their trophy cabinets but there’s one they will get to keep for at least another year.

While the sevens team flopped at the World Cup, they did beat the Olympic champions Fiji to win a lower tier tournament in Munich - held during Oktoberfest.

Australia will remain champs for another 12 months at least because the tournament’s not being held during Bavaria’s famous beer festival next month as the German Rugby Federation is taking a break to push hard to try get on to the full World Rugby Sevens Series.

Australian men’s sevens players after losing to England in the Commonwealth Games.
Unable to accommodate the increasing number of countries throwing their hat into the ring to stage rounds of the series, World Rugby is looking at setting up a second tier competition to meet the demand.

The 10 countries, including Australia, that are already hosting the main series tournaments are likely to keep their places when the hosts for 2019-20 and beyond are decided.

“It’s unlikely there’s going to be a lot of change in that area, the destinations will look similar,” Gosper said. “One or maybe two different places are in discussion but 10 stops seems to be the maximum from a player welfare point of view. We’re looking at maybe doing a second tier to get some more countries into the pipeline for the major series and so on.”

[chibi]

The new rugby war is on?

[Bakkies]

The new rugby war is on?

http://www.the42.ie/epcr-south-africa-involvement-4255865-Sep2018/

Meanwhile the Saffies have approached the EPCR about joining the not the Heineken Cup now sponsored by Heineken.

[SPaRTAN]

Little more on WSR...

Castle's diplomacy closing the rift between Twiggy and Rugby Australia

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By Georgina Robinson & Tom Decent
27 September 2018 — 8:00pm
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Breaking bread with Twiggy and Tewy

Amid all the rugby diplomacy taking place in Sydney this week, one of the most significant off-piste developments was a working dinner between Rugby Australia chief executive Raelene Castle, her New Zealand rugby counterpart (and good friend) Steve Tew and World Series Rugby creator Andrew "Twiggy" Forrest.

Rugby Australia chief executive Raelene Castle.
Rugby Australia chief executive Raelene Castle.

Photo: AAP
The trio dined on Sunday night in perhaps the most encouraging sign yet that Castle and the RA board are serious about bringing Forrest into the tent. Tew’s presence is the really interesting part. We suppose he was doing due diligence given Forrest wants to start a World Series team in New Zealand. It would have been a good chance for both union bosses to grill Forrest on his intentions, given the WSR model does not nominate who will own each team, only that Forrest will fund a clutch of players and put up the $1 million prize pool. Any national union in their right minds would want to know who would shoulder the risk should the privately-owned teams run into financial problems.

‘Bid-whisperer’ lends Olympic lustre to women’s World Cup bid

Whether he is snaffling his mate’s super yacht to ferry dignitaries across the harbour or lending an ear to officials working on the Women’s World Cup bid, Rod McGeoch says he will do whatever it takes to convince World Rugby officials that Australia and not New Zealand is the best choice to host the 2021 tournament.

Australia’s internationally sought-after "bid whisperer", McGeoch was hired this year by the NSW Government to head its push to host 10 championships in 10 years.

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He was the man whose hard work made possible that unforgettable announcement in 1993 - "The winner is… Sid-da-nee!" - a two-vote win over rivals Beijing that brought the Olympics to Australia in 2000. And he believes Rugby Australia’s bid to bring women’s rugby to the Hunter Valley and Newcastle shares two key traits with the Sydney 2000 bid.

"We are very, very lucky that the World Rugby meetings were on this week - it is a particularly special opportunity," McGeoch said. "We happened to snare a major meeting of the sports federations while we were bidding [for Sydney] as well, so it was an opportunity to show off the strength of our bid."

The other common thread is that Sydney created the largest ever athlete’s village at an Olympics and, in a similar vein, RA hope to take the Women’s World Cup to the next level. "Women’s World Cups are pretty new as far as big events go and they’ve started somewhat low key," McGeoch said. "At the previous World Cup [in Ireland] the players were billeted and haven’t been as favoured as much as men have been in World Cups." Australia will put all players up at the Crowne Plaza in the Hunter and hope that putting the athletes front and centre will show World Rugby how serious they are about elevating the women’s game. World Rugby Council will vote on the bid in an open ballot in Dublin on November 14.

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No punting for Shute Shield players next year

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If you’re a player and have been having a flutter on the Shute Shield in recent years, your luck is about to run out. After revelations Sydney Premier Cricket bosses were concerned about a Sportsbet market that let punters bet on whether Steve Smith would get a hundred for Sutherland last weekend, the Sydney Rugby Union is also expected to clamp down on the betting.

There are more betting options for Shute Shield fixtures but as of 2019, the Cauliflower understands there will be a new participation agreement that will incorporate all players and coaches banning them from betting on Shute Shield fixtures.

Spotted!

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While Michael Cheika retains the faith of the Rugby Australia board, for the moment, there have been a few names tossed up as his potential replacement. One of those is Dave Rennie, the former Chiefs Super Rugby winning coach. Funnily enough, The Cauliflower spotted the current Glasgow Warriors coach walking down one of the main streets in Port Elizabeth, less than a kilometre away from the Wallabies’ team hotel. He was about to take a flight back to Scotland after his side’s dismal loss to the Kings and didn’t look in a great mood.

Social experiment

Cheika loves trying new things and Tuesday was no different at Wallabies training. He rocked up to the session wearing an Australian cap with the tag still dangling out the back. His mission? To see how many players and staff came up to him to try and rip it off. The results? "About 85 per cent came up and weren’t doing what they should have been," Cheika joked.

Paying homage to Mick Fanning

About half a dozen Wallabies players made the hour drive this week to check out Jeffreys Bay - the spot where fellow Aussie Mick Fanning was almost bitten by a shark while competing at the J-Bay Open in 2015. Some of the lads decided for a round of golf instead on their day off at Humewood Golf Course, the only "authentic" links course in South Africa.

[valzc]

Twiggy won’t be reveal any ‘details’ until RA finally give the nod, and I’d bet all my money on Twiggy getting the better of this road block. RA think they can drag it out till the cows come home, but they seem too stupid to realise they’re effectively cornered.

[andrewg]

Totally agree valzc but oh to be a fly on the wall for those meetings involving World Rugby, the RA and the other representative Unions.
I wouldn't be surprised if the beligerance of RA has resulted in some compromises in order to get WSR going in 2019.

Will it mean less teams? More teams? Different teams?
Will RA's dog in the manger attitude toward any idea that they can't present as their own mean that Western Sydney has to wait?
Will they confirm Wallaby eligibility for Western Force players? What about other Aussies playing for other teams.
The lack of any news/announcements is a worry as time marches on for player recruitment, locking in fixtures and grounds.
I just hope that WSR gets the nod SOON.
At least we have the NRC games as a distraction. Really enjoying the discipline being shown by our lads - the only team w/out a YC so far

[JSJ]

So much for "hands off the Shute Shield players". Well I suppose he is coach, not a player. He must pretty convinced about WSR and Western Sydney is really happening to resign from his current role.

So we have not seen any leaks about the NZ team or coaches. But if Twiggy is having dinner with Tew, something must be brewing there as well.

[UAUdiver1959]

So much for "hands off the Shute Shield players". Well I suppose he is coach, not a player. He must pretty convinced about WSR and Western Sydney is really happening to resign from his current role.

So we have not seen any leaks about the NZ team or coaches. But if Twiggy is having dinner with Tew, something must be brewing there as well.

The NZ team that WSR are talking too is "North Harbour"....

[Bakkies]

So much for "hands off the Shute Shield players". Well I suppose he is coach, not a player. He must pretty convinced about WSR and Western Sydney is really happening to resign from his current role.

So we have not seen any leaks about the NZ team or coaches. But if Twiggy is having dinner with Tew, something must be brewing there as well.

If he brings any players over they can just leave their clubs.

[AndyS]

Probably all just a waste of time speculating while it is all just contradictory Chinese whispers.

[SPaRTAN]

The NZ team that WSR are talking too is "North Harbour"....

Damn. It should be Taranaki, a team that had been constantly let down by NZRU and Super rugby sides... not sure about North Harbour, when did they last win an NPC/Mitre10 cup?

[SPaRTAN]

I suspose by capturing Western Sydney and North Harbour they are putting sides in the two biggest cities in each country and in areas where rugby has been pretty much abondoned. Can't remember too many Aucklanders giving two shits about staging super rugby games in North Harbour where the fans struggle to engage...

Basically he is rejuvinating the two main rugby cities giving them a new team to watch and support in areas pretty much neglected by their governing body. I see the strategic vision, it is genius. I reckon both Western Sydney and North Harbour Auckland would get right behind World Series Rugby