Melbourne in the running for 15th Super rugby team as part of expansion

[travelling_gerry]

Melbourne in the running for 15th Super rugby team as part of expansion

By Wayne Smith
March 06, 2009 The Victorian Government says the Australian Rugby Union and SANZAR would not be "fair dinkum" if they did not base their new expansion Super team in Melbourne.
What Australian Rugby Union boss John O'Neill euphemistically described yesterday as a "robust" seven-hour SANZAR board meeting in Dubai took the three partners - Australia, New Zealand and South Africa - back to where they were in July, committed in principle to expanding the existing Super 14 to a Super 15 by 2011.
After the now traditional round where all teams will play off once, the expanded 22-week competition will then split into five-team conferences based in the three separate countries for an abbreviated round of local derbies, leading into a six-team finals series.
But the real coup for Australia was that SANZAR decided the new expansion team would play in the Australian conference.
The South AFrican Rugby Union signalled it might still press for an Eastern Cape team to be awarded the licence, while the New Zealand Rugby Union indicated one or more of its provinces might nominate. But, realistically, the working party set up by SANZAR to be chaired by New Zealander Cameron Goode can only come up with one workable outcome. "The thing I keep coming back to is that the fifth team will play in the Australian conference," O'Neill said.
"It really doesn't make sense for an Eastern Cape to fit into an Australian conference."
Expressions of interest would most likely come from Melbourne, western Sydney, Gosford, Newcastle and the Gold Coast.
James Merlino, the Victorian Minister for Sport, said the Victorian Government was "absolutely supportive" of the Victorian Rugby Union's bid to win the licence.
"If the ARU does not choose Melbourne, they are simply not fair dinkum about making rugby a national sport," said Merlino.
Merlino also announced that the VRU would receive $500,000 to relocate its entire operations, including its centre of excellence, to the $270million Rectangular Stadium to be finished next year.
The Bracks Government commissioned the new stadium four years ago, timing its announcement to support Melbourne's ultimately unsuccessful bid for the Super 14 expansion licence the ARU granted instead to Perth.
"The new Melbourne super rugby team will be based in an iconic new stadium in the heart of the sporting precinct in the sporting capital of the world," Merlino said.
Behind the bonhomie and bravado, however, the Victorian Government is understood to be bringing some serious pressure to bear on the ARU to ensure Melbourne is not once again "jilted" - as described by VRU president Gary Gray.
Merlino would not comment directly on rumours the Victorian Government might even withdraw its considerable investment in rugby if an Australian licence goes to another city.
"Get the Wallabies to Melbourne and you get huge crowd support," he said.
"Those Tests are certainly an important part of our sporting calendar. But what we want to see is an elite Super rugby team playing out of Melbourne."
Ultimately, it might well be the market that decides with O'Neill suggesting the broadcasters, News Corporation, would be asked for input on where the new team is located when SANZAR submits its proposal to them before June 30. If ratings are to be the ultimate measure, it is difficult to see how Melbourne could be overlooked.
But if the ARU thought it had a hard sell on its hands persuading South Africa and New Zealand to award the expansion licence to the Australian conference, it will have to raise its persuasive powers to even higher levels to convince the existing four Australian Super 14 franchises a fifth team can be created without plunging them into crisis.
"What concerns us is the prospect of a fifth fully Australian team," said Queensland Rugby Union chairman Peter Lewis. "We're just getting back on our feet after being gutted in 2005 (when Western Force raided the Queensland Reds). New South Wales Waratahs are nearing the end of a generation. The Brumbies are emerging again but the Force are just about to enter an extremely difficult contracting period.
"A fifth purely Australian team would weaken the four existing franchises. I actually have a radical alternative to suggest - a hybrid team made up of eight players each from Argentina, Japan, the Pacific Islands and Australia, to be based at Ballymore."
And while the QRU is alarmed that a Gold Coast franchise would undermine the Reds, less than 100km up the Pacific Highway, the New South Wales Rugby Union must equally be concerned about what impact a second near-Sydney franchise would have on the Tahs.
NSWRU chief executive Jim L'Estrange said it was early days to consider the ramifications of the expanded competition.


http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,...002381,00.html

[Happy]

I think for a 15th team to work we need the ARC to return

[AndyS]

Which will hopefully be back on the agenda once the new S14/Test schedule is clarified. I think the idea of mid-week Tests during the sharp end of the S14 is ridiculous though - way to create a Club v Country clash worse than the NH!

[shasta]

James Merlino, the Victorian Minister for Sport, said the Victorian Government was "absolutely supportive" of the Victorian Rugby Union's bid to win the licence.

Merlino also announced that the VRU would receive $500,000 to relocate its entire operations, including its centre of excellence, to the $270million Rectangular Stadium to be finished next year.

"The new Melbourne super rugby team will be based in an iconic new stadium in the heart of the sporting precinct in the sporting capital of the world," Merlino said.

want to see is an elite Super rugby team playing out of Melbourne."

Hang your collective heads in shame, WA Pollies.

[Burgs]

I think for a 15th team to work we need the ARC to return

...first.

[Jasper]

What about a reserve grade type comp - played between the 5 Ozzy teams - maybe only playing when the senior team is playing - so not everyweek in the first part of the comp.

Team made up of senior and accademy players - and maybe a couple of local club players. Only travel within Australia

Home and away = 8 regular season games and say a final, so each team only having to Travel say 4 to 5 times in a season? doesn't sound too expensive.

[Burgs]

Would certainly have to help, an extra 110 players on the paddock most weeks

[laura]

Why don't they sort out what we have before they make it worse. Make sure all 4 of the current teams are WELL on the road to raking in huge profits before you make a 5th one that is going to draw on what seem to be limited resources, especially with the financial crisis and economic downturn and all that stuff. Focus on making Australian Rugby the best that it can be before you try to grow it at the top level. Start from the bottom and work your way up ARU.

[AndyS]

No offence, but it is just a bit funny to hear us now echoing all the criticisms circulating when they announced that there would be a fourth franchise...

[force addict]

takes the pressure off us now. oh no wait, it doesn't, its gonna be another east coast team isn't it...

[laura]

No offence, but it is just a bit funny to hear us now echoing all the criticisms circulating when they announced that there would be a fourth franchise...

I thought that when I was typing too but then I thought bugger it, there was a significant amount of time between the third and fourth franchise being established so they should now give due respect to the fourth franchise to let them establish a little further before they introduce a fifth.

I'm not being Force bias either, I would say it regardless of whichever country or state/province had the newest team.

[mudskipper]

Times up in 2011 (perhaps) the advantage is, the Force can sign players for 2010 season onwards now so I wouldn't worry too much... But in 2011 it will the Forces 6th year... It put pressure on all provinces. We may see a few play opt for a one year contract in 2010...

Its also likely the next province will not start signing until late 2010 if it happens at all.

The time between the third and fourth teams had a lot to do with the growth in the broadcaster...

[AndyS]

Thinking about it over the weekend, just about everyone has bollocksed themselved with the expansion team.

The Saffers have the depth, but have shot themselves in the foot by saying they want a racially selected team. They were always going to be a problem anyway, as they would have to play in the Australian group if the number of rounds is expanded. If there looks to be any traction on a SA team, I think the Australians should insist that the "Aus pool" team be rotated so it could be the Sharks or Bulls that have to relocate to Australia for an extra five weeks. For a bunch that whinge about the travel, it doesn't seem to make much sense.

The Kiwi's also have the depth, but one look at their attendances so far this year makes it laughable to consider. Seriously, they can't even pull crowds for derbies so they have to be kidding. They should put their efforts into promoting the game they have, not looking to add a Stewart Island team (or whatever).

Unfortunately, they all have legs because the Australians have no depth. The intrinsic flaw in the idea that all player development be done solely in the S14 teams and associated academies is that there can never be any real depth. They can play as many derby games and seconds matches as they like, but the number of players available for selection is just not increased. If they had perservered with a modified ARC, the fifth team would have been the pay-off. Instead, assuming they manage to convince the partners and sponsor that they can somehow scrape together a team, they will almost certainly have to spend up on players or forced relocations. Cheaper than the ARC? - well, we'll see. My guess is not, and they still won't have addressed the issue of no depth.

If it is Melbourne, it will be interesting to see how they will go about getting players. You can already see the issues coming up with the Islanders and Japan, where they are not interested in being part of someone elses team. No-one is going to risk losing their best and brightest and, financially, what is actually in it for them? So assuming the new team will have to get expats, Leaguies and overseas Aussies, I suppose it will be:
- Salary concessions for any Australian players brought back from Europe. At least it theoretically expands the pool of potential Wallabies.
- Concessions for Leaguies, although I would be pissed if they were dishing out ARU contracts. It will cost them that sort of money though, which will only get the born-and-bred Union players well pissed.
- Open the doors to the flood (not!) of overseas players dying to get over here. Still, apparently there are a heap of black players from Eastern Province and a whole bunch of disenfranchised Kiwi's to be poached...