0
Worth doing twice.
just did a survey on stuff.co.nz
"Who should the ARU cut?"
Melbourne rebels 75% vote from 4.1k votes
That is pretty damn comprehensive and shows what the general public feels and what most neutral observers realize is the smart decision
http://i.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/super-rugby/91399425/western-force-launch-legal-action-to-block-potential-super-rugby-removal
Apparently there is a RUPA email doing the rounds that states that the ARU was offered an extra $30 milllion to shaft one of the Force or Rebels and accept the Sunwolves into the Australian conference.
Has anyone seen this?
Last edited by chibi; 10-04-17 at 22:26.
Japan and the Pacific Islands for Aussie Super 9's!
Let's have one of these in WA! Click this link: Saitama Super Arena - New Perth Stadium?
Sorry Melbourne. If the ARU is genuine, the Force must stay
By Brett McKay, 11 Apr 2017
o here we are. SANZAAR have committed to strengthening the Super Rugby competition by chopping teams, and the ARU will play their part in the process by choosing to effectively kill the game off in either Melbourne or Perth from 2018.
There’s any number of questions that deserve answers as to how we got to this point, but they’re largely inconsequential now to fans of the Melbourne Rebels and Western Force.
On Monday, the ARU confirmed that the Brumbies met all the criteria developed to make the decision on which team to chop, which makes you wonder why there wasn’t more support for them in the first place.
The ARU will now enter a period of “consultation” with the Rebels and Force over the next few days, before deciding which team will be boarded up. On their own “48-72 hours” timeframe, the decision should come sometime on Wednesday, though a Western Force statement late on Monday said, “we have now been advised that we will have further time to present our business case.”
ARU Chairman Cameron Clyne and CEO Bill Pulver said on Monday that the thought of cutting a Super Rugby team had been discussed internally for some time now, pointing to the changing environment of professional rugby globally, as well as the state of the game at the professional level in Australia.
“Performance declines by our teams since the expansion of Super Rugby [to five teams back in 2011] has had a direct correlation with declines in revenue across their businesses,” Clyne said.
That being the case, why did the ARU bother going through with the sale of the Rebels to the Imperium Group back in June 2015? That was a clear opportunity to make the same concessions that have now been made, and with far less emotional and financial pain.
As part of the deal, the ARU agreed to pay the Imperium Group $6 Million over five years, over and above the annual Super Rugby grant.
Interestingly, Clyne also indicated that the Rebels being privately owned did not give them an advantage over the Force. That would at least indicate that the decision has not already been made.
Legal action could still eventuate from the Imperium Group, and indeed, RugbyWA advised ARU representatives in Perth on Monday afternoon of their intention to seek an injunction against any team-chopping moves. It’s clear this is not going to be a simple process.
Regardless of how messy it may or may not become, the wheels are now in process to make a decision.
And I firmly believe that Australian rugby will lose the least by closing down the Melbourne Rebels.
In all reality, rugby in Melbourne and broader Victoria is well down the pecking order. The AFL dwarfs all comers, but the A-League, NRL, Super Netball, and NBL competitions all have significantly more awareness of their brands than the Rebels and Super Rugby enjoy. The Rebels-Waratahs report after their Friday night home game several weeks ago saw half a column jammed in alongside the provincial trots and greyhound results in the Herald-Sun.
TV ratings for Rebels games are as flat as any of the other Australian sides.
By their own admission, the Rebels’ membership has nearly halved from more than 10,000 in 2016 to around 5500 this season. You can’t imagine that has grown much since, given their current form on the field, and the once-strong Rebel Army is virtually non-existent.
Meanwhile, over in the west, around that same number of people have signed up to $1000 shares to own part of their team, under the ‘Own The Force’ community campaign.
Future financial sustainability and ongoing sponsorship we said to be among the ARU’s criteria for the decision, and while the Imperium Group are running the Rebels on their own books, it’s notable that the Rebels have the only clean jersey-front in Super Rugby this season. They haven’t replaced this significant naming rights revenue stream since foundation partner RaboBank ended their association after the 2015 season.
After three seasons of their clever ‘multiple sponsors’ initiative (which to my understanding was still worth near $950,000 a year in total), the WA Government’s Road Safety Commission took up the naming rights for $1.5 Million in 2017, and with a three-year roll over renewal option. Several of their ‘community’ sponsors, now on the back of the jersey have announced recent extensions beyond 2017.
Significantly, new WA Premier Mark McGowan underlined his Government’s support for the Force, taking to social media just two weeks into his new Premiership:
I’ll stand corrected, but I can’t recall Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews even mentioning the Rebels.
Rugby as a sport has grown significantly in Western Australia since the admission to Super Rugby of the Western Force, and the pathways are now starting to bear serious fruit. The Force’s Super Rugby squad has around a dozen local players in their squad in 2017, ten of whom have taken the field this season.
The Future Force program has converted half a dozen young players into Super Rugby debutants in three season, and Perth Spirit’s maiden NRC title last season came after playing in the inaugural Final in 2014.
While the Rebels obviously haven’t been around as long, it’s hard to see how they meet the same game development marks as the Force, and even with private ownership, their ongoing financial position is still reliant on ARU input. The oft-referred promised land of the stronger corporate market in Melbourne really hasn’t been of any great benefit, and the though the game may be stronger at grade level, it isn’t really growing.
And with Melbourne’s higher population completely engulfed by AFL, and football to a lesser degree, it’s hard to see that changing. The Melbourne Storm really hasn’t done much for rugby league in Melbourne in nearly two decades, and let’s see how much traction they have in a few years’ time once their group of generational players call time on their careers.
There is no doubt the ARU is in for a legal fight whichever way they go. Compensation to the Imperium Group has already been mentioned and probably threatened, yet the ‘greater good’ argument should actually value the development of the game at all levels in Western Australia higher anyway.
If the ARU want to strengthen the game in Australia, they won’t ignore where it is genuinely stronger.
http://www.theroar.com.au/2017/04/11...rce-must-stay/
The ARU has offered the Melbourne Rebels and Western Force more time to state their case for Super Rugby survival beyond 2017.
ARU chairman Cameron Clyne says the governing body's initial plan to decide which franchise will be cut from the competition by Thursday had been scrapped.
Rugby WA have issued a writ against the ARU on behalf of the Force, while the Rebels are also considering their legal options as the axe hovers over both clubs ahead of next year's return to a 15-team Super Rugby format.
"The ARU will undertake due process to ensure that both the Melbourne Rebels and Western Force are given adequate opportunity to present their business case before the board makes a final decision on which team to be removed," Clyne said in a statement on Tuesday.
"We maintain our commitment to reaching resolution on this matter as soon as possible, however the timeline that we initially anticipated of 48-72 hours will not apply.
"As confirmed on Monday, we have commenced a consultation process with both teams and will provide an update at an appropriate time."
RugbyWA commenced legal proceedings on Monday night, following an "unsatisfactory meeting" with the ARU earlier in the day.
The RugbyWA board issued a statement saying the peak body had "failed to address the responsibilities that exist in the Alliance Agreement" between the two parties following the ARU's takeover of the Force last year at cost of $4.8 million.
"... we felt in order to protect our position it was necessary to issue legal proceedings to protect our rights under the Alliance Agreement," the statement explained.
The RugbyWA board said the terms of the assessment and process being used to evaluate the Force and the Rebels were "inconsistent and inequitable".
http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2...n-force-rebels
We should say FU to the 'consulation process'. We all know the outcome. Just commence further civil proceedings to keep us in the comp and the ARU honour our alliance agreement we made in good faith with them.
Non sunt multiplicanda entia sine necessitate
"12 Years a Supporter" starring the #SeaOfBlue
He'll no b&b, "due process" will sill involve stitching the force up somehow.
exactly...posters on GAGR are now stating that the ARU took the plan to kill off an aussie rugby team to SANZAAR in August 2016. the very month we entered into our alliance agreement with them
Non sunt multiplicanda entia sine necessitate
He is on rugby kick and chase today. Not sure I want to listen to the BS we are surely in for..
Heath Tessman
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April 11 Heath Tessman Western Force
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Finally got a response to my email sent 2 weeks ago...
Hi Eric,
Thank you for taking the time to write in and voicing your concerns around the current review of Super Rugby.
On Monday the ARU confirmed that one Australian team will be removed from the Super Rugby competition under a restructured 15-team competition in 2018. It was also announced that the team to be removed will be either the Western Force or Melbourne Rebels, following consultation with both teams. We will provide both teams with adequate opportunity to present their business case before making a final decision.
We understand that both teams and their fans are facing uncertainty and that this has caused considerable anguish and frustration. We are sorry for the regrettable circumstances that we as a game, including all Rugby fans, are currently faced with.
The reasons for our decision to reduce a Super Rugby team are outlined in the attached media release. This is not a decision that we ever wanted to make, but based on a range of financial and Rugby factors, it was a decision made in the best interests of Australian Rugby both in the immediate and long term.
We will keep all fans informed of any further developments.
Kind Regards