0
TAINE RANDELL
Last updated 05:00 27/10/2013
OPINION: The All Blacks should be heading to Suva, Apia or Nuku'alofa tomorrow rather than Tokyo.
These end-of-year tours certainly aren't what they used to be. They've almost become development tours.
But without the benefit of midweek matches, the All Blacks have had to use tests for these purposes.
That's the reality of the current environment with the All Blacks becoming so dominant.
They've also used the tours to cash in on some commercial opportunities, with matches against Australia in places like Hong Kong and Tokyo hardly raising an eyebrow.
But to be playing a virtual All Blacks B side against Japan up there raises another issue.
Given the fantastic health that the New Zealand Rugby Union enjoys at the moment on the back of the All Blacks brand, isn't it about time it took a long-term view of the broader rugby picture?
Wouldn't it be better to head down another path and play a test in the Pacific Islands rather than Asia or the United States, which appears to be their next route?
I have no doubt that would result in tons of goodwill for New Zealand as well as lifting the profile of the game in general.
And a better state of world rugby has got to have major flow-on effects for the All Blacks.
There's no doubt the Islands are dealt a pretty rough hand considering their amazing talent and enormous potential. Despite their struggles, they regularly surprise at World Cups. It feels like they are then left to languish.
I'd argue there would be more interest in New Zealand and the rugby world in general to watch the All Blacks playing a test in the Islands than there would be taking on Japan in Tokyo.
The finger is often pointed at the All Blacks for having so many Island players in their ranks. But the reality these days is that Island players have a better chance of becoming serious professionals in European countries and we are seeing their ranks swell in the test teams from countries like England, Wales and even France.
That raises another issue. There have been some whispers of Pacific Islands involvement in the Super Rugby expansion, and I'm all for that. They would certainly add some competition and prestige to the competition.
Australia's determination to get more of their teams involved has been to the detriment of rugby across the Tasman. The Melbourne Rebels and Western Force are weak teams that generate little interest to the wider audience. Really Taine?
Gates in Suva, Apia or Nuku'alofa mightn't be as lucrative but I've no doubt that TV viewership would make up for that. Rugby fans in New South Wales and Queensland would rather watch their teams playing an Island side than the Rebels or Force (are you sure Taine?) and the same could be said of New Zealand audiences, especially with our large Island population. There's also a passionate and captive audience in the Islands - rugby needs to tap into that. The powers that be need to have the courage to go and get them. Having an Island team in Super Rugby would go a long way to stopping the talent drain that is increasingly heading to Europe.
Taine Randell is a former All Blacks captain
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by PerthGirl
