Ideas to improve the standard of rugby in the NH

[Macsen]

So you expect players to play their youth rugby in Winter conditions and then their careers in the Summer? Coaches will pick player suited for the conditions they're plying in and these are the ones who come through they'll also be used to a gameplan this is where they're been moulded.

Of course. The difference between playing in the winter for your school side and in the summer if you take things further aren't exactly huge. It's about the same difference as playing for the Dragons on a rainy night on Rodney Parade and playing in the Millenium Stadium under a closed roof!

Yes it does a bit. That's why they've out the new tour structures in place Ireland won't go to N.Z. for probably at least 12 years possibly 24.

They'll still play each other every year, either during a tour or in the autumn internationals.

 

[TrueSlawter]

As I said, they wouldn’t necessarily have to merge anything. All you need to do is create the 15 Super teams and situate them wherever is best in terms of geography and finance. The players would come because of the money being paid, the viewers would come because of the quality of the rugby, and whoever wants to support the teams would come, the rest can stay away if they don’t like it. After a few years new rivalries will have formed in place of the old ones, new history will be created, and people will feel the same attachment to these ‘new’ clubs as they did to the old.

The rivalries wont just fall away, Regions have been here since what 2003? and still next to no ponty fans goto the Blues games. The players may go to the clubs but fans wont unless they havent really followed the history of their club, the younger generations might but the people who know the current regions and teams before with all the rivalries wont.

 

[TRF_Cymro]

I'd like to see the Lions tour and Barbarians scrapped. The Lions tour is pretty pointless for the most part and just ruins what progress Wales makes. No one seems to care about the Baa-Baas these days (the Wales game doesn't count, they just wanted to watch Wales!), i'd rather have tests against tier 2 countries. Scrapping the Baa-Baas probably won't help improve the standard of rugby in the NH but i just wanted to get it off my chest!

This posts I cannot disagree with more. The Lions has it's purpose, it's the highest accolade for any British Isle player and to even suggest get rid of the Lions just annoys me. Wales progress cannot be blamed purely on the Lions either.

 

[lucky number 7]

NH > SH

**** the Haterz

 

[Macsen]

The rivalries wont just fall away, Regions have been here since what 2003? and still next to no ponty fans goto the Blues games. The players may go to the clubs but fans wont unless they havent really followed the history of their club, the younger generations might but the people who know the current regions and teams before with all the rivalries wont.

Well ponty fans continue to support Pontypridd. That's only natural. But you can support more than one team on different levels. I'm from north Wales so support Rygbi Gogledd Cymru, on a regional level I support the Scarlets, and on a national level I support Wales, and on a British level I support the Lions. I understand that there is a certain amount of resentment in the valleys specifically towards the regions, but I think that's an unique case and could be rectified by the regions adopting a more 'regional' identity, for example playing matches up in the valleys and not naming themselves after individual cities.

 

[Dizzy]

Yeah, the Barbarians games are really irrelevant now. But you can't scrap them based on the fact that the Barbarians have their own place in history.

 

[Saintjay]

How would regional rugby be good for Leicester or Northampton? I can't see how it would help England or France for that matter.

 

[smartcooky]

Here’s an idea I’ve been cooking up to improve the standard of rugby in the Northern Hemisphere:

First off, move the rugby season to summer so that it aligns with the southern hemisphere. Less foul weather will mean more exciting, running rugby than turgid battles in the mud.

Next, shut down the Celtic League, Aviva Premiership and Top 14 and establish a new, 15 team competition, along the lines of the Super Rugby championship.

You’ll have three conferences, one English conference, one French conference, and one Celtic conference (with two teams from Ireland, two from Wales and one from Scotland).

This would ensure that the very best players in the NH would be playing each other week in, week out.

Next, to increase the excitement, have every team in this league play their Super 14 equivalent at the end of the season. So the highest team in the NH league plays the highest team in the SH league, the lowest ranked plays the lowest ranked, etc.

Furthermore, scrap the Six Nations and the Rugby Championship. Introduce three leagues of six international teams, with promotion and relegation every year.

That would mean that some teams, like say Wales and Ireland, could be in and out of the top league, but it would also provide a way for international teams outside the Six Nations to climb up the ladder.

Just like that! Any thoughts?

I have just figured out who you are. You're Kerry Packer reincarnated aren't you?

 

[welshglory]

This posts I cannot disagree with more. The Lions has it's purpose, it's the highest accolade for any British Isle player and to even suggest get rid of the Lions just annoys me. Wales progress cannot be blamed purely on the Lions either.

It has been though. After the 05 and 09 lions tour Wales went to **** because of the injuries and disruption. In the next 5 to 10 years if/when the tier 2 Euro sides improve i'd much rather have a Euro comp every 4 years than the Lions.

Edit: And don't get me wrong i'm a massive supporter of the Lions and vert proud to be Welsh as well as British. But i just feel that in the modern pro game, we have to let go of some things.

 

[Macsen]

I have just figured out who you are. You're Kerry Packer reincarnated aren't you?

Reincarnated? I never died... bwahahaha...

Though if I did have a few billion to spend on rugby I'd probably just pump it directly into the WRU!

 

[Shovenose]

I think that feeling the OP is feeling is what every rugby fan feel right now. NH or SH its not the standards but things that have crept in and started spoiling the games. Most of us still watch it because we love the game but newcomers would not bother that much watching it. The game is being over officiated and the IRB has created highly technical laws where a referee can not be wrong. They messed up the scrums from the day they told the loosies must stay bound to it and just added crap on top of crap and we are where we are today. Then these Jargon laws of Around the corner and sealing off etc etc is confusing the **** out of everyone.

The TMO protocol is there these days to allow illegal tries because you could have knocked the ball on or crawled over the line and if the ref did not see it, even clearly visible to the TMO he can not say anything about it. If the guy dotted it down try. Now they brought in more crap about phases back they can look at. Why not ask the TMO if the try was scored and if he spots a infringement before it let him tell the ref about it like a AR does. Why turn it into a American Football show where the ref had to ask to see a specific part.

Then lets not start at the scrums where they think because a prop binds legally he can not pull down a scrum. Well that is what referees think these days. What a joke

 

[HenryChinaski]

Make kids in the UK more aware of rugby from an early age and therefore get them wanting to be rugby players, rather than the current thing where kids arn't aware of rugby as a sport option until secondary school.

In my opinion one important way to do this is to make rugby more available to watch. In The southern hemipshere during SUperRugby season you can watch EVERY game live on tv! What a great chance to get behind a team of your choice! In the UK Aviva premiership and Rabo direct coverage of games is way too infrequent, just a couple of choice games. If you support a side who arn't 'in vogue' with the skysports brown-nosers, (e.g worcester), you will barely see them on tv ever. How can you possibly be excited by rugby from a young age if it's not even something you can participate in even by watching?

 

[Teh Mite]

Every game on tv means stupid Kick off times (they're bad enough already) and reduced attendances.

Better promotion of the club game is required instead of the Elitist attitue towards sub-standard test rugby.

Ditching 50% of the (mostly pointless) laws so newbies can understand the game would also help.

 

[William18]

Every game on tv means stupid Kick off times (they're bad enough already) and reduced attendances.

Better promotion of the club game is required instead of the Elitist attitue towards sub-standard test rugby.

Ditching 50% of the (mostly pointless) laws so newbies can understand the game would also help.

Would love to know what laws you want us to ditch. Personally, I'm a fan of rugby the way it is. We shouldn't change our game to suit other people. These other people will either like our sport or they won't and that is up to them. We don't want to ruin what we have already got.

 

[William18]

Here’s an idea I’ve been cooking up to improve the standard of rugby in the Northern Hemisphere:

First off, move the rugby season to summer so that it aligns with the southern hemisphere. Less foul weather will mean more exciting, running rugby than turgid battles in the mud.

Next, shut down the Celtic League, Aviva Premiership and Top 14 and establish a new, 15 team competition, along the lines of the Super Rugby championship.

You’ll have three conferences, one English conference, one French conference, and one Celtic conference (with two teams from Ireland, two from Wales and one from Scotland).

This would ensure that the very best players in the NH would be playing each other week in, week out.

Next, to increase the excitement, have every team in this league play their Super 14 equivalent at the end of the season. So the highest team in the NH league plays the highest team in the SH league, the lowest ranked plays the lowest ranked, etc.

Furthermore, scrap the Six Nations and the Rugby Championship. Introduce three leagues of six international teams, with promotion and relegation every year.

That would mean that some teams, like say Wales and Ireland, could be in and out of the top league, but it would also provide a way for international teams outside the Six Nations to climb up the ladder.

Just like that! Any thoughts?

I don't think moving the game to summer is going to suddenly mean NH rugby teams start playing open and expansive rugby. Even if they do, it seems questionable as to whether that will actually advantage the game. Lots of people in the NH seem to like rugby the way it is. I would love a synchronized global rugby calendar but basically all the NH posters in this thread want the sport to be still be played over winter so that is the way it should be.

The NH Super 15 idea would be terrible. You would have to get rid of a lot of traditional clubs and it would shut Italy out. Countries like Wales, Scotland and Ireland are going to have less depth than they do at the moment. I love the NH club rugby as it has variety with the Heineken Cup interspersed with the regular competition.

I also like the idea of allowing international teams to move between leagues but it shouldn't be done on a world wide scale. The travel that would be involved would just be too much.

 

[welshglory]

Make kids in the UK more aware of rugby from an early age and therefore get them wanting to be rugby players, rather than the current thing where kids arn't aware of rugby as a sport option until secondary school.

In my opinion one important way to do this is to make rugby more available to watch. In The southern hemipshere during SUperRugby season you can watch EVERY game live on tv! What a great chance to get behind a team of your choice! In the UK Aviva premiership and Rabo direct coverage of games is way too infrequent, just a couple of choice games. If you support a side who aren't 'in vogue' with the skysports brown-nosers, (e.g worcester), you will barely see them on tv ever. How can you possibly be excited by rugby from a young age if it's not even something you can participate in even by watching?

That isn't helping the SH in fact it's probably leading to reduced attendances, especially in NZ and Australia.

I'd actually like to see less RaboPro 12 games live on tv, so that people actually turn up at the stadiums. Maybe introduce a black out thing like they do in American sports.

 

[Gena_ZA]

Make kids in the UK more aware of rugby from an early age and therefore get them wanting to be rugby players, rather than the current thing where kids arn't aware of rugby as a sport option until secondary school.

In my opinion one important way to do this is to make rugby more available to watch. In The southern hemipshere during SUperRugby season you can watch EVERY game live on tv! What a great chance to get behind a team of your choice! In the UK Aviva premiership and Rabo direct coverage of games is way too infrequent, just a couple of choice games. If you support a side who arn't 'in vogue' with the skysports brown-nosers, (e.g worcester), you will barely see them on tv ever. How can you possibly be excited by rugby from a young age if it's not even something you can participate in even by watching?

Yes in SA all games are televised live but the crowd attendances are great, guess it is a love of the sport, in your blood
SuperSport also airs all the local Vodacom Cup and Currie Cup matches, the NZ NPC, Heineken cup, French top 14 and probably some more and most international matches
Most live football, rugby, cricket, tennis and golf of any broadcaster worldwide, we are blessed but will never shy away fro the opportunity to watch a game live
Parents should make their kids aware of the game, the clubs, the spirit - it starts at home

 

[HenryChinaski]

Whislt I can see the argument for televised games reducing match attendance, remember that at early ages where a life-long intrest in rugby is far from guaranteed, televised sport is the way in. Not everybody can/will go to matches to find out whether they like the sport.

Also, if your father is a football fan, what chance do you have of seeing rugby matches? Rugby on tv is how you decide what you think about the sport, and get to know a few of the rules. Unlike football, it's not a sport you can just turn up at a match and understand why people love it straight away, because as many people are saying theres lots of slightly arcane, even arbitrary rules. I do think televised sport is important, also because depending on income you may not always be able to go matches. (On my current income as a recent graduate, I get to about half a dozen wasps matches a season, paid for by my dad. No chance otherwise)

 

[big ginger 8]

Television hasn't hurt attendances in Ireland pretty much every Leinster, Munster and Ulster game is televised yet they all get really good crowds.

 

[HenryChinaski]

Television hasn't hurt attendances in Ireland pretty much every Leinster, Munster and Ulster game is televised yet they all get really good crowds.

Really!? That's awesome. Maybe I'll start supporting Ulster for something to do...