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By using team nicknames, rugby is slowly selling its soul

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snoopy snoopy dog dog

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<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div>
http://www.theroar.com.au/2009/03/01/by-us...lling-its-soul/


There was a time, not so long ago, where a team belonged to the land, where the geographical link was all important, and spoke volumes for the identity of all involved from that team. We are from here. This is our turf.

Nowadays, a disturbing and shallow trend has emerged, and it all began not in the USA but in Super rugby.

I'm referring to the deliberate and cynical censorship of team identities in favour of some mascot-type name supposed to inspire fear and awe. I don't know about you, but names like Munster, Canterbury, Toulouse, and Natal to name but a few, carry decades of meaning, memories and tradition.

Names like the Force, Crusaders, Stormers are bullshit tags dreamed up by marketing agencies who know next to nothing about the history of our game.

It's even happening in the UK - increasingly Leicester are referred to as the Tigers, Neath and Swansea merged to become Ospreys. From where, exactly?

In doing so, Neath lost their Maltese Cross logo. History and tradition which should be treasure dribbles away slowly until it is forgotten.

Let's get this straight, I've got no problems with the nicknames added on. Where I draw the line is when they take over entirely from the city or province where the team has put down its roots.

Imagine renaming Manchester United the Red Devils and only ever referring to them and hearing them called by that name?

Call me a romantic, but isn't this lost link a fundamental cornerstone to your team and it's definition to you as a part of that club (remember they were once clubs)? Lose the name and the meaning to the average fan quickly gets lost itself and can be traded or forgotten cheaply.

This is particularly pernicious in New Zealand and South Africa so, in case you've forgotten :

Canterbury Crusaders
Otago Highlanders
Wellington Hurricanes
Waikato Chiefs
Auckland Blues

Orange Free State Cheetahs
Natal Sharks
Gauteng Lions
Western Cape Stormers
Blue Bulls (exception to the rule, unless someone can help!)[/b]
I tend to agree with this. What have Sharks got to do with Sale and the Greater Manchester region? Do Tigers freely roam the streets of Leicester? A few years ago Leinster adopted the moniker of "Leinster Lions". Thankfully the fans got their way and that awful marketing tag was lifted.

Recently we've seen US soccer franchises give up on their pathetic gimmicky team names in favour of more traditional names (eg FC Dallas, Toronto FC and the more dubious Houston Dynamo and Real Salt Lake). Why can't rugby follow suit and allow team nicknames form more naturally rather than created at the whim of a marketing guru?
 
The only problem with naming the New Zealand teams by their main province is that it isn't the only province they represent. For the Hurricanes to name themselves 'Wellington' would be a great disrespect to the other provinces who support them.

However, the teams who actually have the history that the articles speaks of are still named after their province in the Air New Zealand Cup competition. In saying that, the teams that have recently been added to this competition have been given stupid nick names to go with their actual province (the Steamers, Turbos, etc.).

I'm not sure how things work for South African or Australian teams. But I think South Africa is similar to NZ with their national competition and the Australians don't even have one of their own. Correct me if I'm wrong.
 
When they did have their nat comp, for that one year, each team had an area and a nickname, i.e. the Ballymore Tornadoes (I think).

The reason the NZ teams dropped the province from their name is, as Flux has said due to the fact that each team didn't represent one province. Waikato Chiefs became the Chiefs first because they had Harbour in the franchise, which, for those that don't know, is nowhere near the Waikato.
 

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