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Pumas and Islanders to join 3N in 2008

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wygy

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Argentinian Rugby Union (UAR) has apparently reached an agreement with SANZAR authorities in order to get into the 2008 Tri Nations championship together with a Pacific Islands squad.

Argentina's newspaper La Voz del Interior stated on Tuesday that the South African, Australian and New Zealand unions (SANZAR) have officially invited the Pumas to play the Tri Nations to be held beginning on June 2008. The Pacific Island would also take part as a united team with the best players from Tonga, Samoa and Fiji.

June is not the very best to start for many of the Pumas because most of them will be playing the final stages of the European tournaments. This obstacle would have to be solved by the South American union managers.

The UAR did not say anything about it officially yet. If the news is confirmed, the Tri-Nations will be then called Five Nations including the two new national teams next year.

Super 14's growth with additional regional teams coming from Argentina would be the next step in the Argentinian blending with the three powerful partners of the Southern Hemisphere.
 
Shouldn't it be 7-nations?

Wonder will it affect the HEC negotiations? Have to think about that.
 
Argentina AND the Pacific Islands?! NOW you're talking!

If that happens then the new SH Five Nations will be like, the Tri Nations on speed, crack, caffine, red bull, semtex (an awesome Czech energy drink) and whatever other stimulant or drug you care to add!!!

And don't worry, the Argentinians will be aright, if they can manage to leg if back home in May/June for the Summer Internationals then they can quite easily make the Tri Nations.

Also, this will be a huge boon for the existing SH contenders as the increased TV revenue may be now split up between five nations, but the increase in TV and Sponsorship revenue overall should be enough to compensate and even provide a tidy increase on their previous Tri-Nations revenues.
 
Exactly what the tourney needed- and in all likelihhod because of revenue considerations, especially considering the failure that last year`s "expanded" comp. was.

Now, here`s an interesting question- will the new 5-nations result in a new international window, which will force the NH clubs to give up their Argies to international duties? Could this be the first step towards a much-needed global season?

Whatever happens, this is great news for SH rugby, Argie rugby and world rugby in general.
 
HELL YAH I have been waiting for this tournament :cheers: This will add so much product to the tri-nations and it should be a good show. Rugby needs to start doing **** like this to grow its fanbase :)

Super 14 sides being established in Argentina Booyah!!! Oh yah and make sure ESPN gets a nice lucrative broadcasting deal :)
 
This might counter the growing voice of the clubs in the NH and balance it somewhat with a newly powerful SH made up of five and not three nations.
 
This sounds really good for the tournament as a whole.
And i'm happy for the pacific islanders and Argentina to be able to get into such a competition.

I'm just questioning the validity of having pacific islanders if they're not gonna show up for a world cup as that team. It'll help the players as individuals, but as a team (i.e. fiji/tonga/samoa) it's not going to help world cup campaigns, is it?

Have to be honest tho, this is the first tri-nations (to be 5 nations) tournament i'll have been looking forward to in ages.
Can't remember the last time i looked forward to one...
 
just a dumb question, how many international tournaments does football(soccer) have?
 
I only know of the Euro tournament and world cup.
Then again, i know **** all about football.
 
and then i think it would be really cool if the 6N winner then went on to play the 5N winner in a world championship one off match at a neutral location somewhere in the world!!
 
and then i think it would be really cool if the 6N winner then went on to play the 5N winner in a world championship one off match at a neutral location somewhere in the world!!
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Yeah a Play Off in DUBAI! would be awesome!!!! the Gwent Dragons played against Stormers here a few years back...
 
I remember that match.
Dragons didn't really have much of a chance, even tho i don't think the Stormers fielded that good a team.
 
All I can add is: watch out football, the REAL beautiful game is about to get some real exposre in South America, and not a minute too soon I might add.

As somebody else also pointed out, this should give a new spin on the club vs. country debate, which has unfortunately gone way too much in favour of the clubs, especially in the NH, of late IMO. This is another huge advantage of rugby over football- real Test matches vs. international "friendlies", national teams taking precedence over the clubs. This has been the single biggest failure of football IMO- the big, powerful European clubs calling all the shots, and international being reduced to a second-string affair, except in a world cup year. I must confess, I feared something similar happening to rugby, but a comp. like this will surely do a helluva lot to address this issue.

Good also to see the PIRA team getting this opportunity, it makes a helluva lot of sense IMO. A comp. like this will surely result in more money for the 3 feeder unions, which will in turn ensure that the top players will be retained in the local domestic leagues of Samoa, Tonga and Fiji. Also, improved facilities especially at schools level. And finally an end to the "poaching" of PI players debate, whether by the AB`s as some claim, or by the European clubs, as others claim.

A win-win situation all round. The only thing that surprises me, is that it looks like it will actually be implemented. It is something that makes sense, and common sense is something that has been severely lacking at SANZAR in the last few years.
 
good points Bokmagic i really wish they would televise rugby here!! I think it could catch on here in america, sure american football would always be the number 1 contact sport but im sure rugby could compete with it!
 
As long as the Six Nations and the new Five Nations continue to be held every year then you should always have a good balance between club and country as it will put an emphasis on a well organised schedule. Hopefully it'll put a stop to such weird anomalies like the French having half of their rugby season in the summer.

This new five nations will put even more pressure on the European clubs to agree on things like scheduling, especially with a very insistent SANZARAPI (as I guess it would be called) asking for their players back by June.
 
just a dumb question, how many international tournaments does football(soccer) have?
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like 5 or so i think
one for south america, one for asia, one for europe, the confederations cup (which is pretty meaningless) and the world cup.... which is about it i think

i think this will be brilliant for world rugby escpecially with the islanders getting involved as well, i reckon come the next world cup they will enter as just the one team instead of 3. which should add another very competitive team into the mix
 
i havent seen anything about it here yet...

to be honest i think its a load of kak. it would be front page news in NZ if it was true.

im not saying its not a good idea or anything.. its a great idea. but theres been no talk at all by the big 3 about this at all.

and 2008?? i dont even know if they can be added that soon.

can someone put up a link for the story...
 
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