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With the positive gains achieved so far this year in Super Rugby Pacific, in addition to improved Wallabies team performances and modest gains in attendance and ratings numbers, Rugby Australia has received a good rap of late. However, there are some oversights at the Super Rugby level that deserve scrutiny, and this recent Easter weekend was a glaring example of the competition’s mismanagement.
With my son’s school displaying animals at the Sydney Royal Easter Show this Easter weekend, a large cohort of us headed up to Sydney from the Riverina, with plans to also watch a football game while we were there. With no professional rugby to watch, we headed next door to watch the NRL’s annual Good Friday fixture.
The game was a remarkable event, with a record crowd of mostly Bulldogs fans. The atmosphere was truly electric, the crowd were, happy, excited and passionate. The access from the city centre was easy via a show train and thousands of people attended the Easter show both before and after the event, all adding to a great experience – even if the game itself was not exactly close. NRL fever was rife across the Homebush precinct.
Waratahs players celebrate. (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)
Inside the Showground were similar scenes, with each NRL and AFL team, as well as the Matildas, being represented at the show bag pavilion. The absence of a Wallabies/Wallaroos or Waratahs show bag was notable, and while this seems like a minor thing, it is also an easy thing to get right. Over 900,000 people attend the Royal Easter Show and for a sport trying to attract new fans, having virtually no presence at that event is a big oversight.
On Easter weekend, there were no major sporting events in Western Sydney on either Saturday or Sunday; why didn’t the Waratahs schedule a game at Accor Stadium on either of these days? With so many regional schools represented at the Show, with strong rugby programs, this was a golden opportunity to post a record crowd in an area that the sport has historically struggled with.
The most impressive thing about the Bulldogs crowd on Good Friday was that the game was not particularly well publicised, with the news about the Lachlie Galvin contract saga and the Rugby Australia annual report dominating the Sydney sports news cycle. The Good Friday game did not receive as much coverage as it would have in previous years, yet the high-flying Bulldogs produced a record regular season crowd of 65,000-plus people. With good promotion and management, the Waratahs could have gone close to drawing half of this crowd.
Much has been made of the improved financial position of Rugby Australia after the recent AGM and the announcement that after this year’s Lions event, RA will be back in the black. But the simple fact is that the sport lost over $37 million last year and a big reason for that is carrying underperforming Super Rugby franchises on their books. Yet when a game is played at Accor Stadium the host is paid $150,000 regardless as a base, and incentives for bigger crowds. For a sport struggling to make a profit these sorts of numbers stack up.
Phil Waugh poses with the Webb Ellis Cup. (Photo by Brendon Thorne – World Rugby/World Rugby via Getty Images)
The recent Rugby Australia broadcast deal with Nine Entertainment shows that whether we like it or not, Super Rugby is here to stay, and the sport does not have the fortitude or resources to commence another competition that represents more regions and grows the footprint of the sport. This does not mean that they should just stop trying.
Western Sydney has a huge population and there is a huge appetite for investment there, as good as Moore Park is, the Waratahs can afford to play one game there annually.
With the sport’s financial position as precarious as it is, Rugby Australia can ill afford to overlook an event with over 900,000 people in attendance and where two suburbs of Sydney playing what is essentially a niche sport can attract a record crowd. Because when the British and Irish Lions and World Cups finally pack up and move on, Super Rugby is what we will be left with, and rugby needs to make it work.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.