Centralisation: The Great Australian Rugby Reset
I'm keen to hear your thoughts.
Yesterday, Rugby Australia announced their plan to centralise how the game is run by taking control of the Super Rugby clubs.
Centralisation is working well in Ireland and New Zealand (currently ranked #1 and #2 in the world) and streamlines admin, which makes the game more cost-effective to run.
I won’t share what I think about the plan yet (due to my involvement on the Brumbies Board) but I’m really keen to hear your thoughts.
Is this a good thing for Rugby? Do you see any downsides? And do you have any questions about how it will work?
I often wonder where we’d be (if David Nucifora was still here in Australia), where we’d be in terms of player development and a more centralised system here in Oz. Clearly Ireland is different but with Nucifora they achieved No. 1 world ranking? Obviously he’s not to everyone’s liking (Brumbies player revolt after winning a Super Rugby title) but what he could have done here in Oz has been lost to another country.
I admit I haven't read too much about it but did see the announcement. I'm unsure because I feel that RA have their own governance issues and that by taking control of the super rugby clubs they will inflict these issues into the cultures of the clubs.
But it's good to see them addressing the M\F imbalances in the sport. I'll be happier when they speak with action rather than words and it looks like they're a step closer with the appointment of a performance manager for the women. I do question the selection process and why they have chosen a male with a rowing background to be the head of performance of women's rugby but guess we will have to wait and see. It would be great to see more women landing these big roles, especially for female teams. Not to say that men don't have their place because workplace diversity is important.