Hansen wants annual 'World Championship' fixture

[rowan]

So no room on the "heavily congested" calendar to play one of your 2nd tier neighbours, but always room for yet another fixture against a tier 1 team on the other side of the planet...

In saying that, I'm all for it!

All Blacks coach Steve Hansen has proposed an annual match between the Six Nations and Rugby Championship winners as part of a global shake-up.

Officials have held talks about the scheduling of the sport after the next World Cup, with proposals to align the northern and southern hemisphere playing calendars.

Six Nations chiefs are reluctant to move from the February-March slot, but Hansen told the Daily Mail that an historic agreement of dates between officials would send the game "through the roof".

"It's a no-brainer," said the double World Cup winner. "You've got to say, 'What's best for our product so we can keep attracting people to come and watch it?'"

"First, our players need a decent pre-season. You'd play club competitions simultaneously. We could have the European Cup winners play the Super Rugby winners and the Six Nations winners play the Rugby Championship winners. We need some goodwill to sort it out."

Summer tours are likely to be scrapped in World Cup years, but the future of British and Irish Lions tours is secure despite concerns over player welfare.

They face the All Blacks next June and Hansen is targeting a clean sweep.

"We'll want to win 3-0," said Hansen. "If the northern nations keep playing well they'll provide a headache for the selectors."



http://m.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/arti ... d=11714020

[Which Tyler]

Let me guess, but only if NZ get 2/3 of the money raised?

[rowan]

Let me guess, but only if NZ get 2/3 of the money raised?

I think it makes sense to include it as one of the fixtures during either the Autumn tours or Summer tours (perhaps it would be fairest to alternate), but the thing is when it comes to playing their tier 2 neighbors we're told not only that there is no room, but that the schedules are set in stone years in advance and therefore lack the flexibility to accommodate in-form second tier nations - ie SA inviting Japan for a test the year following its stunning loss to the same opponent at the RWC. So I think we can safely confirm now that those excuses were only ever cop-outs.

[jared_7]

The NZRFU is not a financial behemoth, NZ rugby players are not paid as well as those in SA and up north and are under constant threat of being poached.

I'm no fan of the NZRFU but I can see why they are trying to maximise revenue streams.

If you want them to play Samoa and Fiji then they are going to try and make up for that lost revenue by asking for higher fees from richer Unions.

At the moment you are complaining about both which is basically asking NZ rugby to sit back and watch whilst your unions take their players.

[rowan]

No, I'm just pointing out that the oft-used excuses about overly-congested and inflexible schedules appears to go out the window every time they want to slip in yet another fixture against a fellow tier 1 team, even if it's on the opposite side of the planet.

However, as stated, this fixture seems like a good idea if they can in fact slip it into the Autumn and Summer tours without creating an extra fixture. I think it should rotate between the hemispheres as well, therefore between Autumn and Summer tours, because touring teams are usually far from their best at the end of a long season.

[Lizard]

Except that this is just a theoretical suggestion with no proposal that it add to the calendar rather than be one of the usual matches.

Also, the international calendar was set ahead of time but only up to 2019 so the discussion is about what comes next.


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[jared_7]

No, I'm just pointing out that the oft-used excuses about overly-congested and inflexible schedules appears to go out the window every time they want to slip in yet another fixture against a fellow tier 1 team, even if it's on the opposite side of the planet.

You work a gruelling 8 hour day. If someone offers you £10 to work an extra hour, would you take it?

What about if they offer you £100?

[rowan]

No, I'm just pointing out that the oft-used excuses about overly-congested and inflexible schedules appears to go out the window every time they want to slip in yet another fixture against a fellow tier 1 team, even if it's on the opposite side of the planet.

You work a gruelling 8 hour day. If someone offers you £10 to work an extra hour, would you take it?

What about if they offer you £100?

I wouldn't do it for either

But if it were charity work or something, I might do it for nothing

[Eugene Wrayburn]

Seems an entirely unnecessary and foolish addition. It would have to be played in our autumn which would be 6 months after the 6N victory anyway. I'm guessing that the fixture comes most years anyway.

[Digby]

It's like someone watched the Mitchell sketch on football, football, football, and was inspired to agree that key to marketing the game was to have the biggest match since the last time a match was played.

To me this would seem an artificial contrivance, I'd want to beat whoever we play, and one game speaks much less to who the best team is Vs a run of games over 12-18 months. And for a single moment in time delivery we already have the world cup. Still if this means they're just going to hype the crap out of one of the AI games then other than avoiding adverts for it like the plague maybe it's perhaps who cares, though for that to happen does everyone need to leave an empty fixture just in case, or do they plan for every possibility in advance?

[rowan]

I see it as a useful gimmick to promote interest in an Autumn/Spring tour fixture and hopefully ensure both teams are at their best (often not the case at present). The main problem, aside from the obvious scheduling issues, is that it will only compound the exclusivity of the top tier nations. It they're going to call it a 'World Championship' fixture (seems inevitable, if it goes ahead, though Hansen hasn't said that himself), why shouldn't the likes of Fiji, Samoa & Japan get a crack?

[Eugene Wrayburn]

I see it as a useful gimmick to promote interest in an Autumn/Spring tour fixture and hopefully ensure both teams are at their best (often not the case at present). The main problem, aside from the obvious scheduling issues, is that it will only compound the exclusivity of the top tier nations. It they're going to call it a 'World Championship' fixture (seems inevitable, if it goes ahead, though Hansen hasn't said that himself), why shouldn't the likes of Fiji, Samoa & Japan get a crack?

Because they won't have won the 6N or 4N.

Having the Raeburn Shield would be a much better idea.

http://www.raeburnshield.com

[rowan]

I see it as a useful gimmick to promote interest in an Autumn/Spring tour fixture and hopefully ensure both teams are at their best (often not the case at present). The main problem, aside from the obvious scheduling issues, is that it will only compound the exclusivity of the top tier nations. It they're going to call it a 'World Championship' fixture (seems inevitable, if it goes ahead, though Hansen hasn't said that himself), why shouldn't the likes of Fiji, Samoa & Japan get a crack?

Because they won't have won the 6N or 4N.

Having the Raeburn Shield would be a much better idea.

http://www.raeburnshield.com

Yes, that's the point. Bit hard for them to win either of those competitions when they're not actually in them.

Raeburn Shield looks like an international version of the Ranfurly Shield, in which case South Africa would have held it for most of the amateur era, and New Zealand for most of the pro era, I imagine.

[Lizard]

I believe the website will have a full list of holders (originally prepared by yours truly).

If not, it's an option at www.pickandgo.info


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[Lizard]

Here 'tis http://www.raeburnshield.com/previousholders/


Sent from my genius using brilliance

[rowan]

Wow, Japan even got a few defences in there! Well done...

[rowan]

What if the World Cup had started earlier, say post WWII?

1947 - NZ won a series against Austrlaia & England were 5N champs. But SA whitewashed NZ 2 years later. So SA likely, or possibly England or NZ.

1951 - Not a lot to go on, but Ireland were the 5N champs and NZ beat Australia in a series - although they had been whitewashed in SA two years before. So any of SA, NZ or Ireland likely.

1955 - France & Wales were joint 5N champs, the Lions drew a series with SA, NZ beat Australia 2-0 and the following year won a home series against SA for the first time. So NZ or perhaps Wales or France.

1959 - NZ defeated the Lions, but would lose a series in SA the following year. France were 5N champs. So SA likely, or perhaps NZ or France.

1963 - NZ were unbeaten in Britain & that year, and also won home series' against Australia & 5N champs England. SA drew a home series v Australia. So NZ most likely.

1967 - NZ again went unbeaten in Britain, having whitewashed the Lions the previous year and comfortably beaten SA in 65. So probably NZ.

1971 - The Lions won a series in NZ, & Wales were 5N champs, so possibly Wales (or SA, if eligible, given they had beaten NZ the previous year).

1975 - NZ thumped Scotland in their only test, Wales were 5N champs, while England had won tests in both NZ & SA in the early 70s. So any of NZ, Wales or England (and SA, if eligible, given they beat NZ the following year).

1979 - NZ lost to Australia & France, Wales were 5N champs and Ireland had won a series in Australia. So possibly Wales (or SA, if eligible, given their 3-1 win over the Lions the following year).

1983 - NZ whitewashed the Lions & beat Australia, France & Ireland were joint 5N champs. So probably NZ (or SA if eligible)