Indo-Pacific League

[scuzzaman]

Isn't it time that rugby union adopted a promotion/relegation system like the most successful sports?

10 or 12 Super Rugby sides is more than enough.

The feeder series could be called Almost Super Rugby ...

[rowan]

Stupid idea. Super Rugby is not based on European club sports but on the highly lucrative NFL, one of the most successful and profitable sports leagues in the world and a multi-billion dollar industry. The fundamental objective of Super Rugby is to provide top players with professional contracts right across the board in order to keep them in the game as well as ensure the highest standard of rugby possible for the spectators and TV viewing audiences.

[morepork]

Stoopid scuzza. This fred is for serious contributions, like flashing lights on goal posts and shit.

[scuzzaman]

Obviously, in my direly ignorant stupidness I didn't know that the objective of super rugby was to pay sub-par teams of sub-par performers more than what they're worth because TV ..

[rowan]

Upcoming:

[Lizard]

I’ve just stumbled on the WF v Tonga match.

First, Tonga don’t even have a kit sponser. No indication who makes the jersey. No main shirt sponser either.

Secondly, they do live, on-field interviews with try scorers as they jog back to half way.

[rowan]

Sounds a bit mickey mouse, unsurprisingly. Have you got a result? I haven't seen anything yet.

[Lizard]

I hit record. Haven’t watched it all yet.

[zer0]

I’ve just stumbled on the WF v Tonga match.

First, Tonga don’t even have a kit sponser. No indication who makes the jersey. No main shirt sponser either.

Secondly, they do live, on-field interviews with try scorers as they jog back to half way.

You'd have thought the billionaire mining magnate bankrolling the matches could've at least given them some shirt sponsorship so they didn't look like a high school team.

The post-try interviews are even worse than the half-time, and most full-time, ones. At least the flashing goal post lights aren't as obnoxious as I'd feared. Indeed, I didn't even notice them in the few minutes I've seen across the two matches.

[rowan]

The Force have held off a resilient Tongan outfit, claiming a 47-17 win in the second World Series Rugby match.

http://www.rugby.com.au/news/2018/05/13 ... tonga-live

Ok, so who, apart from Perth and the Pacific Islands, is the proposed comp likely to involve? Hong Kong look like they might be worth considering. Good venue to boot. Beyond that, they probably need at least one more Asian team to get it off the ground, with Singapore the most suitable venue - perhaps for a Barbarians-like squad made up of everyone else's rejects...

[morepork]

My God, what a farce.

[rowan]

Japan's gets involved in World Series Rugby:

Former Wallabies coach Robbie Deans will get his first taste of World Series Rugby when he leads the Panasonic Wild Knights into battle against the Western Force on August 17.

Deans, the former All Black fullback who went on to manage the New Zealand side before taking on the Wallabies post, has been coaching the Japanese side since 2014.

He is set to bring a strong squad to Perth for the match at nib Stadium.

The match, which was announced on Thursday, will be the seventh of World Series Rugby.

The Force have already recorded wins over the Fiji Warriors and a Tongan representative side.

They will face the Rebels, Crusaders, Samoa and Hong Kong in the coming months before taking on the Wild Knights.

Force chief executive Nick Marvin said the participation of the Wild Knights in WSR was a taste of things to come.

Next year, WSR will be expanded into a six or eight-club competition featuring teams from the Asia Pacific region and Asia.

Marvin said it was highly likely a Japanese team would be part of the competition.

"For us, our future is the Asia Pacific," Marvin said.

"To have Japan come over (is starting) what we think will be a long and fruitful relationship."

The Wild Knights are one of Japan's most powerful and richest teams.

They lost last season's Top League championship decider 12-8 to the Suntory Sungoliath.

Big crowds have turned up for the first two games of WSR and the Force are hopeful the trend will continue.

And players from around the world are starting to take notice, with Australian stars such at Matt Giteau, Adam Ashley-Cooper and Lachie Turner reportedly in the club's sights.

Marvin said Matt Hodgson, the Force's head of elite performance, had been fielding numerous calls from players interested in joining WSR in time for next year.

Rodney Iona's move to the Force has already paid dividends, with the centre winning a call-up to the Samoan national squad for next month's Pacific Nations Cup and World Cup qualifier.

"It's great for Rodney to be rewarded for his good form," Force coach Tim Sampson said.

"And that's what we're all about - promoting our players to kick on to that next level when it's warranted."

The Force will be back in action on Saturday, June 9, when they take on the Melbourne Rebels at nib Stadium.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/int ... tern-force

[rowan]

[Lizard]

Despite the crazy law variations etc, you’ve got to give them credit for pulling together a pretty solid fixtures list.

[rowan]

Indeed. I'd like to see them back in the comp.

[rowan]

Force play Rebels tomorrow. Hope they win! But I think the lack of regular match practice will count against them.

[rowan]

Kicks off in about 4 hours, apparently...

[rowan]

The Rebels are the first visitors to clinch a World Series Rugby clash in Perth, beating the Force 28-12 in a gruelling, soggy encounter. https://www.rugby.com.au/news/2018/06/0 ... bels-match

[rowan]

World Club 10s in Mauritius:


Western Force pinch Melbourne Rebel Jack McGregor ahead of World Club 10s

The former Australian and New South Wales schoolboys representative will make his first appearance for the club in Friday’s opening round of the World Club 10s in Mauritius.

McGregor, 20, was in the Rebels squad that beat the Force 28-12 last Saturday and joins four other World Series Rugby players, props Markus Vanzati and Tom Sheminant, hooker and captain Harry Scoble and scrum-half Elliott Turner who has also moved from the Melbourne club.

All others in the 16-man squad have been drawn from RugbyWA clubs.

The Force, who won the tournament two years ago, are in a pool with the Sharks and Bulls from South Africa and the invitation Africa Pacific Dragons side.

Other teams in the three-day tournament include the French sides Montpelier and Pyrenees, Kobelco Steelers from Japan and English club Newcastle Falcons.

The Force side will be coached by former captain Matt Hodgson.

https://thewest.com.au/sport/western-fo ... b88865867z

[rowan]

You're never going to get close to the Saders if you're not involved in regular competition:

A Crusaders outfit without 12 All Blacks stars have coasted to a comfortable 44-8 win over the Force at nib Stadium. http://www.rugby.com.au/news/2018/06/22 ... tch-report

[rowan]

Interesting read:

Political intrigue has hit international rugby with Australian officials fuming over Andrew "Twiggy" Forrest's recruitment of a high-ranking World Rugby official to head up his Latin American mining interests.

As Rugby Australia (RA) and the billionaire iron ore magnate are locked in an increasingly adversarial arm-wrestle over the fate of Forrest's rebel World Series Rugby competition, it emerged that Forrest had appointed World Rugby vice-chairman Agustin Pichot as president and director of Argentina Fortescue South America.

Continues here: https://www.smh.com.au/sport/rugby-unio ... 4zxwd.html

[rowan]

The Western Force has notched a 50-45 win over Japan's Panasonic and the visitors will be taking a major injury concern home with them: http://www.rugby.com.au/news/2018/08/16 ... ghts-match

[rowan]

Who would be the NZ side? My guess- North Harbour with its close proximity to an international airport.

World Series Rugby is planning to base a side in Sydney's western suburbs in next year’s expanded million dollar tournament.

The move has been kept under wraps but talks are well advanced about taking a Pacific island-based side to the region.

The team would have a strong Samoa and Tonga influence, but also tap into the area's talent-laden resources.

It would be a much-needed show of support for the area that has been struggling for funding and assistance and saw the Penrith Emus axed from the Shute Shield in May.

That left the region without a senior club for the first time in 27 years. Ironically there were calls to relocate the Force to Sydney's west two years ago before it was cut from Super Rugby by Rugby Australia.

There has been a push to re-establish a side from World Cup-winning coach Bob Dwyer who has described the area as a goldmine of potential players.

Wallabies Kurtley Beale and Israel Folau, who herald from the area, have urged Rugby Australia to help development.

Western Force is expected to battle seven teams for a $1 million purse in the expanded WSR next year.

Mining magnate Andrew Forrest, who has bankrolled the new Force and WSR, is getting ready to roll out a new five-year plan after the Force finish their seven-exhibition game series against Panasonic Wild Knights tonight

Two new sides are expected to come from Japan, one from New Zealand and other options include sides based in Fiji, Hong Kong, Singapore and Sydney.

https://thewest.com.au/sport/western-fo ... b88931250z

[zer0]

There's been no mention of any NZ involvement from any NZ sources, just transposing of Australian claims that emerged from somewhere. So, on that basis, I'd be very surprised if there's any NZ involvement at this point.

[Lizard]

So there’s a rebrand to “Rapid Rugby”, which incredibly is worse than “World Series” and an ominous promise of “new rules” (why, FFS?)

As well as the Force, there will apparently be sides from Hawaii and HK. Singapore, Malaysia and Fiji are said to be “likely.”