This week we’re mainly looking at the growing international selection conundrum, the ridiculous waterboy loophole and memories of European tradition…
Who will perform, where, when and for whom?
As the season develops and expands financially, boundaries shift and competitions switch, morph and are reborn, it seems reasonable to think that teams will be confused and bewildered by the increasingly bizarre wrangling of eligibility rules and funding criteria.
But things have rarely seemed more complicated than they are now, or more precarious than they have been for the past few months.
Consider New Zealand. There have been two requests from Super Rugby teams this season to bring their veteran All Blacks back into the Super Rugby playoffs. The requests were rejected, one due to World Rugby rules and the other simply to honour contracts, which makes a lot of sense. It’s a bit hard to believe that the team even thought it might be possible, but the different time zones, season lengths, hemispheres etc. lend support to the suspicion that they would try.
It also confirms suspicions that, while New Zealand has produced a flurry of world-class talent over the past two decades, it’s not all smooth sailing. Political conflicts between the national union, players’ association and states have recently become more intense than they have been in the past, and while there are plenty of talented young players, the generational transition that Scott Robertson must oversee is fraught with uncertainty. With constant calls for the older players to return and lead the team through the final stages of the season, it’s hard to trust the younger players, or even Robertson, to oversee the change on their own.
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The Japan sabbatical was designed as a (relatively) year-long break for the All Blacks nearing the end of their careers, to refresh and earn a decent income instead of getting paid in Europe so early in their careers, before returning to New Zealand for the following season, but with the New Zealand team, and perhaps Robertson himself, scrambling to recall players at short notice, the system seems skewed too.
Now let’s look at England. Jack Willis is by far England’s best openside flanker at the moment, but he’s in France and highly unlikely to return, meaning he doesn’t count as he’s based overseas and is equally unlikely to play for England.
Even if the carrot of a double contract is offered, his salary at Toulouse is likely to be higher than what he would get under the salary cap. But his comments after the European Cup win made it sound like it was about more than just money. Sure, winning something makes your prospects rosy, but Willis just looked happy. Not just after the European Cup win, but whenever he was asked about the possibility of playing for England, he looked happy.
This contrasts with comments made by players who are potential dual contracts or who are not guaranteed a place in the England squad – Henry Arundel has consistently given a similar impression.
How long can the RFU resist the temptation to open the door to player departures as Wales have been forced to do (does that even need to be said?), especially when the number of functioning professional clubs is still in a precarious position?
And more recently you have to think of Ireland, where one team is doing well but it seems to be doing well at the expense of the other teams for a number of reasons not directly related to rugby. So far there have been no issues of exits, but if the resources currently concentrated in Leinster were distributed equally among the Irish provinces, would any of those teams be as competitive as Leinster are now? There are arguments on both sides and the arguments are starting to get louder. If the Irish national team starts to weaken then the arguments will get even more intense.
The global international season is fast approaching, and the start of a global competition for clubs/states/franchises is a step towards harmonisation at that level too. But between nations, protectionism and confusing regulations thwart player ambitions, with some countries cutting off their noses to spite their faces, creating a mess of selection and qualifications that confuses everyone.
But the bottom line is, if you were a player, wouldn’t you yearn for the simplicity of Willis’ current situation?
Keep the coach away
Having the coach play the role of waterboy may have been amusing for a time, but it grew frustrating as Rachie Erasmus brazenly exploited him, and now it’s boring and frustrating.
That Jack Nienaber was allowed to carry water because his official title is “senior coach” is a childish mockery of the rules that World Rugby have updated for 2022. This is simply disrespectful and he and Leinster should be called out.
Meanwhile, the rule could easily be updated to require teams to name water carriers before games, with a maximum of two or three (how much water does everyone need, anyway?), and no water carriers among the coaching staff named at the start of the season.
Games should be a test of how well a player can play, given both the instructions they’re given and their ability to react to the situation as it unfolds, not a platform for control freaks to dictate everything. It would be great if we could better regulate this and call out those who try to violate the spirit of the law with nitpicky legalese.
Grand Finale
When the smoke clears, it’s still hard to breathe. Never before has the Ruthless players been more excited than in Saturday’s final – at least from a neutral spectator’s perspective – in rugby’s rawest game, where poor handling under defensive pressure added to rather than detracted from the spectacle.
The refereeing was superb, with special praise going to the chairperson who, unswayed by conflicting evidence, looked at every frame from three angles and decisively ruled that Leinster’s try should stand.
It was also a reminder that tries are not the only thrill to be had: for all the near unanimity about the quality and spectacle of the match, it is still surprising to recall the statistic that the first try came in extra time.
If we can have a tournament where the knockout rounds are lined with matches like the Harlequins’ win in Bordeaux and end with a final like this, then surely we’re in good shape as a sport?
read more: Champions Cup Team of the Season: Leinster and Toulouse stars dominate with Antoine Dupont and James Lowe at the forefront
