Cutting teams will help Super Rugby gets its mojo back in 2018, says SANZAAR boss Andy Marinos

THE removal of three teams from Super Rugby will help create less one-sided games, improve spectacles and bring back the mojo of the once-dominant competition in 2018, says SANZAAR boss Andy Marinos.

Devastated former Force skipper Matt Hodgson.

IT was a painful affair but the removal of three teams from Super Rugby will help create less one-sided games, improve spectacles and bring back the mojo of the once-dominant competition in 2018.

That’s the view of SANZAAR chief executive Andy Marinos, who also believes the return of a simpler, 15-team structure will restore the “integrity” lost in Super Rugby during the unpopular 2017 season.

Super Rugby kicked off at the weekend with the opening games in the African conference, and Australia’s teams will begin this week. The Rebels host the Reds on Friday, the Brumbies play in Tokyo and the Waratahs host the Stormers on Saturday night at Allianz Stadium.

Devastated former Force skipper Matt Hodgson.

After expansion to an 18-team, four-conference competition model last year proved unpopular and saw fans disengage, Super Rugby has cut down to 15 teams again and will be played in three conferences.

Two South African teams (the Cheetahs and Southern Kings) have gone and after an acrimonious process in Australia, so too have the Western Force.

In Australia, most of the ex-Force players and coaches have been snapped up by other franchises — Melbourne, in particular — and that movement will lift the standard, believes Marinos.

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“When you look at it, with the consolidation of playing talent in South Africa and Australia, we are confident that will have a more positive yield from a high performance perspective,” Marinos said.

“I think at times the talent may have been spread a little bit thin or the resources too stretched, so we needed contraction like that and they’ve (Australia and South Africa) have been able to retain most of those players. We are looking forward to that.

“I think we will have a competition that has a lot less predictable outcomes in a lot of the games, which will engage the fans and supporters. We are looking forward to that.”

After the worst Super Rugby season collectively ever last year, Aussie rugby will be hoping the only way is up.

On points alone, all five Australia teams came in the bottom eight sides.

The South Africans fared better, with the Stormers, Sharks and Lions all making the finals, and the latter playing in the decider against eventual champions the Crusaders.

They benefited from the four-conference system, however, which saw two African groupings — one of which didn’t have to play a single New Zealand team in the regular season.

The restructured Super Rugby will see three conferences of five teams; all teams will play home-and-away in their conference and then four out of five from the other two conferences as well. So, basically, everyone plays almost everyone.

SANZAAR boss Andy Marinos.

“The format is a lot simpler, there is more integrity, with more teams playing against each other,” Marinos said.

“Not like what we had where South African teams would either play teams from the Australian conference or New Zealand conference in any particular year. So there is better distribution in the competition.”

Australian Super Rugby franchises have battled to make money in recent years, and that fight was made even harder with fewer local derbies last year.

The full suite of derbies have returned this season.

Originally published as Cutting teams will help Super Rugby gets its mojo back in 2018, says SANZAAR boss Andy Marinos