Payto & Panda: Super Rugby expansion has its share of problems; rugby player in NFL ranks
SIX South African teams in Super Rugby? Don’t lock it in just yet, we hear the broadcasters aren't thrilled with SANZAR's expansion plans.
FORMER Wallaby Garrick Morgan has jumped to the defence of young Aussie lock Rory Arnold, who received a lengthy suspension this week for biting in a Currie Cup match in South Africa.
Arnold, who goes by the nickname "Big Dog" due to his 2.08m, 127kg size, scored a try in his first game for
Griquas against the Cheetahs last weekend. A Cheetahs player complained he was bitten after the try, and Arnold was red-carded after the TMO reviewed the incident.
The Gold Coast giant pleaded not guilty at a hearing but charges were upheld by SARU and he was banned for by SARU for seven matches on Wednesday.
Morgan, who coached Arnold in the Queensland country side and helped arrange his Griquas contract, said the youngster was not a dirty player.
"No-one condones biting but he’s a great kid, it’s definitely not like him at all, it would be totally out of character," Morgan said.
Morgan said Arnold, who played for Combined NSW-Queensland Country against the Lions, remains a hugely promising prospect in Australian rugby and said several Super Rugby clubs were circling the 23-year-old.
"He’s got a massive future in rugby," Morgan said.
"He’s one of a kind, just the size of him. Guys like that don’t come around often.
"He’s still learning but he’s picking it up very quickly. He’ll move past this biting stuff and he’ll learn from it."
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SIX South African teams in Super Rugby? Don’t lock it in just yet.
The curious call from SANZAR to publically award South Africa an extra team this week has raised plenty of eyebrows, particularly given there is no agreement on how an expanded tournament would work from 2016 onwards.
Indeed, sources say there were heated words traded about the decision and its impacts at a SANZAR conference with broadcasters and officials in Sydney.
SANZAR CEO Greg Peters said the two-conference tournament model was now a "front-runner", particularly with a desire to strengthen Argentina by giving them a Super Rugby team, likely in a South African conference.
The problem is the all-powerful broadcasters aren’t keen on splitting up the competition, particularly SuperSport in SA. They don’t want to screen a glorified Currie Cup and miss out on visits by the Chiefs, Crusaders and Brumbies. SARU don’t want two conferences either, and argue their sixth team should simply slot into the current competition structure.
Peters told us, however, six SA teams would mean an end to the current three-pool model and he also stressed there would be no extra weeks or games added to the competition.
The ARU and NZRU don’t want any more travel in an already gruelling schedule, and furthermore, neither are interested in adding new teams of their own.
So how is it all going to work? Insiders say the SANZAR talks on a new tournament structure went around in circles this week. Like a Chinese puzzle, holes pop up everywhere.
A South Africa/Argentina conference would require an eighth team for balance, for example, and the options in that half of the world are limited. A North American team in under three years time? Not likely.
But could this all be the point? SARU, under intense political pressure for a sixth team, have now been appeased by SANZAR.
If the all-powerful broadcasters ultimately won’t buy into a new tournament structure and hundreds of millions of dollars in the broadcast rights revenue is threatened, the expansion idea may have to be re-visited. Watch this space.
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RUGBY players in the southern hemisphere will be keeping an eye on this bloke in coming months. And not just as a role model for massive cannons.
His name is Daniel Adongo and the 23-year-old was a fringe backrower for the Southern Kings this year, and Counties-Manuakau last season.
Adongo has recently been signed by the NFL side Indianapolis Colts for 2013, despite having never played American football.
The Kenyan, who is 1.98m and 112kg, is being trained up as a linebacker in the Colts practice squad, and if promoted to the main team could end up earning millions in coming seasons.
With Penrith boy and former USA lock Hayden Smith now also at the NY Jets, could rugby talent be the next frontier for NFL scouts?
Adongo’s modest record in Super Rugby will certainly have others saying: "If he can do it …"
(Hear that? That loud tapping noise is player agents googling the area code for the United States).
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Call it the Izzy effect. After the recent Israel Folau re-signing was held at Fairfield High, boys from the league-playing school were inspired enough to approach their sports master and asked to start a rugby team.
That newly-assembled team – stocked with junior league talent – has been awarded a wildcard entry for the NSW Schoolboys Sevens tournament being played at Woollahra Oval this weekend.
The Fairfield High team has been loaned a Waratahs academy coach for the weekend, and Folau even recorded a message of support for the boys on YouTube.
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They are two Sydney Uni stalwarts who fall into the category of, let’s say, divisive characters. Tom Carter, who plays his 150th first grade game in the semi-final against Souths on Saturday, also clocks up 175 club games.
He moves past a former Uni prop also playing a big game on Saturday: Abbott, Tony. (Abbott played 41 first grade games).
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Alan Gaffney won’t be coaching at the Waratahs next season. Long-time coaching ally Michael Cheika used the Matt Burke Cup dinner to reveal the news last week. We hear Gaffney’s selflessness played a big part in the decision, with the veteran coach telling Cheika he needed to re-structure his staff and he would stand down if it was necessary.
The highlight of the Waratahs’ awards night was a stirring farewell speech by Carter, who earned a standing ovation. He made his feelings known on several subjects to bigwigs in attendance, including this one: "Bill Pulver, the third-tier is club rugby."
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DLP candidate for Bennelong Locky McCaffrey won’t be the only one juggling polling booths and rugby boots this weekend. His brother Angus, who is running against Joe Hockey in the seat of North Sydney, is playing for Eastwood second grade colts in their Grand Final against Sydney Uni. He can at least pitch up to ARU boss Bill Pulver for a vote, who’ll be there watching his son Angus playing halfback for the Students.
While he’s hunting up a new contract in Australia or overseas, Locky McCaffrey is helping a Wallaby keep fit. Drew Mitchell was a client of his paddleboard/personal training business in Woolwich this week.
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Interesting to read the Sydney Swans were looking to re-badge themselves as the Sydney Two Blues when they were struggling in the mid-1980s. This was when the Parramatta Two Blues won two Shute Shields, of course.
Not that they would’ve gone to court over the copyright, you suspect. Not when a perfectly good door-knock from Peter Kay was available.