Australian rugby needs to pull together

There is an attitude that Super Rugby is a means to an end rather than an end in itself.

“With the ever increasing pressures brought about by the need for more dedicated and united effort as well as for increased financial support at all levels, what better way is there to achieve this but with: Unity of ­purpose.

“I cannot appeal strongly enough to you, one and all, ­especially those well renowned for their ‘knocking’, to let us move forward with a single purpose for the betterment and advancement of the game, rugby, which is so dear to us.

“For the third year in succession I invite you ‘to pull together so we shall succeed’.”

Those words were written by former ARU (now Rugby Australia) president Bill McLaughlin for the ARU’s 1978 annual report, but they still resonate 40 years later.

Michael Cheika’s request to the Brumbies to rest three Wallabies — David Pocock, Scott Sio and Allan Alaalatoa — for their Super Rugby match with the Sunwolves in Canberra tomorrow afternoon demonstrates that Australian rugby has learnt nothing in all those years. It is not so much the request itself but the timing of it that beggars belief.

I understand Cheika’s concern about the six-day turnaround for the Brumbies trio heading into the first Test against Ireland in Brisbane next Saturday night and it’s not ideal.

But the Super Rugby draw was released eight months ago.

The Brumbies only received a phone call about resting the trio eight days ago. This highlights an appalling lack of preparation and communication on the part of Rugby Australia.

To make matters worse, much worse, the request came last Thursday, a day after the Brumbies had made an impassioned plea to their fans to come out to support them, warning that if their attendances continued to fall they may cease to exist.

The Brumbies announced a 15/15 promotion whereby if they attracted a crowd of 15,000, they would donate $15,000 to three charities, but that effort is being undermined by national agendas.

The Sunwolves are a hard sell at the best of times and they are missing a number of their Test players who have been seconded to the Japanese national team to prepare for upcoming matches with Italy and Georgia.

The Brumbies should have been able to promote the Sunwolves team that had thrashed the Queensland Reds and beaten the Stormers with a dramatic late drop-goal.

Instead, they have been left with an undermanned side that was embarrassed 40-13 by the Rebels last Friday night.

It is symptomatic of the attitude that Super Rugby is a means to an end rather than an end in itself.

Ironically, the people who hold that view are the national unions (SANZAAR) who own and run the competition.

New Zealand rest their All Blacks for two games in the Super Rugby season as part of their ­reconditioning program. The Kiwis have the depth of talent and coaching expertise to cope with the absence of these players and they know well in advance through proper planning and communication what is expected of them.

But resting so many star players during the course of a Super Rugby season does not help promote games and draw crowds, ­especially when the Kiwi sides go on the road.

The fans want to see the best players, not their understudies. You do not want to see a drawcard player such as All Blacks halfback Aaron Smith coming off the bench for the Highlanders, as he did against the Reds last Saturday.

If you are asking fans to pay good money for tickets to games and to subscribe to Foxtel to watch Super Rugby, you have an obligation to put the best players on the field. My understanding is the Super Rugby teams are obliged to do just that under the participation agreement they sign.

SANZAAR must appreciate the commercial reality that Super Rugby teams are competitive partners. Allowing national unions to pull players out of Super Rugby for training camps and reconditioning programs damages the credibility of the competition.

At a time when Super Rugby is struggling for relevance, particularly in Australia, it does not make any sense for SANZAAR to allow national unions to devalue the competition.

Don’t get me wrong — I believe in the primacy of Test rugby. But Super Rugby also has to be shown respect or it may not survive.

The question I would pose to Australia, New Zealand and South Africa in particular is this: how will you prepare your national teams for Test rugby without Super Rugby or some version of it?

I sincerely hope the Brumbies attract the 15,000 fans they are hoping for tomorrow, but if the people who run Super Rugby do not take it seriously, why should anyone else? Bill McLaughlin’s words echo down the decades. We need to pull together to be successful.