Market Rugby to Rugby People
I was having a discussion with a professional rugby player friend of mine about various things over the weekend. During the conversation he asked me why I thought people in Australia say rugby is boring and noted that one of the main reasons is that rugby was a very stop start game. He compared our game to the NFL which even though it totally stops after every tackle is known as amongst the most popular sports around the world. As usual when this individual and I get together the conversation quickly changed to something less thought provoking and more thirst quenching questions where answered.
I have thought about it at length since and come to the conclusion that Rugby played at a high level is actually incredibly exciting. Anyone that argues that such spectacles as a British and Irish Lions series or a World Cup Final isn’t amongst the most exciting events in world sports is just lying.
So why is there this perception (in Australia anyway) and what can we do about it.
Scrums
The biggest and most consistent critics of rugby in Australia always bring up the scrum. “There’s too many stoppages.”
“There’s too many scrums,”
“There’s too many resets,”
“Get rid of scrums”.
You can tell that none of these people have ever bench pressed their own body weight let alone can hold shape. Regardless I do agree with them and I believe that the answers lay with some rule adjustments and some education.
Scrum Rule adjustments
If the ball is at the number 8s feet and the scrum collapses, the attacking team should be forced to play the ball. Stopping play for another feed annoys the hell out of me. This alone would get rid of many resets. Keep it moving.
Get rid of the compulsory hooker strike. Imagine having 8 people all over 100kgs trying to push you over at the same time whilst you stand on one leg and try and sweep a large egg between yours legs whilst you have 5 people behind you and two next to you trying to push you forward. You basically take one person or an eighth of one scrum out of the play at a critical time leaving them vulnerable to an attack. I think this would fix a lot. Allow the halfback to feed it slightly towards their own side, if the opposition are good enough to put pressure on they will, but at least its a fair contest. I think you will get less resets and that the poor old refs who have definitely never been in a scrum would find it easier to see infringements. If Rugby is supposed to be a constant battle for possession let the best scrummaging team win.
Whilst I think the refereeing is as good as its ever been, it could be better. If a team goes forward it doesn’t matter if the scrum goes around the corner, up down or sideways. The advantage must go to the team going forward. One of the stupidest things you see in rugby is a scrum going forward, having it collapse and then the referee resetting it. Or penalising the team going forward. The penalty must go to the team that went forward.
Education.
I’m talking about scrums below, but all my points apply to the sport in general.
Employ specialist commentators that have an in depth knowledge. The current commentators don’t cut the mustard anymore I’m afraid. If Fox sports employed Former Wallaby prop Dan Palmer to talk specifically about scrums then I guarantee everyone who listened would have a better understanding and appreciation for it.
Tell the athletes stories. The NFL do this well as do the UFC, Rugby doesn’t for some reason. People tend to have a greater appreciation for things if they know about the people involved. If you have never played in the front row it would be very difficult for you to full appreciate how hard it is to do at the international level. To be an international quality Tight Head prop you have to be a serious athlete. Taniela Tupou can bench 200kg and I’m told his squat is north of this. He also weighs 135kgs, regularly plays 80mins and makes line breaks. You are more likely to watch and support a team if you know about the individuals. Rugby can tell these stories better.
Market the game towards Rugby People. Something I’ve always believed is Rugby should be promoted to Rugby people. The constant rule changes, the chopping and changing of teams, the spending money on Rugby League Players only disenchants your existing fan base. It’s too hard to follow. Rugby people are loyal and they spend money to support their sport. You only have to look at the job that the Shute Shield has done with its own fan base to see that the support is there. If we promote the game to increase the engagement of those that love the sport the general public will start to follow. Real rugby people like and appreciate scrums.
Have positive media stories. There are some for sure, but in reality the vast number of stories these days are negative. I understand that rugby has had some negative things to write about and with the current click bait culture of the main stream media it is far more lucrative to write a negative story then a positive one. If we have learnt anything from 2020, its that the world needs more positive stories. Rugby in particular.
Something obvious that I’m sure people will bring up is that to make rugby more appealing we need too increase the standard of play. I actually think we are doing a good job here. It wont happen overnight but I am excited about the future and will discuss this further in my next blog.