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The result in the AUNZ game against the British & Irish Lions was not unexpected, but it was largely an anticlimax especially given the build-up and the highly receptive 43,124-strong crowd that gathered at Adelaide Oval.
With only a week to build combinations, some of the best rugby talent from Australia and New Zealand gathered in the Barossa Valley to form bonds and develop a shared game plan. Unsurprisingly, the opening quarter exposed a lack of cohesion, proving that it takes more than elite individual talent to create a championship team.
From the players’ perspective, though, the experience was overwhelmingly positive. All Black David Havili described the match as “awesome,” adding:
“When the Lions come back to New Zealand, hopefully we can get the same concept going, and the Aussie boys can come over to New Zealand and do the same thing. It’s great to get teams like this off the ground.”
Despite the result, the AUNZ game may have revealed a compelling blueprint for the future of Super Rugby Pacific. While player movement across the Tasman has long existed, calls are growing louder for more freedom to move between Australian and New Zealand franchises.
For too long, Super Rugby has been criticised as a stepping stone to the international season rather than a true club competition in its own right. Although there’s no formal restriction stopping Australians from playing for New Zealand teams (and vice versa), the national contracting models do little to encourage player movement between countries.
That needs to change.
Imagine Beauden Barrett and Quinn Tupaea lining up alongside Joseph-Aukuso Sua'ali'i and Taniela Tupou at the Waratahs. Or Fraser McReight adding some on-ball steel to the Highlanders pack. The free movement of players across the competition would benefit fans, franchises, and administrators alike, while raising the quality and unpredictability of every match.
Of course, this would require some concessions from both sides of the ditch, especially from New Zealand which continues to hold firm on its eligibility rules. While the Wallabies have relaxed their selection policy to allow overseas-based players into the national squad, New Zealand Rugby still insists that All Blacks must be selected exclusively from domestic Super Rugby Pacific sides.
Relaxing these rules to allow Kiwis playing for Australian franchises to remain eligible for All Blacks selection would be a game-changing move - one that could finally level the playing field and make Super Rugby Pacific the most entertaining rugby competition across the globe. In an added bonus, it would keep New Zealand players in the Super Rugby ecoystem without them giving up thier dream to wear the black jersey.
It’s no secret that New Zealand players would likely make up the bulk of the movement, given their skillsets are in high demand throughout the rugby world. But that’s exactly the point — raising the standard across the board benefits everyone, especially the Australian teams in need of depth and competition. But this would require the national bodies to actually work collaboratively and for the benefit of the national competition, but recently I have not seen much willingingness to do this, especially from one side of the ditch.
The Crusaders have now won more than 25% of all Super Rugby finals in the professional era. That dominance, while impressive, doesn't reflect well on a competition that markets itself as the most competitive in world rugby.
If Super Rugby Pacific wants to stay relevant in the global rugby landscape, it needs to act. The AUNZ model might just be the way forward.