Role players vow to keep VSR

2020-02-26

With the stunning Sydney Opera House as the setting and the Harbour Bridge as back-drop the Lions Rugby Company pulled off a first ever event in Vodacom Super Rugby history by hosting a Business Breakfast  with some of the most influential role players in the Southern Hemisphere as part of a panel that discussed the way forward for rugby.

But it wasn’t rugby that brought the royals of rugby together, but the universal need to help save the animals in Australia from near extinction during the worst drought and wildfires in human history.

Bringing all the stakeholder together in Sydney ahead of their Super Rugby match against the Waratahs was the perfect opportunity to highlight the plight of Wires, an organization in New South Wales dedicated to the rescue and rehabilitation of the animals in the region. One could hear a pin drop as Leanne Taylor, CEO of Wires, talked about the devastation and near extinction of some animals that occurred during this sad turn of events.

“We will only know in years to come exactly how debilitation the fires were to the different animal populations in Australia. It was thanks to thousands of volunteers that we managed to curb the fires and save as many as animals as we did. And also to companies like the Lions who brought awareness to our cause. We cannot thank this team enough for that. It has been a very special day for us,” Taylor said.

It was on to more serious rugby matters with panelists Rudolf Straeuli (CEO, Lions Rugby Company), Andy Marinos (CEO, Sanzaar), Altmann Allers (Chairman, Lions Rugby Co), Philip van Schalkwyk (interim CEO, Waratahs) and Raelene Castle (CEO, Rugby Australia) discussed the issues of taking rugby to the next phase. Brendan Morris (COO, Sanzaar) acted as MC for the event.

Marinos, Straeuli and Allers were all adamant that going North was not an option. “I was part of the very successful team in 1993 that won every competition they took part in, including the Super 10, and we competed here in Sydney against the Waratahs. The competition has a long history and I think we can all conclude that the Southern hemisphere has dominated the World Cup for the last eleven years as a result of the quality of Super Rugby,” Straeuli said.

Castle explained the new broadcast dealings Rugby Australia are busy with and that the modern family is not one that will all sit together and watch the game on the television anymore. “Media has evolved and so has the modern day family. Live streaming is a thing and we have to adapt.”

Warren Whiteley, line-out coach of the Emirates Lions, added his voice to the cause of keeping Super Rugby going, "Yes, there are tweaks that we need to make here and there but I believe that the people at the top are thinking in the right direction and are always collaborating with players as well," he said. "I think it's the view of all that we probably need to nip and tuck here and there, but I don't think there's any drastic changes that need to be made.

"The best talent in the world is still here, we've seen World Cup results over the years, [nine out of 10] World Cups have been won by southern hemisphere sides and that speaks for itself in terms of quality of players within this competition.

"[It's an] unbelievable competition, I love being in Australia and travelling, you learn a lot and develop."

Current Lions captain Elton Jantjies also had a strong view on retaining Super Rugby in which ever format is deemed the most popular. "I like the tough stuff, I believe it's a great competition and it's a competition that should never die. It's a competition that works for Australian rugby, that works for New Zealand rugby and it works for us [South Africa] as well.”

Annemie Bester