Your second line absolutely confirms the premise of your first.
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In Victoria at least, it is still seen by some as one for the Upper class, a sport only played by Private school boys, dominated by GPS.
RU and League in NSW also has class connotations, League for the working class.
On the other hand, class in Australian Rules is limited to clubs, not the sport.
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This is true and I think the ARU actively sought to preserve the sport as the exclusive domain of twatwaffle types.
That bloody nuance!!!
While English cricket authorities long ago abandoned the gentlemen and players concept. It’s a people’s game and with India practically running the ICC, race is irrelevant.
Although Union has quite a few non European players, it still has a white supporter base, including in colonised countries.
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We were sitting opposite a Welsh couple on the train from Córdoba to Madrid. They reckon rugby is even rooted in Wales.
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There’s learnings for a sport federation shooting itself in the foot and destroying the sport it represents.
worst run sport in the country by such a margin that of all the others appear to be roughly equal second
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lesson being that as soon as you hear the words “restore” and “former glory” from anyone with decision making power that you should shoot whoever said them immediately
Is ‘purposeful innovation’ OK?
The problem for Union is that it takes a World Cup level event to get more than a dozen spectators and a dog to watch it. It is poorly patronised, poorly run, poorly promoted and poorly understood by the vast majority of Australians. To this day, most Australians outside of NSW/Qld would struggle to tell you what the difference between Union and League is.
Add in what in my opinion is the worst advantage rule in sport, where an attacking team could essentially have 30 phases of play, lasting for 10 minutes, but if they don’t make any ground then lets’s take the ball back to where the penalty occurred effectively wasting the last 10 minutes of action. It’s an abomination.
The final nail in the coffin of Union in Australia is the fact that at the national level, we are bog average. Australian’s want their national teams to be great.
Cricket - top of the tree.
Basketball - top 3-5
League - #1
Hockey - Always top 2-3
Swimming top 1-2
Netball #1
etc.
Right now, the Wallabies would be lucky to beat the dust out of their trophy cabinet yet alone anyone else. Much of that is because the best union players leave for league where the money and recognition is better, and the competition is at least run as a going concern. And while union has tried to fight back by offering massive contracts, they are the modern version of the VFL of the 80’s, buying their way to bankruptcy.
What’s funny is this is announced on practically the same day as news that albo is going to hand 600 million of Aussie taxpayers dollars to his lunch buddy Peter Vlandy’s and the nrl to start a new club not even in Australia, but png. I bet the rebels are kicking themselves that albo is a leaguie and not a union nuffie.
Is it? Is it really?
Not a ping at you BA at all. But I urge some here to watch the English Premiership SF Northampton Saints v Saracens played this evening if you can. Club rugby at its best. Saints are my team as it happens.
Certain financial problems aside, the game itself in France, England Wales, Scotland and Ireland is in rude health. Italy, Argentina, Japan keep building. NZ and SA now a class on their own.
But I truly hope there’s room for a quality Wallabies to still keep emerging come RWCs. You can have your NRL … Rugby Union is a true test of all sorts of skills. Love it. And being there close up live is a great experience. Box Office.
But not quite as much as our Australian Rules 
@Allblack , @percebushby . Am I deluded?
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Still clubs going ■■■■ up, left right and centre. Got a much much stronger base in the UK than here.
No, you’re not deluded, but there won’t be any improvement in Australian Rugby until the current board of incompetent North Sydney entitled idiots is given their marching orders.
Those fools are busily closing down the Melbourne club instead of organising finance to get it out of debt, and a marketing campaign to bring it to public notice.
Yes, being there close up live at a rugby match is a fantastic experience. There is nothing to beat the atmosphere of an international at Lansdowne Road. Even being in the middle of a capacity crowd at Thomond Park or Musgrave Park for a Munster match will send shivers up your spine when we start singing The Fields of Athenry. If Rugby Australia could work the same results with crowds here, there’d be packed stadiums - but they haven’t the shadow of a clue on how to go about marketing and running the game. It’s a sad situation.
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I agree that the board all need sacking but surely it’s not their job to bail out Private ownership. The owners of the Rebels owe $25m with a fair whack of that to the ATO. The Rebels have been a drain since day dot and have lost near on $60m since they were founded. They were only added in the first place for TV revenue and that hasn’t eventuates.
The AFL has spent mega bucks to grow the game in the most highly populated areas of NSW and Queensland. It’s still spending megabucks to sustain the second clubs there.
It’s an investment, not a bail out.
It’s a bail out when franchises are privately owned.
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IIRC the AFL took over an Edelstein privately owned club when it was in trouble.
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