International Rugby First and Foremost

The settlement of the future of the Heineken Cup competition in favour of the suggestions put forward by the major British and French clubs is indeed yet another plus in Rugby Union’s much admired international portfolio.

The 15 a side code is one sport which has grasped completely the value of international competition even at the expense of all its domestic club activities. Many Leicester, Saracens, or Sale supporters might be aggrieved when an England team selection takes priority over an important league fixture, but the financial, media, and, spectator interest generated by a Six Nations match or a fierce Anglo/French Heineken Cup encounter is more than ample compensation.

The progress, on and off the pitch, made by Rugby Union over the past decade has indeed been initiated by the publicity and interest surrounding international competition rather than by the many club league competitions, however keen the rivalry.

What a contrast in Rugby League where the club structure and its fierce competitions in both the Northern and Southern Hemisphere lead the way forward while, despite the amazing impact and record breaking success of the recent RL World Cup, international competition at the highest levels is sadly all too often sidelined. .Never in the 13 a side code’s history have so many nations taken to playing the game, especially in Europe where the likes of France, Italy, Norway, Denmark, Germany, Ukraine,  Russia and many more promote their own leagues

 Worldwide in Jamaica, Lebanon, the USA, Serbia, South Africa, the Pacific Islands and elsewhere rugby league is prospering at international level. But in Australia and to a lesser extent in New Zealand  the domestic NRL club competition and the passionate State of Origin matches hold sway and dominate the public’s interest to the neglect of international competition. As does the Super League competition here in England.  

It has taken months of persuasion with the far too parochial Australians to promote a Four Nations Rugby League tournament Down Under in October and November of this year. A possible Great Britain Lions Tour, once seemingly pencilled in for 2015, now looks to be in some doubt thanks to, seemingly, an apparent unwillingness on the part of the Aussies to disturb their admittedly highly successful domestic NRL competition.

International competition must take precedence over domestic activities if a sport wishes to promote itself to the full on and off the pitch. Rugby Union has accepted that belief and is prospering. Rugby League, particularly in the Southern Hemisphere, has yet to embrace it and its impact worldwide suffers accordingly.

Ray French (April 2014