Competitive rugby and global calendar shouldn’t come at cost of player welfare
If you were to assess the hopes of the Home Nations as they crossed the equator to play their annual summer rugby series, you’d have been forgiven for suggesting they weren’t too high.
But two thirds of the way through each of the tours – Ireland in New Zealand, England in Australia, Wales in South Africa and Scotland in Argentina – all of the three-Test series are level at 1-1.
While the first week saw the southern hemisphere sides win all four matches, the northern hemisphere hit back at the weekend.
So, when Ireland and Wales win their first ever match in the country of their opponents, England end Australia’s 10-game winning run in Brisbane and Scotland beat Argentina in front of a home independence day crowd, does talk of a global calendar in the men’s game even need to resurface?
One former England coach canvassed by City PM said that while the rugby hasn’t been of the highest quality, it has been competitive – albeit with too much kicking for his taste.
He went on to suggest that a global calendar – which would remove the July international window entirely – could benefit players’ health.
Sustainable
Off the back of a long domestic season which begins in September, the best players based in Europe must jet off for a three-Test international series – and that might not be sustainable.
One player, who plies his trade in France, said: “Player welfare should come first, you can see with Australia and England how many boys are getting injured.
“France are playing a tier-two nation in Japan, so they can rest their bigger players like Antoine Dupont.
“If a global calendar allows players to regulate their workload then it should be considered.
“Look at Maxime Lucu. He played every game for Bordeaux and then two matches in Japan – It’s not great.”
New plans
Under new plans, the Six Nations window in February and March would remain, as would the autumn internationals, but the latter would be extended into a bigger block, thus allowing room for an expansion of the Autumn Nations Cup into a competition with something more than pride riding on it.
While World Rugby has stated there are no plans to introduce a global calendar before 2024, it says that “format change is the key to increasing interest and value.”
“With four series deciders coming up, there’s no denying that the traditional summer tours still bring something special to the sport,” said Matthew Fletcher-Jones, a director at Cake PR.
“However, plans to make the autumn series part of something bigger will be central to the new global calendar and the sport’s growth. We can’t have the same eight or nine international teams playing each other, every season, forever, without the risk of fans getting tired and fixtures losing meaning.
“World sports governing bodies get bashed almost daily, but in the last few years Uefa has come up with a successful formula which has given matches meaning, competitiveness and a route to greater success and revenue.
Global inspiration
“Rugby can take inspiration from football’s Nations’ League – a new tournament which has foregone friendlies and created a competition with value without damaging the Euros or the World Cup.”
The women’s game is set to launch its version of a global calendar next year and there’s no doubt that eyes will be on where it succeeds and where it falls – whether that be on branding, player welfare or burnout.
And as former British and Irish Lion Steve Boyle told City PM: “Players are very adaptable to these changes [and will want to play regardless of what the international windows look like], but they often need protecting from themselves.”