Les All Blacks ont sorti la sulfateuse face à l'Italie

The lower quality professional level has to seep into the young viewership, those just starting school rugby now, along with the knockon affect of each immediate group, stars to professional, pro to emerging etc, and then it would have to cycle through 2 or 3 times before suddenly you notice you're rugby isn't as good as what it used to be.

This ideology only works for the best of the best of course. If you're someone on the outside, like an Australian player, and you come into the New Zealand game you only get better and as thats the best league, it filters into the Australian psyche just as well. Much the same idea for nations like Scotland, England, even Ireland, you probably get better from having players playing in France, because the level is so much higher. Risk is also reduced for a nation like South Africa as well, as they play in the URC and EPCR and thats what the audience watch their own stars play in. It wouldn't matter as much if that wasn't for a South African team.

So when you say Rassie has proven it can work, no, he hasn't. All he has shown is that a true master mind can deal with the difficulties of juggling players around, who all have different 'peak' points in their season, and get them to perform. And his players are freaks and he's only allowed the best of the best to go overseas. Not one All Black has come back from a sabbatical in is good nick/form as he left, yet. Cane was alright but he was injured and in NZ for most the Super season, Ardie was well off the pace when he came back.

Those benefits don't really exist for New Zealand. I would be far more happy if a billionaire South African drew a couple of stars, even just young ones, over to play in the URC, because we know their wouldn't be that drop in standard. Perhaps Jake should look there? I would have thought one of the main reasons we haven't already seen that is because SA teams don't need to pay to get players in though.

Hmmm , there seems to be a bit of a patten here.

Where have we seen this before (Oz cough) .....? It seems quite deliberate ........

Id like to think there is some acknowledgement from the suits that rugby has a unique chance to turn a corner with the hosting of events over the next 6 years and can grow a little. Wales sounds awful from the above!