New Super Rugby format, draw announced
Three less teams, one less conference and a change in flight patterns for the Sunwolves.
Those are the main takeaways from the announcement from SANZAAR today, as they unveiled the draw for Super Rugby 2018. As announced in April this year, it will change to a 15-team, three conference format.
Each team will play 16 conference matches that include eight matches within their own conference (home and away) and four matches against teams from each of the other conferences (home or away). The finals will comprise an eight team, seven match series.
SANZAAR CEO Andy Marinos said: “It was not an easy decision to reduce the number of teams but a necessary one considering the outputs from the strategic review to date. The tournament was not working with 18 teams, the structure was confusing, the outcomes of matches were becoming too predictable and the fans and stakeholders had, through our surveys, voiced their concerns."
Marinos then put the hard word on teams not playing attractive rugby.
"The teams that have not performed need to start producing a more attractive brand of rugby that re-engages fans, produces competitive results and winning performances. We have a great tournament but what is needed now is the talking to be done on the field as enough opinion and perspective has been provided off the field.”
However, the competition still faces a disjointed start with the South African conference starting a week earlier than everyone else.
They kick off on Saturday 17 February with the Stormers hosting the Jaguares in Cape Town. The Lions, runners-up the last two years, host the Sharks in Johannesburg, while Bulls have a bye.
The Australian and New Zealand Conferences will kick-off a week later when the defending champions the Crusaders open the defence of their title at home against the Chiefs. The Blues and Highlanders play out another NZ derby, while the Hurricanes travel to South Africa. The Brumbies, last year’s Australian Conference winner, open the season against the Sunwolves in Tokyo who are now positioned in the Australian Conference.
We'll have a full analysis of the Super Rugby 2018 draw and what it means for the sides coming up.
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I’m not fully convinced this was any sort of deliberate grand plan by SB, other than perhaps a masterful way (as it transpired) of dealing with injuries to a couple of key players in positions that lack high calibre alternatives in SB’s view. Losing Martin and Lawrence was disruptive to the team England ideally wanted and pretty likely both start if they had been able to. Ted Hill clearly isn’t fully trusted, despite being on the bench vs Scotland and Italy, and Slade may have had his day in light of an winger being drafted in to start as Test centre for the first time. Moving Earl to centre is worthwhile, in the right circumstances, as a proving exercise for future reference but it’s not the way to go against any of the top teams.
So they may well have added another page to their emergency playbook but I’m doubtful it was a genuine attempt at cutting edge innovation. More a case of necessity being the mother of invention that happened to suit the opposition on that given day. I guess we’ll know more in the Autumn but it won’t be until next year in Paris that the first real test of that set up would come against a heavy power team, IF it’s still in use ofc…
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