Is the Super Rugby playoffs a joke Or should the Rabo adopt it

Half way through the season and it looks like for the first time that a Aus team might not make the top six on points.

The only thing they can hope for is that one of them wins lots of games home and away.

Even if they finish 7th they still get 3rd spot and as such play a home quarter against a team that would have finished above them.

Is this fair as it is for the great good

If this was the Rabo their would be uproar if there had to be a welsh and Scottish/Itailan team in the playoffs

Is Aus not taking part for the great good
The playoffs are for the best teams

What would you think if the Rabo Playoffs went to six and each country got a place

By the way I think this is a bad idea

Good article Brendan.

There is a fine line between keeping interest high across all countries and having a manufactured competition.

I think the playoff system in SANZAR may be a step too far.

To clarify, if the highest placed Oz team was outside the play offs would that mean they were effectively placed 3rd with whoever the lowest finishing playoff placed team dumped out of the playoffs?

I think it would be rubbish too which is why I can't understand why they allow it.

The Rabo and Super are there to provide teams with a higher Standard of play

The playoffs are for the best teams

the super playoffs are for the 3 conference Champions and the best three runners up

Also maybe in England it might help to build union up north if one of them got in but I think Sale will be pushing more next year

But that's the way the tournament is set up. The possibility of this happening was obvious when this format was decided. I don't watch Super Rugby. How have the Aussie teams ended up with less points? Is it

a) They're evenly matched within their conference and are taking points off each other?

or

b) They're all losing lots of games to the Kiwi's and South Africans?

And the answer is: B

The second.

The Reds topped the league last year because the Aus conference is so weak they walked it.

Feck you never gave you opinion if it would help the Rabo more internal fighting to keep the rabo hard fought so ulster and Munster would be fighting it out for one spot etc

If the irish were to get 3 spots though unlikely would the others try do this

I don't like the conference system in the Super XV

personally I think it should be each conference plays each other home and away twice Locall Derby games 16 game mini league

Top 2 in each play a home and away cup knockout, middle 2 play home and away Shield knock out, bottom 1's play mini league, bottom team gets wooden spoon.

The wooden spoon should be enough to make sure that each union keeps all there teams strong instead of the embarressment of collecting it each year.

Right now the S15 is stuck between being a league and the HC

It is stupid to not play two other teams

Would it work if the HC was done on a four groups of six and play each other once and top two go through

Would get some better group games but might be less chance of a bolter like Endinburgh

The Rabo is fine the way it is. The problem with Super Rugby is that they have time constraints and have to get the tournament over with within a certain timespan. So the format has to accommodate that. We have a longer season and can fit 11 home and 11 away games plus playoffs in, as well as a possible 9 HC games. The SANZAR teams just can't fit in that many fixtures.

Interesting point about actually awarding the worst team with a wooden spoon. Not as devastating as relegation. But might give the bottom PRO12 sides a kick up the behind.

I do wonder if the 3 irish continue to push each other and were to get three spots this year, still possible but unlikely and the same again next year and the year after would the other two say we are limiting it to somethink like the S15 but we still have 11h/a matches but just change the criteria for the playoff places

I wouldn't put it past the Welsh to try it

To be honest I just like watching Leinster play (and hopefully win). All the talk of format changes to HC and to leagues goes over my head. Whatever the format is, you just have to go and win your games. If you can do that you'll win the trophy at the end.

The HC isn't the fairest tournament in the world, with uneven pools in terms of quality, and worse, the luck of the draw for home advantage in the semi's. But it's the best craic.

And I do think the Reds were worthy Super 15 champions last year. Although they probably wouldn't have beaten Crusaders in New Zealand. But they earned their place as top seeded team by beating the Saffers and Kiwi's as well as the Aussie teams in their conference. They won their knockout games fair and square.

The conference system in SuperXV is specifically designed to keep the interest of the SANZAR nations for the playoffs. By guaranteeing that each nation has at least one team in the playoffs is a ratings winner. It's the same in ice hockey. You can have one division that is miles ahead of another. It happened this year when the team in 1st had 109 points, 2nd had 102, 3rd had 94, 4th had 108. That will work for these competitions but it wouldn’t suit the Pro12. If each country had 4 teams then that might work but I like the current format better.

Scot do you lose interest in the Rabo once the league is over if no Warriors don't make it.

I do hope it stays as it is but like you say will the powers that be say that we aren't getting the interest from Wales any more if it was Ire 3 and 1 scot which is highly possible next year

After all Wales are the TV money men and so they might not like it. If italy and Scotland were taken as one then there would be four each so one from each plus the highest placed runner-up

I just think that Rabo is fashioned after S15 and will follow it rather then stay as a League like the Aviva and T14 which would be bettter

Not having the Warriors in the playoffs would not cause me to lose interest in it. I’ll still try to catch the playoffs on line. It’s the same for the HC. I like watching rugby, so I’ll watch the knockout games regardless of my team being there.