Return of series touring in the SH.... by SH nations.

An earlier reply from Kia mentioning it was sad that SH tours for SH teams no longer existed got me thinking if it was indeed viable and I made a quick post on the blog suggesting the RC go to once every 2 years and inbetween we would see regular touring resume of SH nations such as SA touring NZ and ARG touring AUS.

This would be the potential schedule

2014 - AUS tour of NZ , SA tour of ARG
2015 - RC & RWC
2016 - NZ tour of ARG, AUS tour of SA
2017 - RC
2018 - SA tour of AUS, ARG tour of NZ.
2019 - RC & RWC
2020 - NZ tour of SA, AUS tour of ARG
2021 - RC
2022 - NZ tour of AUS, ARG tour of SA
2023 - RC & RWC
2024 - SA tour of NZ, ARG tour of AUS.
2025 - RC

hosting years

SA - AUS 2016, NZ 2020, ARG 2024
NZ - AUS 2014, ARG 2018, SA 2022
AUS - SA 2018, ARG 2022, NZ 2024
ARG - SA 2014, NZ 2016, AUS 2022

Its only a draft so could change etc but what do people think... good idea??? I'm sure it would generate more revenue for the RC sides then one off games etc.

I would love to see NZ in SA play a 4 test series again and I'm sure all the players would walk over hot coals to be a part of it. the return of a touring nation would only happen once every 12 years so it would be a rare event yet every 6 years or so the nations would do battle home or away. To be honest its all about the green concerning the unions, if it means more money then I would say its viable, if not, no chance.

In the years where you don't have the RC you could also have a triangular tournament to incorporate the June touring team like the Aussies have in one day cricket where each team plays each other twice and then a final. You could also incorporate the best PI team where they play each other to see which team gets to tour.

I like your idea to only have these tours every 12 years so that they're still a rare event like the Lions that generates interest and more importantly TV revenue.

Super rugby is a good indicator of the perils that lay in wait for the RC. Bigger does not always mean better and familiarity breeds contempt. A shake up of test rugby and the way games are played is needed in general I think.

You play eachother twice every year already!! That is pretty much a tour in itself.

The reason why Lions fans travel in such numbers is not only the wealth and sheer numbers in the UK compared but also the length of the tour and how seldom they tour SA, NZ etc.

If SA toured NZ once every 12 years and it was a 6 week affair I wonder if you would get boere trotting over to NZ to watch the rugby like Brits do on Lions tours... it would be less but more so then we currently see.

Hardly any kiwi's will say, "hey NZ are playing in Jo'burg next year in a one off test, lets go to SA".... but they might if they have an opportunity to follow NZ all over SA for 6 weeks.

GunsGerms wrote:You play eachother twice every year already!! That is pretty much a tour in itself.

one home match one away. Not the same really. Like Ireland touring NZ earlier in the year.... not the same as with the Lions... wouldn't you agree?

Its about mixing it up... keeping things fresh. The RC format is a bit soleless wouldn't you say... no tournament feel (something the 6N gets due to the proximity of the locations.

Are the November internationals a tour GG or are they simply an exercise in filling up the coffers? I don't think they in any way resemble a tour. That's not to say that they don't have intriguing match ups but SA, NZ and Australia go to England and Wales pretty much every year because they are guaranteed the best revenue from those games.

The OP is trying to find a way to generate revenue and play something more meaningful than a one-off game that doesn't mount up to much.

fa0019 wrote:

GunsGerms wrote:You play eachother twice every year already!! That is pretty much a tour in itself.

one home match one away. Not the same really. Like Ireland touring NZ earlier in the year.... not the same as with the Lions... wouldn't you agree?

Its about mixing it up... keeping things fresh. The RC format is a bit soleless wouldn't you say... no tournament feel (something the 6N gets due to the proximity of the locations.

Yes the RC has a lot of challenges and yes it is soulless but that may be because it isnt particularly old and doesnt have the same rich tradition as the 6N. Certainly the travelling cant help.

The travelling is the huge hurdle. You can't have fans travel to SA for one game like you can have Irish fans travelling to Paris, for example. Tradition is closer to it. How to replicate the rivalry of old in a modern context. One home game and one away game is not the answer.

The June test series in the SH has been warmly embraced. Add a NZ tour to SA with provincial matches every 12 years and the TV interest would be immense and you'd be inclined to see fan touring parties visiting much like in a World Cup.

Travel is the huge killer in Super rugby and the RC. The distances are simply too huge. You have to concentrate the rugby in certain areas against certain opposition. England and Wales fans are probably tired of seeing games against the same opposition. Put that context into the RC and it's the same problem.

fa0019 wrote:The reason why Lions fans travel in such numbers is not only the wealth and sheer numbers in the UK compared but also the length of the tour and how seldom they tour SA, NZ etc.

If SA toured NZ once every 12 years and it was a 6 week affair I wonder if you would get boere trotting over to NZ to watch the rugby like Brits do on Lions tours... it would be less but more so then we currently see.

Hardly any kiwi's will say, "hey NZ are playing in Jo'burg next year in a one off test, lets go to SA".... but they might if they have an opportunity to follow NZ all over SA for 6 weeks.

Its not only the Brits that travel in big numbers, the irish also travel over in huge numbers.

Springbok tour in NZ (or ABs in South Africa) would be absolute heaven. A couple of months. Full test series with warmup games against the provinces. Can only see it happening though when the Lions tour Australia