Change needed as fans vote with feet
Change sounds great, but to what?
Just 2065 fans were at Westpac Stadium to see Wellington lose to Waikato last Saturday. That’s about 1000 down on what the Lions have averaged during the 2016 Mitre 10 Cup.
Those numbers are typical of attendances across the competition, says Wellington Rugby Football Union chairman Iain Potter. People don’t come to provincial games like they used to and aren’t about to re-start - no matter how the competition’s structured. That doesn’t mean the unions are universally satisfied with the status quo, however.
‘‘There is truth to the rumour that it’s been robustly discussed. The question is: will that discussion land on a change,’’ Potter said of the potential for a new provincial format.
‘‘There is a mood for change, but whether or not it’s sufficient to result in change remains to be seen.’’
No-one doubts that a round-robin competition, followed by semifinals and a final, would be ideal. But how would you shoe-horn that into the schedule? Then there’s the player welfare aspect of adding yet more games to the season.
The present model, with two tiers, gets things over and done with fairly promptly. But it means half the sides don’t have a crack at the title. There’s also the confusion thrown up by having crossover matches.
Some advocate a model similar to that used in the Heartland Championship, with the competition splitting in two at a halfway point. That would create a logistical shambles.
‘‘You’ve got to know where you’re playing so you can book the venue, book the flights, book the accommodation, tell the players so that they can plan their lives. The mythology is that everyone who plays Mitre 10 is a 12-month-of-the-year professional; well, many, many of them aren’t so they have to plan it round their lives,’’ said Potter.
When this incarnation of provincial rugby was conceived, it was with 10 teams in mind. But after 14 unions presented strong proposals for inclusion New Zealand Rugby admitted the lot and two divisions of seven was born.
‘‘There would be fierce resistance to the suggestion that the numbers should change,’’ Potter said.
Particularly given the competition remains reasonably well watched. The structure might not be ideal and, no, attendances aren’t amazing either, but folk are still tuning in.
‘‘We get the figures from NZR every couple of weeks, which give us the live TV audience, and Wellington are averaging around 75,000 per game. So we have this situation where 78,000 people are watching the game, but only 3000 are there [at Westpac Stadium],’’ said Potter.
‘‘Quite frankly I don’t know what to make of that sometimes because, in fact, Wellington are the most-watched team on television.’’
Yet a crowd of 5000 for the Lions’ semifinal clash with North Harbour on Saturday afternoon would be considered a real success, he added.
Everyone has a theory on why fans don’t flock to provincial footy. In the case of Wellington - particularly this year - Potter felt you couldn’t underestimate fatigue. Westpac Stadium has played host to international sevens, 10 Hurricanes games and two All Blacks tests, making the Lions not as alluring as they could be.
Potter’s not sure how you change that, but he knows New Zealand’s provincial unions are increasingly keen to find out.