Southern Kings need time to settle in, says Pro14 boss

OUTSPOKEN Pro14 boss Martin Anayi predicts it will take the Southern Kings a year or two to kick into top gear in the new enlarged championship.

Hit by an exodus of senior players after Super Rugby, Kings head coach Deon Davids has been forced to start an urgent rebuilding programme.

The Kings have just seven days left to sort out a competitive unit ahead of their opening match against champions Scarlets in Wales on September 2.

“I would say we would need to give them [the Kings] a year or two to kick into gear,” Anayi said.

“The Cheetahs are Currie Cup champions and have fantastic depth.

“They have a few injury problems at the moment at flyhalf, but once they come back, they have three or four genuine contenders at 10 for international honours.

“The phrase ‘hotbed’ is used a lot, but it really does apply to both the Free State and Eastern Cape, for different reasons, and that is what excites us.

“A little bit of latitude for them to get it right, and they will come good.”

Anayi said Pro14’s move into South Africa was just the start of the competition’s expansion, with North America among future areas of growth.

“We are still looking outwards. The league won’t sit still.

“We had set out when I first came that we were looking to expand rather than contract.

“We needed to do that to be competitive with the English league and the French league.

“South Africa is a huge market for us. The Cheetahs and Kings can add massively to our tournament.”

As well as looking across the Atlantic, Anayi also has revealed interest in the Pro14 growing into other parts of Europe, for example Germany and Georgia.

“We have to look at all opportunities. We set up the tournament structure to expand further at the right stage, and I think that’s the right thing to do,” Anayi said.

For years, the Pro12 had struggled to match the financial might of European rivals the English Premiership and French Top 14, but Anayi feels the increase in broadcast revenue – as a result of the expansion into South Africa – is game-changing.

“It gives us a long-term strategic plan, and a market in South Africa with 55 million homes is a genuine rugby market,” he said.

“It’s confidential in terms of the actual figure. We can’t really match the English and French for one domestic TV deal, so let’s do it differently. This is the first phase.

“So it just made a lot of sense. Can we grow further? Yes, we will grow further. Can we deliver more money back to our clubs? Yes.

“But at the same time, our costs are increasing because we need to elevate our standards,” Anayi said.

“The revenue that’s generated from the expansion goes a long way to that.”