Our game’s in a precarious state, it should be a big concern in Wales
IT is one of the biggest weekends on the rugby calendar, when European silverware is dished out amid glitz, glamour and no little swagger, but Paul Thorburn has major doubts about the health of the sport.
All eyes will be on Bilbao when Leinster take on Racing Metro in the Champions Cup final today, after Cardiff Blues and Gloucester contesting the Challenge Cup showpiece last night.
A cursory glance at the shop window might suggest the game is in good shape.
But former Wales captain Thorburn isn’t buying it, arguing:
■ the sport is in a precarious state;
■ Welsh rugby should be massively concerned about the economic situation;
■ there’s a huge risk in a TV deal that saturates the public with rugby;
■ crowds still matter;
■ the product is dire and predictable;
■ and there too many injuries. These days a successful businessman, the tournament director of the 1999 Rugby World Cup has serious worries about where the sport is heading.
“I just feel rugby is in a precarious state,” he said.
“You look at the relatively poor performances on the pitch of English clubs in European competition and see the modest financial performances of many. Exeter Chiefs were the only one to post a profit last year and some of the others were losing a lot of money.
“On that basis, you begin to question whether the rugby market is as buoyant as some people might think.
“For me, it’s not something you’d invest in without a lot of thought.
“Irish rugby is set up differently and doing better, but I just doubt whether the game generally is particularly healthy right now.
“Is it a concern in Wales? It’s a massive concern.
“The Scarlets are having a good season and, to be fair, are playing great rugby, but the wider economic landscape this side of the Severn Bridge isn’t exactly encouraging. It is hard for the regions to make ends meet and wages are on the up. All the while, agents, the scourge of sport, line their pockets.
“It is going down the road of football without the financial backing that we see for Premier League clubs.”
Details of a new TV deal for the Guinness PRO14 were recently announced, with the Welsh regions set to see their competition income, from broadcasting and sponsorship, rise to £2 million each per season, compared with £1 million two years ago.
The fresh arrangement will bring in total revenue of £30 million per year.
Two pay-TV companies will show every single match live, with some provision set to be confirmed for terrestrial organisations, such as S4C in Wales, to also beam games as they happen.
But Thorburn isn’t exactly reaching for the champagne.
“When I was at the Ospreys we debated long and hard about televised rugby and whether it was adversely affecting gates,” he added.
“There’s a strong argument that it does, absolutely.
“In the 1980s, there were few games on TV and the crowds were there. People knew that the only way they could watch a match was by going along in person and paying at the gate or using their season tickets.
“I hear the argument that TV is allimportant and the fans are a secondary consideration when it comes to big money, but I don’t think you can just look at supporters in financial terms. They are the lifeblood of clubs, the people who are always there. Coaches, directors and players come and go, but fans stick around and should be valued as such.
“Players enjoy playing in front of big crowds and the challenge for rugby is to achieve a balance between securing a good TV deal and making sure you do not saturate the public with the sport.”
Thorburn also has concern about the fare being dished up. Stats are regularly produced to show ball-in-play has increased over the years, but modern-day defences can dominate and, 23 years after rugby union embraced professionalism, there is a case for doubting whether the sport’s skill levels and attacking strategies have fully caught up with top-level rugby league.
“I’m not even sure the product is very good any more,” said Thorburn.
“You watch the Commonwealth Games and see the drama and fast pace of netball and hockey and you appreciate how great sport can be. Former Wales skipper, now a successful businessman, Paul Thorburn has a dire warning for rugby’s future England beating Australia in the final of the netball had everything – skill, drama, emotion and a last-second finish. It was unbelievable to watch.
“Rugby has become dire and so predictable it beggars belief.
“Law makers are spoiling the product and I can’t be alone in being sick of the sight of the dreaded defensive line, strung out across the field, killing the game as a spectacle.
“Rucking should be restored to speed up the game and take forwards out of that line. That would be a start. “And there are too many injuries. “It wasn’t all better back in the day, but there used to be a wrestle for the ball after a tackle, whereas now you get these 100mph human torpedoes coming in and cleaning opponents out. The wonder is there are not more injuries.”