Wallaby young blood key to erasing poms world cup curse

The pain of a Johnny Wilkinson drop goal which denied the Wallabies World Cup glory on that wet night in 2003 still haunts not only rugby faithful but Australians in general.  Four years later came our shot at redemption and revenge in the 2007 World Cup however, to the surprise of many the poms once again proved the thorn in the wallabies side defeating the Australians on route to their second consecutive world cup final.  With the much anticipated 2011 World Cup only months away all eyes will be on the young Wallabies as they attempt to put England's recent world cup domination aside in their quest for glory. 

Australian Rugby has undergone quite a few changes in the last four years, we have a new coach, a new Super Rugby franchise and arguably the most promising and exciting squad of youngsters we have ever seen.  The Wallabies coach Robbie Deans is a former All Black who knows what it takes to win and nurture young talent having won five Super Rugby titles whilst propelling the careers of many world class players like Richie McCaw and Dan Carter.  However, the task of  instilling belief into many of his young Wallabies and leading them to world cup glory in New Zealand is undoubtly the greatest challenge of his career. 

A great deal of the Wallabies success in New Zealand hinges on the performance of 23 year old Quade Cooper.  Cooper's amazing form over the last 18 months has brought a smile to the faces of many Australian rugby supporters as he has dazzled at both international and Super Rugby level,  leading the Queensland Reds to the top of the Super Rugby table for the first time since 1999.  Cooper has forged a tremendous partnership with 23 year old scrum half Will Genia and Deans will be hoping they can replicate their explosive Super Rugby form to the international stage.  Along with the Reds creative duo is the explosive James O'Connor who at just 20 years of age already has 27 tests caps.  O'Connor's Force team mate, 22 year old David Pocock displaced long time Wallaby number 7 George Smith in 2009 and has not looked back since and if the Wallabies are to be successful in New Zealand they will need their openside flanker to stand up.  Finally, there is the enigmatic but super talented Kurtley Beale.  Who could forget the composure the 22 year old showed  last year when he stepped up after the siren sounded in Bloemfontein to slot over a monstrous 50 meter penalty granting the Wallabies a thrilling 41-39 victory over the Springboks, their first at South Africa's altitude in 47 years.  It feels as though Kurtley has been around for a long time given he debut for the Waratahs as an 18 year old although it is only now that we are finally witnessing what this young man is truly capable of and there is no doubt he can be the Wallabies much needed X-factor in New Zealand. 

Only time will now tell whether Deans can unite a relatively young squad with many of its key players never having played at a world cup before and instill a belief in them to overcome this curse of the poms and bring home the title for the first time since 1999.

The price of publicity may cost AFL its soul

The date was the 29th of July 2009 when Australia's sporting world was left dumbfounded and baffled at the news that representative and premiership player Karmichael Hunt had just penned a multimillion dollar deal not with the Broncos or Rugby but with new AFL franchise the Gold Coast Suns.  This seemingly bizarre deal was initially reported to earn Hunt close to $3 million dollars, a figure that many AFL executives including CEO Andrew Demetriou confessed had been recouped by the AFL in a mere two weeks worth of publicity but was repeatedly denied to be a publicity stunt.  Well we are 20 months down the track and following Hunt's less than impressive showing it is safe to assume the generated publicity from his code jumping is on a downhill slope.  

Source - Herald Sun

There is no doubt that the fight for superiority in Australia's competitive sporting market is heating up particularly with the NRL and AFL both fighting for television deals rumoured to be worth over $1 billion dollars and with Rugby Union's show piece event the World Cup to be staged later this year the footy codes will be doing absolutely anything to get one up on each other.  Code jumping has been present amongst the Rugby codes for years, although with the AFL now joining the party it seems the war will now be taken to a whole new level and there is no telling what the carnage will be.

The signing of league superstar Israel Folau to the newly established Greater Western Sydney franchise almost a year after Hunt's defection as well as the heavy speculation linking Greg Inglis with the Essendon Football Club in late 2010 further illustrated the AFL's strong intention to lure league's best with promises of money and fame.  This approach may generate short term hype and interest for the AFL's newest franchise's although what is to happen when a year or two from now both Hunt and Folau prove to be complete flops?  Do they get dropped despite the fact that they both signed three year deals and occupy a large portion of the clubs salary cap?  Judging not only by Hunt's debut and Folau's first taste of the sport where he failed to record a single disposal, these questions unfortunately seem to be an inevitable proposition for Demetriou and his staff responsible for both athletes defection to the AFL. 

With great young talent such as Nick Naitanui, Daniel Hannebery and Anthony Morabito it leaves many passionate AFL fans wondering why the games powerbrokers are not only pursuing but throwing major money at athletes who have never even kicked an AFL footy in their lives.  At the moment the outlook seems bleak for the game's first League-AFL converts but only time will tell whether this obsession of chasing down the flashy short term headline will ultimately cost the code its soul and integrity?    

Private ownership, the way of the future or a path to league oblivion?

First it was the Delmege family with Manly, then came the much publicised acquisition of the Rabbitohs by Hollywood figure Russell Crowe and Peter Holmes, now this week it has been confirmed that Newcastle's beloved Knights will be the property of mining magnate Nathan Tinkler.  As the game of Rugby League moves forward into the new decade one must pose the question, is private ownership of foundation and regional clubs the right step forward for a code fighting for dominance in Australia's competitve sporting market?  The answer is quite simple, YES.

Club's financial reliance on Leagues Clubs and revenue generated from poker machines has gone on long enough and it is now time for private ownership to ensure what many of these institutions haven't, survival.  If any doubt exist one needs only cast eye over the impact Russell Crowe's prescence at South Sydney has made in recent years.  Since acquiring the so called 'peoples club', Crowe has not only ensured financial security at the once cash strapped club but more importantly has began to turn around its losing culture which has plagued the bunnies since their reinstatement into the competition in 2002.  Crowe has been influential in attracting big names such as Sam Burgess and Greg Inglis to the Rabbitohs in recent seasons but perhaps his biggest contribution to the game is using his star power to promote and publicise the game any chance he gets, whether it be in Europe or the United States.

The terms of Tinkler's takeover deal ensures that the club's current debt of $2.75 million is immediately resolved but more importantly will commit $10 million of sponsorship to the club each year for a ten year period.  Such a deal can only have a positive benefit on a club who have long represented the rugby league mad region of Newcastle and can now bask in the glory of the fact that their club will now live to see the next decade.   

In a week where the Knight's financial head aches have been put to rest, the Cronulla Sharks represent a club on the cusp of oblivion as its recent development to merge its struggling Leagues Club with the Sutherland District Trade Club has spectacularly fallen through.  This further demonstrates that complete reliance on Leagues Clubs for financial support is not the way forward for embattling NRL franchises but rather the extensive prescence of passionate committed owners like Crowe and Tinkler will ensure this great game and the clubs we love to thrive in the future.