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https://thewest.com.au/sport/rugby-u...ng-b881408226z
A few Lads in Lindfield think that the WA Government may have the ARU/RA by the short and curlies.
The sold-out Bledisloe test in Perth this year, plus the 5 million smackeroonies paid by the WA Government for the "privilege" of hosting the 2019 test, went a long way to saving the ARU/RA's financial bacon in the current fiscal year. And this from a rugby community which the ARU/RA tried to shut down in late 2017. Remember that the ARU/RA also planned to shut down the WA NRC team in 2017, the same NRC team which won the NRC convincingly in 2019.
I am told that there are people in the Moore Park Bunker who do not like to be reminded of (a) how the rugby community which they tried to shut down in 2017 helped save their financial bacon in 2019 and (b) their attempt to shut down the 2019 NRC champions in 2017.
The ARU/RA would appear to have (at least) two problems regarding the playing program for 2020 and 2021:
- Finding a suitable venue in Australia for the Wallabies vs Bokke test in 2020 and getting maximum revenue from the match (including a payment by the relevant State Government).
- Finding a suitable venue in Australia for the Bledisloe test in 2021, and getting maximum revenue from the match (including a State Government hand-out).
The Bokke will be coming to Australia in 2020 as World Champions and the ARU/RA need to earn maximum revenue from the Wallabies vs Bokke match. But there are not that many suitable venues still available in 2020 (e.g. with capacity >40,000). There are already two tests booked for Lang Park in 2020 (Wallabies vs Ireland and Wallabies vs ABs) so getting respectable numbers to Lang Park or to a venue like Robina for a third test in 2020 is probably a big ask. A Wallabies vs Ireland test is scheduled for the SCG in 2020, and a Wallabies vs Fiji test for the Bankwest Stadium at Parramatta. Ever been to a rugby test match at the SCG? Enough said. The theory is that Parramatta is close to the hub of the PI population in Western Sydney, and so good crowds should be attracted to a Wallabies vs PI test. But that's not what happened with the Wallabies vs Samoa test held at Bankwest in September; they got a half-full stadium (16,091). Melbourne is hosting a Bledisloe test at Docklands in 2020, and the Victorian Government has already committed about 18 million for six major Wallabies Test Matches in Melbourne between 2018 and 2025, so it is believed that they have respectfully declined to provide any further money to the ARU/RA for a second test in Melbourne in 2020 (the Victorians may also be feeling a little apprehensive about a possible approach from the ARU/RA in 2020 or 2021 regarding a financial bail out of the Melbourne Rebels).
The South Australians are reported to have told the ARU/RA what to do with their proposal for a Bledisloe test at the Adelaide Oval in 2021, hence the second problem in 2021. The present financial position of the SA Government probably doesn't permit payment of the sums put up by the WA Government for Wallabies test matches in Perth.
Other options in 2020 and 2021 include regional stadiums like Bruce Stadium in Canberra (capacity 25,011), Kardinia Park in Geelong (capacity 36,000, and not exactly a hot-bed of support for the game of Rugby Union), MacDonald Jones Stadium in Newcastle (capacity 23,000), ...
And the ARU/RA still have to find an Australian venue for the Wallabies vs Los Pumas test in 2020, preferably with an up-front investment from a gullible State Government or Tourism Authority.
The WA Government, with its brand-new stadium (capacity 60,000+), should find itself in an interesting negotiating position with the ARU/RA.