ARU serious about third tier: Deans

[TOCC]

unfortunately resource companies dont really need to advertise

[AndyS]

Although there are more than a few could do with some good PR. I'd prefer to see naming rights on a ground though, rather than on a team.

[tragic]

He could just as reasonably said "Any means of identifying and developing new players would be good, so long as it doesn't cost the ARU a cent". Almost the motto for their grass-roots strategy...

It's called "investment".

[TOCC]

It's called "investment".

and the ARU is a buisness as well, it cant just run at massive losses

[GIGS20]

But all businesses are aware of the risk-reward ratio, and all succesful businesses have a training and promotions budget......these departments NEVER run at a profit in isolation, they are used to generate efficiencies and revenue for the greater organisation.

[Badger]

no major business aims to make a profit in the first 2 years, the first 2 years is about growing your brand. $4.5m loss for the size of project is nothing it shouldn't have been condemned so early in the first place.

[TOCC]

no major business aims to make a profit in the first 2 years, the first 2 years is about growing your brand. $4.5m loss for the size of project is nothing it shouldn't have been condemned so early in the first place.

there is a incredible difference between not making a profit and running a massive deficit, the loss was equal to 10% of the revenue throughput of the ARU, thats not sustainable on any level, the ARC in the format that it was in was not a sustainable concept.

[Darren]

How about the 2006 "APC" competition? With Victoria likely to be included in any future such competition, a 5 team post Super15 APC must have some merit. I don't recall how finances went in 2006, but I'm guessing they were OK enough to expand on the idea in 2007 ...

[TOCC]

i am all for a ARC/APC style competition, at the same time it cant bleed cash, a small loss is acceptible, a massive one isnt.

From memory the APC was run quite cheaply, im not to sure how the funding was arranged for the APC though, in terms of match payments etc, considering most of the players were drawn from the current Super14 squads and academy squads.

[beige]

How about the 2006 "APC" competition? With Victoria likely to be included in any future such competition, a 5 team post Super15 APC must have some merit. I don't recall how finances went in 2006, but I'm guessing they were OK enough to expand on the idea in 2007 ...

That's not quite how it happened because the ARC was already locked in for 2007 before they ran the APC in 2006 - the APC was only ever meant to be a one-off. It would be interesting to see how it did financially though.

John O'Neill actually tried to resurrect the competition for October this year but one of the states (can't recall which one) shot it down.