couldnt agree more have spoken to a few people involved with the waratahs on this subject before and amazed by their lack of interest

few suggestions

Gear- Young kids playing sport love gear. I know of kids who played at club level and district rep level for a number of years and do not even have a club or district jumper to show for it. Same group of kids play club rugby league and junior rep league and they could fill their wardrobe with jerseys,training shirts and tracksuits

Why wouldnt the Waratahs do a deal with their gear provider to give a waratah jersey to every kid between yne ages of ten and fourteen who registers to play club rugby. Think of all those kids wearing waratah jerseya at training.


Schoolboy Rugby- The number one schoolboy rugby competition in NSW shoule be the Waratah Shield yet no one hardly knows it exists. Why not pitch for a naming rights sponsor to provide prizemoney to the winning school.Play the competition in the Pre Season before the GPS,CAS ISA comps start and actively market to all schools to participate.Play the final as the prelim game to a Waratah Home Super 14 game. I reckon that would really motivate interest

You could also put forward for the schools that make the semis maybe a waratah coaching clinic


I am sure there are a number of other ideas bottom line is kids in general do not feel real affiliation with their district or with the Waratahs . Just read the posts on this blog during the season the vast majority relate to Schoolboy rugby and bugger all to the Waratahs and none to club rugby

That's because nobody likes the Waratahs .

Sour Grapes in relation to the Waratahs the comments about lack of money is wrong. Have knoweledge of the money raisrd by the Waratahs through sponsorship versus Sydney based NRL clubs and the WArartahs earn heaps more. Agree with the lack of money at club Rugby level. However the problem really lays with the ARU and NSW Rugby who are giving absolute lip service to junior development.The point is money is being wasted by poor management. And kids are leaving the code in droves the evedence is there for all to see

Hmmm, play RU colts or maybe Shute Shield for beer money, if you're lucky an amateur S-14 contract(minimal $), as apposed to SG Ball, Toyota Cup, or better for Uni fees/tafe/traineeship payed/organised wherever you choose to study(not just Sydney Uni), share of team salary cap(250k for U/20 TCup), living away from home allowance(rent paid), win/loss match payments, this is all before individual player contract fees etc, ....the choice is a no brainer(this starts at u/16 and u/18 in RL).
I think RU needs to adopt some of M-Thatchers much maligned filter down economics from the 80's in a hurry, there's a lot of years and bills to be paid between U/16 talent ID and S-14, for forwards it's a real long haul, not much better for 10's and 12's. Kudos doesn't put food or beer for that matter on the table.
What was the Question?

I disagree that junior rugby is in decline i actually think junior rugby is quite healthy the main issue is, as is being discussed players when they come out of juniors going to other codes ! in the end the lads should be enjoying their rugby and running a muck with their mates if they earn a couple of bucks thats a bonus. if its all about money maybe they should think about studying a bit harder at school and an alternative career path to footy.

Yes Tinovuna I am in agreement with you again. The biggest problem I see with junior rugby lies not in participation rates, but rather, from an aspirational standpoint. Kids cant generally get close to the Super 14 players and there is only one team in NSW and one in Qld, the largest and third largest (respectively) markets in the country. Rugby needs a strong domestic competition where kids can go, as they do to the NRL games, and meet the players after a game. They are more likely to see them in their local community through the local paper or on the streets and the "hero worship" factor is much stronger and forged earlier. By the time a kid playing rugby makes it to uni, he has been exposed to many sports and more often than not - and I am a case in point - become enamoured with another code like Rugby League because of the aspirational value it offers. The other factor is that kids playing union dont have alot of options when it comes to clubs if they want to make a career of their sport. The NRL has a plethora of clubs looking for new talent whilst it is impossible to make decent scratch out of the Wicks or the Rats! You have to get to Super 14 level and above to make money and positions are at a premium.

So he's 1 up on you. Is that what your saying ?

What we are seeing here is a late manifestation of what is a world wide trend.
Kids now have access on TV to a myriad of sports and now the traditinal sports are being replaced.
The West Indies had a similar problem when US basketball and other sports begaon telecasting live into Central America and the juniors playing cricket dropped dramatically and they still struggle to get the interest back - purely due to the huge selection available.
I hate to say it but schools now play a bigger part than ever in developing rugby in Australia. Rarely does a state high school play rugby now - they have all gone to league and this a result of the massive difference in exposure of the two games.
You can't even get live rugby anymore on the ABC in Queensland - it's been replaced by the league. Gone are the days of sitting in a pub anywhere in Australia on a Saturday afternoon and catching the Sydney comp.
40 years ago, a majority of state high schools in NSW played rugby, now it's pretty well the traditional state schools like Epping BHS, Matraville, Randwich, Balgowlah etc. plus the private schools.
In Queensland I am not aware of a State school on the Gold Coast that plays rugby and I am sure there are not too many in Brisbane either. It's the domain of the private schools, particularly the GPS and AIC schools along with the independent colleges that carry the flag.
This is a problem and the various rugby development officers have job in front of them.
In Queensland next year there is an improved state wide schools comp but this only the start. It's a long hard road but if it isn't remedied the power of junior rugby will ultimately rest with a few clubs but more in the hands of the elite private schools.

Excellent point sidelinecoach and agree entirely. The NFL also pursuaded many West Indian kids to defect as it were and rugby in this country has lost its stranglehold at grass roots level to League and particularly the AFL which is easily the most aggressive marketer and promoter at this level in the country. Kids in Australia will always participate in soccer in high numbers because parents (mums in particular) believe it to be a safer option than the contact codes, but there has always been a history of defections from junior soccer into the contact codes at an early age - beginning of high school if not beforehand.

dw i wasn't looking for your approval