Tours will stump the slump

With all the hype surrounding the arrival of the British & Irish Lions, rugby365 columnist Ebrahim Moerat believes  it's time to re-introduce a lost tradition...International Rugby Tours.

While the international playing calendar remains a complex issue, the recent arrival of the British & Irish Lions in South Africa illustrates the true value of old-fashioned rugby tours.

The Lions, having last visited the Republic in 1997,  will undertake a 10-match tour which will include three Tests against the Springboks.

For most players a Lions tour, along with the World Cup remains the ultimate and is why many of the current senior Springboks stayed on to experience the 2009 version. Frankly, it is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and every four years one of the three SANZAR (South Africa, New Zealand, Australia) nations clears their June schedule to accommodate the composite team.

But why can't it be done on a more permanent basis?

Every year the northern teams tour their southern hemisphere counterparts for a few mid-year Tests. And every year the southern hemisphere teams complain about the make-up of the northern teams. The results is that these Tests create very little buzz for players and fans alike.

Tours ceased in the professional era and the only way it can be revived is in the established June Test window.

The Tri-Nations, much like the Super Rugby format has lost its aura and implementing tours will cause a revival in Test rugby and tours would also decrease the workload on professional players.

The SANZAR nations also play each other in an expanded Tri-Nations series, which has become stale and devalued traditional rivalry of particularly the Springboks and All Blacks. While some may argue that an All Blacks-Springboks clash still generates a lot of interest, the current mid-year Test window has gone a long way in devaluing international rugby. One-off tests do very little justice to international rugby, particularly if it features an understrength outfit.

Late last year the International Rugby Board said they will consider a return to traditional international playing tours in response to pressure from some of the top rugby nations. However, the congested playing roster will make it very difficult to re-instate these tours and logistically (even financially) it could become a nightmare.

However, the biggest stumbling block appears to be the commercial involvement in these 'series' as sponsors pay big bucks to be associated with these competitions. Annual tournaments brings in more money for sponsors and the additional television coverage, due to expansion, also puts more money in unions' pockets.

In short the more rugby equals more money.

This trend was instigated through the Super Rugby concept which has now snowballed into a supersized version by 2011. The southern hemisphere showpiece is guaranteed to get even bigger but the big question is: will it get any better?

Rugby wanted to move with the times but it remains a game deeply rooted in tradition and officials will have to realise this to avoid a rugby recession.

By Ebrahim Moerat

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