The value of rugby scholarships should come under scrutiny in a hard look at the schools rugby system, says Sir John Kirwan.
Stuff revealed on Sunday that New Zealand Rugby has begun talks with the schools sector about potentially taking a greater role in schools rugby, with investment one option under consideration.
That has sparked a broader debate about schools rugby in general, and schoolboys rugby in particular as the national game battles declining participation rates among teenage boys.
Kirwan had his say on The Breakdown on Sky Sport on Sunday, questioning whether enough was being done to keep boys in rugby if they didn’t make the First XV.
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“From a rugby point of view, we need to have two pathways,” Kirwan said.
“We need an under-85kg World Cup, but we [also] need alternative pathways. Not everyone can play at the elite level.
“But rugby for me has always been a lifestyle sport. If you go to London next week on your OE and you play rugby, you go to your local rugby club, you get a job, you get a group of friends.
“The other thing I wouldn’t mind a discussion on is scholarships. Are they ridiculous or are they good? What are they?
“If I speak to 10 people five say they’re ridiculous, and five say it’s a good opportunity.”
All Blacks great Jeff Wilson agreed the current system wasn’t working as well as it should.
“The numbers going from schoolboy rugby back into the club scene, it’s just not happening," he said.
“There are some concerns around that, and NZ Rugby are going, ‘You know what, we have to have a conversation about how we keep these kids playing the game’.
“This is important not just on the field, but this is our potential fan base of the future. Families that go and watch games, the moment they move away from the game they’ve very unlikely to come back.”
The schools rugby system is fragmented and complex, and the lack of an overarching entity that guards the system has led critics to argue that First XV rugby has become a law unto itself.
Some First XV programs are almost semi-professional in nature, with money poured into securing high-quality coaches – some of whom have Super Rugby experience.
However, that doesn’t leave a lot on the table for the boys and girls who don’t make the top teams, and former-player turned commentator Taylah Johnson said an issue for the schools system was that it lacked a clear mission statement.
”I think the issue with school rugby is that it’s so fragmented and there’s no clear vision,” she said.
”You’ve got the focus on the elite but there is no other pathway.
”There’s no fun factor or no real goal for every other team.
”There’s no real clear guide as to what the goal is for NZ Rugby at that level…it’s not a bad idea having NZ Rugby step in.”
The investment from Silver Lake has given NZ Rugby the means to back up talks with the schools system with the promise of actual funding. Wilson said it would be money well spent if NZ Rugby went down that path.
“I think they have got resource now as well,” he said. “They’ve got this investment portfolio coming out of Silver Lake.
“If they are going to invest surely that’s got to be a critical area, because isn’t that the future of our game?”
Any investment in the schools sector would be separate from NZ Rugby’s initial investment into community rugby that will see the 26 provincial unions share $20 million, with a further $7.5m being distributed to rugby clubs.
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