New Zealand will not submite a bid for the 15th Super 15 franchise, which leaves South Africa’s Southern Kings and Australia’s Melbourne franchise as the sole contenders.
Taranaki was set to be New Zealand’s brightest hope of grabbing the additional spot in the expanded tournament, but New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) officials have deemed a sixth franchise to be unsustainable. They will therefore not put the Taranaki bid through to governing body, Sanzar, for further consideration.
‘While consideration was given to referring the Taranaki proposal on to Sanzar, it was agreed that an expansion of the number of Super rugby teams in New Zealand would not be in the best interests of New Zealand rugby at this time,’ NZRU Chief Executive Steve Tew said in a statement.
‘We have consistently questioned whether New Zealand has the capacity, either in playing depth or financial resources, to sustain a sixth Super rugby franchise and that influenced our decision.’
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The British & Irish Lions beat the Southern Kings from the Eastern Cape 20 – 8 Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Sunday , but the Lions definitely did not have it all their own way.
In a match marking the inauguration of a stadium named after South Africa’s favourite son and commemorating a momentous juncture in the country’s history the rag-tag Kings played with appropriate passion and spirit.
The Kings might have been drawn from all corners of the country, indeed from the world, and had little time to prepare but they responded to the gauntlet thrown down by the Lions, when they named a macro pack in their effort to grind out a sixth successive win, with gusto.
In the end the tourists succeeded, but the Kings, before the biggest crowd of the tour (some 35 800), would have shaken the Lions’ confidence ahead of Saturday’s first test in Durban.
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The new South African Eastern cape franchise the Southern Kings are ready to launch their bid to become the next and 15th Super Rugby team.
Eastern Province Rugby Union supremo Cheeky Watson, one of the key figures in the new franchise, said the decision to expanded Super Rugby to a 15-team competition has opened the door for the Kings to join the world’s toughest provincial competition.
Watson confirmed that the Kings, which will be formally launched with a match against the British and Irish Lions in Port Elizabeth on June 16, will make a formal bid for inclusion in the SANZAR competition.
The 15th team will be decided through a tender process.
“We do not know when we will be able to start the tender process, because we are still waiting on SANZAR,” Watson told the Port Elizabeth-based Herald newspaper.
“However, we are very excited about this decision, because it will benefit us in the long run,” he said.
If the Southern Kings won the bid, Port Elizabeth will be the headquarters.
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The new franchise from the Eastern Cape (formerly known as the Southern Spears) will officially be known as the Southern Kings.
The Eastern Cape franchise will launch with a game against the British & Irish Lions in Port Elizabeth on 16 June. The Kings squad will be named at a later date, but is set to include a host of Vodacom Cup players as well as players originally hailing from the region.
A coach is yet to be appointed, although former Bulls mentor Heyneke Meyer has been linked to the job. WP and the Stormers have confirmed Rassie Erasmus will see out his contract with the Cape union which expires at the end of 2010.
Source: keo.co.za
