Rugby Union - by Craig Hill

like the great Weary Dunlop, Victorian rugby has a history of daring to be different, a touch of the larrikin, and always having a go. These qualities are what you want in a Rebel and characterize the way Victoria is successfully tackling this historic year.

A new band of rebels has landed in Melbourne to plan their assault on the inaugural Mazda Australian Rugby Championship.

The Melbourne Rebels will include a mix of club rugby and Super 14 players from north of the border, who will live and train in Melbourne over the next three-months.

The Rebels line-up is dominated by youth, led by Wallabies flyer Digby Ioane while Rebels captain David Croft and former Wallabies backrower Matt Cockbain will provide valuable experience up front.

The Rebels can be expected to play a fan-friendly brand of Rugby as they look to outgun opponents with speed and skill.

But while confident his team can be competitive, Cockbain understands the challenge the Mazda ARC will present for the young Rebels line-up.
"It's going to be tough for us, we've sort of pulled guys from every where but we're hopeful we'll do well but at the end of the day we just want to try and play the positive rugby and get the name started and work it from there," Cockbain said.

"I think we're trying to go for a fairly mobile type of play, I think with the new rules coming in that'll dictate a bit of how we're going to play the game."
"We got players that can play that type of game so in general with Bill being a Sevens coach I think we want to try and move the ball."
"A lot of coaches say that and don't do it but for us, we haven't got a massive forward pack so we'll probably rely on our mobility a bit more," he said.

RugbyWA considered 20 names for the ARC team, with Spirit in the end being the preferred option because it was seen identifiable as Western Australian, and is aligned with the Western Force Super 14 team.

The logo of the Spirit is also similar to that of the Force, though it is gold instead of the Force's blue.

Rugby WA said that “Just as Force taps into the natural elements that have shaped WA, the word Spirit is strong, powerful and dynamic, and reflects the independent, open-minded and entrepreneurial way West Aussies approach things

Perth Spirit coach John Mulvihill has named a mix of experienced veterans and fresh new faces in his 27-man squad for the Mazda Australian Rugby Championship, which kicks off on 10 August.

No fewer then 21 members of the Western Force senior squad have been selected, including four players with Wallaby Test caps and recent signings Nick Cummins and Scott Fardy.

The squad also includes six members of the RugbyWA Academy currently playing in WA’s First Grade competition.
Only nine of the 27 are uncapped at Super 14 level, with the squad registering a total of 452 Super rugby caps and 19 Tests between them.

...scrumhalf Matt Henjak will captain the team, with hooker Tai McIsaac his deputy.
Western Force vice-captain Scott Fava leads a swathe of additional senior players, including former Wallaby Lachlan MacKay and 2007 Australia A representatives Gareth Hardy, Troy Takiari, David Pocock, Ryan Cross, Junior Pelesasa and Haig Sare.

Among the fresh faces in the Spirit squad are giant winger/fullback Ratu Siganiyavi, flanker Will Brock, hooker Ryan Tyrrell, prop Kieran Longbottom, scrumhalf James Stannard and outside back Dan Bailey.

Mulvihill said he was excited by the prospect of bringing new players into the mix to combine with the experienced core group.
“It’s a strong squad with a good mix of players. Having 18 guys who have played in the Investec Super 14 and know what professional rugby entails will help the new players adapt quickly,” Mulvihill said.

“We’re very confident that the Navy Canberra Vikings will be a force to be reckoned with during the ARC.
We have a first-class coaching structure that features Nick as head coach, who helped the Brumbies to the best defensive record in this year’s Super 14 competition, and Brumbies head coach Laurie Fisher and Brumbies attack coach Matt O’Connor.

The side features 14 CA Brumbies-contracted players including Wallabies Nic Henderson and Alister Campbell, who will captain the side, and Australia A representatives Gene Fairbanks, Julian Salvi, Jone Tawake and Adam Wallace-Harrison.

The squad also includes a number of rising stars such as Australian Under 19’s inside centre Rowan Kellam and Australian Under 21’s prop Jack Kennedy.

Navy Canberra Vikings head coach Nick Scrivener says he’s pleased with the balance of his squad.

“We’re very fortunate that we can boast such an experienced ARC squad,” he said. “There may still be some movement dependent on the Wallabies, but already we have players with Test experience and well over 250 Super 14 caps amongst the squad.

“We’ve also got a number of talented Brumbies Academy and local club rugby players who, in addition to being excellent footballers in their own right, will bring an exuberance and enthusiasm to the squad.”

The Navy Canberra Vikings also includes eight players from the Canberra’s local John I Dent Cup Premier Division, including Australian Sevens representative Tim Cornforth, former CA Brumbies-contracted winger Eddie McLaughlan, Beau Mokotupu, Jack Vanderglas and Dan Guinness, who has recently returned from a playing stint with Overmach Parma in Italy.

Scrivener says the Mazda ARC could provide players a launching pad to future representative rugby.

“This competition’s a great opportunity for those senior players to take a leadership role and potentially play themselves into the World Cup squad,” he said. “For the younger players, it’s a great opportunity to stake their claim for one of the remaining contracts with the Brumbies for 2008.

“With so much to play for, we expect every player to put their best foot forward and we’re looking forward to the Canberra rugby community getting right behind the ARC and the Canberra Vikings.”

The Navy Canberra Vikings will host four home matches, three at Manuka Oval, including their season opener against the Melbourne Rebels on Saturday, 11 August, and one at Canberra Stadium.

selected a name that would embrace the various stakeholders at club level.

He added that "Our team will draw on players and supporters from Cairns to Coolangatta – and possibly even rugby fans in northern NSW - in what is an exciting development for the code in Queensland,"

Trinity Queensland Premier Rugby semi-finalists Sunnybank and the Gold Coast Breakers fill 20 of the 28 squad places in the Mazda Australian Rugby Championship team the East Coast Aces, which was announced today.

Twelve members of the squad are contracted players with the QR Queensland Reds, with the balance made up of Reds Academy and Premier Rugby players.

Wallaby props Rodney Blake and Greg Holmes, and fullback Chris Latham, all returning from long term injuries, were not named in the Mazda ARC lineup but may also play during the tournament if that’s required as part of their Rugby World Cup preparations.

Powerful Reds and Breakers centre Lloyd Johansson has been named captain of the squad, which is coached by former World Cup coach John Boe and former Wallaby Garrick Morgan, who have already guided the Gold Coast Breakers to this Sunday’s major semi-final against GPS at Ballymore (kickoff 3pm), where Sunnybank will also be playing Wests in the minor semi-final (kickoff 1pm).

The East Coast Aces also drew players from the Easts and Souths clubs in Brisbane and considered players from the Queensland Country Heelers.

The team will play their home games at the Gold Coast Stadium, Carrara, with their first game in the eight team championship a local derby against fellow Queensland side, the Ballymore Tornadoes, at Carrara on Sunday, August 12 (kickoff 4pm).

The prefix Ballymore was attached to indicate not only the geographical aspect of north of the river and northern region, but also to enliven the tribal aspect by capturing all the devotees of Ballymore in making the Tornadoes their team

Nineteen members of the Brisbane-based Mazda Australian Rugby Championship team - the Wilson HTM Ballymore Tornadoes - have been selected from club rugby ranks, reinforcing the importance of the competition as a stepping stone to the fully professional game.

Nine members of the 28-man squad are contracted players with the QR Queensland Reds, with the balance made up mostly of semi-professional Reds Academy and Trinity Queensland Premier Rugby players.

Premier semi-finalists GPS and Wests fill 11 places in the squad, announced today along with the team’s principal sponsor, newly listed Wilson HTM Investment Group.

Wallaby prop Greg Holmes and hooker Sean Hardman have been drafted into the squad pending possible World Cup selection, while former Wallaby tourist and new Reds signing Leroy Houston is also included.

Reds flanker Tom McVerry is captain of the squad, which is coached by former Wallaby Chris Roche, assisted by Paul Healy.

The Ballymore Tornadoes also drew players from the Norths, University and Brothers clubs, along with the Sunshine Coast Stingrays who supply two players in prop Shon Siemoneck and No 8 Charles Wyllie. Former Brothers player David Collis joins the side from Sydney and Tim Sampson was drafted from East Coast Aces feeder club Sunnybank to provide more experience in the midfield.

Four of the 19 club players have come via the Reds Academy, selected on the basis of their efforts in Premier Rugby.

As its name suggests, the team will play its home games at Ballymore in Brisbane, with their first game in the eight team championship a local derby against fellow Queensland side, the East Coast Aces at the Gold Coast Stadium, Carrara on Sunday, August 12 (kickoff 4pm).

The Rays name and logo was chosen to reflect the strong oceanic nature of the region, while the navy and emerald colour scheme came about as a result of the two overriding themes in its natural landscape – the ocean and the bush.

The Rays will play their home matches at Gosford’s Bluetongue Central Coast Stadium and will be backed by feeder clubs Gordon, Manly, Northern Suburbs and Warringah, as well as the Central Coast Rugby Union.

The Rays will play four matches at home in 2007 and will kick off their campaign against the Sydney Fleet at North Sydney Oval on August 10.

The Central Coast Rays are set to thrill fans with an exciting brand of running rugby when the inaugural Mazda Australian Rugby Championships begin [on August 10th].

The Rays will include players from Manly, Warringah, Northern Suburbs and Gordon and will call Bluetongue Stadium home.

Armed with an electrifying backline including Waratah's points-scoring machine Peter Hewat, the Rays are shaping as the entertainers of the new eight-team competition.

"We've got a really exciting backline and our back-row's quite solid, so I think you'll see us play quite an expansive game so it should be good fun," Rays skipper Cameron Treloar said.
"The Central Coast has been crying out for some rugby for a while so it's going to be really good."

The skipper admitted bringing players together from the four rival clubs will make for an interesting dynamic initially but expects a three-day pre-season camp to create a strong team unit.
"I think individually people get along pretty well it'll be interesting getting the clubs meshing together but I think we'll go really well," Treloar said.

The ARC will operate under the revolutionary Stellenbosch Laws in a bid to simplify the game and encourage running rugby, which should suit the dynamic Rays backline.

"It (Stellenbosch Laws) definitely brings fitness much more into it and I think sides with better fitness levels can really take advantage of it," Treloar said.
"It just speeds the game up and makes it more of a spectacle which will be really good, I've enjoyed playing it (in club rugby) and enjoyed watching it so it should be good."

Competition is set to be tight in the race for the inaugural ARC title and while confident of his own side's chances Treloar expects the Melbourne Rebels to exceed expectations.

"Obviously Canberra (Vikings) and Perth (Spirit) have got the combinations formed already through the Super 14 season; I think Melbourne will surprise a few people with the squad they've got," Treloar said.
"They've got a young squad with not much Super 14 experience but guys who can really play rugby so I think they'll surprise a few people."

The Rays play Sydney Fleet at North Sydney Oval in the season opener on August 10.

The Western Sydney Rams... name was chosen to reflect the pioneering history and spirit of the area and the regions directly to the west of it, including the Blue Mountains.

The Rams will play their home matches at Parramatta Stadium and will be backed by feeder clubs Eastwood, Parramatta, Penrith and West Harbour.

The Rams will play four matches at home in 2007 and will kick off their campaign against the Perth Spirit at Member’s Equity Stadium on August 10.

The Western Rams enter the inaugural season of the Mazda Australian Rugby Championship (ARC) with high hopes.

The team will include players from Eastwood, Parramatta, West Harbour and Penrith and will include Waratahs flyer Lachie Turner and hooker Tatafu Polota-Nau.

Skipper Ben Hand said his team will also boast a number of club rugby's rising stars and believes his team's success will help spread the rugby word in Sydney's Western suburbs.
"We're going to be based in Western Sydney and I think it's very important for the area that the team does well;" Hand said.

"It's such a big area and I don't really think rugby's tapped into it that much … so now that they've got their own team it's really important that we're successful."
But the 25-year-old knows success won't come easily and expects two interstate teams to set the standard when the season kicks off in August.

"Perth (Spirit) and Canberra (Vikings), who are pretty much full Super 14 teams minus Wallabies, they're going to be tough to beat … but the semi-finals are definitely not out of the realms of possibility for us," Hand said.

The Waratahs lock said the competition will benefit Super 14 and club players alike and is confident turning rivals into team-mates will come easily.
"We've got a fantastic group of guys, we've got a good mix between experience and youth as well … I don't thing gelling will be an issue at all."

"It should be a great opportunity to play at a professional level for 12 months of the year so looking forward to it and bridging the gap between club rugby and Super 14," Hand said.
"Some of the guys from our area who haven't tasted a lot of success (in club rugby) with teams like Penrith and West Harbour they've had a tough sort of year."

"So some of the guys there are looking forward to getting into a new environment and the new kids are always full of beans at training so their enthusiasm I'm sure will rub off on everyone," Hand said.

The Rams begin their campaign away to the Perth Spirit on August 10.

The Fleet, so named to reflect Sydney’s maritime history...wear the traditional blue and gold strip of Sydney teams of the past.

The Fleet will be backed by the traditional strength of feeder clubs Eastern Suburbs, Randwick, Southern Districts and Sydney University, while Illawarra Rugby will also feed into the Fleet set up.

The Fleet will play four matches at home in 2007 and will open its ARC campaign with against the Central Coast Rays at North Sydney Oval on August 10.

The stars of Sydney's top club rugby sides are set to align when the inaugural Mazda Australian Rugby Championship start on August 10.

The Sydney Fleet's 28-man squad is dominated by players from Shute Shield premiers, Sydney University, (12 players), grand finalists Eastern Suburbs (5) and semi-finalists Randwick (9).

The Col Jeffs-coached side will also boast a number of Super 14 players including, Morgan Tirinui, Dean Mumm and Josh Valentine and will carry the weight of high expectations into the national competition.

"We've got some talented players there if you look at what's come out of the Waratahs and we've identified a few of the younger kids coming through that have got potential as well," Jeffs said.
"The big thing is going to be with the new rule changes, how quickly the guys can adjust to the pace of the game."

"The first couple of weeks will be a bit of a sorting out period because (we'll be) coming up against sides where (while) we know the talent of the players it's (about) seeing how they play as a unit and how they're going to play the game."

The veteran coach admitted his side would be considered amongst the favourites but said the ability to adapt to the new Stellenbosch Laws will be a significant factor throughout the competition.

"We've been ranked as being one of the top sides which is an honour in some respects but if you have a look at the Force and the ACT sides … I think they would have to sit very heavily as the top two sides but in saying that we hope to be competitive out there," Jeffs said.

"All sides have recruited pretty well, I don't think you'll see too many weaknesses, the thing is who gets together and starts playing the best football will probably get the best results."

"That first game on the Friday night will be a bit of 'Rafferty's rules' for every one but we'll have a bit of a game plan and hopefully that will work into place for us," he said.

The Fleet will assemble in Wollongong on Friday for a pre-season camp in a last-minute bid to build combinations ahead of their season opener against the Central Coast Rays at North Sydney Oval on August 10.

The ARU said that they had received numerous Expressions of Interest from uncontracted footballers who would like to be considered for selection.

It is understood that each team may have the provision for one "*marquee" player who will not be subject to financial restrictions of the player contracting protocol.

The player can be either foreign or a non-contracted domestic player.

If a team signs an Australian as their marquee footballer, they would still be able to sign up a foreign footballer, though they would have to fit within the contract restrictions.

The fact that the sport's governing organisation has to pay a television station to broadcast the game arguably has worrying implications for a code struggling to attract mainstream interest in Australia.

The ELV’s, devised at South Africa’s Stellenbosch University are aimed at bringing more free-flowing play to Rugby.

Four of the ELV’s have been trialled in the Sydney and Brisbane club competitions in recent months to rave reviews from coaching staff, players and spectators alike.
The ARC will be the first time all eight ELV’s will have been introduced in a match in Australia.

Among the law variations are a disincentive for kicking the ball into touch from inside the 22 metre line therefore promoting more running play and major changes to lineouts, the breakdown and mauls.
If a ball is thrown back inside the 22 and then is kicked out on the full, the lineout will be from the point of the the kick rather than where the ball crossed the touchline.

“The whole idea of the ELV’s is to make the game of rugby more easily understood and more enjoyable for spectators,” said ARU Referees Manager and former International Referee Peter Marshall.

The competition, similar to New Zealand's Air New Zealand Cup and South Africa's Currie Cup, aims to bridge the gap between existing club rugby and international Super 14.

The Australian Rugby Championship promises to be a national Rugby competition that is second to none.

More than 550 applications were received from players around the country to take part in the ARC which is a fantastic response to this landmark national competition

The ARC is vital for the growth of the game in this country. Previously there has been a wide gap in standard between Club Rugby and the Super 14.
The ARC will bridge that gap and provide players with a quality competition to develop their game before they make the step up to Super 14 level

It’s a great result for the game. The ARC will provide players who are just below Super 14 level with a professional training structure and make them better prepared to make the step up to full-time professional rugby.
There is now a clear pathway for players from club rugby through to the Wallabies.

I'm very happy about the ARC because this means that DuskDevi will have more reason to mention my name even if I have nothing whatsoever to do with the post topic

It became ever-more apparent that there was a growing gap between the local club rugby competitions and the Super Rugby competitions....
...After success of the Australian-hosted 2003 Rugby World Cup, the proposal of starting a club national competition to bridge the gap between club rugby and Super Rugby came to the forefront once again.

....there was a fear that on a national level, Australia would be left behind by the All Blacks and South Africa, due to perhaps their deeper domestic competition.

The official announcement on the agreement of a national rugby competition in Australia was made in mid-2006, following a 70-person three day summit in Sydney that determined that such a national competition would be economically sustainable and commercially attractive.

However, the competition was not with out its share of controversy, with some of the clubs being against the forming of a new level of competition, claiming it could harm club and grass roots rugby.