Sam Whitelock has left New Zealand today for Japan after suffering from an inner ear problem. Video / Supplied
OPINION:
New Zealand Rugby hasn't covered itself in administrative glory by spectacularly failing to realise it was scheduling the All Blacks match against Japan to clash with the Black Ferns World Cup quarter-final.
Somehow, the union didn't realise in August when it signed the All Blacks to play Japan inTokyo at 6.50pm on October 29, that the Black Ferns would be in action, regardless of what position in which they qualified for the knockout rounds, at 7.30pm on the same night.
What NZR "hadn't taken into account" is that World Rugby, which is running the World Cup, had stipulated that the host nation would be locked into playing the second quarter-final to give the local broadcaster the primetime spot it had paid for.
Organisations stuff up all the time and administrative oversights happen, but it's hard to imagine NZR would have been equally sketchy on the details of next year's World Cup as they affect the All Blacks.
Given the battle the Black Ferns endured throughout the first decade of this millennium to become recognised by NZR as a high-performance rather than community team, and that when Covid first hit in 2020, the national body instinctively wanted to axe the Farah Palmer Cup to save money, this scheduling faux pas is yet another example where action contradicts all the assurances that women's rugby is seen as an important part of the rugby landscape in this country.
Clearly, NZR has got much work to do to ensure that decision-making reflects the rhetoric, and that the organisation operates instinctively as gender blind.
It's apparent that whatever cultural shifts have been made at NZR in the last few years on the back of the Respect and Responsibility Review of 2017, they haven't moved attitudes and behaviours far enough.
But having the All Blacks in action at the same time as the Black Ferns isn't necessarily the terrible thing some have been trying to suggest.
Justice Minister Kiri Allan said: "NZ Rugby, this clash was avoidable, and frankly, disgraceful." And Sports Minister Grant Robertson said: "I do expect better from New Zealand Rugby.
"This is a major international tournament that we're hosting. I don't know all the circumstances about why the game had to be played at the time it was in Japan ... but I really do think everything should have been done to avoid that."
The All Blacks and Black Ferns are playing at the same time on Saturday. Photo / Getty
There is an alternative view to be considered, which is that this is not a clash between the All Blacks and Black Ferns, but an opportunity.
If women's rugby is going to build the commercial base it needs to become self-sustaining, it must be able to drive revenue in a competitive sporting environment.
This is how professional sport works – it builds a revenue stream on the back of its audience, and to build an audience, it must be able to offer itself as more compelling entertainment than rival sporting codes.
These cries of despair about NZR's bungling are understandable, but at some stage, the Black Ferns and women's rugby are going to have to face the cold, commercial reality that they are in a relentless battle for eyeballs against all sorts of competitors in a market that is lawless and ruthless.
And despite being part of the same wider family, the Black Ferns and All Blacks are competitors.
What's becoming increasingly obvious as this World Cup in New Zealand plays out, is that women's rugby has an opportunity to position itself as an almost entirely different version of the sport.
It is not a female version of the male game, but its own brand, as the games have tended to be more open, more flowing and less contentious with the refereeing.
If everyone watching can manage to not constantly contrast and compare what they are seeing with what they know about the men's game, then women's rugby is a genuine prospect of building a sustainable audience and dedicated following.
And that's what makes this Saturday fascinating. The Black Ferns and All Blacks will be battling for the same audience – the New Zealand rugby follower – and Saturday night will provide the first real indication of how the market feels about these two distinct products.
Robertson and Allan's comments imply that the Ferns have been dealt a losing hand, that the All Blacks will steal their audience, but the audience numbers that end up following each game might prove quite surprising.
But even if they don't, and the All Blacks win the lion's share of audience, the Ferns at least will know what sort of battle they face in their quest to become financially sustainable.
