Rugby: St Kentigern College sign code of conduct for schoolboy rugby season

The saga involving St Kentigern College and 10 principals of fellow 1A schools appears to be at an end after the east Auckland school this morning signed a code of conduct governing 1st XV rugby.

The code was drawn up in response to a culture of recruitment that has escalated in recent years.

In December it was revealed that 10 schools in Auckland's vaunted 1A competition were preparing to boycott St Kents this season. That crisis has now been averted after the wealthy independent school made a number of concessions, including an agreement to hold all new-to-school players out of the first six rounds of this year's competition and withdraw the two "most directly affected players" from semifinal or finals selection consideration.

Dylan Cleaver: Saint Kentigern College's schoolboy rugby drama is the start of something, not the end

This morning College Sport, the body which governs secondary school sport in the Auckland region, released a statement on behalf of St Kents.

"Representatives of ten 1A schools and St Kentigern College met amicably this morning. Together they signed an agreement of the conditions that schools will abide by in 2019 and moving forward for the 1A Rugby Competition," the statement read.

Each 1A school has committed to following the College Sport Premier bylaws. In addition, the code around recruitment has been dramatically tightened.

The moves include:

* No form of player recruitment or inducement to attract a student from another school's 1st XV Rugby team that is part of an NZRU sanctioned competition;

* No offers of partial or full scholarships to students from another school's 1st XV;

* Any new-to-school players who have transferred from an NZRU 1st XV sanctioned competition will be stood down for six 1A competition games, and any potential semi-final or final matches;

* The details of any student who has transferred and who may earn a place in the 1st XV within two years of enrolling must be tabled;

* Each student in a 1st XV programme must undertake a full course of study in an NZQA approved course (or equivalent in a recognised international qualification);

There are other points involving the presence of all management at after-match functions, but the above are the key rules around the vexed issue of bolstering playing stocks with established players from other schools.

The schools hope the code will better align the competition to the principles they want to espouse through rugby, including teamwork and integrity, and foster an understanding that the pathway to each school's 1st XV is through the junior grades and 2nd XVs and below.

The issue has divided rugby observers across the country. While many have lamented the professionalisation of schoolboy rugby and the deleterious effect it has had on less-resourced schools, others have lauded the likes of St Kents and King's College for offering opportunities for kids they wouldn't receive in the hometown.

At another level, professional franchises and semi-professional unions also appreciate the fact that the sophisticated training and coaching at the top schools help produce players who are ready to play senior rugby at a high-level upon leaving school.

There has been an acknowledgement, however, that the wheel has turned too far in recent years; that schools have become obsessed with 1st XV success at the expense of fostering a love of the sport through all levels.

Many clubs across the country have been forced to merge or fold and one of the reasons given is the drop-off rate of boys playing the game at high school level has reached epidemic proportions.

Kids who are not on a high-performance pathway feel undervalued and are giving the game away early.

All the 1A schools said they will not be making any more comment on the matter.

More to come...