As signposted on Tuesday, the provincial union way forward instigates far-reaching consequences, with the entire NZR board required to reapply for their respective roles.
NZR chairwoman Dame Patsy Reddy had previously stated, should Proposal 2 prevail, she would resign from her post as she does not support any compromise to a fully independent board.
With the Pilkington Review and Proposal 1 recommendations rejected, attention turns to NZRPA chief executive Rob Nichol after he threatened to form a breakaway organisation to run the game’s professional players.
Nichol firmly believes the unions’ proposal is a land grab – and a move to control future board appointments. The provinces have also positioned themselves in direct opposition to former All Blacks captains David Kirk (president of the NZRPA), Richie McCaw, Sean Fitzpatrick and Ian Kirkpatrick who publicly supported the push for independence.
“The expert panel laid out what we needed to do perfectly in their recommendations. Those recommendations got support from NZR, NZRC, Māori Rugby Board, Super clubs, NZRPA and a good group of PUs [provincial unions],” Nichol said following the vote. “It was a great opportunity for the game to make the changes required. It’s incredibly unfortunate we haven’t taken that opportunity and ended up with what the experts labelled status quo or worse.”
In a late U-turn, the Herald understands Auckland flipped its first vote at the 11th hour after pressure from some life members to support Proposal 1.
The NZRPA had previously outed Auckland, Wellington, Canterbury, Hawke’s Bay, Bay of Plenty and North Harbour as the heavyweight unions backing Proposal 2, but the threat to form a breakaway organisation clearly galvanised strong support from the Heartland unions and other provinces.
While Auckland’s original backflip wasn’t anywhere enough for the NZR, NZRPA and Super franchise-backed proposal to edge over the line, the Herald understands other provinces, including Taranaki, Waikato, Otago and Manawatū voted in favour of Proposal 1 to underline the split views throughout the country.
The majority of provincial unions who backed their proposal will be satisfied with the outcome but, given the NZRPA’s hardline stance, the fallout and, indeed, this war is merely beginning.
Speaking after the SGM, Canterbury chairman Peter Winchester took aim at Nichol’s comments. “Given what I’ve outlined before, I don’t know how anybody could say it’s status quo when the provincial unions, either through election or appointment of five [NZ Rugby] board members that we have at present - we’ve removed all of that and they’ve all got to come through an independent process,” Winchester said. “So I really don’t understand that sort of language and it is ironic that it was only a few weeks ago that the Players’ Association told provincial unions we’re actually not that far apart.
“I don’t know how you can go from not being that far apart to last week saying, ‘this is so bad we’re going to take the game or divide the game and take our players away’. It’s a struggle for people in the provinces and with our stakeholders to understand why that is occurring.”
Despite their clearly defined differences Winchester claimed the standoff with the Players’ Association is reconcilable.
“Absolutely, but people now need to take off their hats of where they’ve been for the last nine months and get in a room and talk this out for the good of the game.”
Former All Blacks loose forward and NZ Māori Rugby board member Arran Pene supported proposal one and was disappointed with the outcome.
“We all love this game but, to a certain extent, Rome is burning so we need to get on with things,” Pene said. “We’ve had these battles before when the game went professional in 1995 and have been through a number of events.”
The outgoing NZ Rugby board, via a statement after not fronting for questioning, acknowledged the passing of Proposal 2 and the imminent appointments committee process that will soon anoint new decision-makers.
“This represents a significant change, and it is in the best interests of rugby that we move forward together,” the NZR board said. “The NZR board will implement this decision as quickly as possible, including the process for applications for board positions to ensure it has the best possible mix of skills, diversity, and perspectives. We remain committed to engaging constructively with all rugby stakeholders to implement reform and provide certainty to the game. In the meantime, we continue to be focused on all aspects of the game, from community rugby through to our teams in black, competitions and sponsors.”
Liam Napier has been a sports journalist since 2010, and his work has taken him to World Cups in rugby, netball and cricket, boxing world title fights and Commonwealth Games.
