Rugby: Final solution for Air NZ Cup this week, hopefully

Northland will be playing again next year. Photo / Getty Images

There is growing hope and expectation New Zealand's rugby brains can finally find a solution to the vexed question of the Air New Zealand Cup by Thursday.

Key figures will continue talks on collective bargaining tomorrow in the hope they can find a solution to such things as a new player payment model and salary cap as well as the structure of the national provincial championship.

On Friday, the NZRU announced that next year's Air New Zealand Cup would remain at 14 teams but a new competition would be in place for 2012. A "hybrid" competition would run in 2011, when the World Cup means there is only an eight-week window.

Three days have been scheduled for talks and there is widespread hope some answers will emerge in time for a chairman's and chief executives meeting in Auckland before the Steinlager Awards on Thursday. If they can find a solution, there might be many willing to give them an award given how long the debate has dragged.

Among those involved in the collective bargaining talks are provincial bosses Mike Bishop (Hawke's Bay), Hamish Riach (Canterbury) and Greg Peters (Wellington), NZRU officials Steve Tew and Neil Sorensen, Players' Association chief executive Rob Nichol and a host of lawyers.

"They have to come out with a decision," one source said. "The 26 unions are meeting before the Steinlager Awards on Thursday and it's going to be a bad look if nothing is agreed before then."

The current bargaining collective expires at the end of the year but it can be rolled over for 12 months if talks are ongoing. It's hoped a new agreement will be for three years, the maximum under employment law.

The lockdown talks are similar to those over the Tri Nations in 2005 when a three-year competition was signed off after 44 hours of negotiations.

"We don't have to nail it at this meeting ... but we are always in with a chance, absolutely," Nichol said. "We are all turning up with a view of trying to get there. We are focussed and want to drive a solution.

"There wouldn't be a person involved in rugby in New Zealand who wouldn't want it sorted out sooner rather than later. We have a history of reaching a successful agreement and our job is to come up with something that everyone will accept."

The Players' Association hold significant power at the negotiation table and have recently suggested an alternative to the 10-6 model favoured by the NZRU.

The PA tabled an idea of the 14 teams currently competing for the Air New Zealand Cup to be split into a first and second division of seven teams each. The full details were shown to the provincial unions on Friday.

NZRU chairman Jock Hobbs was also hopeful a resolution was not far off.

"Hopefully we can bring some certainty, maybe by the end of the year but certainly in the first quarter of next year, so if things like legal action and appeals [are submitted] they can well and truly be dealt with by 2012," Hobbs said.

While the likes of Tasman, Northland, Counties-Manukau and Manawatu have expressed their relief in the NZRU's decision to retain the current format for another year, other unions are growing increasingly tired of the lack of direction.

Bay of Plenty chief executive Jeremy Curragh said: "Lodging legal appeals is damaging. We are all in this together but we are fighting among ourselves. Everyone has to have the ability to voice an opinion but as some point we have to make a decision and abide by it.

"I still like, in principle the idea of a 10-team competition ... but the players' collective needs to be resolved before we can plan for the future."