Blake Gibson of Auckland has lunch with schoolchildren from New Windsor School on the table he built during the 2015 ITM Cup season launch. Photo / Getty Images
Blake Gibson of Auckland has lunch with schoolchildren from New Windsor School on the table he built during the 2015 ITM Cup season launch. Photo / Getty Images
New Zealand Rugby boss confident overlapping competitions won't be a case of overload for fans.
The ITM Cup kicks off in 13 days and one of the big questions will be what effect the Rugby World Cup will have on crowd and TV viewership numbers.
New Zealand Rugby's general manager of rugby Neil Sorensen is a glass half-full man, so naturally feels the World Cup, which kicks off in the midst of week six of the ITM Cup, will have a galvanising effect on rugby people.
"The Rugby World Cup is on the other side of the world and this is something that's played in people's backyards.
"If you want to support your local team, you are going to be supporting the All Blacks anyway.
"The World Cup will heighten people's interest. We've got this brilliant competition that's going to be on every Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday," said Sorensen at yesterday's season launch at Auckland's New Windsor School.
That rugby overload was not tested in 2011, as the ITM Cup was over six days before the World Cup opened. So this will mirror what happened in 2007, when the competitions ran almost parallel to each other.
"There's no hiding the fact that getting fans along to sport, whether it be rugby, football or netball, is tougher these days. Provincial unions are doing a fantastic job at marketing to their local communities, but if you want to go and see some of the superstars of tomorrow, some of these NZ Under 20 kids, get along," said Sorensen.
New Zealand Rugby would love to see more nights like the ITM Cup Premiership final of 2014, which saw 20,000 pack Yarrow Stadium to see Taranaki clinch their first title from Tasman.
Jimmy Tupou of Counties builds a lunch table for the schoolchildren. Photo / Getty Images
The provincial areas still attract good interest, but crowds are in decline at many of the main centres, notably in Auckland and Wellington.
The Premiership/Championship two-tiered structure has worked well since first used in 2011, with fears of a clear two-division system allayed by a clutch of Championship sides beating Premiership outfits. It looks like the media will need to be assiduous in educating the public on the format, including crossover games, as the status of games is not clearly denoted on official draws.
Sorensen is confident, as a former Wellington halfback, that the Lions, guided by new coach Earl Va'a, will bounce back from a horrendous 2014, in which they were demoted to the championship.
"They had a horrific run of injuries last year, which has often been talked about. There are too many good Super Rugby players and others coming back from last year. There won't be easy wins against Wellington this time."
The competition kicks off on August 13 with a crossover clash between Southland and Auckland in Invercargill. Championship union Hawkes Bay defend the Ranfurly Shield against Northland on August 16.
