Editorial: Lesson in Otago's collapse

Hanging in my wardrobe is an Otago rugby jersey. I bought it about 10 years ago, but rather than living in Dunedin, I called Hawke's Bay home at the time.

Those were the days when Otago rugby was flourishing, to the point where the team had supporters all across New Zealand, not just those who were brought up down south, or spent some time at Otago University.

That's why Monday's announcement that the Otago Rugby Football Union is set to go into liquidation is a sad day for sports fans right across the country.

Last year's $862,000 deficit was the sixth in a row for the union, which now is burdened with a reported total debt of more than $2.2 million.

This country's provincial rugby competition has had its share of issues over the past few years.

The advent of professionalism and the growth of Super Rugby has seen our provincial competition pushed into the background, fighting against the impacts of falling revenue and struggles to gain sponsorship, as television coverage, a recession and a drop in the number of top-level players available for provincial duty combined to take a hefty bite out of gate-takings.

Continual tweaking of the competition's format hasn't helped either. When some unions faced the chop from the top tier of competition, fans responded vociferously, and for a while, provincial pride even threatened to outshine the glamour boys of the Super 15.

But unfortunately, it appears that wasn't enough for Otago.

Nevertheless, Otago's woes and the widely-reported financial issues of some other provincial unions do not necessarily spell trouble for smaller unions like Wanganui.

There needs to be a critical examination of the actions of those running Otago rugby. ORFU chairman Wayne Graham's explanation that the problems derived from a series of decisions that in hindsight "definitely weren't the best", simply doesn't wash.

There are also some unique circumstances in the Otago situation, among them the sale of Carisbrook, which came at a significant loss.

Smaller unions like Wanganui can generally bank on a more solid "hard core" support base to help drive ticket sales. There's arguably a greater sense of loyalty at grassroots level - people will get out to support "their" team, a team which often carries greater standing in smaller centres than in the metropolitan areas, where there's more competition for fan support and the recreational dollar that comes with it.

But Otago's troubles should serve as a salutary lesson for the powerbrokers at all levels of rugby in this country, as well as a reminder to those of us who enjoy the game - you don't know what you've got until it's gone, so when you have it, get out and support it.

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