Rugby Australia’s new chief executive, Rob Clarke, has confirmed that Sanzaar is planning a Rugby Championship series to be played in an Australian hub in October.
Clarke – who has replaced Raelene Castle as chief executive – told Sydney’s Sunday Telegraph that there was ‘absolute commitment’ from Sanzaar to a ‘hub-based Rugby Championship’.
‘We can do it in the October-November time frame,’ Clarke said.
‘If we can fly international teams into a hub like Australia that sits in the middle of our territories, and put together a competition structure that might well be more towards a Rugby World Cup-type structure where there might be midweek games and weekend games, try to condense it as much as possible, we’re looking at that as a potential solution.’
Clarke said if the Rugby Championship plan did not go ahead or if international travel restrictions prevented the Springboks and Argentina flying to Australia, he was confident of a home-and-away Bledisloe Cup series between the All Blacks and Wallabies.
‘We are well down the path in discussions with New Zealand, for a three or four Test-match Bledisloe series both home and away. Based on what the governments are saying, it’s a reasonable assumption.’
Photo: Willem Loock/BackpagePix
