I see many people complaining about the new Super rugby pool format, and how unfair it is that SA has 3 teams, and host matches, even though other pools teams have more points.
It is simple, you can never satisfy everyone, no matter what format you bring. As soon as you remove one thing people complain about, they will forget it immediately, and focus on the next thing. There is no end, and there will always be complaints.
To me, the new format is well thought out, excellent, and addresses many problems.
Just a bit of history that very few rugby supporters know about Super rugby even though all think they are clever.
Before SA started playing Super rugby, Super rugby started in 1986, called The South Pacific Championship (also known as "SPC"). This was played until 1990, and consisted of 3 NZ teams, 2 OZ teams, and Fiji. In those 5 years, Canterbury one 1, drew 1, and Auckland won 3, and drew 1.
This stopped in 1991, no competition held, but launched in 1992 as the Super 6, with still same teams. Queensland won this one.
In 1992 SA was back in international rugby, and the Super 10 was launched in 1993. NZ now had 4 teams, OZ 2, Samoa 1, and the new entry SA had 3 (Bulls, Lions, Sharks). The format was 2 pools of 5 teams each, top 2 meeting in the final. Lions and Auckland topped the pools, Lions hosted the final, and SA won in their very first year, 20:17, against the mighty Auckland. Each team played only 4 matches, and a 5th for the 2 finalists.
Same format was kept in 1994 and 1995. Queensland won both, both away to the Sharks and Lions.
At this point all was nice and quiet and the tournament was over quickly, and it was well loved, especially SA who was starved of international rugby for decades.
In 1995 rugby turned pro, and everything changed. Ruport Murdoch bought the right for Super rugby, and the Super 10, now became the Super 12, for the next 10 years, 1996 to 2005. At this point, SA had no idea what was waiting for them. I think they looked forward to this, but SARU accepted a murderous schedule, that was very hard on the SA teams. NZ had 5 teams, SA 4, and OZ 3. NZ had a clear edge in that they had 5 teams, and if they had to tour to their neighbor OZ, very easy tour, and had to tour to SA for only 2 matches. They could be in and out in 10 days or so. OZ had it ok as well, as their tours to NZ were also easy, and short, and they also toured SA for 2 matches only.
SA on the other hand, had to tour NZ and OZ for 4 matches. The first 4 years this comprised 2 tour matches per week. Later it was stretched to 4 weeks after it was clear that playing 4 tour matches in 2 weeks was way to brutal.
For 10 years SA teams and the SA public moaned to high heaven about the unfair system that NZ has 5 teams, SA 4, and SA has to tour for 4 matches, and NZ and OZ for only 2. And these complaints were right, the competition structure was unfair and definitely favored NZ teams heavily.
Add to that that SARU made ludicrous decision to pair Cheetahs and Lions to form the Cats, where it was clear the Bulls and Lions should merge, since they are geographically close to each other. This Cheetahs / Lions merger was a disaster, in that the 2 teams did not want to merge since they were to far from each other. I think the main reason this happened was that the Bulls refused to merge with the Lions, since they refused to give away any control. I hated the Cats setup, and could not wait for the day that this merger was undone, but it took 10 years.
So, Saru to their credit saw within a year that what they had singed on for was flawed deeply, and attempted to negotiate a better system as early as 1999. NZ did their best to stop any of this with their bad man attitude of wanting to rule the roost, and demanded that the 10 year term that was agree upon was played out until 2005. OZ and SA could do nothing, since they needed NZ buy in to change the format. OZ and SA did get their deserved retribution on NZ though, when NZ lost the co-hosting of the 2003 world cup with their unwillingness to negotiate. After that happened, they were much more lenient especially since it became clear that SA can walk away from Super rugby and team up with Europe.
So, 2006 arrived, and the key thing was now to decide how many teams would be added, and how many extra teams would be added. Both EP and Cheetahs wanted a spot, so ideally SA wanted two extra spots, or 6 teams. SA got only 1 more spot, and OZ one more spot, and the Super 14 came into being, to be played from 2006 to 2010. There was bitter fought campaigns before the Cheetahs got the 5th spot, especially after they won the 2005 Currie Cup, and played in the 2004 final. I was relieved, the Cats were dead and finally the Cheetahs could break away from the Lions. EP with their political connections fought a hard fight, but thank goodness sanity prevailed.
But, still the travelling schedule was not addressed, and now became even worse. Previously SA teams had to travel for 4 matches, and NZ and OZ for 2. Now SA teams had to travel for either 4 or 5 matches, and OZ and NZ traveled for 2 or 3. Sill NZ and OZ teams had a huge advantage on the travelling schedule.
Super 14 ended in 2010 after 5 years and then Super rugby started in 2011. Super 14 now became 15 teams, with OZ getting one more team with all 3 countries now having 5 teams. EP wanted the 6th spot, but it was allocated to Melbourne. This was when the Conference pools came in, where SA, NZ and OZ each had their own conference, played teams in their conference twice, and play 8 of the 10 other teams in the other conferences once.
The 3 conference winners would each host their first playoff matches, against the next best 3 teams. Nr 1 and 2 sit out for first week, n’s 2 and 4 play at home to nr 5 and 6, and then semis 1 against 4, 2 against 3.
The travelling format however still did not get better, in that SA still toured for 4 matches, 2 to OZ, 2 to NZ, but OZ and NZ stilled only toured for 2 or 3 matches to SA, as the Super 14 was.
Then at last, when the format was now expanded to this years 18 teams, 4 pools format, finally addressed the travelling issue. 6 SA teams, 2 Africa conferences, 1 NZ conference, 1 OZ conference. For the first time NZ and OZ now start to experience the travelling as worse as SA had to endure for 20 years. Now they want to complain that it is to hectic. They also now complain that NZ plays to many matches against their own teams (double round) and OZ and SA play NZ less and that is not fair.
Also, they say it is unfair that Africa Conference have 2 hosting winners, and NZ only 1 and OZ only 1. I say Boo Hoo Hoo, cry me a river. You got what you sowed, time for you to also suffer what our SA teams suffered.
If feel this is the fairest setup of them all, well thought out, well designed, taking everything into account.
As to the major complaint now that NZ teams have more log points that SA teams, yet we host the playoffs. Well, let me ask you, when the soccer European cup was played a month ago, with 8 pools of 4 teams, Portugal, got through in their pool in 3rd spot, drawing 3 games, not even winning 1, and won the tournament. Many other teams had more points than them. Do you hear anyone complain that Potugal won the tournament and got through due to playing in pools even if other teams had more points than them. Why do you not complain there, but complain here in this pool system. Is it not the same. Where in any pool structure do the pools care what happens in the other pools, they simply care about their own pool. What is different here ?
I think it is extremely fair that Africa has 2 conferences since OZ and NZ area neighbors, and they have 2 conferences as neighbors. What do you want, do you want on SA conference and 3 NZ/OZ conference. Do you want to complain about that then ? Or even better, do you want 4 NZ/OZ conferences, and no SA conferences, then we can play ALL our matches away in NZ and OZ :-) What do you want ?
As for the call no go back to the 1 pool format, where all plays all, and best of the log goes through. Seems you ahve forgotten the 20 years where our teams had to play 90% of our playoff matches in OZ and NZ because of the unfair travelling system, yet now you ask for it back. Goodness me, can you please stop your complaining for once and see the big picture.
It is just unreal how people can moan and groan until the end of time. There is just no format that can make them happy. Also now everyone moans to many teams, to many matches, yet from 1996 to 2016 SA fought like hell to get extra teams, and to add Cheetahs and EP to the mix. Cheetahs and EP campaigned for decades to get their teams included. Now what, they got their spots, now all that campaigned for this, are not happy. Now they say there are to many teams, when there were 10/12/14, all complained we wanted more SA teams. Now we got it, now it is not good. So you want less, which of our 6 SA teams must drop off. Are the Bulls/Stormers/Sharks willing to give up their spot ? Can't you see the more teams we have, the more players are exposed to international rugby, the more players we have to pick our Springbok teams from.
By all means, come up with a better format, lets see what it is. I don’t think it sits in any coach potatoes pants to come up with a good format, yet they want to criticize. So easy if it is not you that has to sit with the problems regarding all this.
SA people stop moaning about everything and embrace what happened and that we have a great format, that gives us the chance to host 2 quarterfinals, maybe 3 if our 3rd team is good enough, and host 2 semi-finals if our teams are good enough and even the final if we are good enough. It is a fantastic format. I definately shed no tear for NZ teams. I hope the Lions kick their butts.
Stop being crybabies and always try to find something that is not right. If you are so brilliant, heck, come into rugby management and bring your ideas forward.
May I lastly give the highest of praise to the Lions team of 2016. I absolutely loved your campaign, win or lose, you were awesome this season, and I would love it if the Chiefs can beat the Hurricanes, the Lions the Highlanders and the Lions get to host the final. Lions, you have SA’s support, go for it, we are behind you, we support you, and we love you, and we say thank you for your effort. Win or lose from here, we salute you !!!