Comments on: Steven Kempton: NZRU should buy a UK club team

By: Steven Kempton

Steven Kempton — Sun, 19 Aug 2007 11:39:07 +0000

If the AB’s played a few “exhibition games” against their own UK club (or others at their ground) and did their training runs there on their end of year Euro tours I think that alone would make a bit of money. The English make a killing everytime the AB’s run out on to Twickenham. This would be a way for the AB’s to to get a piece of that. I’m betting that a bunch of the UK club sides would love to host the AB’s and owning the club side would allow that to happen.

By: sportsthought

sportsthought — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 13:11:33 +0000

It’s a great idea I reckon, but I don’t know if we should actually own it. I suspect that most pro rugby clubs in the UK don’t actually make much money (this is the case in the NRL where most clubs rely on grants and pokie machines to survive)

But they could totally partner with a club over there.

The same idea could apply to Rugby League. There are a ton of kiwi league players over there, who face the same issues as the rugby guys of not getting released etc.

By: sport the link — sportsthought.com

sport the link — sportsthought.com — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 13:01:01 +0000

[...] Also of note, was this interesting article suggesting the NZRU run a team in the UK. [...]

By: Dean Goble

Dean Goble — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 00:11:21 +0000

London New Zealand RFC (http://www.lnzrugby.co.uk/index.html)is there already if you were looking for a New Zealand branded club to support (just like London Irish, London Welsh, London Scottish, London Nigerians, London Cornish etc rugby clubs). Not sure what grade LNZ play now but trying to play your way (through promotion)up the grades to Premier League takes years.

Promo/relegation agreement between Premier Rugby Ltd and RFU agreement is in place until 2009 and who knows what will happen then, lots of options including a complete split from RFU and an NFL like franchise based organisation.

It’s a pretty exclusive club(pardon the pun)of owners but just like pro teams all over if you have the cash there’s no reason why you can’t buy a team.

Ability to offer positions to NZers is limited by all of the red tape around player eligibility and limits on overseas imports that EU regulations and Premier Rugby impose.

But you are right, it is probably a good time for someone to take a stake in a UK Premier rugby club.

By: Dan

Dan — Sun, 12 Aug 2007 21:03:37 +0000

Nice one. Coolest idea I’ve heard in a while