Moana Pasifika 2023
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@Bovidae I found this comment interesting: "I would like to think that the combination of Moana Pasifika, plus Fijian Drua, is bringing in fresh elements to rugby, that it's enabling us to provide a better product," he said.
Good to see Pacific Islanders finally getting interested in the game.
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@Pepe said in Moana Pasifika 2023:
I'm sure Northland rugby supporters would find it ironic that the next long-awaited Super game they host could be MP versus the Blues...
It will be against rebels or force or something, blues will be one of the few at Mt smart
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Part of the reason for the success of the Drua is the home base being in Fiji. More complicated with the composite nature of Moana Pasifika, but it should start somewhere. It's got be the point of these teams right? Improve the intrastructure and exposure of Rugby in the islands and make staying in this part of the world a viable sporting career?
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@Kirwan Yeah, but there's a big difference between the Drua and MP: the majority of the Drua players are actually from Fiji. Most MP players were born and raised in NZ, and have their families here. Plenty of MP players who aren't from the Auckland area go back to their home province on a regular basis, which will become more difficult if they're based in - say - Apia.
Unless there are a lot of Miracle Fai'ilagi's to be discovered in the Islands, MP will have a hard time filling its squad with players who have come through the system locally (in the Islands).
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@Stargazer that's why I said "this part of the world" as opposed to be being in the islands. I know they have to be based in Auckland, but if they can't even have a handful of games in Samoa or Tonga then what exactly is the point of this team?
Drua and Fiji is a clear story, fanbase, development path.
MP being a second Auckland team is just diluting the Blues, it needs to have stronger links to the islands. If it's just being filled with NZ born PI players how does that help NZ Rugby or Samoa and Tonga?
On a parallel path, they should be trying to get more Northen Hemishere based players back over this way. We are much better than their clubs for releasing players back to International Teams, that would have a huge effect on the strength of those teams.
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@Kirwan said in Moana Pasifika 2023:
I know they have to be based in Auckland, but if they can't even have a handful of games in Samoa or Tonga then what exactly is the point of this team?
The Mt Smart games have been a failure.
Perhaps for the games in NZ they should have a financial arrangement with the Blues, and maybe Canes, to have double headers at Eden Park/The Cake Tin?
Of course that would require co-ordination when the draw is created
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@Stargazer said in Moana Pasifika 2023:
@Kirwan Yeah, but there's a big difference between the Drua and MP: the majority of the Drua players are actually from Fiji. Most MP players were born and raised in NZ, and have their families here. Plenty of MP players who aren't from the Auckland area go back to their home province on a regular basis, which will become more difficult if they're based in - say - Apia.
Unless there are a lot of Miracle Fai'ilagi's to be discovered in the Islands, MP will have a hard time filling its squad with players who have come through the system locally (in the Islands).
Good players in the islands either get scholarships into NZ/ Oz or go to Europe. MP's squad are largely players that would be squad members in other SR teams.
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@Bovidae If MP still wants to try to win a game, they'll have to field the best possible squad and that means selecting Aumua. That's what I would do.
If they've truly given up, don't care about their fans and use their last games for development purposes, then - indeed - they'll select players who are staying, but I understand that still many players have to re-sign, so how many 2024-signed players do they have to select from?
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@Bovidae said in Moana Pasifika 2023:
It will be interesting to see if Aumua is selected for their last 2 games. I wouldn't pick him, and would give a player who you know will be there in 2024 a chance.
That seems a bit emotional, would you expect all Super teams to do the same with end of contract players?
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@Nepia said in Moana Pasifika 2023:
@Bovidae said in Moana Pasifika 2023:
It will be interesting to see if Aumua is selected for their last 2 games. I wouldn't pick him, and would give a player who you know will be there in 2024 a chance.
That seems a bit emotional, would you expect all Super teams to do the same with end of contract players?
No emotion whatsoever. It is a logical decision, and a little different from a player going overseas.
The reality is that MP haven't won with him playing either.
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@Winger said in Moana Pasifika 2023:
Shame about MP. Terrible crowd support and mostly hopeless on the field. But now losing one if their best player
Can they survive. Even if they find a good coaching team.
I think this basket case will be kept on life support for some time yet. The optics in killing it would be very damaging.
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@antipodean With NZR paying for it, in money and players
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@Machpants said in Moana Pasifika 2023:
@antipodean With NZR paying for it, in money and players
And world rugby. But thats initially for a limited time
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@antipodean I think the best plan for their survival is to base them in Christchurch and the Crusaders share their players and resources with them.
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As I've said since day dot .... MP have never made sense and are trying to solve a problem that doesn't exist (rugby employment opportunities for Auckland PIers).
- Makes no sense on a financial basis (an 'NZ' franchise receiving a lesser share of the communal pot that the other 5 NZ franchises.
- Makes no sense on a catchment basis (dividing Auckland into a 90% v 10% split, white v brown, ok it's not 90% white but it is 90% not PI) rather than the other obvious split to the city, geographical, which has a more chance of success 70% to 30%ish either side of the bridge split.
Should have been the 'Knightiwhas' since day one.
Could even make the Knighiwhas franchise wear majority cambridge blue of one of their 'franchise holders', thus meeting the seemingly most important pre-requisite for entering a team in this competition: "Thou must wear blue".
