The International Rugby Board (IRB) are reportedly applying pressure on SANZAR (South African New Zealand and Australian Rugby) to include Argentina – the sixth best Test side in the world – in the Tri-Nations, creating a Four Nations contest.
Mike Miller, the IRB’s Chief Executive, speaking to the Sunday Times, said “there is nothing to stop it happening next year if everyone wants it”.
“The Tri-Nations are all agreed that we need to do something about Argentina – there have been discussions taking place – and the IRB has made it clear that we will look at any scheme that helps to ensure they are properly integrated into international rugby.”
The South African Rugby Union (SARU) President, Oregan Hoskins has long since backed the Argentinean inclusion into both the Tri-Nations, and the Super 14, asking for two provincial sides of theirs to be added.
The shortfall of such a move is the extra travel it places on the teams in both competitions, and the fact that most of Argentina’s top players are based in Europe, and, contractually, the best players may not be seen in the tournament.
If that is the case, there would also be concerns regarding the massive revenue generated from broadcasting rights, and the distribution thereof.
Nevertheless, Argentina is a fully-fledged world power, and is the only one not participating in a major annual Test competition, which can only be bad for the game’s global development.
365 Digital
