Rugby's Opportunity........

In the build up to Ireland's Grand Slam winning game against England, I read a powerful interview given by Andrew Porter to David Walsh in the Times. It was an amazing insight into his fight to get big and strong enough to play for Ireland, whilst dealing with personal grief and eating issues. A piercingly honest insight into a player, one that makes you see him in a very different and far more impressive way.

It did make me think, however, that this is Rugby's big challenge and yet Rugby's huge opportunity. Players, coaches, advisors, Press Officers allow interviews such as the one I read - traditional format, good paper - hitting established rugby fans. Good coverage!

But! When Netflix offer the most amazing opportunity to market the game, the great characters that are playing the game, the doors are mostly shut, or it takes one hell of an effort to push through them. Netflix will hit a new market, a younger market - people who occasionally might watch rugby, but do not class themselves as fans. For some reason, players, coaches, advisors, Press Officers are doing as much as possible to not let that huge, new market get to know the utter gold that the game has in the shape of the players!!

Why has Drive to Survive been so successful? Because it showed us the characters involved in Formula 1. It humanised them, allowed us to get to know them, to like them or dislike them, whichever we chose - but it brought emotion to a sport that was distant and characterless. People want to get to know the players, drivers, athletes - they want to know their back story, what they had to overcome to get there, what they worry about now and yet still deliver. In getting to know them, the sport and players generate so much more of a connection with their fans.

One of Rugby's greatest assets is the players. And yet we keep them locked away. Drive to Survive did not dwell on race tactics, it dwelt on characters, emotions in the heat of a race. Netflix's huge potential new rugby audience do not want to hear tactics, pre-game, at half time, or even afterwards, let's be honest very few of us serious fans would understand the detail, let alone new fans. They want to see, hear emotion, they want to understand how players battle to keep clear heads under a physical onslaught, they want to see elation and dejection and how players and teams digest it, learn from it and move on.

Rugby has great characters, it has great values. It needs to be brave enough to allow people to see and enjoy them. Please stop locking them away, because we are losing the fight to keep fans and yet we have what so many sports would love to have, in fascinating and hugely impressive players. Let's allow everyone to see them, to get to know them, let's make stars of them - the younger sports fans out there will love them.......

My hope is that those that run the game realise that to ensure it's growth, we have to understand our greatest assets are the players, men and women, and we need to allow excisiting and new fans to get to know them, they will be hooked from then on..........trust me!