‘The southern hemisphere is broken’ – Australia and New Zealand legends make pact after Wallabies’ World Cup shocker

Legends from the game in Australia and New Zealand have agreed that the two countries need to work together to help the sport in the southern hemisphere going forward.

That follows the Wallabies’ defeat at the weekend, a result which put them on the brink of Rugby World Cup elimination.

Should Fiji do the job in their final two pool matches at the global tournament, Australia would exit the World Cup at the group stage for the first time ever.

Issues in New Zealand as well

It is not just the Aussies who are struggling, with the All Blacks failing to find their best so far in this competition.

Ian Foster’s men were humbled by the Springboks in a warm-up game before they succumbed to France 27-13 in the opening match of the World Cup.

The decline has left Sir John Kirwan and Tim Horan concerned over the state of rugby on both sides of the Tasman Sea.

“The southern hemisphere is broken at the moment,” Kirwan told The Breakdown.

“South Africa left during Covid. I think that possibly may have hurt you guys [Australia] more than us.

“Every time you read the paper, they’re arguing at the highest level. We don’t really know what the future looks like.

“We need to sit around the table… and sort it out together.”

Horan, meanwhile, has pleaded with Rugby Australia for help after what he described as “the lowest point of Australian rugby, ever.”

“The game was at a low in Australia before we came over here [France] because of the popularity of other sports,” the Wallaby great said.

“We needed to get to a semi-final to even just tread water. It’s the lowest point, but maybe we had to strip it back…how do we rebuild?

“How do we fund the game going forward to host a Rugby World Cup in four years’ time?

“We’re looking for our Anzac brothers to help us out moving forward in the next two to four years.

“We need New Zealand support to help grow the game in Australia, so we’re both successful.”

Super Rugby situation

Part of the issue stems from a decline in popularity, as well as a decrease in quality, of Super Rugby.

South African teams were axed from the competition after Covid struck, and they took that opportunity to align themselves with the northern hemisphere.

That has made it harder for Australia to reduce the number of Super Rugby sides, something which has been suggested for some time.

There has also been talk of discontinuing the tournament altogether and letting Australia and New Zealand go their separate ways.

“I think we’re too deep now to stop Super Rugby or go from five teams to three teams,” Horan said.

“We’ve got to stick with our five teams.

“We have to have five teams going into the next Rugby World Cup [in Australia in 2027]. There was a stipulation that you needed the five teams to broaden the marketplace.

“It’s a challenge.”

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