Rugby Australia CEO Phil Waugh has confirmed that planning has begun for a third-tier competition that could occur as early as 2025.
Waugh revealed this as RA outlines its Rugby strategy for the next five years in a quest to become the number one Rugby nation in the world.
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The RA CEO has been vocal about bridging the gap between Super Rugby and Club Rugby in order to maximise the game-time for players in Australia.
Players such as Tane Edmed and Ben O'Donnell headed over to New Zealand in 2024 to fill this void, with Edmed using this exposure to vault his way into the Wallabies squad for a debut against Ireland.
With ambitions set out of a top-four finish at the 2027 Rugby World Cup and Bledisloe Cup titles every two years, Waugh notes the importance of having a competition in place as soon as possible.
“We're planning for 12 months. We’re planning for 2025 now," Waugh told reporters.
“...The biggest gap we've had over the last period of time has been (the) connection between the community game and professional game and how to bridge that gap. I think we're working on that.
“It's going to take time. There's no doubt that Super Rugby is too short in its current format so how do we fill that gap for those players that aren't in Test Rugby?
“At the moment, each Super Rugby club is finding their own competitions, whether it's up in Japan, across into South Africa, up into the Northern Hemisphere.
“How do we work on an affordable program and competition post-club rugby during that September-October period which we're working through, which will come back to then how do you fund it and ensure it's affordable, but it will ultimately drive greater performance excellence.”
The National Rugby Championship (NRC) has filled this gap previously, running from 2014-2019.
Waugh has indicated his desire to introduce a club-focused competition in the past months.
