Rugby Australia to closely monitor player workloads throughout upcoming Super Rugby season

With a World Cup in France next September, head office is determined to ensure Wallabies coach Dave Rennie designs the perfect lead in to the tournament.

The national setup has taken a number of different approaches to Super Rugby in previous World Cup years.

Players were rested throughout the 2019 season while the Wallabies have also held mid-season camps to set the groundwork for the international season.

Such moves have proved controversial, Super Rugby franchises lukewarm about the prospect of losing games because their stars are watching from the sidelines.

The ACT Brumbies would be particularly hard hit by an edict from above, given 14 players currently feature in the Wallabies squad.

Relationships between the clubs and head office have improved considerably recently and it's likely those conversations will be more conducive to finding a compromise that benefits all parties throughout 2023.

Talking after the release of next year's Super Rugby draw, Rugby Australia chief executive Andy Marinos said officials are still in the process of working out plans for the next 12 months. Details will likely be finalised after the upcoming spring tour.

"There's a lot more alignment between the Wallabies and the Super Rugby clubs in terms of scheduling and list management of players," Marinos said.

"At the end of the international season we'll sit down with each of the Super coaches and take them through each of the player's development plans and areas they need to focus on and also the rest and periodisation that we need to see throughout the season."

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Any decision to rest players will be contentious, given the need to balance club and national ambitions.

It has also been questioned from a load management perspective, with a reduced number of Tests leading into a World Cup.

Marinos said resting Wallabies remains on the table, but RA's preference is for players to turn out for the clubs as much as possible.

"What we have in Australia is pretty unique," the chief executive said. "We need to make sure our guys are playing as much as possible leading into a World Cup.

"It's more about managing workload in and around games but we certainly do see a need for the guys to be playing as much rugby as they possibly can. We've got a critically short international window before the guys head to the World Cup."

It's been a busy period for Marinos, the executive also working on ways to make rugby union more exciting.

Restricting time wasting and increasing the amount of time the ball is in play are high on the agenda. Reducing the involvement of the TMO is also an area of focus.

New laws were implemented in Saturday's trial between the ACT Brumbies and NSW Waratahs, the first step towards their eventual adoption in Super Rugby.

The feedback from players and coaches was largely positive and Marinos is eager to see more free-flowing rugby.

"It's about making sure referees understand the Super Rugby product is a different look and feel and value proposition to what we see in Test match rugby," he said.

"We should cast our minds back to when Super Rugby initially kicked off back in the late 1990s. It was a showpiece spectacle and the game was fast and exciting.

"We've got the opportunity to go back and make sure we deliver the same for our fans."

Round 1: NSW Waratahs v ACT Brumbies, 7.35pm, Friday, February 24 at Sydney Football Stadium.

Round 2: Auckland Blues v ACT Brumbies, 2pm Sunday, March 5 at Melbourne Park,

Round 3: ACT Brumbies v Queensland Reds, 7.45pm, Saturday, March 11 at Canberra Stadium.

Round 4: ACT Brumbies v Moana Pasifika, 7.45pm, Saturday, March 18 at Canberra Stadium.

Round 5: Canterbury Crusaders v ACT Brumbies, 5.05pm Friday, March 24 at Christchurch Stadium.

Round 6: ACT Brumbies v NSW Waratahs, 7.45pm, Saturday, April 1 at Canberra Stadium.

Round 7: Queensland Reds v ACT Brumbies, 7.35pm, Friday, April 7 at Lang Park.

Round 8: ACT Brumbies v Fijian Drua, 7.35pm, Friday, April 14 at Canberra Stadium.

Round 9: Bye.

Round 10: Wellington Hurricanes v ACT Brumbies, 5.05pm, Friday, April 28 at Wellington Stadium.

Round 11: Melbourne Rebels v ACT Brumbies, 2.35pm, Sunday, May 7 at Melbourne Park.

Round 12: ACT Brumbies v Otago Highlanders, 2.35pm, Sunday, May 14 at Canberra Stadium.

Round 13: Western Force v ACT Brumbies, 10pm, Saturday, May 20 at Perth Oval.

Round 14: ACT Brumbies v Waikato Chiefs, 7.45pm, Saturday, May 27, at Canberra Stadium.

Round 15: ACT Brumbies v Melbourne Rebels, 7.35pm, Friday, June 2 at Canberra Stadium.

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