Fijian Drua Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Fiji Rugby Union (FRU) Board chairman John Sanday believes the time is right to review the current agreements between Counter Ruck Pte Limited - the company that manages the Fijian Drua franchise - and its two main stakeholders.
Counter Ruck has two shareholders: the FRU, which owns 49 percent of the shares, and the Fijian government, which holds 51 percent.
Sanday said that, from FRU's perspective, this is a good time for the two shareholders to carry out a review, amend and adjust the current contractual agreements to better align them with the current realities in the rugby world.
The former Flying Fijian told RNZ Pacific that, with the exception of the French and Japanese leagues, professional rugby competitions around the world are facing serious financial difficulties.
He said that, in that light and in the interest of maintaining shareholder value, FRU needs to carry out a full review to determine how it can make the Drua more financially secure.
"We now have the benefit of the last three years of Super Rugby Pacific experience to draw from and use the learnings to shape the new way forward.
"There is plenty room to re-engineer things to make it run in a more efficient and cost effective way. We can remove much duplication and also take into account the new realities of the rugby landscape in Fiji."
John Sanday Photo: Facebook / John Ian Nasson Sanday
Sanday said his personal preference would be to see Fijians buy shares in Counter Ruck and have the company listed on the stock exchange.
"I am happy to make this happen if the public support is there.We need to become Tier 1 in our commercial thinking around our rugby," he said.
"I would like to see us take a bold step and float a public company, carry out a share drive and bring in our fans to buy out the Government's share in Counter Ruck, so that we have control and we can pilot its future together as fans and owners.
"This public company can be listed on the South Pacific Stock Exchange in Suva and we can build a profitable business of rugby in Fiji where the shareholders who are also the fans can be directly involved and share in the ownership."
The set up of the new Fiji Rugby Players Association adds another dimension to the management for the game.
The association will become the voice of players, at a time when financial costs are continuing to increase and player welfare comes under scrutiny.
"Again, it is a fact common to all professional competitions around the rugby world at the moment, that player cost inflation is running way ahead of revenue growth," Sanday said.
"Such a situation is simply unsustainable. We have seen the Melbourne Rebels fold, we have seen Rugby Australia take over administration of the ACT Brumbies and NSW Waratahs last year simply because of the financial struggles of these franchises.
"This is the reality that I am talking about. We need to rethink everything and do it now. This is our opportunity in Fiji to leapfrog the overseas clubs if we can restructure and get the business model right."
Fiji Rugby House Suva Photo: Alex Perrottet/RNZ
However, for that review to happen, Fiji Rugby, which has just one seat on the Counter Ruck Board, must get the support of the other directors.
The FRU and goverment have one seat each, while there are three independent directors, plus one observer director from World Rugby.
Clause 6 of the Shareholders Agreement, dated 31 August 2022, that governs the relationship of the two shareholders and the company, bars the shareholders from interference with the operations of the Couter Ruck and the management of the Drua. It means both the FRU and the Fijian government have little say in their operation.
Sanday said that a wholesome review must be done moving forward.
Public concerns were raised this year by fans following news that the Drua franchise hireachy did not follow Immigration Act rules in Fiji when they hired former Chiefs player Glen Jackson as coach, with chief executive Mark Evans confirming the position was not advertised.
Local media reported last month that local rugby administrator Joseph Rodan Snr, Tailevu Rugby president, had questioned the Drua issues during the FRU Syposium held in Suva.
