The Doom and Gloomers are pointing at the mass out flow of players after the World Cup as the start of the end for NZ Rugby. They are saying that there is no chance that the NZRFU can compete against the money that the clubs in Europe are offering for the top players. This is true and there is not much chance of this ever changing. So what is New Zealand's competitive advantage, so to speak? How can the NZRFU and the All Blacks continue to produce and retain world class talent?

Our competitive advantage stems from our culture and knowledge and it is these two resources that we must retain and continue to develop. Central to that is the NPC and below that Club rugby. The Super 14 "is" the best sub international competition in the world. Why? Because it has the best players. That can not be questioned. We must attract and retain the best players for the culture to continue to remain strong. I would suggest that maybe we should look to attract the some of the best players from Europe to play in the super 14 and below that the NPC. Put restrictions on the number so that we still produce local talent. We cannot attract these players by offering large contracts, but we can offer them the opportunity to develop their skills by playing against the best week in week out. The Sharks have got Frédéric Michalak to play for them in next years Super 14, we should look to find similar opportunities.

Ultimately we are in competition against the European tournaments for advertising dollars and the best way to compete is to ensure that our tournaments remain the best in the world. If we attracted some big name European names to the NPC and Super 12 there would be more interest in Europe for these competitions and thus more marketable when negotiating the all important TV deal.

As for Club Rugby, I don't think that it is the fault of the NZRFU that the country clubs are struggling. It is more of a sign of the times. People have less spare time to dedicate to rugby and people also can not afford to get injured and be in the position where they can not work. What is required is infrastructure that identifies talent and moves that talent to the big centres where that can play against the best and be close to good education and facilities. I believe that those systems are in place.

The lure of the All Black Jersey is the most important asset that the NZRFU have, we will never be able to compete with the large contracts that the overseas clubs offer, but being an All Black is priceless. It is important that this is not devalued by letting players become bigger than the game. There is no room for a premadona on a rugby field, and that is the way it should stay. I agree with the NZRFU's policy on players only being eligible to be selected for the All Blacks if they play in the NPC. There might be scope for provinces to enter in to a player trade agreement with overseas clubs so that players have an opportunity to head overseas in the short term and provinces get to replace the lost talent with some new blood.

The bottom line is that I am confident that New Zealand will continue to be near the top of the IRB rankings for a long time yet but I believe that there are still a lot of improvements that can be made.