Super Rugby side Waratahs Chair Roger Davis claims that the June Test break has hurt Super Rugby, describing it as an "anchor" weighing down the competition, according to Bret Harris of THE AUSTRALIAN. Super Rugby resumes Friday "after a three-week hiatus in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa to accommodate tours by England, Wales and Ireland." Davis said that "Super Rugby had lost momentum and predicted it would be difficult to get it back with just three rounds to go in the regular season." He said, "From a Super Rugby perspective, the impact has been substantial. It has affected our momentum, it has affected our fan engagement, it has affected our continuity. I had a long conversation with the chief executive of one of the New Zealand Super clubs and he had exactly the same problem. It hasn’t helped any of us. People take their eyes off the ball. In an incredibly crowded sports market, we are easily distracted in Australia. We have three other brands of football competing for attention." Davis admitted that "he did not have a magic solution to the problem, which was caused by rugby’s overcrowded global calendar." SANZAAR "has proposed switching the June Test window to July to avoid a break in Super Rugby, but there may be opposition from European countries." And the earliest time "there could be a change would be 2020." Another potential option "could be to play midweek Tests." State of Origin players back up in the National Rugby League on the weekend "after playing for NSW and Queensland on Wednesday nights." But Davis said that "the Super Rugby travel schedule, which involves five countries, would make that difficult" (THE AUSTRALIAN, 7/1).
