Perspective with Heather du Plessis-Allan: Should Moana Pasifika be saved?

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

There’s a strong chance that this has been Moana Pasifika's best and last season in super rugby.

Do you want them to have another one?

And if so, how much should the taxpayer put in to save it?

Would you pay $7million? Because that’s apparently what they’re short.

The Whānau Ora money is gone and it's understood that Sky is pulling its sponsorship of half a million dollars a year.

World rugby also wants to either reduce or completely cut the money it puts in. That’s around $1.7million a year.

So, for a club that costs about 12 m a year to run, it is short around $7million.

My answer to the first question I asked you … is yes. Moana Pasifika should be saved.

There is a very good reason to have a super ruby team dedicated to giving professional opportunities to Tongan and Samoan rugby players.

They were also one of the best success stories of the season.

My answer to the second question is that the taxpayer should pay nothing.

I can almost guarantee there will be a request for taxpayer help, but this is not a taxpayer problem. This is a rugby problem. This is one for NZ rugby and rugby Australia to fix.

They are the ones who own the Super Rugby competition, and the ones who make money off the broadcast deal from it.

I hope they can sort it out though because in a rugby competition that failed to excite people during the regular season, Moana Pasifika were one of the better stories.

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