Aussie rugby chief weighs into Rugby World Cup spat

John O'Neill. Photo / Getty Images

Rugby's war of the Rugby World Cup is close to boiling after Australian supremo John O'Neill said yesterday that the International Rugby Board must be overhauled.

After the spat between NZ Rugby Union chief executive Steve Tew and IRB boss Mike Miller, O'Neill was diplomatic yet cutting as he offered his $16 million worth.

The Australian Rugby Union chief executive made a surprise appearance at the Wallabies' media conference where Robbie Deans' team to play South Africa was revealed.

After the Tew-Miller spat, O'Neill dissected the game in a typically level-headed way. He said Wallaby success was important to Australian rugby, and that the World Cup has cost the ARU $16 million.

He listed the World Cup timing, funds distribution and commercial rules as issues.

The professional management style O'Neill is calling for is at odds with the IRB's old boys' network which can be dominated by a northern voting bloc.

O'Neill had a mild dig at Tew, who said New Zealand might quit the tournament after it had cost them $13 million, and also Miller, who said the All Blacks would not be missed.

"Threatening to boycott a World Cup is not our style - the notion that any team is replaceable is also nonsensical," said O'Neill.

"Let's get away from the hurly-burly of the tournament and resolve the issues together [without] the divide and conquer."

The Tri-Nations countries were united over their financial grievance, which was "no frivolous matter".

Despite O'Neill's diplomacy, the IRB bosses will feel threatened. Asked if the voting structures needed changing, O'Neill said the ARU was using Aussie rules as a model for change.

"Democracy means different things to different people," he said. "We're 15 or 16 years into the professional era and a lot has happened, a lot good. But everyone must move with the times.

"It's time to take a serious look at the IRB."