Gregor Paul: NZRU's stoush with News Ltd a lose-lose situation

The New Zealand Rugby Union must have incredibly good lawyers. Or at least it must think it has incredibly good lawyers, such is the extraordinary faith it is showing in the advice given regarding the withdrawal of players from next year's Super 14.

Since News Limited first aired its belief there would be a prima facie breach of contract if All Blacks were kept out of the first seven rounds, the NZRU has hidden behind its legal advice. There has been no suggestion of compromise or backing down. The union has remained adamant there is no reason to compromise, as its position is legally sound and it is not liable to pay any compensation.

Whether that is a bluff or a genuinely held belief is about to be found out.

Fox Sports has paid a significant sum to buy the broadcast package from News Limited and Fox Sports is not one little bit happy at the prospect of not seeing Daniel Carter and Richie McCaw until April.

If News Limited allows the NZRU to carry out its plans, it will be in breach of its contract with Fox.

News Limited, therefore, will have no choice but to take action against the NZRU. What an ugly mess that will be and even if the NZRU wins, it will be a Pyrrhic victory.

The relationship with News Limited, an organisation that provides almost 50 per cent of the union's income, has been strained by the last few weeks. No matter how much both sides say they are putting their differences behind them, News will not forget the indignity of being snubbed when renegotiating the broadcast rights agreement.

Fox Sports will wonder how much it should pay, or whether it should even bid to buy a package, when the time comes to re-commit.

The Australians find it laughable the NZRU is claiming to have so much talent at its disposal that ratings won't be affected by taking out 22 of the country's best players.

But the biggest concern is the badly damaged and deteriorating relationship with the Australian Rugby Union. There was the Aussies not voting for New Zealand's World Cup bid. Then there was the spat over when to play the final Bledisloe Cup test. Now there is contention over whether there was a joint agreement among the Sanzar partners to approach News Limited collectively about reconditioning plans for next season.

Executives from both unions are at pains to say there are no problems but it's a case of protesting too much.

The NZRU is refusing to reveal why it did not consult News Limited before making the announcement. The need to make a definitive statement about the importance of player welfare is understood to be the main reason News was snubbed.

But there was possibly another reason. The NZRU didn't want to reveal its hand to the ARU whom it felt would be antagonistic towards the plans. The NZRU was perhaps fearful the ARU would sow doubt in the minds of News Limited executives and undermine the proposal.

The Australians are planning a less dramatic conditioning window that will see their top players miss only one round of Super 14.

That difference in planning is symptomatic of the fact the NZRU and ARU are not aligned in their long-term strategies. They don't share the same vision and keep butting heads.

Both need to remember Sanzar is a marriage of necessity, not convenience. Neither side may like that but the future would be a lot bleaker if either tried to go it alone.