Schoolboy rugby scores TV channel

Sky TV footage of Sacred Heart College schoolboy Taniela Tupou went viral. Photo / Brett Phibbs

Auckland Rugby Union finances internet streaming for college competition.

Auckland's prestigious First XV competition is launching its own internet TV channel.

It is a move that confirms schoolboy rugby has surpassed the ITM Cup in size and importance and is where the Auckland Rugby Union will target much of its future investment.

Every game in this year's 1A competition will be filmed - with one game a weekend streamed live and the rest broadcast via a highlights package.

The initiative is being funded by the Auckland Rugby Union, which believes First XV is probably better placed than provincial rugby to generate audience and revenue - and to unearth superstars of the game.

Last year, Sky TV footage of Sacred Heart schoolboy Taniela Tupou went viral after the giant prop scored a hat-trick in the opening weekend of 1A.

The global reaction to Tupou - who ended up signing a professional contract with the Reds - showed that Auckland has a schoolboy competition that can engage even an international market.

That is in stark contrast with the ITM Cup, which has seen crowds at Eden Park dwindle to just a few thousand for most games.

Super Rugby sides have also shifted their focus to First XV - with the Blues and Chiefs having recently signed players such as Rieko Ioane and Damian McKenzie while they were still at school.

This year viewers will be able to access the live streams on the dedicated YouTube channel - Auckland FirstXV TV - for nothing.

But Auckland Rugby commercial manager Ross Halpin says the long-term goal is for the broadcasts to make money.

That could mean the union hooking up with a broadcast partner or developing a pay-per-view subscription model.

"Any revenue we generate from this, once we have paid off the costs, we will split that 50 per cent between the schools and Auckland Rugby and we will ringfence the Auckland Rugby component to invest back into secondary school rugby," said Mr Halpin.

The principals of the 1A schools had to approve the concept and King's College headmaster, Michael Leach, who is also head of the Auckland Secondary Schools Heads Association, said the decision to say "yes" was partly driven by the need to drive up sporting participation levels.

Only about 55 per cent of secondary school children across New Zealand are actively involved with sport and Mr Leach believes Auckland First XV television can sell rugby as an aspirational sport for young men.

"I was really positive about the concept," he said.

"I think it will bring some perspective of what secondary school rugby looks like at the senior level and I think that will activate younger kids to participate.

"I think they will be motivated by what they see and will aspire to play," he said.

"It's a great competition and a great way for young men to express themselves without that aggressiveness we sometimes see in the adult world."

Mr Leach says he and his fellow principals discussed the possible negative effects of broadcasting - essentially the prospect of rugby's importance being over-inflated and youths neglecting their education.

It was his view, however, that most schools in the city had a strong policy of keeping the classroom sacrosanct.

He also felt that most schools had some experience with rugby being broadcast as Sky TV has filmed select games since 2011.

First XV TV
• Auckland's 1A competition will be filmed for internet TV.

• It will screen this year on a dedicated YouTube channel - free.

• One game a week will be streamed live and the rest shown as part of a highlights package.