SYDNEY - The world's rugby administrators have moved to capitalise on the goodwill and profits generated by a hugely-successful World Cup by pledging to bridge the gap between strong and weak nations.
"The push is to ensure the gap between the lesser nations and the larger nations doesn't increase," IRB chairman
Syd Millar said in Sydney.
"In the future, we have to try to not only give these smaller nations finance but competition."
He said countries such as Argentina, Georgia and Romania would benefit from more competition between nations of a similar standard and ultimately broaden the range of top club teams.
"Instead of having three, four or five teams that could win the World Cup, it should be more like 10 or 12."
Millar will chair an IRB working committee to review the game, rectify problems that emerged during the World Cup and find ways to turn the game into a global sport.
Australian Rugby Union chief executive John O'Neill led the charge, announcing that the union hoped to introduce a composite Pacific Islands team to the Super 12 competition from 2006.
Nations such as Fiji, Samoa and Tonga do not have the funds or resources to allow their naturally-gifted athletes to reach their potential.
Fiji missed out on a quarter-final spot only in the closing minutes of their pool match against Scotland, and Samoa gave eventual champions England a scare during the group stage.
In Europe, World Cup tournament manager Fraser Neill said attempts were being made to arrange competition among nations playing at a similar level, such as Romania and Georgia.
* Italy are seeking a bigger stadium to host England's first match as world champions.
The Italians are scheduled to host England on February 15 in the Six Nations opener at the 24,000-seat Stadio Flaminio.
But Italian Rugby Federation president Giancarlo Dondi said Flaminio was not big enough and that he would consider moving the game to 80,000-seat Stadio Olimpico.
"We've been flooded with ticket requests from England," Dondi said. "We could fill a stadium twice the size of Flaminio with just English fans. Where would we put the Italians?
"We're honoured to host the world champions in the Six Nations opener, but we need a bigger stadium."
The Italians last played at Olimpico against South Africa in 1995. The match attracted 45,000 fans.
- AGENCIES
