World Cup decision about money, says McCaw

Australia won the right to host next year's Rugby World Cup alone because it would be worth tens of millions of dollars more than staging games here, New Zealand rugby officials said today.

Murray McCaw, chairman of the NZ Rugby Football Union (NZRFU), said New Zealand had not lost the right to co-host the cup because of "inappropriate behaviour" claimed by the International Rugby Board.

He said it was money which had determined the outcome of yesterday's IRB vote in Dublin, which handed Australia the sole-hosting duties for the tournament.

"Let's be very very clear about this," McCaw said on Radio Sport today.

"This decision was made on the basis that the Australian Rugby Union can deliver to the IRB tens of millions of dollars extra that could not come out of New Zealand."

Originally New Zealand was to share the hosting duties for the cup with Australia, staging 23 of the 48 games including a semifinal and, vitally, hosting the All Blacks' pool.

However, last month the NZRFU balked at signing an agreement to deliver advertising-free stadiums with empty corporate boxes, a requirement for cup hosts.

McCaw said then the NZRFU could not sign up to a document which required it to over-ride existing legal contracts held by those stadiums.

He and NZRFU chief executive David Rutherford also accused IRB chairman Vernon Pugh of "bloodymindedness" and "arrogance", a personal attack for which they were later forced to apologise.

Rugby World Cup Ltd (RWCL), which runs the cup for the IRB, reacted by stripping the NZRFU of co-host status, a decision confirmed by the IRB yesterday despite an NZRFU about-face saying it could deliver "clean" stadiums.

McCaw said today he and Rutherford had apologised for their remarks against Pugh, and that had been accepted.

He did not believe the NZRFU had acted inappropriately in its dealings with RWCL.

He said the NZRFU genuinely believed it had an understanding with Pugh that stadiums did not have to be 100 per cent clean, but that had changed last month.

"We actually thought we had an understanding with the chairman of the IRB...that a pragmatic solution would come so we actually didn't need to do anything."

McCaw said he knew world cups were about money.

"What's the future of Rugby World Cup if it can't be played in strong rugby countries where the national economies are smaller."

McCaw said he and Rutherford would not resign, but expected there would be some calls for that.

"I don't think it's an issue about personal responsibility at all.

"Our behaviour through the whole thing...was tinged with the need to protect the interests of New Zealand rugby and the fans of New Zealand rugby.

"You would be inclined to resign if you thought you had done something wrong or if you had acted with a lack of integrity.

"I don't believe that we got it wrong."

All Blacks coach John Mitchell could not be contacted for comment. An NZRFU spokesman said Mitchell would not be commenting on any rugby matters until he named his next squad, probably late next month.

- NZPA