Rugby: Taranaki has eye on new home for Chiefs

Chiefs Super rugby coach Wayne Smith (left) and Sonny Bill Williams. Photo / Christine Cornege

It might seem fanciful, but the prospect of the Chiefs relocating to New Plymouth is being treated seriously at their Hamilton HQ.

Taranaki Rugby has been the first to publicly state an interest in holding a Super Rugby licence, days after the New Zealand Rugby Union called for expressions of interest in four of the country's five franchises - the Blues, Chiefs, Hurricanes and Crusaders.

While the Hurricanes' licence is the most logical to pursue given Taranaki falls within its existing boundaries, TRFU chief executive Mark Robinson also pointed to the Chiefs as a possibility.

Chiefs' chief executive Gary Dawson was not surprised by the development.

"We're in an environment now where everything is up for grabs. If a province like Taranaki thinks they can put up a credible proposal, the NZRU will look at it seriously."

The Chiefs have struggled to draw crowds to Waikato Stadium in the past two seasons and Dawson wondered, with a significantly smaller population base in Taranaki, how they would consistently put bums on seats.

"Taranaki have got a good board and a good management team ... but it's a tough environment, particularly the last couple of years. I'm sure if they go into it, they will go in with their eyes wide open."

Robinson could not be reached for comment last night, but it would be no surprise if there were rubles behind the bid.

Taranaki-raised Stephen Jennings became one of Russia's pre-eminent financiers after that country shed the yoke of communism and is not afraid to dip into his pockets for causes he believes in. This year Taranaki hosted Russian vodka magnate Roustam Tariko when Russia met Cold War rivals the US in a World Cup match.

It might be a long bow, but the NZRU have said they would welcome international interest. Tied to a provincial union, that capital would be even more attractive.

Without outside backing, a Taranaki bid would still essentially keep the financial risk within the NZRU "family".

"The key issue here is we're trying to remove the risk in the tough financial years off rugby's balance sheet, so provincial unions on their own would not necessarily do that," NZRU chief executive Steve Tew said.

Taranaki impressed when they bid to be Super Rugby's 15th franchise, ultimately claimed by the Melbourne Rebels, but their isolated location and relatively small population could act as a handbrake.

"We have not formed a firm view of the location of these franchises other than they must be in this country," Tew said. "There are a whole lot of criteria we will use to measure the proposals and location is clearly going to be one of them.

"It's fair to say the current host centres have got a head start but we have not closed the door on a different mix of home bases."

Dawson was sceptical about whether a scenario where the Chiefs were split between, for example, New Plymouth, Hamilton and Tauranga could work.

"Taranaki have made it pretty clear that if they were to get a franchise it would be based in New Plymouth," he said.

"You really do need a base where you play the majority of your games. Being a regional team, we're committed to taking games outside of Hamilton, but whether you could have a split or not would have to be looked at fairly closely."

Dawson said rugby administrators should embrace the prospect of the franchise landscape being shaken up.

"We're in for an interesting time."