Hannah Peters/Getty-Images Highlanders coach Aaron Mauger has celebrated the return of families to the rugby, and Beauden Barrett was swamped by kids at Eden Park. The figures for the opening rounds of Super Rugby Aotearoa have probably exceeded expectations. On Thursday, NZ Rugby CEO Mark Robinson described the crowd numbers as “outstanding”, but the television numbers are equally eye catching. Dianne Manson/Getty-Images Super Rugby Aotearoa games have felt like events, rather than just run-of-the-mill sporting fixtures. Clearly, cold hard commercial calculations will come into play when NZ Rugby builds a competition structure for Super Rugby in 2021, with a trans-Tasman competition one option.

Source: Stuff June 26, 2020 01:52 UTC