All Blacks captain Sam Cane believes South African Rugby's decision to end its relationship with Super Rugby brings a definite silver lining.
The SARU has announced it will withdraw its four major franchises from the competition to pursue a future in the European PRO14 tournament. NZ Rugby admits the move comes as no surprise and Cane echoes those sentiments.
"There have been whispers and we'd heard it was potentially on the cards for the last couple of years, so we'd sort of wondered whether it was only a matter of time," he says.
Cane is confident that the success of Super Rugby Aotearoa - combined with the possible addition of Australian teams - will ensure the competition doesn't suffer.
"If we look domestically at how successful Super Rugby Aotearoa was, if we can create something next year with Australian rugby, I still think it'll be an awesome product," he says.
"There are pros and cons… but I think we can take real positives from how much everyone got behind Super Rugby Aotearoa, the quality of rugby, and hopefully that'll be the same going forward."
Cane feels for younger players who'll miss out on experiencing the South Africa leg of the tournament and the unique challenges associated with it.
But for a veteran like Cane, that novelty has well and truly worn off, and he sees the reduction in travel demands as a bonus.
"I remember being super excited to make my first trip to South Africa, flying business class for the first time and all the little things that come with touring," Cane reflects.
"The first 4-5 years are super exciting and then towards the next four or five, it's a bit 'oh, we're going back there again'."
The addition of Australian teams would also lessen the rigours of constant local derbies, Cane adds, while he's also interested in seeing the North v South fixture expanded into a series.
"We had to play each other three times, so if we can open up and get something going with a few of those Aussie teams, that'd be brilliant," he says.
"And who knows, maybe more North v South fixtures and not just the one off."
And the likelihood of the Springboks remaining a part of the Rugby Championship will still provide that opportunity for players to experience that daunting atmosphere first-hand.
"If you're lucky enough to play international rugby, we'll still have that awesome challenge of going over there," Cane says.
"I don't think there's a much bigger challenge than playing a South African team in front of a packed-out South African crowd."
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