Christ's College and Christchurch Boys' High are two of the boys' schools that would be in the proposed competition. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
A group of South Island principals is rallying against what it claims are "discriminatory and unlawful" plans for a breakaway first XV rugby competition played exclusively among boys' schools.
A collective of South Island boys' schools last month confirmed talks were under way to launch a new first XV competition as part of wider collaborative efforts to improve educational outcomes for young men.
The new competition would include up to eight boys schools across Canterbury and Tasman, and five schools in Otago and Southland.
The move has been met with widespread concern from leaders of co-educational schools in those regions, who fear the "devastating" impact on their school communities if top-flight rugby was restricted to a select group of schools.
A highly-organised resistance began in earnest on Wednesday, when a letter signed by principals of more than 40 schools was sent to the South Island provincial rugby unions and NZ Rugby urging the sport's leaders to act.
RNZ understands a separate, individual complaint has also been laid with the Sport Integrity Commission.
The letter to the rugby bodies called on officials to step in and "help intervene in what would become a highly destructive competition" for both the sport, the wider education system and young people.
"Excluding boys in co-educational schools from top-level rugby against boys-only schools would undermine the inclusivity, competitiveness, and health of school rugby, harming the sport's future and the well-being of its players," the letter states.
The letter also raised concerns that the proposal "is driven by the desire to attract the best athletes to the boys' schools for their own success", creating an "arms race where schools aggressively recruit top players".
'Strong words' from co-ed principals
One of the signatories to the letter, Darfield High School principal Andy England, said he believed the proposal was "unjustified and discriminatory".
"I think this move, if it was to happen, would be deeply unethical, potentially in breach of human rights, and the education and training act. Which are strong words to say, and I get that. But I'm saying them," England told RNZ.
Asked if the schools would consider laying a complaint with the Human Rights Commission or the Ministry of Education, England responded: "Yes."
"At the end of the day, it just seems deeply unfair that boys who go to school with girls are excluded from playing the sport at the level that suits them. How can that be right under the Human Rights Act or under the Education and Training Act?"
The Education and Training Act 2020 requires schools to ensure a safe and inclusive environment and to eliminate discrimination, which extends to sports participation.
England said his main frustration was that there had been "very limited communication from the boys' schools" about why they wanted to form a breakaway competition and how it would work.
Rugby officials needed to show leadership and get all the schools around the table "in a reasonably assertive way", so they can work on a solution together.
"I think we're all looking for some guidance from [the] rugby union. My specialty isn't rugby at all, but I can't see how this could be good for rugby. It's inevitable that some rugby talent will be lost through this if this goes ahead," he said.
"It also puts rugby development at the top level into the hands of the boys schools only, and how can that be healthy?"
St Thomas of Canterbury College principal Steve Hart Photo: Supplied
Boys' schools aiming for 'pride and connection' among young men
The letter claims the collective of boys' schools plan to launch the new competition for 2026 on 1 August. However, two principals involved told RNZ there are no firm plans or commitments in place.
Steve Hart, principal of St Thomas of Canterbury College, said he was aware of opposition to the proposed new competition, but he did not think it was appropriate to address those criticisms through the media.
"Until there is something concrete to discuss, I don't know how healthy the back and forward actually is," he said.
"Probably for me I think there's been an over-focus on rugby here, that's actually a tiny bit of what we're trying to do. It probably sums up New Zealand a wee bit in that we focus too much on rugby and people are missing the point on what the actual vision here is."
Hart referred RNZ to the statement provided to media at the time the plans for the breakaway competition were first raised, which noted the collective's aims of "exploring initiatives that include the arts, culture, sport and professional learning - designed to foster connection, belonging and pride among our young men."
Rugby union leaders respond
Canterbury Rugby chief executive Tony Smail said his organisation shared some of the concerns of the co-ed schools about the proposed competition.
"The unintended and intended consequences of a standalone competition among boys' schools needs to be talked about. There is genuine concern that pathways are being closed for other rugby playing participants out there," he said.
"You'll have player movement out of the schools that aren't in the competition into the schools that are, and the flow on effect of that is huge. If you have one or two strong players from one school decide to leave, the risk is that their peers that are left at that school will give up, because they were staying in the game to play with their mates."
While the union sits on the governance group of the current first XV competition, which involves schools in the Crusaders' catchment area, it is not in charge of running schoolboy rugby.
However, Smail acknowledged Canterbury Rugby has a duty to work through the issues with all schools. He said he hopes to get the principals together in the coming weeks.
"We'd obviously love to find a way to break through and understand what those problem areas are that require the boys' schools to head off and see if there's another alternative that we can explore together," said Smail.
"What we've had among the schools are some pretty brave conversations at times, and I think this is another example where we have to get together, hear out all sides and see if there's another way through."
NZ Rugby's general manager of community rugby Steve Lancaster said while the national body does not control the governance or delivery of the secondary school competitions, it does have an interest in the potential implications the proposed breakaway competition may have on "participation, equity and the schools that are excluded".
"We know many stakeholders look to NZR for resolution of such issues; however, we do not have authority over school competitions that are organised outside of Provincial Union administration. That said, we remain committed to advocating for inclusive, competitive, and accessible rugby pathways for all young people, regardless of the type of school they attend."
A spokesperson for the Sport Integrity Commission said the organisation could not confirm the existence or otherwise of any complaints before the organisation.
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