Rugby Union

Dubbo Kangaroos junior president Michael Dodd believes the Australian Rugby Union is taking the right steps to compete with rugby league as the premier football code in Australia.

On the back of ordinary performances abroad from the Wallabies, rugby league officials including NRL chief executive David Gallop have lashed out at the ARU's lack of attention on junior development.

While the NRL has had a history of attracting talented rugby union players through its more lucrative market, in recent years the ARU has been accused of resorting to recruiting crossover players from the NRL competition to fill the backline of its national side.

It has been speculated that a more effective junior development program would be a more resourceful long term solution, but Dodd says those steps are already in place.

Every fortnight on skysports.com top English referee Steve Lander writes his exclusive column on skysports.com, in conjunction with Advance Vision Care.

Unlike rugby league, the onus is on the evidence to demonstrate the ball being grounded. If this is unclear, even if we all suspect a try was actually scored, in rugby union a score cannot be awarded.

THE NEW Zealand Rugby Union has eaten a large slice of humble pie and scrapped its much trumpeted, but highly confusing, Air New Zealand Cup format.

Canterbury Rugby Union chief executive Hamish Riach told the Sunday Star- Times that his union and the NZRU had come to the same inescapable conclusion as the fans had - change was critical.