This was published 7 years ago
Stephen Moore throws support behind state of origin concept
By Tom Decent
London: Wallabies captain Stephen Moore has thrown his support behind a state of origin concept being discussed by the Queensland and NSW rugby unions, saying the more Australian local derbies the better.
Speaking in the wake of the Wallabies' 37-21 loss to England at Twickenham Stadium in their last match of the spring tour, Moore, who is departing the ACT Brumbies for the Queensland Reds next season, was excited by the idea that would see players from both sides of the Tweed River battle it out in a one-off, winner-takes-all match.
"I saw something about the state of origin concept, I think that might be something worth exploring," Moore said. "Any new idea or new product that we can bring into the market to make our game better is worth looking at. That's probably just in discussion at the moment but that may be something we could really look at.
"In Australia the rugby public likes the local derbies, [so] how we can maximise that across Australia?"
More derbies the better: Wallabies captain Stephen Moore has thrown his support behind a rugby state of origin match.Credit: Getty Images
According to reports, a player like Moore might not be allowed to take part in the match because of Wallabies matches in June against Fiji, Scotland and Italy.
Meanwhile, Moore, who has played his entire career in Australia, broached the topic of how to best keep local talent from going abroad to Europe on more lucrative deals.
He believed that Australian rugby would "keep fighting that fight".
"If you look at the financial side then it's very tough for us to keep all the players we want to," Moore said. "We can keep most of them, but there is always going to be a few players that decide to play in the northern hemisphere.
"For us, we need to look at everything that's non-financial that we can do well to keep players in Australia. Ultimately, it's about the desire to play for Australia and wear that jersey, but also everything that goes around that. That's why I've stayed around and played for Australia. It means a lot to me and I don't want to give that opportunity up.
"I know more than ever, [Michael] Cheika and everyone at the ARU are doing all they can to keep the players we want in Australia. It's tough but we'll keep fighting that fight."
Moore said he was proud of his Wallabies teammates, who after winning their first three Tests of the spring tour, were outclassed by Ireland in Dublin and then a classy England outfit coached by former Australian coach Eddie Jones.
Australia led in both matches but were unable to hang on.
"We're striving towards being an 80-minute football team and that's what the best teams in the world are doing," Moore said. "It's a very fine line at this level, fine margins, it's just moments in the game where it swings one way or another. We need to be better at capturing those moments."
Reflection: Stephen Moore said he was proud of his teammates for their performances on the spring tour.Credit: Mike Hewitt
Moore will now take some time off to recuperate after a gruelling year of 15 Tests before making the move to Queensland ahead of next year's Super Rugby season.
He says the 2019 World Cup is most definitely still a goal of his.
"I'll sit down with Cheik and talk about that in the down time and same with [Nick] Stiles when I get to the Reds," Moore said. "They'll have a plan and I will recover well over the next few weeks and get ready to go again.
"I feel good physically. I think it's a big mental thing to want to keep improving and contributing and that's going to be a challenge for me to try to find a way to do that."