Sir Graham Henry has questioned whether Super Rugby Pacific is strong enough to produce world-class All Blacks, calling the competition “weak” and urging New Zealand Rugby to consider a radical restructure.

Speaking on the DSPN podcast alongside former NZR chairman Brent Impey, the 2011 World Cup-winning coach said he was impressed by the depth of players available to All Blacks head coach Dave Rennie but concerned that the competition they are developing in is not up to standard.

“I don’t think the competition is sufficiently strong enough,” Henry said. “I think Super Rugby needs to be looked at very seriously and see how we can improve that because I don’t think it’s a foundation for producing a world-class international team.”

Henry acknowledged that New Zealand has “more depth now than we’ve had for a long time” and said he has been “very surprised and very pleased” at what the current Super Rugby Pacific teams are producing. But he was blunt in his assessment of where the competition sits relative to the demands of test rugby.

“We’re isolated and we’re isolated geographically anyway and we’re getting isolated rugby-wise,” he said. “Rugby played below international level — we’ve got very little international exposure. We play Australia, who are reasonably weak, to be fair. And so we’re not getting the competition we require, I don’t think, to be the best in the world.”

The former All Blacks coach went further, floating a significant restructure of domestic rugby that would see the NPC effectively replaced by an expanded Super Rugby competition. His proposal: 10 New Zealand-based sides, plus standalone Pacific Island teams for Fiji, Samoa and Tonga — rather than the combined Moana Pasifika model, which has since confirmed its departure from the competition at the end of this season — alongside four Australian teams, making a 16-team competition.

“Spread that competition to maybe 10 New Zealand sides — Fiji, Samoa, Tonga as opposed to Moana Pasifika — and four Australian teams. Sixteen teams,” Henry said. “Then you’ve got something that’s going to develop our players.”

The proposal would represent a dramatic shift in the structure of professional rugby in New Zealand, effectively merging the NPC and Super Rugby tiers. Henry argued it would create more opportunities for young players who are currently falling through the cracks between levels.

Impey, who served as NZR chairman from 2014 to 2021, offered a counterpoint on the economic realities. He revealed that during his tenure, NZR’s revenue and costs both grew from $100 million to $260 million, and warned that weakening the competition by allowing top players to leave would reduce broadcast revenue from Sky.

“If you start weakening the competition by allowing top New Zealand players not to play in that competition, you’re going to get less money from Sky and down you go,” Impey said.

However, Impey agreed with Henry on a critical underlying issue: young players are not getting enough game time. He pointed to the case of Harry Inch, a highly regarded Nelson College graduate who was in the Crusaders training squad but switched to the Warriors because he was not playing.

“One of the critical issues for me is within the ecosystem where we do not have enough rugby for those younger players who are coming through to actually play,” Impey said.

Henry was unequivocal about the need for change, warning that maintaining the status quo would see New Zealand slide further down the world rankings.

“If we continue to do what we’re doing, we’re going to keep on getting a little bit worse,” he said. “It’s all very well for people to stand there and say we can’t afford it. But if we don’t change, we are not going to achieve what we’ve been doing for the last 100 years.”

The comments come during a Super Rugby Pacific season in which the New Zealand franchises have largely dominated, with the Hurricanes in particular drawing praise for their attacking rugby. Henry himself lauded the Hurricanes’ approach but argued that strong franchise performances do not necessarily translate to international readiness when the competition base is not demanding enough.

It is a debate that will only intensify as New Zealand prepares for a test series in South Africa later this year and a Rugby World Cup in 2027.

Sir Graham Henry and Brent Impey were speaking on the DSPN podcast. The full episode is available on YouTube.

The Western Force produced a stunning comeback from 19–0 down to beat the Crusaders 31–26 at HBF Park, with Carlo Tizzano’s turnover penalty in the dying seconds sealing the victory after Harry Johnson-Holmes scored the decisive try on his 100th Super Rugby appearance.

Key moments

5 mins – TRY CRUSADERS: Taha Kemara chips and chases before being hauled down 15 metres out. The Crusaders recycle quickly and Sevu Reece dishes a short pass to George Bell, who powers through a hole to score beside the posts. Kemara converts. (Force 0–7 Crusaders)

17 mins – YELLOW CARD FORCE: Nick Champion de Crespigny is shown yellow for not rolling away after repeated team infringements. The Force had already been warned following multiple penalties on their own line, where they held up both Dom Gardiner and Leicester Fainga’anuku.

19 mins – TRY CRUSADERS: The Crusaders opt to tap from a penalty close to the line. Dallas McLeod dishes off a pass to Fainga’anuku, who wraps around and steamrolls through Henry Robertson to score out wide. Kemara converts. (Force 0–14 Crusaders)

22 mins – TRY CRUSADERS: Louis Chapman fires it down the short side to Fainga’anuku, who sends it on to Macca Springer. The returning winger sprints down the left touchline and rolls in a perfectly weighted grubber into the in-goal, where Johnny McNicholl dives over a Force defender to miraculously ground the ball near the dead-ball line. Kemara’s conversion hits the upright. (Force 0–19 Crusaders)

35 mins – TRY FORCE: George Bridge takes a direct carry before Ben Donaldson floats a crisp long pass to the left. Dylan Pietsch zips infield and flicks a pass to Zac Lomax, who streaks into space down the touchline. Lomax passes inside to Mac Grealy, who dishes it off to Henry Robertson to sprint away and score out wide. Donaldson converts. (Force 7–19 Crusaders)

Half-time: Force 7–19 Crusaders. The Crusaders dominated the opening 25 minutes, scoring three unanswered tries through Bell, Fainga’anuku and McNicholl’s stunning effort while the Force were reduced to 14 men. The hosts finished the half strongly, however, with Robertson’s brilliant team try offering hope, and Tizzano was held up over the line on the siren.

45 mins – TRY FORCE: Vaiolini Ekuasi claims the lineout and the Force maul rumbles to the five-metre line under penalty advantage. Robertson steps sharply down the short side past Chapman to score his second from close range. Donaldson converts. (Force 14–19 Crusaders)

54 mins – TRY FORCE: Jeremy Williams takes an uncontested lineout and the Force get their maul moving towards the goal line. Robertson clears it and sends it right to Bayley Kuenzle, who shifts it to Donaldson. He floats a crisp long pass out to Zac Lomax, who dives over untouched in the corner for his first try in rugby union. Donaldson misses the conversion. (Force 19–19 Crusaders)

58 mins – TRY CRUSADERS: The Crusaders strike straight back. Fainga’anuku carries hard before a lovely around-the-corner pass from Gardiner finds Springer, who streaks down the touchline and dishes a pass inside to Noah Hotham, who races away to score under the posts. Rivez Reihana converts. (Force 19–26 Crusaders)

62 mins – YELLOW CARD CRUSADERS: Tahlor Cahill is shown yellow for collapsing the Force maul after being warned earlier. The Force have a lineout five metres out.

63 mins – TRY FORCE: The Force hammer away from close range with Tizzano, Sef Fa’agase and Nic Dolly all carrying within a metre of the line. Dylan Pietsch takes it off the back of the ruck and dives towards the corner. The TMO confirms the grounding. Donaldson misses the conversion. (Force 24–26 Crusaders)

70 mins – TRY FORCE: The Force pound away through multiple one-out carries inside the Crusaders 22 with Bridge, Franco Molina, Nathan Hastie and Tizzano all surging forward. Fa’agase picks and goes and is stopped short before Harry Johnson-Holmes burrows low to ground the ball on the line — a try on his 100th Super Rugby appearance. Donaldson converts. (Force 31–26 Crusaders)

76 mins – TRY DISALLOWED CRUSADERS: Springer finishes in the corner after Fainga’anuku’s offload, but the TMO rules it out for a Reece knock-on two phases earlier. The Force survive.

80+ mins: The Crusaders churn through 20 phases inside the Force half, searching for the levelling score. But Tizzano gets lightning-quick over the ball and wins a turnover penalty for holding on. The Force boot it into touch to seal the victory.

Full-time: Force 31–26 Crusaders

Full match report to follow.

Match details

Force 31 (Tries: H. Robertson 35′ 45′, Lomax 54′, Pietsch 63′, Johnson-Holmes 70′; Conversions: Donaldson 3/5)
Crusaders 26 (Tries: Bell 5′, Fainga’anuku 19′, McNicholl 22′, Hotham 58′; Conversions: Kemara 2/3, Reihana 1/1)
Half-time: 7–19
Yellow cards: Nick Champion de Crespigny 17′ (repeated team infringements), Tahlor Cahill 62′ (collapsing maul)

Venue: HBF Park, Perth
Referee: Reuben Keane (Australia)
Assistant Referees: Nic Berry, Louis Trisley
TMO: Brett Cronan

Milestones

• Harry Johnson-Holmes (Force) — 100th Super Rugby appearance, scored the match-winning try
• Macca Springer (Crusaders) — first appearance of the season, returning from long-term quad injury
• Zac Lomax (Force) — first Super Rugby Pacific start, scored his first try in rugby union

Teams

Force: 15 Mac Grealy, 14 Zac Lomax, 13 George Bridge, 12 Bayley Kuenzle, 11 Dylan Pietsch, 10 Ben Donaldson, 9 Henry Robertson, 8 Vaiolini Ekuasi, 7 Carlo Tizzano, 6 Nick Champion de Crespigny, 5 Darcy Swain, 4 Jeremy Williams (c), 3 Misinale Epenisa, 2 Brandon Paenga-Amosa, 1 Tom Robertson.
Replacements: 16 Nic Dolly, 17 Sef Fa’agase, 18 Harry Johnson-Holmes, 19 Franco Molina, 20 Will Harris, 21 Nathan Hastie, 22 Hamish Stewart, 23 Kurtley Beale.

Crusaders: 15 Johnny McNicholl, 14 Sevu Reece, 13 Leicester Fainga’anuku, 12 Dallas McLeod, 11 Macca Springer, 10 Taha Kemara, 9 Louis Chapman, 8 Christian Lio-Willie (c), 7 Johnny Lee, 6 Dom Gardiner, 5 Jamie Hannah, 4 Tahlor Cahill, 3 Seb Calder, 2 George Bell, 1 Finlay Brewis.
Replacements: 16 Manumaua Leitu, 17 George Bower, 18 Kershawl Sykes-Martin, 19 Oli Mathis, 20 Corey Kellow, 21 Noah Hotham, 22 Rivez Reihana, 23 Toby Bell.

Note: Late changes for the Crusaders saw Chay Fihaki and Will Tucker ruled out. Sevu Reece moved into the starting side on the right wing, with Toby Bell and Oli Mathis joining the bench.

What’s next

The Force have the bye in round 11. The Crusaders open Super Round at One New Zealand Stadium in Christchurch against the Waratahs on Friday night.

The Fijian Drua produced one of the biggest upsets in Super Rugby Pacific history, racing to a 22–7 half-time lead before holding off a furious Brumbies comeback to win 33–28 at GIO Stadium — their first victory on Australian soil since 2023 and only their second road win in 34 attempts.

Key moments

13 mins – TRY BRUMBIES: The Brumbies drive a lineout towards the Drua goal line, and when the ball comes loose, Nick Frost picks and goes from close range to dot down. The TMO confirms the grounding. Ryan Lonergan converts. (Brumbies 7–0 Fijian Drua)

15 mins – TRY FIJIAN DRUA: The Drua hit straight back. They break down the right edge and work it wide left with a couple of long, looping passes to Etonia Waqa, who offloads outside for Manasa Mataele to crash over in the corner. Isaiah Armstrong-Ravula misses the conversion. (Brumbies 7–5 Fijian Drua)

26 mins – PENALTY FIJIAN DRUA: After the Drua win another scrum penalty, Armstrong-Ravula slots from the right flank to give the visitors the lead for the first time. (Brumbies 7–8 Fijian Drua)

29 mins – TRY FIJIAN DRUA: Ryan Lonergan looks to shift the ball wide right but Mataele reads it perfectly, intercepting and racing 60 metres untouched to score his second. Armstrong-Ravula converts. (Brumbies 7–15 Fijian Drua)

37 mins – TRY FIJIAN DRUA: The Drua pick and go through the middle with Waqa and Isoa Tuwai making inroads. Issak Fines-Leleiwasa spots the Brumbies out of position after a quick penalty tap from 10 metres out and powers over. Armstrong-Ravula converts. (Brumbies 7–22 Fijian Drua)

Half-time: Brumbies 7–22 Fijian Drua. One of the Drua’s best halves of the season. Fines-Leleiwasa and Armstrong-Ravula controlled the game superbly, with Waqa and Salawa dominant up front. The Drua turned the Brumbies over repeatedly at the breakdown and dominated at scrum time. The hosts looked disjointed on attack with ten handling errors, and only Frost’s early try kept them on the board.

44 mins – TRY BRUMBIES: The Brumbies earn a scrum advantage and fire it wide right through Tom Wright, who finds Ollie Sapsford with a cut-out pass. Sapsford races down the edge, cuts back inside and crashes over. Lonergan converts. (Brumbies 14–22 Fijian Drua)

51 mins – PENALTY FIJIAN DRUA: Armstrong-Ravula slots from 30 metres in front after the Brumbies are pinged for offside in the lineout. (Brumbies 14–25 Fijian Drua)

56 mins – TRY FIJIAN DRUA: The Drua counterattack from a Brumbies lineout kick, with Inia Tabuavou finding space up the left past halfway. Armstrong-Ravula delivers a pinpoint crossfield kick to the right edge for replacement Simione Kuruvoli, who races away 25 metres to score in the corner. Armstrong-Ravula misses the conversion. (Brumbies 14–30 Fijian Drua)

58 mins – YELLOW CARD FIJIAN DRUA: Isikeli Rabitu is shown yellow after a TMO review for a high tackle on Ollie Sapsford that leaves the Drua fullback knocked out. Rabitu is carried from the field on a medical cart.

64 mins – TRY BRUMBIES: Patient build-up from the Brumbies draws in the defenders before they shift it through the hands on the left. Tane Edmed slips out of a tackle and dots down near the corner. Lonergan converts from the touchline. (Brumbies 21–30 Fijian Drua)

70 mins – TRY BRUMBIES: David Feliuai pops a pass back inside to Corey Toole, who cuts the defensive line to pieces and has too much gas for the cover, racing away to score under the posts. Edmed converts. (Brumbies 28–30 Fijian Drua)

79 mins – PENALTY FIJIAN DRUA: The Brumbies are penalised for offside in the defensive line, and Armstrong-Ravula slots from in front of the posts to restore a five-point buffer. (Brumbies 28–33 Fijian Drua)

80+ mins: The Brumbies win a penalty and Edmed finds touch 10 metres from the Drua line. But the lineout throw goes to ground and the Drua secure possession. The whistle blows.

Full-time: Brumbies 28–33 Fijian Drua

Match report

The Fijian Drua had won just one of their previous 33 matches on the road. They had not won in Canberra in their five-year Super Rugby Pacific history. Their players had spent the week training through the aftermath of Cyclone Vaianu, with some returning to sessions after mango trees had crashed through the roofs of their homes. None of that mattered on a chilly Saturday evening at GIO Stadium, where Glen Jackson’s side delivered one of the most remarkable results the competition has seen.

The Drua raced to a 22–7 lead by half-time through a combination of clinical finishing, scrum dominance and relentless breakdown pressure, before surviving a ferocious Brumbies fightback that brought the margin to just two points with 10 minutes remaining. Armstrong-Ravula’s nerveless penalty in the 79th minute and the Drua’s desperate defence of a final lineout drive ensured the visitors held on for a result that will reverberate through the competition.

Captain Temo Mayanavanua, playing his first match since a round-one knee injury, was emotional afterwards, telling Stan that his players had resolved to “create something special” despite the devastation at home. The returning skipper’s leadership added steel to a pack that competed ferociously throughout, with Etonia Waqa and Isoa Tuwai outstanding in the loose forwards.

The opening quarter was a frantic affair of TMO interventions. The Brumbies had a Sapsford try ruled out for a foot in touch, the Drua had a Waqa effort chalked off for a knock-on, and then Frost’s close-range score survived a review to give the hosts a 7–0 lead after 13 minutes. It looked like business as usual for the fourth-placed Brumbies, welcoming back Wallabies fullback Tom Wright from his ACL injury with early control.

But the Drua hit back immediately. Mataele finished emphatically in the corner after Waqa’s offload created the overlap, and from that point the visitors took command. Their scrum won repeated penalties against a Brumbies pack that had no answer to the pressure applied by Emosi Tuqiri and Samuela Tawake at tighthead, and Armstrong-Ravula punished the hosts from the tee to nudge the Drua into an 8–7 lead.

Mataele’s second was an interceptor’s dream. Reading Lonergan’s pass to the right edge, the winger plucked the ball out of the air and sprinted 60 metres untouched to score — a try that perfectly encapsulated the Brumbies’ disjointed attacking play, which produced 10 handling errors in the opening 40 minutes. Former Brumby Fines-Leleiwasa then rubbed salt into the wound with a quick-tap try from 10 metres that caught the hosts completely out of position, and the Drua took a commanding 22–7 advantage into the sheds.

The half-time message from Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham clearly hit home. Wright, who had looked sharp despite the long layoff, delivered a superb cut-out pass to send Sapsford racing down the right edge four minutes into the second half. The winger cut back inside and crashed over, and when Lonergan converted, the deficit was back to eight.

The Brumbies then blew a golden opportunity to close the gap further. Sapsford’s pop-up pass to Declan Meredith with the try line begging was fumbled, and the Drua punished the error ruthlessly. Within a minute, Armstrong-Ravula had delivered a pinpoint crossfield kick to the right edge where replacement Kuruvoli collected and raced away 25 metres to score in the corner. At 30–14, the mountain looked insurmountable.

A controversial yellow card to Rabitu in the 58th minute gave the Brumbies the opening they needed. The Drua fullback collided heads with Sapsford in a tackle where the Brumbies winger was pushed forward into the contact — Rabitu had little time to react but was carded regardless, and was carried from the field on a medical cart after being knocked unconscious. It was a moment that divided opinion, but the Brumbies capitalised ruthlessly.

Wright produced another assist to put replacement Tane Edmed over in the corner in the 64th minute, and when Toole sliced through a gap from Feliuai’s inside pass to race away untouched six minutes later, the deficit was just two points at 28–30. GIO Stadium was suddenly alive, and the momentum was entirely with the home side.

But the Drua refused to buckle. Armstrong-Ravula, whose game management throughout had been superb, stepped up to slot a penalty from in front of the posts in the 79th minute after the Brumbies were caught offside — a nerveless kick that restored the buffer to five points. The Brumbies had one final chance, winning a penalty and finding touch 10 metres from the Drua line with the clock in red. The lineout throw went to ground, the Drua secured possession, and the whistle blew to scenes of wild celebration from the visitors.

Armstrong-Ravula finished with 17 points from the boot — two conversions and three penalties from four attempts — to go with his decisive crossfield kick for Kuruvoli’s try. His composure under pressure was the hallmark of a performance that belied the Drua’s position near the foot of the table. Mataele’s double, Fines-Leleiwasa’s sharp-thinking quick tap, and Kuruvoli’s impact from the bench provided the attacking highlights, while Waqa’s relentless work at the breakdown and in the carry set the tone up front.

For the Brumbies, Wright showed enough in his 64 minutes to suggest the ACL has not diminished his quality — two try assists and sharp footwork were encouraging signs. But the hosts’ first-half handling and the breakdown errors that allowed the Drua to build their lead will be the lasting frustration. Replacements Edmed and Andy Muirhead injected life in the final quarter, but it was too little, too late.

The result moves the Drua to a 4–5 record, keeping alive their slim hopes of a first-ever finals appearance, while the Brumbies slip to 5–4 in a result that significantly complicates the race for the top six. Both sides head into Super Round next weekend — the Brumbies to face the Hurricanes, the Drua to take on the Chiefs — knowing that round 10 produced the kind of upset that reminds every team in the competition that nothing can be taken for granted.

Match details

Brumbies 28 (Tries: Frost 13′, Sapsford 44′, Edmed 64′, Toole 70′; Conversions: Lonergan 3/3, Edmed 1/1)
Fijian Drua 33 (Tries: Mataele 15′ 29′, Fines-Leleiwasa 37′, Kuruvoli 56′; Conversions: Armstrong-Ravula 2/4; Penalties: Armstrong-Ravula 3/4)
Half-time: 7–22
Yellow card: Isikeli Rabitu 58′ (high tackle)

Venue: GIO Stadium, Canberra
Referee: James Doleman (New Zealand)
Assistant Referees: Marcus Playle, Fraser Hannon
TMO: Glenn Newman

Milestones

• Tom Wright (Brumbies) — return from ACL injury sustained in August 2025, two try assists
• Temo Mayanavanua (Fijian Drua) — first appearance since round-one knee injury, captained the side
• Samuela Tawake (Fijian Drua) — 50th Super Rugby cap
• Tuaina Taii Tualima (Brumbies) — 50th Super Rugby cap
• Corey Toole (Brumbies) — 50th appearance for the club

Teams

Brumbies: 15 Tom Wright, 14 Ollie Sapsford, 13 Kadin Pritchard, 12 David Feliuai, 11 Corey Toole, 10 Declan Meredith, 9 Ryan Lonergan (c), 8 Tuaina Taii Tualima, 7 Luke Reimer, 6 Rob Valetini, 5 Lachlan Shaw, 4 Nick Frost, 3 Allan Alaalatoa, 2 Billy Pollard, 1 James Slipper.
Replacements: 16 Lachlan Lonergan, 17 Blake Schoupp, 18 Darcy Breen, 19 Toby MacPherson, 20 Rory Scott, 21 Klayton Thorn, 22 Tane Edmed, 23 Andy Muirhead.

Fijian Drua: 15 Isikeli Rabitu, 14 Isikeli Basiyalo, 13 Tuidraki Samusamuvodre, 12 Virimi Vakatava, 11 Manasa Mataele, 10 Isaiah Armstrong-Ravula, 9 Issak Fines-Leleiwasa, 8 Isoa Tuwai, 7 Kitione Salawa, 6 Etonia Waqa, 5 Isoa Nasilasila, 4 Temo Mayanavanua (c), 3 Samuela Tawake, 2 Zuriel Togiatama, 1 Emosi Tuqiri.
Replacements: 16 Kavaia Tagivetaua, 17 Penaia Cakobau, 18 Mesake Doge, 19 Mesake Vocevoce, 20 Joseva Tamani, 21 Simione Kuruvoli, 22 Kemu Valetini, 23 Inia Tabuavou.

What’s next

The Brumbies host the Hurricanes at GIO Stadium in round 11. The Fijian Drua face the Chiefs.