ERROL PARKER | Editor-at-large | Contact
Putting his Hush Puppies up on the desk, it’s almost 3 pm and Bruce McSpanner-Taylor can almost smell knock-off.
He’s earned that early mark, though.
Bruce’s role at Australian Rugby is a challenging one – one he’s been doing flawlessly for many, many years now. It’s a thankless job and demands a lot from whoever finds themselves shouldering the responsibility.
“Not many people have what it takes to be a Marketing Executive at Australian Rugby,” he said.
“We work hard, long hours to make sure everyone knows about what’s happening in rugby. The upcoming fixtures, tours and Test matches. Just this morning, I had to work the phones and liaise with designers to get these magazine print ads done before the deadline,”
“But I don’t do that stuff every day, most days I do fuck all except enjoy hot flushes when Wallaby greats are in my presence. I almost fainted when Jason Little called me by my first name! I might get one of the seven social media managers, all on $75k plus super mind you, to post a video of Matty Burke crashing over for a try 20 years ago or something,”
“Most people who go to rugby games know when they’re on so why waste company money in marketing or advertising? It’s simple economics.”
The Advocate reached out to a number of local rugby union fans – all of which had no idea when the Queensland Reds were playing next.
Alistair Girthy-Goblin, a local rugby fan who works in a field loosely-related to finance in an office somewhere in town, said that he often has to do his own research when it comes to rugby – rather than happening upon it through marketing or advertising.
“I’m just discovering what the NRC is now,” he said.
“Sounds promising. Anyway, dear boy, I think rugby is a game best enjoyed in an empty stadium. You don’t get all the whooping and hollering you do at other sports. The Australian Rugby marketing approach reflects this. The fewer people who come to games or know anything about the sport – the better,”
“However, if we don’t win the Bledisloe this year, I’m going to call for the board to be sacked and the players put out to pasture in French rugby. There is no excuse!”
More to come.
