Why rugby union has recruited an NRL premiership winner and State of Origin champion to lure juniors AWAY from rugby league

Rugby union is getting smashed in junior participation by the NRL and AFL, so the battling footy code has recruited a rugby league superstar to turn the tables.   

According to recent Federal Government data, 173,000 kids aged 0-8 are playing Aussie Rules while 108,000 kids aged 9-14 are playing rugby league. 

A further 125,000 teens aged 15-17 are playing Aussie Rules and 84,000 are involved in rugby league.

Rugby union fails to crack the top 10 in any of the junior demographics with recent Australian Sports Commission data showing just 95,000 kids are playing the code across all junior brackets.

The woes at senior level have been well documented.

The Wallabies failed to escape the group stage of the Rugby World Cup in 2023 for the first time in history, resulting in the sacking of coach Eddie Jones.

The debt-ridden Melbourne Rebels have been axed as Super Rugby struggles for relevance following the departure of the South African teams along with the Argentine Jaguares and Japanese Sunwolves.

Rugby Australia announced a massive loss of $9.2million in 2023 and the code is battling to find its way back following the heavy setbacks.

To achieve that, they have secured the services of NRL great Mark Gasnier. 

While Gasnier played his final two professional seasons with French rugby side Stade Français, he played 175 NRL games, 12 State of Origin matches for New South Wales and represented the Australian Kangaroos 15 times. 

He has not only been appointed as the face of junior rugby, Gasnier has been tasked with creating a new sport called Tri Tag for juniors to rival the AFL's Auskick and the NRL equivalent League Stars. 

Tri Tag comes in several formats. For children aged six, it can be played with five players on each team, limited lineouts and scrums, and on half a football field. 

The full version involves 10 players per team, five-person scrums and lineouts, and is played across a full field, including goalkicking. 

It is a format Gasnier hopes can reinvigorate union in Australia. 

'There's no doubt, from the outside looking in, there is a perception they're doing it tough,' Gasnier told News Corp.

'In my experience in getting around to a lot of grassroots clubs, is that there is a hell of a lot of goodwill and good people.

'When you've got that, you'd assume it's just a matter of time before they go in the right direction.'

'I started doing all the testing and showcasing Tri Tag at clubs, then Rugby Australia approached us to have a look at the game, and they loved the game,'  Gasnier continued.

'They wanted to roll it out as their official non-contact game, they've subcontracted me to train all their member union staff and roll it out at grassroots level throughout Australia.

'So I've been going since last September, getting around to the member unions, showing them what the game is, helping the development officers understand it, showing them the belts, and how to deliver it at schools and clubs.'

The move has been met with division by uncertain rugby fans, who have been burned more than once in recent years.  

'Creating Tri Tag and using a league player to promote it seems a tad desperate to me. I guess you have to try something,' one posted.

'Rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic,' an unconvinced rugby fan posted.