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Heinrich Brussow of the Cheetahs - Source: Photosport -
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South Africa warned New Zealand and Australia not to bully them in talks over the future of southern hemisphere rugby and vowed to go ahead with a bid to provide the extra team in an expanded Super 14 competition.
Plans are being discussed by SANZAR (South Africa, New Zealand and Australia Rugby) to invite a 15th team to the annual provincial competition from 2011 as well as include Argentina in the Tri Nations.
Australia has said it wants the extra team, as it currently has four to New Zealand and South Africa's five each. Inviting a team from Japan or the Pacific Islands has also been suggested.
South Africa wants its Eastern Cape franchise, which will be launched to coincide with the British & Irish Lions' tour match in Port Elizabeth in June and is made up of players from an area with a strong tradition of black rugby, to be the 15th team.
"There are competing claims from overseas but none has a stronger rugby claim than does the Eastern Cape and we will motivate it very strongly," South Africa Rugby's acting managing director Andy Marinos told reporters.
South Africa and their SANZAR partners disagree over several issues, including which country should be awarded the 15th team, when the season should start, and how long it should run.
"We are not going to be dictated to or bullied, as the perception has been in the past," Marinos said.
"We are going to look at compromise but we have to make sure we do what's best for South African rugby. We contribute by far the biggest television audience, by far the most spectators, and we put the most revenue into the pot for distribution."
Australia in particular wants a new Super 15 to continue until August but Marinos said SA Rugby would oppose this because the dates coincided with the country's domestic Currie Cup competition.
"The Currie Cup is a part of our heritage and has defined who we are as South African rugby and lifting the trophy remains a goal for all our professional players," he said.
"It also continues to generate significant interest and revenues for our provinces."
South Africa, the main backers of the plan to include Argentina in an expanded Tri Nations, said it would continue to push for the World Cup semi-finalists' inclusion.
Marinos did not rule out the possibility of South Africa breaking ties with SANZAR and looking to Europe for competition after 2010 when the three countries' broadcast agreement with News Corp expires.
"Possibilities are always there but it's certainly not a possibility that we want to entertain at this point in time," he said.
