Women's rugby has made significant progress in the past few years.
Public interest has certainly been up since the Black Ferns captured the nation’s heart by winning the World Cup on home soil.
But has that development, and interest, and investment into better pathways, filtered down to the Farah Palmer Cup level?
The FPC produced some enthralling, free-running rugby this season — something, we have heard through our series this week, many feel is missing from the NPC.
It is the type of rugby that makes people fall in love with the sport in the first place.
Since 1999, the FPC has been mainly split into two divisions: the premiership and championship.
Teams are relegated and promoted between the two, and it is a system that has a proven track record in helping teams succeed, while still developing those lower down.
For now, it must remain as two divisions.
The gap between the top of the premiership, and the bottom of the championships, is just a little too wide.
That is not to say there has not been progress. North Harbour, who lost every game last season, were a fine example of that, making the championship playoffs this year.
The future of the FPC is ultimately tangled up in what lies in store for the NPC.
But, while there are calls for big changes among the rugby fraternity for something to change in the NPC, the FPC has been a flagship for the women’s game.
There are obvious tweaks that can be made, starting by ditching the 11.35am games.
An expansion of Super Rugby Aupiki, possibly by linking with Australia, has been tipped for the future, which could be a threat to the domestic game.
It would be a welcome development for women’s rugby, but it must not come at the FPC’s expense.
If the FPC was to be abandoned, where would that leave players who are developing, or the hard-nosed community stalwarts, during the last six months of the year?
There would be no rugby for them — high performance players are away with the Black Ferns — and that is simply not good enough.
The FPC is too valuable to change. It must remain for the long haul.
