The NZRU has laid its cards on the table and unveiled six ambitious goals in a ''Towards 2016'' document which reveals a changing rugby landscape.
These goals focus on back-to-back Rugby World Cup success, Olympic gold medals, a healthy bottom line and good leadership, rugby being the sport of choice in our biggest city and for teenagers, rugby as a unifying agent in our communities, and globalisation of New Zealand rugby.
These goals are definitely lofty, but where is the harm in that? It is better to reach for the stars because in doing so, higher targets are reached and the likelihood of coming up with a handful of mud is reduced.
The All Blacks retaining the World Cup is the most treasured of stars to reach for, and one that will be difficult in the northern hemisphere.
It seems likely Steve Hansen will remain at the helm, if all goes well in his performance review this year. This continuity of coaching staff would provide a wealth of knowledge and experience in terms of learning from World Cup failures and successes, both of which Hansen has experienced.
Now all we need is for a handful of players from the 2011 team still to be around in 2015, so that they too can harness that mental toughness that only comes from having been there and done that.
Anyone with an inkling of knowledge about rugby would realise that Olympic inclusion has had a huge impact on the game of sevens. It isn't a surprise that No 2 on the wish list is winning gold medals from the men's and women's events in Rio de Janeiro.
Personally, I think that goal will be even more difficult than winning the World Cup, because sevens can be such a fickle game. Will New Zealand be able to peak at just the right time?After a good year financially, the NZRU is well on track to achieve goal three, regarding financial health, and the bottom line is looking less shaky than it has in the past.
It may be less shaky at the top, but at the lower levels, many provincial unions are still struggling financially. The union admits it needs to assess how it is going to balance the books and service its stakeholders at the provincial level without making them too dependent on hand-outs and bail-outs.
Although nine of the 14 ITM Cup unions are in surplus, that is still 35% left struggling to make ends meet.
If rugby at the grass roots dies, will the NZRU brand still be attractive at the elite level? Maybe, but it will be a sad day, indeed, if New Zealand follows the North American trend of having a nation of watchers rather than participators, and a small group of professional players with very little grass-roots participation.
Which brings us to goals four and five, regarding rugby as a sport of choice in the wider Auckland area, for teenagers, and as a source of cohesion for the community.
Getting more Aucklanders to play rugby has been an ongoing battle for the NZRU. What will it do differently this time?
There seems to be a lot of focus on getting rugby schools, clubs and unions to embrace ethnic diversity, and in particular attracting the growing Asian population to rugby. This will require a huge change in mindset for many rugby practitioners, and it may also require an adaptation of the game to suit different populations.
Will this goal succeed where others have failed, regarding the Auckland scene? Watch this space. It is also well-known that the drop-out rate for teenagers regarding organised sport can be great, so how will the NZRU entice provincial unions and schools to attract the teenager back into the rugby fold?
Goals three and four, in particular, require resources at the provincial level to achieve, so the NZRU must manage this relationship carefully, especially if its focus is predominantly at the elite and global level.
Yes, we need to feather our nest to ensure a secure future for our professional players and teams, but we also need to make sure that those who are expected to service and nourish the lofty nest are not neglected.
