The Highlanders franchise will present a paper to the next New Zealand Rugby Union board meeting seeking a change in the draft rules, allowing the eight Highlanders draft players the franchise sourced this year to return for 2009 and 2010, if the players want to.
Highlanders chief executive Richard Reid said he hoped to get a sympathetic response from the board, though he doubted other franchises would be very supportive.
"What we are actually asking for is the ability to hold on to players who six months ago nobody else wanted," he said.
Reid said he could not see the sense in a player like Hawkes Bay prop Clint Newland returning home to play in the national provincial competition and then be picked by the Hurricanes as the number four ranked prop.
"He would sit on the sidelines for the season, instead of getting regular rugby with another side.
"The Super 14 was set up to have the top 110 players in the country stripped and ready to play every week."
He said something had to be done to make sure top players were on the field.
It was important the eight players drafted for the Highlanders in 2008 be allowed to return, should they wish, for continuity for the team, and support coach Glenn Moore.
"If we have to keep on changing our players every year, then we will remain in the same place."
"What happens now, is that if we get someone and they show a bit of promise then that player does not come through the following year.
And everyone uses the draft.
The Hurricanes were the only team this year which did not use the draft.
"We need some continuity to keep our team intact. "
Reid said every other franchise had the ability to keep a team intact but the Highlanders could not do that for various reasons.
The population factor had a big impact as the Highlanders only had 9.1% of player numbers in the country.
The Hurricanes was the highest with 26.8% of player numbers.
Even worse, the Highlanders region had only 6.2% of the entire population of the country.
Reid said when Super 14 rugby started Otago was sitting pretty as players were drawn to the Otago University to combine an academic career with a rugby career.
But that option no longer existed.
Players could either be rugby players or pursue an academic career but not both.
"There is the odd exception but the majority of them play club footy . . . the university is not the factory it once was."
A Super 14 discussion document released last week by the NZRU supported the retention of the Highlanders.
"I can't imagine the other franchises will be wonderfully agreeable. But I hope the board will be sympathetic to what we are saying. We want to get some discussion going."
The NZRU board next meets on August 1-2.
