Sideline Sid - Sports blogger Sideline Sid is a local sport fanatic. Not only is he a classic rugby bloke but he has views, opinions and knowledge on all sports played in the Bay of Plenty.

During the last seven days Sideline Sid met a new phenomenon to arise from the emergence of professional rugby.
As professional rugby has grown during the last decade, so has the arrival of the player agent in the modern game.

There were always movers and shakers doing deals to secure overseas playing contracts for New Zealand rugby players before the game went professional in 1995, but as the game was still very much lily-white, the deals were always under the table so as not to infringe the players amateur status.
Up until the sport in New Zealand became professional, the few All Blacks who went to England in the 1940s and 1950s to pursue rugby league careers were ostracised by the New Zealand rugby officialdom when they returned home.

During the week I caught up with a couple of gentlemen from over the ditch, who were in town on business. Their business cards describe their occupation as being involved in sports management, however, their core business is representing the interests of a number of rugby league and union players.

While player agents have been around rugby league for the last 30 odd years - Super Rugby has ratcheted up the activities of the player representatives. There are much larger ponds to play in with players changing codes at the drop of a hat.

Professional rugby, whether it be union or league, has what can be large amounts of money available to the participants. The players in effect are running a business, where the major asset is their skills on the playing field.

The player agent job is to maximise the returns of the players. Player agents are very much the middleman - having to negotiate with clubs/teams to secure the best possible deals for the players they are representing. The role of the player agent was described to me as the CEO of the players business.

On the local rugby scene, there is a new team on the block in Baywide Colts rugby. Greerton Marist has burst onto the scene from nowhere, and currently sit at the top of the Baywide points ladder with an unbeaten record.

The Greerton club has always had teams in all grades of Baywide and local senior rugby, albeit without too much success. A clubhouse that is amongst the best in the Bay of Plenty, and an abundance of playing fields at Greerton Park are real pluses. Player and supporter numbers in recent seasons suggest that the club has built a platform for success.

Much of the success of the Colts side this season has been built upon large JMC numbers in recent years. While the youngsters go off to play college rugby, they have returned in numbers this year, with the only real problem being giving game time to the large squad.

While the side always had confidence from their first game back in March - they arrived as major contenders when they defeated last seasons Baywide Colts champions Ngongotaha. The margin of the 29-10 victory two weeks ago installed the Western Bay side as one of the favourites to win the Baywide silverware in August.

Seeya at the Game.