“It’s too early for Super Rugby”. Possibly the most irritating comment in sport.  

Stop it. It’s like people who text me during Sportstalk (7-8pm Monday to Friday on this fine station) to complain about an hour of sport talk. A staple of ZB that has sat in that slot for decades. It’s a constant, and will remain so, if you don’t like it, go for a walk.  

Same with Super Rugby Pacific. It's started in February-ish forever.   

Sport is no longer seasonally locked in.   

The global nature and ease of viewer access now has presented fans with a constant diet of what they want, when they want it.  

Football does what it wants. I don’t hear complaints about turf billiards in summer. Cricket is restrained somewhat by weather but is played across the world so that matters not. Rugby? To fit everything in, the Super season must start earlier than traditionalists want to accept. Tough. Deal with it.   

It’s warmer for the attendees, less likely to be destroyed by wandering bouts of extreme climate variables and fills a hole for the restless sport fan. Most of us are back at work, dealing with the horrors of the 9-5, this year the home cricket season has all but bailed on us, there’s no NRL, from a sports news point of view it’s been a bit skinny. So the timing is perfect to launch a new season.   

The new fantasy league has given a new sense of engagement, albeit somewhat belatedly, and in a sparse regular sporting landscape, the super season has put appointment viewing back on the agenda again. There’s something quite comforting in anticipating a structured weekend of rugby.  

So, is it too early? No, no it isn’t. It’s right on time.   

If it’s too early for you, I’ll give you the tip.  

Don’t watch it.