All Blacks coach Steve Hansen (left), pictured speaking to Ian Foster and Wayne Smith in Dunedin, said the current competition structure was "bordering on the ridiculous".

OPINION: As they watch the All Blacks conquer their opponents in stadiums around the planet, NZ Rugby's administrators must wish they were as dominant when negotiating for the elusive "global season".

If anything should be ranked at the top of World Rugby's wish list, it's the requirement to align all competitions under the umbrella of a global season.

It seems most international coaches want it. The fans, if they are in their right minds, would welcome it. And you can bet the players, who want to preserve their bodies so they can keep honouring contracts and earning new ones, are right behind it.

All Blacks coach Steve Hansen summed-up it up best when he said the current international schedule was "bordering on the ridiculous".

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Hansen wasn't wrong. Having guided the All Blacks to a 3-0 series win over Wales, he had to immediately surrender his players to their Super Rugby clubs where they will do all they can to help them qualify for the play-offs. That will be tough on their minds and bodies. Loose forward Liam Squire, who made his test debut during the final test in Dunedin, had to board a flight the following day so he could join his Highlanders team-mates in South Africa.

"But that's just the state of the nation - that's our competition at the moment," a frustrated Hansen said. "Until we get the global season sorted, that's the sort of stuff we have to put up with."

It gets even messier. When the Super Rugby season ends the All Blacks must immediately switch their focus to playing in the Rugby Championship and, later, the northern tour of Europe where they will play Ireland (in Chicago and Dublin), Italy and France.

It's not only the southern hemisphere teams that are at a disadvantage.

The Welsh players have barely had a break since the World Cup was staged in Britain in September and October; following a short rest they returned to their clubs, participated in the Six Nations, went back to their clubs and then toured New Zealand.

They had every right to say they were nursing injuries, were low on enthusiasm and couldn't compete against the All Blacks. However, it would be disingenuous to use that as an excuse for their poor results in Auckland, Wellington and Dunedin because when the New Zealanders head north after a long and arduous season they rarely get beaten on foreign soil.

So what's the solution?

Ideally World Rugby would prepare a calendar which ensured all countries, and just as importantly the clubs, aligned their programmes. This would require a window to be set aside for club competitions, and another for the tests. Creating a space to allow players to recuperate their bodies and minds would also be high on the agenda.

Is this wishful thinking? Quite possibly, because the clubs in Europe are all-powerful.

Unlike New Zealand, where players are centrally contracted and paid by NZ Rugby, the clubs in the northern hemisphere pay the wages. The Welsh Rugby Union has introduced a dual-contract system in an attempt to get their domestic clubs and the national union to work together.

But in England and France the clubs appear more concerned about their own progress in the variety of competitions they play in. Given the big wages they shell out, they want a return on their investment. And would the home nations, France and Italy squeeze the Six Nations tournament, a wonderful revenue-earner for them through broadcasting rights and ticket sales, into a revamped calendar?

NZ Rugby would also welcome a unified, global season for other reasons - the financial ones. They believe they are being ripped-off under the existing model. While NZ Rugby retained the revenue from the series against Wales, they get nothing when the All Blacks - who as the holders of the Webb Ellis Cup are guaranteed to draw major interest - perform in front of larger crowds in Europe.

There could be light at the end of the tunnel if new World Rugby chairman Bill Beaumont can make the global season dream a reality. The deadline is 2019. There are no test matches scheduled for 2020 and beyond.

If nothing changes, NZ Rugby may hold true to their threat of negotiating individual matches. That could result in them raking in more money, and possibly, creating a test programme that guarantees player welfare is a priority.

It wouldn't be a global season. But it would be a start.

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