Sam Bruce ESPN Associate Editor 5 Minute Read

New Zealand's Anton Lienert-Brown runs the ball during the Bledisloe Cup Test in Perth, August 10, 2020 Stefan Gosatti/Getty Images

A trans-Tasman provincial competition and standalone Bledisloe Cup series are among the competition models being discussed between Rugby Australia and their New Zealand counterparts should the countries' borders open up later this year.

With the likelihood of Super Rugby resuming - or at least coming to some sort of finality after seven rounds were played before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic - seemingly decreasing by the week, Rugby Australia and its SANZAAR partners continue to discuss various competition structures for later in the year.

The chances of South Africa and Argentina being involved in either a restart of Super Rugby or a reworked Rugby Championship may be remote however, given travel concerns during this COVID-19 era.

But with Australia and New Zealand having dealt with the coronavirus better than most, New Zealand's Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters last Thursday said his government might be able to come to some form of arrangement with Australia as its first move in reopening its borders.

"Our figures with Australia, it's almost like we've got a trans-Tasman bubble between our two countries, and if the figures keep on going that way [improving], that is a serious possibility," Peters told Television New Zealand on Thursday. "We're exploring that as we speak."

Those comments clearly have not been lost inside Rugby Australia's virtual boardroom with chief executive Raelene Castle confirming trans-Tasman play could be prioritised.

"Yeah it's certainly one of the models that we've got worked through at the moment and we remain in consistent discussions with New Zealand because obviously that makes a lot of sense," Castle told a conference call on Tuesday.

"he indications we're getting from government agencies is that the sequence of opening up is likely to be domestic first, then into maybe trans-Tasman and maybe Pacific, and then international.

"So we have a number of different scenarios that we are [looking at] and that's certainly one that we are in conversations with New Zealand about."

A proposed trans-Tasman provincial competition has long been suggested as a way to reinvigorate provincial rugby interest in Australia, despite the large financial implications that would eventuate by walking away from the SANZAAR alliance.

A trans-Tasman competition featuring Australia's four Super Rugby teams and New Zealand's five teams may be the best solution amid the coronavirus Kai Schwoerer/Getty Images

It has however always generated a lukewarm response in New Zealand, who value their relationship with South Africa and the benefits of playing against the Republic's four Super Rugby sides. New Zealand's dominance of Australia at both Super Rugby and Test level has also contributed to a lack of interest in a trans-Tasman model.

But the coronavirus could make at least a momentary pause on the SANZAAR alliance a reality, with some reports suggesting international travel may not return to normal until a vaccine is found.

"If the governments don't let us travel and the governments don't open international borders to allow teams to come in to this environment, we might not have any choice but to review what the structures look like [in terms of] what we deliver at the back-end of this year and then potentially what we could deliver into '21," Castle said.

"So it won't be driven by what SANZAAR want to do, it will be driven by what governments allow and which countries open up their borders at what times. And certainly all of the indications that we are getting from the Australian and New Zealand governments is that they are very proud of the fact that they've managed to control this very well and limited the damage and the loss of life, and they're not willing to open that up again quickly to risk that they go backwards again.

"So that's an overlay that we as a SANZAAR community have to be dealing with and those are conversations that are actively happening."

James O'Connor runs the ball for Australia during last year's Bledisloe Cup Test in Perth James Worsfold/Getty Images

Rugby Australia finally overcame its most immediate challenge on Monday, specifically signing off on player salary cuts to ensure the code can sustain itself until at least the end of September. After more than two weeks of negotiations, average cuts of 60 percent for Australia's professional players were agreed upon with the Rugby Union Players Association.

As part of that agreement however, RUPA has managed to secure a greater say for its members in terms of the future direction of Australian rugby and just how the game could look post the coronavirus pandemic.

"That's the focus for me over the coming three months as we move through the different scenarios," Castle said of how the players' input would be managed going forward.

"Certainly the player engagement and having players' voices around the table [is valuable] to make sure that they understand the depth of and breadth of the conversations that we're going to have to have, and they then also understand the challenges that are happening around commercial contracts.

"I think it's helpful that they're kept in the loop, we've got lots of smart guys who've been around the game for a long period of time that want to see it succeed. So we are absolutely committed to having those guys sit at the table and bring their experiences to make sure whatever the solution looks like in the long term it's a well-rounded solution."