the mindboggling disgrace that is the ARU/QRU

[Ken Gargett]

ARU, QRU, ISIS. About the only difference is that it seems ISIS actually achieves its aims on occasion. Otherwise, they are all swill together.

The ARU has a new Chairman, Cameron Clyne (I assume that shares in his bank must have skyrocketed when he resigned?).

Apparently he has been having a spat with a former NSW player about whether ARU staff wives got free handbags or not. The AFL and the NRL must piss themselves at rugby’s priorities. Anyway, this vicious attack on poor Mr Clyne took place a week after he had met with the player at the meeting he scheduled to save rugby in Sydney.

This is the quote – “When I took over last year as chairman, ​I decided the first thing I wanted to do was to reach out to the Sydney clubs and talk about funding and the strategy for Shute Shield​,” Clyne said. ​

Have a think about that.

First, he took over as chairman last year and declares the first thing he wants to do is to reach out to the Sydney clubs. The meeting took place last week. So, he was appointed last year and the first thing he can manage, according to his own words, is a meeting at the beginning of March (we could be generous and even say end of February, but still??). Way to hit the ground running, Cameron. We can expect a follow-up in about 6 months, I assume? The NRL doesn’t even have a chairman and it still manages not to look so monumentally incompetent.

Next, this is the ARU chairman. And his highest priority? NSW club rugby. Bugger the rest of Australia. Is it any wonder that Qld and the rest of Australia think it is one rule for them and one for NSW?

We saw that slimy little grub ref’ing the Reds v NSW. He had his priorities right. Screw the Reds – bit silly really because blind Freddy can see that they can do that themselves and do it far better than any cheating whistleblowing scum.

As for the Reds, when I have been in Qld, I have hardly missed a game for more than 40 years. Sat in rain, stood in crowds on the sidelines, travelled and watched them interstate and even overseas. And of course, watched them probably 1,000s of times when they have been away.

Enough. After that turgid, dire, unbelievably inept display last night, I will not be watching next weekend. Sack the administration, sack the coach. That was truly appalling. Had they not been playing another mob of incompetents, they’d have lost by 100. Big cheer from the 26 spectators present when we finally crossed the halfway line around 30 minutes in. They did not look like scoring a try (at least while I was there so I can’t speak for a good chunk of the 2^nd half).

Compare that with the Broncos on Thursday evening. Not a great game but the level of skill and professionalism shown there (by both sides) is from another planet. I realise now that I have denied it for decades but league simply is a better game. Better run (even with the Mitchell Pearces), better talent, better everything.

Remember it is only a few years ago that the Reds won the lot (obvious now that was an against the run of play blip when a number of stars aligned and we got there, in spite of and not because of the morons in administration). In a few short years, we have not only hit rock bottom but show no sign of even realising that. This is not rebuilding. The Reds are now the toilet of rugby and all those responsible – McCall, Graham and a good few more – should hang their heads in shame. Better still, hang themselves.

I look forward to the Broncos this weekend and the Reds can do what they like. I will not watch them live and I will not watch a replay.

[JohnS]

To lose to the Waratahs and Reds two weeks in a row, and so meekly, I sympathise Ken. It's not good enough for what should be a much more professional organisation.

[ayepatz]

...but league is simply a better game.

Aaaagghhh!!!! *splutter* Gah!!!!! *cough* (chokes on coffee)....

Cue the Four Horsemen! The end of days is nigh...

[Ken Gargett]

Aaaagghhh!!!! *splutter* Gah!!!!! *cough* (chokes on coffee)....

Cue the Four Horsemen! The end of days is nigh...

i wish it was not so.

i watched a bit of roosters v souths this afternoon. the skills of greg inglis and even that half before he broke his jaw - sublime, spinetingling, beyond anything i have seen in rugby for far too long. the reds v force was the greatest load of swill imaginable. and there are far too many of those games.

anyone wants a ticket to the game this weekend, mine is spare.

[Fuzz]

Aaaagghhh!!!! *splutter* Gah!!!!! *cough* (chokes on coffee)....

Cue the Four Horsemen! The end of days is nigh...

i wish it was not so.

i watched a bit of roosters v souths this afternoon. the skills of greg inglis and even that half before he broke his jaw - sublime, spinetingling, beyond anything i have seen in rugby for far too long. the reds v force was the greatest load of swill imaginable. and there are far too many of those games.

anyone wants a ticket to the game this weekend, mine is spare.

Soon you'll be supporting the Blues and drinking sauv blanc!

[David88]

If it makes you feel any better in my opinion rugby union around the world is in a bit of a state. If you look at the recent salary cap issues in the English premiership you can see what a farce it has become there (for those not in the know: some clubs were 'alleged' to have been paying way over the imposed salary cap. They avoided punishment by paying an undisclosed sum of money to the organisers). Then you could have a look at French rugby and what the serious money there is doing for their game...There is a self-preservation attitude within those who run the game, all they seem to care about is making as much money as possible for themselves.

But to say league is a superior game....I just can't see it I'm afraid. Sure there is good handling and decent running, but I prefer rucks, mauls and competitive restarts.

[ayepatz]

i wish it was not so.

i watched a bit of roosters v souths this afternoon. the skills of greg inglis and even that half before he broke his jaw - sublime, spinetingling, beyond anything i have seen in rugby for far too long. the reds v force was the greatest load of swill imaginable. and there are far too many of those games.

anyone wants a ticket to the game this weekend, mine is spare.

I lived in Leeds for four years, in Headingley, just down the road from the cricket ground and Leeds Rhinos. I tried my damnedest to get into league, but back then, I found I really missed the variety that the pack brought to the Union game.

Over the years, the Union forwards game, as I knew it and loved it - old school rucking, where you bound on and drove over the ball - has been altered and messed about with to the point where I honestly wonder what the point of having a scrum is anymore.

Things need to change, because the modern game is a shadow of its former self in terms of flair and sheer, bloody excitement. And, as you say Ken, league currently offers all of that in abundance.

[mikemerry]

Nice Ken (you sound like a Detroit lions fan), a few years ago when hockey (NHL) lockout/strike took place, rugby finally got some TV time here in Canada. At that point I became a broncos fan as I am a huge Denver Bronco fan. Just made sense and seemed comical. However, I have tried to watch other Rugby leagues and i just find the NRL to be the most exciting. Also it helps that those matches are easy to get either online or elsewhere.....anyways glad your a broncos fan....now you just gotta retake your stance on the Redskins! ....

[El Presidente]

McCall, Graham and a good few more – should hang their heads in shame. Better still, hang themselves.

I will be surprised if Coach Graham isn't gone by the time I get back from the warehouse this Wednesday night.

[Ken Gargett]

I will be surprised if Coach Graham isn't gone by the time I get back from the warehouse this Wednesday night.

we have been saying that for two years. it would be nice but too little, too late.

[JohnS]

So the Ewan McKenzie years (2010-13, but especially 2011 and '12) now look absolutely 'golden' in comparison to the current squad?

[Ken Gargett]

Soon you'll be supporting the Blues and drinking sauv blanc!

fuzz, you first. take your meds. seriously?

always enjoyed both games. just find league is now far more enjoyable. support the blues? more chance of entering the priesthood.

If it makes you feel any better in my opinion rugby union around the world is in a bit of a state. If you look at the recent salary cap issues in the English premiership you can see what a farce it has become there (for those not in the know: some clubs were 'alleged' to have been paying way over the imposed salary cap. They avoided punishment by paying an undisclosed sum of money to the organisers). Then you could have a look at French rugby and what the serious money there is doing for their game...There is a self-preservation attitude within those who run the game, all they seem to care about is making as much money as possible for themselves.

But to say league is a superior game....I just can't see it I'm afraid. Sure there is good handling and decent running, but I prefer rucks, mauls and competitive restarts.

i thought about my comment about league being the better game when i went to bed last night. perhaps that was not quite what i meant. rugby has the potential to be the better game. it is simply that, to me, for far too many years it has not. potential that is very much being wasted. sure, some terrific exhibitions of rugby over the years but far far too many games that are rubbish.

competitive restarts? here is a major reason people prefer league. sure, it could be a feature of rugby but most of the time, it is the opposite. sat there on saturday night (and it was not just this game - there are endless examples) and, along with most of the crowd (of hundreds - in a few years, rugby has managed to slash the crowd numbers here) we were yelling - "get on with it". stoppage after stoppage. and they bog down. i usually go with my sister who is a fan (though she said to me on the night that she really was not excited about going again this year and probably wouldn't) and several times i said to her that there had been no play for 2, 3, even four minutes as they tried to get a scrum right. on the other hand, as much as the league scrums are a mess, they are trying to speed them up. basically in league, a scrum is now little more than a quick restart where half a dozen players from each side are brought in to open up the field.

part of rugby's problem is that the supposedly competitive restarts have so many obscure rules applying that the refs seem to give them one or two attempts - or sometimes let them drag on - and then just give a penalty to whichever side they want to, and 99% of the crowd sit there wondering why. saturday night, the number of times you heard people in the crowd saying 'hat the hell was that for?' i lost count.

rugby is in danger of disappearing up its own backside.

I lived in Leeds for four years, in Headingley, just down the road from the cricket ground and Leeds Rhinos. I tried my damnedest to get into league, but back then, I found I really missed the variety that the pack brought to the Union game.

Over the years, the Union forwards game, as I knew it and loved it - old school rucking, where you bound on and drove over the ball - has been altered and messed about with to the point where I honestly wonder what the point of having a scrum is anymore.

Things need to change, because the modern game is a shadow of its former self in terms of flair and sheer, bloody excitement. And, as you say Ken, league currently offers all of that in abundance.

this focuses on the problem they have. i read a piece by a former fan who found he'd just lost interest. he tried to work out why. this was pretty much it. rugby has become extremely structured - and if you step out of that structure, no matter how talented you are, it is goodbye - quade the perfect example. the coaches want every second orchestrated. everyone knows what to expect. the only 'ad libbing' or broken play, if you like, comes when a side makes an error or gets things wrong. games these days have become like watching a condensed version of groundhog day. the occasional flash of excitement or brilliance comes from a bloke like izzy - a former league player.

i have heard commentators and fans still raving about a tackle beale made in the reds game. it was a good tackle but holy crap, it was a tackle. you'll see 20 just as good or better in every league game (this is all not to suggest that every league game is great and every rugby game crap - just that this seems the way things are headed).

that said, watching blokes who are exceptional at what they do - the pococks, gills, mccaws, carters etc, is always worth it. but the myriad of evermore confusing rules seem determined to stifle this. on the other hand, league seems determined to do whatever it can to make the game faster and more exciting. they don't get it right all the time but they try.

Nice Ken (you sound like a Detroit lions fan), a few years ago when hockey (NHL) lockout/strike took place, rugby finally got some TV time here in Canada. At that point I became a broncos fan as I am a huge Denver Bronco fan. Just made sense and seemed comical. However, I have tried to watch other Rugby leagues and i just find the NRL to be the most exciting. Also it helps that those matches are easy to get either online or elsewhere.....anyways glad your a broncos fan....now you just gotta retake your stance on the Redskins! ....

mike, as much chance of that as me supporting the blues.

[Ken Gargett]

So the Ewan McKenzie years (2010-13, but especially 2011 and '12) now look absoultely golden in comparison to the current squad?

john, we were briefly blessed in 2011 and at the same time, cruelly reminded of the glory decades when the reds were the greatest provincial side on the planet; of the glory days when we genuinely assumed that we would win every game, including against full strength touring test nations, and win them comfortably.

now we have this. has any civilisation ever crumbled so devastatingly and completely?

[Ken Gargett]

as for the preferences shown to nsw, whether right or wrong - i see they have a player sent to the judiciary. now, he is the replacement hooker and their usual hooker, TPN, went down injured. so all of a sudden, the replacement is a pretty important player. he is suspended for one week. here is the shocker - next week they have a bye. so in fact, absolutely no penalty at all. can't leave nsw short. i'm sure it is all coincidence.

[David88]

competitive restarts? here is a major reason people prefer league. sure, it could be a feature of rugby but most of the time, it is the opposite. sat there on saturday night (and it was not just this game - there are endless examples) and, along with most of the crowd (of hundreds - in a few years, rugby has managed to slash the crowd numbers here) we were yelling - "get on with it". stoppage after stoppage. and they bog down. i usually go with my sister who is a fan (though she said to me on the night that she really was not excited about going again this year and probably wouldn't) and several times i said to her that there had been no play for 2, 3, even four minutes as they tried to get a scrum right. on the other hand, as much as the league scrums are a mess, they are trying to speed them up. basically in league, a scrum is now little more than a quick restart where half a dozen players from each side are brought in to open up the field.

Scrums have become a bit of a joke. I hate seeing a side with a playable ball at the back of a scrum just sitting there waiting for a penalty to be awarded. Also the constant scrum collapses and consequent penalty lottery show that referees have little idea what is going on and there needs to be a change. I do like that a side with a dominant scrum has an advantage though. There are few better sights than an opposition scrum getting obliterated (not so good when it is happening to your side though).

The pointless 1 week ban for an important NSW player is also happening everywhere. Top international players get away with murder and their bans are insignificant compared to non-internationals or internationals from the 2nd tier of nations. When Manu Tuilagi punched Chris Ashton a few seasons ago he received a 5 week ban, which conveniently allowed him to join in the summer tests for England. In this world cup Mariano Galarza received a 9 week ban for accidental contact with the area around the eye of a NZ player. I'm pretty sure Tuilagi made contact with Ashton when he tried to level him, but then again he is an England international so...

[Ken Gargett]

Scrums have become a bit of a joke. I hate seeing a side with a playable ball at the back of a scrum just sitting there waiting for a penalty to be awarded. Also the constant scrum collapses and consequent penalty lottery show that referees have little idea what is going on and there needs to be a change. I do like that a side with a dominant scrum has an advantage though. There are few better sights than an opposition scrum getting obliterated (not so good when it is happening to your side though).

The pointless 1 week ban for an important NSW player is also happening everywhere. Top international players get away with murder and their bans are insignificant compared to non-internationals or internationals from the 2nd tier of nations. When Manu Tuilagi punched Chris Ashton a few seasons ago he received a 5 week ban, which conveniently allowed him to join in the summer tests for England. In this world cup Mariano Galarza received a 9 week ban for accidental contact with the area around the eye of a NZ player. I'm pretty sure Tuilagi made contact with Ashton when he tried to level him, but then again he is an England international so...

yep!

and agree re the scrums, though sadly it is too rarely seen.

to digress, the reds scrum has been the only high point of its game (more compelling evidence about what a crap coach we have as he does not look after the scrum but the assistant nick stiles does). so we have a dominant scrum - a tight head in a losing side when you only have 7 men against a pack of internationals was not bad - but all this does it make it even more apparent how utterly bereft of ideas the coach is. still, when you employ a coach with a record of winning around 1 in every 5 games, what do you expect? well, i'd expect when we have another couple of years of averaging one in five, he'd get flicked. apparently not.

[David88]

It is amazing what impact a good or bad coach can have on a side. You would assume that top professional players wouldn't need too much instruction, yet they can go from being an outstanding player to totally pedestrian within a season and a head coach change. Although I don't agree with ditching coaches who have a bad season (too much like football/soccer where money seems to buy results, mostly) I think it can be clear when a head coach just isn't working out or if they have lost the dressing room.

Interestingly Laurie Fisher is starting to make some progress with Gloucester now in England. They have started to look good at the breakdown and up front, but the backs are totally lacking any idea of what to do with the ball whatsoever.

[Ken Gargett]

It is amazing what impact a good or bad coach can have on a side. You would assume that top professional players wouldn't need too much instruction, yet they can go from being an outstanding player to totally pedestrian within a season and a head coach change. Although I don't agree with ditching coaches who have a bad season (too much like football/soccer where money seems to buy results, mostly) I think it can be clear when a head coach just isn't working out or if they have lost the dressing room.

Interestingly Laurie Fisher is starting to make some progress with Gloucester now in England. They have started to look good at the breakdown and up front, but the backs are totally lacking any idea of what to do with the ball whatsoever.

fisher normally seen as a good coach.

but richard graham has never had a good year. he was only ever a minor assistant that got bumped up the chain when those above left. first serious job as head coach was when he had the force for 24 games and they won 7. he has had the reds for 34, i think, and we have won 9. in both cases, he was at the club in a preparatory role, something not often afforded to coaches these days. and yet he is still swill. as far as i can understand, he never had the dressing room. many of our best players have bailed out. liam gill wanted to leave last year but i gather was convinced to stay because he was told the position would be reviewed. instead, it was a farce and graham was reappointed by his mates. needless to say, gill signed with toulon for next year and i imagine would be seriously pissed off at being lumbered with this muppet for the year.

he was basically a sevens player who managed a few games over a number of seasons for the reds. hopeless.

[David88]

fisher normally seen as a good coach.

but richard graham has never had a good year. he was only ever a minor assistant that got bumped up the chain when those above left. first serious job as head coach was when he had the force for 24 games and they won 7. he has had the reds for 34, i think, and we have won 9. in both cases, he was at the club in a preparatory role, something not often afforded to coaches these days. and yet he is still swill. as far as i can understand, he never had the dressing room. many of our best players have bailed out. liam gill wanted to leave last year but i gather was convinced to stay because he was told the position would be reviewed. instead, it was a farce and graham was reappointed by his mates. needless to say, gill signed with toulon for next year and i imagine would be seriously pissed off at being lumbered with this muppet for the year.

he was basically a sevens player who managed a few games over a number of seasons for the reds. hopeless.

It's amazing what friends in high places can do for you. Look at Stuart Lancaster, how that man ever became England coach I will never know. His only club coaching experience prior to that was getting Leeds relegated - give that man the top job then!

The the ARU should have made more of an effort to keep Gill there, but with the back row competition in Australia it would have only been money that kept him. Sadly it seems like no teams in the world can compete with the french clubs who will throw silly money at top players and southern hemisphere players and this won't change until the French national side totally collapses, which doesn't look like it will be too far away.

[Ken Gargett]

The the ARU should have made more of an effort to keep Gill there, but with the back row competition in Australia it would have only been money that kept him.

if gill was from nsw, they would have thrown the cheque book at him. come from qld, fat chance.

[David88]

It does seem like madness that they are happy to see top young talent leaving for Europe. I suppose they just feel like they are blessed with top 7s and he will be easily replaced. If he shines at Toulon then in 2-3 years the ARU will need to pay big money to get him back, I'm sure they will find a spot for him with the Waratahs when that happens though!

[Ken Gargett]

It does seem like madness that they are happy to see top young talent leaving for Europe. I suppose they just feel like they are blessed with top 7s and he will be easily replaced. If he shines at Toulon then in 2-3 years the ARU will need to pay big money to get him back, I'm sure they will find a spot for him with the Waratahs when that happens though!

all correct bar the last bit.

gill has always struck me as a man of character. there are some qlders for whom all the money in the world would not be enough to abandon all principles, integrity and human dignity and throw their souls into the eternal fires to play for the filth. even nathan sharpe could not be persuaded to demean himself to that degree. if gill was ever to play for the filth then i am afraid he would be reviled, detested in qld. their players are bad enough. treason is much worse. unacceptable.

the only time i can think of where we deemed it acceptable was jason little - the man had given many years of extraordinary service to qld; formed perhaps the greatest centre pairing ever to play the game, with tim horan; had been replaced in the reds by herbert. we were okay with him taking southern money for a season, as long as he stuck to the wing.

[Ken Gargett]

news just in - graham finally sacked.

and in a move that reeks of Reds administration competence, we now have coaching by committee. because that has always proved to be a great success whenever tried. still, it must be better than what has gone on.

[David88]

all correct bar the last bit.

gill has always struck me as a man of character. there are some qlders for whom all the money in the world would not be enough to abandon all principles, integrity and human dignity and throw their souls into the eternal fires to play for the filth. even nathan sharpe could not be persuaded to demean himself to that degree. if gill was ever to play for the filth then i am afraid he would be reviled, detested in qld. their players are bad enough. treason is much worse. unacceptable.

the only time i can think of where we deemed it acceptable was jason little - the man had given many years of extraordinary service to qld; formed perhaps the greatest centre pairing ever to play the game, with tim horan; had been replaced in the reds by herbert. we were okay with him taking southern money for a season, as long as he stuck to the wing.

Jason Little! Now there was a man with a big reputation who totally failed to deliver when he came over to England. I remember the excitement when he came to Gloucester, then seemingly only topped up his pension fund.

It is good to see some club loyalty among players still as it is becoming far too rare as professionalism changes the game. A committee coaching team? Hopefully this will just be for the interim while they line up someone to take over. Although you would have hoped they would plan ahead before just sacking him.

[JohnS]

john, we were briefly blessed in 2011 and at the same time, cruelly reminded of the glory decades when the reds were the greatest provincial side on the planet; of the glory days when we genuinely assumed that we would win every game, including against full strength touring test nations, and win them comfortably.

now we have this. has any civilisation ever crumbled so devastatingly and completely?

Well, the Roman Empire fell in a similar spectacular fashion, albeit it took two hundred years to do so, not 2!

news just in - graham finally sacked.

and in a move that reeks of Reds administration competence, we now have coaching by committee. because that has always proved to be a great success whenever tried. still, it must be better than what has gone on.

I can only think of Wayne Bennett's co-coaching stint with Don Furner in 1987 with the Canberra Raiders, that went well. I can't think of too many other examples where coaching by consensus has worked better than one person at the helm. I'd think it'll be unlikely that Nick Stiles and Matt O'Connor will be co-coaching the Reds come the start of the 2017 Super 18 season.