Uncertain times: why Rugby Australia must do everything they can to keep Dave Rennie interested
As has been the case time and time again, Rugby Australia needs to come together and make smart decisions as it begins to tackle the dire state of affairs facing the game in its own backyard.
There is a belief system in some business circles which says that the time for radical change is not when things are in a state of crisis, but when all is going well.
Even before COVID-19, nearly all reports out of Australia painted the game in a deep state of crisis. The situation has only worsened now.
In the wake of laying off 70% of staff, primarily due to rugby’s current suspension thanks to COVID-19, the true financial outlook for RA has been revealed and the reactions have become messy as the game faces potential insolvency.
The latest is a suggestion that new Wallabies coach Dave Rennie could walk out on his four-year deal if RA’s CEO Raelene Castle were to be sacked.
Such reports are purely speculation at this point, but RA should consider itself on notice.
Rennie is a man of high integrity and won’t force himself into remaining in an unhealthy working environment. Furthermore, it took a lot for RA to get Rennie to sign on the dotted line because they weren’t the only ones vying to secure his services.
Rennie himself also admits he has a lot of time for Castle and has been impressed by her vision for the future of the sport in Australia.
Suddenly, the ever-increasing reality is that Castle might not be around to ensure that future comes to fruition after two turbulent years of trying.
Originally, hopes were high for Castle, but whichever way this argument is to be cut, it’s not deniable that along the way she has made some bad decisions.
Particularly agreeing to re-sign Israel Folau for a further four years after his initial social media outburst and not placing any measurable controls on his social media activity.
It was a ticking time bomb waiting to go off, and sure enough, it did, resulting in a forced payout that further compounds the difficult financial picture.
Furthermore, Super Rugby fizzled into a competition many followers of the sport in Australia simply didn’t care about, resulting in pitiful attendance levels at stadiums. Then, most recently, broadcast negotiations with Fox came to a shrieking halt.
In the background of all this is Rennie, one of the most gifted coaches in the game, a general that the Wallabies struck gold in securing.
Signing Rennie felt like it could be the start of the rebuild, his task was to get the Wallabies winning again, starting by putting an end to the divide within the dressing room which had grown substantially toward the latter end of the Michael Chieka era.
If the Wallabies were to kickstart themselves somewhere close to what they’ve been when at their best when international rugby was back on the agenda, imagine what it could do for the state of the game in Australia, especially in terms of mindshare.
Success isn’t just the fleeting victory over the All Blacks or Springboks as we’ve seen since the last time the team appeared in a Rugby World Cup final. A good run of results over the course of a season or two will bring the heightened interest and winning expectation that the game needs.
All of this is important because the Wallabies hold a key to success for Rugby Australia moving out of this crisis. Legitimate success for the Wallabies is one of the quickest ways for RA to get the fans back on board.
Those two factors would be good for the health of game in any climate, but Rugby Australia hasn’t been able to generate either for a long time.
It’s hard to argue that Rennie is not the man with the right coaching experience behind him to turn the Wallabies around.
John Kirwan has denounced the ex-Wallabies calling for the head of Rugby Australia boss Raelene Castle.https://t.co/LjVx1vHiJA
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) April 8, 2020
If the tension surrounding Castle were to result in Rennie turning his back on coaching the Wallabies, it’s hard to see how that would really improve on anything when you keep in mind the other issues at play
Having Rennie’s arrival go by the wayside would repeat the message to rugby fans in Australia that when their game is facing crisis, everything falls apart and rash decisions are made quickly in order to find the quick fix.
Smart decisions are required, that’s the only way to give the game the very best chance of pulling itself out of the COVID-19 pandemic which has halted the entire sporting landscape.
On a financial front, Rugby Australia have already made some big changes – look no further than RA laying off 70% of its staff and Castle herself taking exactly half of her yearly salary off the table.
It will almost certainly require more than that, but the cost of getting Castle out the door and bringing in Phil Kearns, as has been speculated will cost more not less.
Yes, these are only two pieces of the puzzle, but they’re almighty big ones.
For Rugby Australia, now is not the time to be adding more complication and potential costs to what is already a dire situation.
To force your current CEO out the and sour the relationship with the incoming Wallabies coach is not the way to avoid further muddier waters.
Comments on RugbyPass
I certainly don’t miss drinking beers at 8am in the morning watching rugby games being played in NZ.
1 Go to commentsThis looks like a damage limitation exercise for Wales, keeping back some of their more effective players for the last 20/25 minutes to try and counter England’s fresh legs so the Red Roses don’t rack up a big score.
1 Go to commentsVery unlikely the Bulls will beat Leinster in Dublin. It would be different in Pretoria.
1 Go to commentsI think it is a dangerous path to go down to ban a player for the same period that a player they injured takes to recover. Players would be afraid to tackle anyone. I once tackled my best friend at school in a practice match and sprained his ankle. I paid for it by having to play fly-half instead of full-back for the rest of that season’s fixtures.
5 Go to commentsJust such a genuine good bloke…and probably the best all round player in his generation. Good guys do come first sometimes and he handled the W.Cup loss with great attitude.
2 Go to commentsWord in France is that he’s on the radar of a few Top14 clubs.
2 Go to commentsGet blocking Travis, this guy has styles and he’s gonna make a swift impact…!
1 Go to commentsWhat remorse? She claimed that her dangerous tackle wasn’t worthy of a red! She should be compensating the injured player for loss of earnings at the minimum. Her ban should include the recovery time of the injured player as well as the paltry 3 match ban.
5 Go to commentsArdie is a legend. Finished and klaar. Two things: “Yeah, yeah, I have had a few conversations with Razor just around feedback on my game and what I am doing well, what I need to improve on or work-ons. It’s kind of been minimal, mate, but it’s all that I need over here in terms of how to be better, how to get better and what I am doing well.” I hope he’s downplaying it - and that it’s not that “minimal”. The amount of communication and behind the scenes preparation the Bok coaches put into players - Rassie and co would be all over Ardie and being clear on what is expected of him. This stands out for me as something teams should really be looking at in terms of the boks success from a coaching point of view. And was surprised by the comment - “minimal”. In terms of the “debate” around Ireland and South Africa. Nice one Ardie. Indeed. There’s no debate.
2 Go to commentsThere’s a bit of depth there but realistically Australian players have a long way to go to now catch up. The game is moving on fast and Australia are falling behind. Australian sides still don’t priories the breakdown like they should, it’s a non-negotiable if you want to compete on the international stage. That goes for forwards and backs. The Australian team could have a back row that could make a difference but the problem is they don’t have a tight five that can do the business. Tupou is limited in defence, overweight and unfit and the locks are a long way from international standard. Frost is soft and Salakai-Loto is too small so that means they need a Valentini at 8 who has to do the hard graft so limits the effectiveness of the backrow. Schmidt really needs to get a hard working, tough tight 5 if he wants to get this team firing.
3 Go to commentsSorry Morgan you must have been the “go to for a quote” ex player this week. Its rnd 6 and there is plenty of time to cement a starting 15 and finishing 8 so I have no such concerns.
2 Go to commentsGreat read. I wish you had done this article on the ROAR.
2 Go to commentsThe current AB coaching team is basically the Crusaders so it smacks of wanting their familiar leaders around. This is not a good look for the future of the ABs or the younger players in Super working their way up the player ladder. Razor is touted as innovative, forward looking but his early moves look like insecurity and insular, provincial thinking. He is the AB's coach not the Golden Oldies.
10 Go to commentsSimple reason for wanting him back. Robertson wants him as captain. Otherwise he wouldn’t be bothering chasing him. Not enough reason to come back just to mentor.
10 Go to commentsI had not considered this topic like this at all, brilliant read. I had been looking at his record at the Waratahs and thought it odd the Crusaders appointed him, then couple that with all that experience and talent departing and boom. They’ve got some great talent developing though, and in all honesty I don’t think anyone would be over confident taking them on in a playoff match, no matter how poor the first half of their season was. I think they can pull a game out of their ass when it counts.
2 Go to commentsNot a bad list but not Porecki and not Donaldson. Not because they are Tahs, or Ex Tahs, they are just not good enough. Edmed should be ahead. Far more potential. Wilson should be 8 and Valentini 6. Wilson needs to be told by his father and his coach, stop bloody running in to brick wall defence. You’re not playing under the genius Thorn any more. He’s a fantastic angle runner. The young new 8 from the Brumbies looks really good too. The Lonegrans are just too small for international rugby as is Paisami, as is Hamish Stewart at 12. Both great at Super Rugby level. Stewart could have been a great 10 if not for Brad Thorn. Uru should be there and so should Tupou. Tupou just needs good Australian coaching which he hasn’t been getting. I don’t think Schmidt will excite him.
3 Go to commentsIf he wants to come back then he should. He will be a major asset to the younger locks and could easily be played as an impact player off the bench coming on in the last 30. He is fit, strong and capable and has all the experience to make up for any loss in physical prowess. He could also be brought back with a view to coaching within the structures one day. Duane Vermeulen played until he was 37 or 38. He is now a roaming coach within the South African coaching structures. He was valuable in the last world cup and has been a major influence on Jasper Wiese and other young players which has helped and accelerated their development and growth. Whitelock could do the exact same thing for NZ
10 Go to commentsBrett Excellent words… finally someone (other than DC) has noted that Hanigan is very hard and very good at doing what Backrow should do… his performance via the Drua sauna was quite daunting for those on the other side… very high tackle count… carries with good end result… constant threat to make a good 20-25 meters with those long legs… providing his mass effectively to crunching the Drua pack… Finally he is returning to quality form… way to much injury time over the last 2 years… smart-strong-competent in his skills… caught every lineout throw aimed at him and delivered clean pass to whoever was down below… and he worked hard for the whole 80 minutes… Ned has to be in the top 5 for backrow honors… He knows what is required as he has been there before…
20 Go to commentsI think Sam Whitelock should not touch a return with a bargepole. He went out on a high, playing in the RWC Final. He would be coming back into a team that will be weaker than last years, and might even be struggling to win games, especially against the Boks. Stay in France, enjoy another year with Pau, playing alongside his brother.
10 Go to commentsRyan Coxon has been very impressive considering he was signed by WF as injury cover whilst Uru has been a standout for QR, surprised neither of those mentioned
3 Go to comments