ARU may get bigger say on Force recruits

[The InnFORCEr]

Nick Taylor
May 23, 2016, 12:01 am



The future of the financially embattled Western Force under an Australian Rugby Union bailout should be revealed this week.

Last-minute details are being thrashed out between the two organisations as players, staff and supporters hope for a guarantee of a secure future ahead of ARU chief executive Bill Pulver’s visit to Perth.

The move is seen as a blueprint for a centralised Super Rugby model to mirror the New Zealand system where all Australian franchises would report to the governing body.

Perennial strugglers Force and the ARU have been in talks for months and the agreement is expected to run until 2020 when a new broadcast rights deal must be negotiated by SANZAAR, Super Rugby’s governing body.

Under the deal current Force-RugbyWA chief executive Mark Sinderberry’s role may change and that could affect who is responsible for future coaching and administration appointments.

Player recruitment is expected to remain coach driven, with greater input from the ARU’s high-performance unit.

It is expected the RugbyWA board will continue to control community rugby and there will be no separation of the union and community clubs as there is in NSW between the Waratahs and the NSW Rugby Union.

The ARU no longer has the cash to simply bail out clubs in financial difficulty and hopes other franchises will follow the Force into a partnership.

It is working with all clubs to plug the game’s financial leaks and is expected to discuss developments with clubs next month.

The Force-RugbyWA organisation costs $14-$15 million a year to run and when it approached the ARU for assistance earlier this year was given $800,000 in return for its intellectual property and Super Rugby licence with an option for RugbyWA to buy it back.

Meanwhile, Force captain Matt Hodgson looks set to miss the rest of the season after dislocating his left shoulder in Saturday night’s 17-13 loss to the Blues at nib Stadium.

Fly-half Peter Grant could return for the clash with the Rebels in Melbourne on Sunday after stand-in fly-half Ian Prior hurt a knee and his replacement Luke Burton, in his first game of the year, damaged the same foot that needed surgery after a pre-season injury.

https://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/sp...orce-recruits/

[GIGS20]

Isn't it interesting that the ARU no longer has the cash to bail out clubs mere weeks after throwing millions at the rebels.

That's shit!

[MI5_Dog]

Under the deal current Force-RugbyWA chief executive Mark Sinderberry’s role may change and that could affect who is responsible for future coaching and administration appointments.

Player recruitment is expected to remain coach driven, with greater input from the ARU’s high-performance unit.

So the ARU pick the coach and the coach picks the players with help from the ARU?

One of the few things the Force has done brilliantly in the last few years is to increase the number of West Aussies in the side.
How are the board going to ensure that this continues when they have, according to this article, no say in who will be the coach or who the coach will pick for the team?

[Herbasimplex]

So the ARU pick the coach and the coach picks the players with help from the ARU?

One of the few things the Force has done brilliantly in the last few years is to increase the number of West Aussies in the side.
How are the board going to ensure that this continues when they have, according to this article, no say in who will be the coach or who the coach will pick for the team?

that would be my concern. on its face its looks ok if the ARU want to be involved in player recruitment to ensure that some of the best talent ends up out west. but they need to be committed to ensuring equity and fairness in that respect and I have no faith that they will do the right thing by us.

can easily see the ARU pushing all the eastern states discards on us who couldn't get a run on the first team over there but who they still want to get a run. without our approval, at the expense of the some of the local up and comers. Kinda how we ended up with RG.

[GIGS20]

can easily see the ARU pushing all the eastern states discards on us who couldn't get a run on the first team over there but who they still want to get a run. without our approval, at the expense of the some of the local up and comers. Kinda how we ended up with RG.

However they have said on several occasions that they are committed to the success of the Force, and are committed to the Force staying in WA. Political doublespeak aside they can't really go on record as much as they have saying that and then continue to use us as the dumping ground that they have thus far.

My biggest concern is the one I alluded to in my previous post, they have thrown the bank at ALL of the other franchises and then give themselves the out that they can't afford to do any better than they are. but regardless, they will need to do AT LEAST as well in recruiting as we currently do or be shown up as more useless than the administration they effectively replaced.

That would be too embarrassing for any top level manager I can think of to bear, so I think we'll get at least a better playing list. I also think that they'll stick with a whole bunch of the WA boys, because it'll be cheaper to fill the fringe slots with Sandgropers than it will to import mid-level mercenaries.

[The InnFORCEr]

We could do worse than being know in the future as "The best of the rest, now from the West"

[AndyS]

Nice to see some residual optimism, but from where I'm sitting it really does look like the nominal money they've provided has bought them complete control of the franchise. Based on all history, I'd expect "success" actually means "existence", and then only on their terms. If they are appointing administrators, they'll even control the likelihood that the Force could ever buy back the licence and regain control of their own future.

[Sheikh]

can easily see the ARU pushing all the eastern states discards on us who couldn't get a run on the first team over there but who they still want to get a run. without our approval, at the expense of the some of the local up and comers. Kinda how we ended up with RG.

Isn't that how we ended up with Dunning, Ma'afu, Lance, Tapuai, Morahan, Alcock, etc. They were getting ousted from their Eastern states club by younger players but the ARU wanted to keep them around.
Some of them have shown the value of this idea (Lance & Morahan are arguably doing better here than they ever did back East, and Alcock's only been held back because of Hodgson) but, for instance, Ma'afu were a waste of time and effort.

[Alison]

I have faith in the RugbyWA board and our CEO that they will move heaven and earth to make sure we don't take a step backwards on growing local talent. After all, it's the whole point of keeping the Force in WA, no?

[MI5_Dog]

I have faith in the RugbyWA board and our CEO that they will move heaven and earth to make sure we don't take a step backwards on growing local talent. After all, it's the whole point of keeping the Force in WA, no?

The article as stated says that the RugbyWA board and our soon to be ex CEO will have no say in either coach or squad.

and as to keeping the Force in WA. The cynic in me says that has a lot more to do with being a very good time-slot for the Fox mob and a great stop over for teams traveling to and from South Africa than it does with growing the game in WA.

[shasta]

Let's be a little optimistic. The NZRU model has worked well so maybe it can be successfully adapted to OZ. The Chiefs and Highlanders were the perennial whipping boys of NZ not that long ago. Hopefully the wise men from the East are not so stupid that they haven't noticed the talent that is coming thru the WA system. Hopefully they can see how they might develop with experienced heads among them. The idea of expansion was, in theory at least, as much about expanding the talent base as it was about extra TV content and time slots. The big mistake was believing in Victorians being interested in Rugby and able to produce Super Rugby players. That is not really happening, despite all their concessions and investment. Once the ARU have extricated themselves from that mess, I can't see them stumping more bail outs for them in the future.

[GIGS20]

Nice to see some residual optimism,

I knida promised Hansie that much a couple of days ago. THat sould, by rights, remain until the details of the deal are proven to a steaming pile of KAKA.

That might happen instantly, it might take some time to come to fruition or (in my new-found spirit of optimism) it might never happen at all.

More than anything else, my optimism is centered in the fact that it can't get a whole lot worse.

[Buddha Handy]

There are a lot of players out there that the Force should be targeting.

1. QLD have signed Houston so the Force should be targeting Browning, Shatz etc for more backrow depth (cottrell has not really progressed at #6 this year)

2. NSW have signed Naiyavoro so the Force should be targeting their wingers. Plus the Rebels seem to have a surplus of outside backs that should be targeted.

3. There are probably a lot of players in the 7's squad that will be looking for a change after the Olympics so the Force should target some of these.

4. It would be nice if the Force managed to lure some overseas players back. Longbottom, Timani, Pyle etc.

Of course all these things won't happen with no money. If the Force had a higher salary cap (living away from home allowance) then they could attract these players with more game time and more money.

[yungfen]

Agreed for Browning who is young but not Shatz

[The InnFORCEr]

There are a lot of players out there that the Force should be targeting.
3. There are probably a lot of players in the 7's squad that will be looking for a change after the Olympics so the Force should target some of these.

Yes Cam Clark is one them, so now watch for the new ARU CC Rule which will allow any players switching from 7s to 15's to be able have most of their salary not come under the cap, so rugby (read NSW) can retain it's players and keep signing the new one's