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Its a good position to be in, and we always knew this day would come when potentially we would hold the upper hand in RA discussions. Mark Evans and Twiggy need to be cut throat in this situation and dig their heels in until RA agree to specific terms that suit the Force franchise for a change, or simply pull the pin. I think we have all accepted that we are no longer apart of SuperRugby so we may as well force RA's hand by being firm negotiators. Unless we get something out of this I see no reason to be helping RA or Australian rugby out. They culled us, almost closed down our IP, and now want a handout or us to pay for our participation. They are a bunch of psychopaths borderlining on insane, to expect anything from WA when we get as much as South Australia in grants is an abomination. Fuck the east coast rugby, they made their bed now they can lie in it. And can we make Rob Clarkes resignation one of our many terms for a handout from us too...
NSW Rugby distances itself from move towards rebellion
WAYNE SMITH
SENIOR SPORT WRITER
MAY 14, 2020
The 5pm Thursday deadline set by the 10 dissident Wallabies captains for Rugby Australia to give them assurances that the promises made by presumptive RA chairman Peter Wiggs would be honoured despite his resignation, passed on Thursday night with no action from the governing body.
But if the captains intend to follow through on their implied threat to call an emergency general meeting, they will have to rely on a state other than NSW to propose or second the motion for an EGM, as NSWRU chairman Roger Davis on Thursday night said his state was not involved.
“Not us,” said Davis. “I think it would be one of the minnows.”
Almost certainly the Rugby Union Players Association would be at the forefront of calls for an EGM, but unlike in 2017, when the Melbourne Rebels supported them in a bid to bring the culling crisis to a head, it would need to be Western Australia or one of the other “southern states” that would need to step up to force a constitutional crisis.
“I would assume one of those minor states would give them the vote to call an EGM,” Davis said. “But then it gets real tricky by then as everyone’s agenda starts to diverge. You’ve got the captain’s 10 points, and (RA) board representation from WA and RUPA want the financials released and someone else will want this and no one is quite sure that everyone will vote for their agenda.”
Davis has been one of the leading agitators for change but he was talking like one of the moderates as he discussed whether an EGM was what the game needed right now.
READ MORE:Captains ramp up pressure on RA chairman|Force face move east for Super inclusion
“The other thing is that the meaningful stuff is really being addressed as we speak,” said Davis, who was well aware that the RA board was meeting by Zoom to discuss a “jam-packed agenda” that included a return to play, the World Rugby ExCo meeting in Dublin at which the Australian COVID-19 rescue package was set to be signed off, and the probable elevation to the RA board of Hamish McLennan. “We’ve seen the financial numbers and they’re bloody grim and I really don’t need an EGM to see more numbers.
“We (NSW) had a board meeting the other day and we made sure our board members knew this (the EGM) was being proposed. Clearly we will reserve our rights but we haven’t committed. The opposition is not for lack of trying … to get anything through they can’t do it with their two or four votes. They need the big swingers from the east coast to get behind them and I don’t think they have anyone. They haven’t got Queensland, they haven’t got us, they haven’t got the Brumbies and they haven’t got the Rebels. So they are going nowhere but it’s a useful threat.”
One school of thought was that an EGM could prove cathartic for Rugby Australia, an opportunity to dump everything on the table, deal with it, and then move on in whatever shape the meeting determined. Still, the countervailing belief is that RA and the general rugby community have had their fill of politics and the sensible outcome would be to allow interim RA chairman Paul McLean and his board to start bringing the code back to life at professional and community levels.
One by one, the roadblocks to a return — the likely date is July 4 — with the Queensland Rugby Union reporting that the last player seemingly holding out to have the flu injection has now had the shot. That means all four Super Rugby squads now have had their shots, leaving the way clear for all of them to resume training in groups of 10. Queensland have put a hold on their first session until Monday, awaiting the approval of the state government.
Yet until Fox Sports signs off on whatever competition RA has planned for the remainder of this year — and it has no obligation to put up much money or indeed any money at all if it sees fit — all the planning could come crashing down in an instant.
As for how next season will shape up, all is likely to be revealed by a Zoom conference of SANZAAR next Tuesday. But until Australia joins NZ and South Africa in signing a broadcast deal, its hopes of a largely trans-Tasman competition will rest almost completely on the respective national governments maintaining restrictions on international travel.
WAYNE SMITH SENIOR SPORT WRITER
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/spo...6272481362c789
That Roger Davis is a slippery fellow.
Force face move east for Super inclusion
Jessica Halloran
Chief Sports Writer
May 13, 2020
The Western Force may have to relocate to the eastern seaboard if they join the revamped Super Rugby competition.
There is no certainty the Force will take part in the domestic competition with Force bosses still in discussions with Rugby Australia about what the cost will be to join the domestic competition.
But if an agreement is reached with the Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest owned franchise it will most likely be based on the east coast due to the Western Australia government’s hardline COVID-19 border restrictions.
If the five-team competition goes ahead it could be composed of 10 rounds with four home and four away games plus two byes.
RA hopes the competition will start in July but it is contingent on a vital broadcast agreement and interim chief executive Rob Clarke confirmed to The Australian that he has “reached out” to Fox Sports bosses to reignite the partnership.
RA is also currently without a broadcast deal beyond 2020 after the previous chief executive Raelene Castle walked away from a $US25m ($38.53m) , five-year offer last November from Fox Sports.
Clarke, who is expected to play a key role in broadcast negotiations, said he is still finalising RA’s approach to securing a new TV deal.
“How we shape the future of our broadcast negotiations is still being resolved,” he said. “We have had consultants historically which have been a key part of the team, and we have our own internal team. We have a lot of others who will proffer their views … externally and internally … so there’s no shortage of views about what should be done in this space and it’s my challenge to distil that and work out how the best way to move forward is.”
Clarke added the financial rescue package from World Rugby is to be approved imminently.
He said he had been in contact with World Rugby to secure the $16-17m to pull them part of the way out of a financial black hole.
RA is looking at well over $20m in liabilities having spent $500m over the past four years with no assets to show for it.
“We have had numerous meetings with World Rugby over the last week,” Clarke said. “The process is well advanced, I hope to have a positive resolution on that within a matter of days.
“They have seen all of our financials, they have seen all of our future assumptions, that’s been part of that assessment.”
Clarke maintains RA is a “going concern” and said his focus is securing the financial future of the beleaguered code.
“My focus is purely and simply on what we need to do to secure our financial future for today and tomorrow,” he said. “World Rugby is a part of that. Getting our accounts signed as a going concern for the next 12 months is a key part of that. I’d like to think we will have resolution on all those elements in the next week or so.”
When asked if the game was insolvent Clarke replied: “No”.
He also said RA was not “facing insolvency’’.
“I don’t believe so,” Clarke said.
Instead of a straight-out loan, World Rugby is planning to give struggling member nations an advance payment on their share of the profits from the next World Cup, to be held in France in 2023.
RA’s auditors, KPMG, said via spokeswoman that they don’t comment on client’s accounts.
Jessica Halloran Chief Sports Writer
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/spo...a5107f2b77b51e
... as is Rob Clarke
'I may be a Senator but I am not stupid'
https://omny.fm/shows/the-alan-jones-breakfast-show/cameron-clyne
Link to Senate Report http://www.aph.gov.au/senate_ca
https://www.change.org/p/rugby-australia-petition-for-cameron-clyne-to-resign-as-chairman-of-the-rugby-australia-board
..........more blah, blah, blah, blah, blah............. more usual BS from the rats nest. Status quo as per usual.
Well, yeah. There has to be quid pro quo for the Force.
A minimum of 20% of the finances would be my call
C'mon the![]()
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If the Force play in this thing, by no means certain, chances are it means relocation.
Eagles, Dockers could be in a similar boat.
A lot of hurdles yet for WA sports teams.
Not us,” said Davis. “I think it would be one of the minnows.”
It’s nice to see how NSW sees other participating states in “their” game.
Generally speaking you aren’t learning much if your lips are moving!!!
If Clarke “doesn’t believe” that RA is facing insolvency and is confident it is still a going concern, then why doesn’t he release the 2019 accounts to the member unions at least? It’s bullshit. Weasel words.
If KPMG - who have been their auditor mates for years - won’t sign the audit certificate, there is something seriously wrong with those accounts that can’t be hidden, even by Clarke.
If the Force do decide to team up with RA for 2020, it had better be on the Force’s terms and in a contract that the Minderoo lawyers have drawn up and have ensured contains no last minute Trojan horse additions by RA as happened with the 2016 Alliance Agreement.
Proudly Western Australian; Proudly supporting Western Australian rugby
Clarke can't publicly admit to believing anything different because once he forms a belief that the business is no longer a going concern he then becomes liable for any trading whilst insolvent penalties.
This spin allows him the plausible deniability of saying he wasn't presented an accurate picture and it certainly looked like a going concern right up until he realised it wasn't at which point he put the business into voluntary liquidation.
The only other option he might have is the promised loan from World Rugby, he could be basing his lies on that and, if it doesn't save their bacon until the end of the reporting cycle all he needs to say is that they had budgeted for it to be more than they got.
You gotta read any of Clarke's comments with the arsehole shyster that he is in mind. I tend to look for what he's NOT saying
C'mon the![]()
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