Manly in Crisis (a mega thread)

[Karshy]

I've been firmly in the Des camp for some time. He has taken teams to 5 grand finals, winning 2. After 2020 I thought I would never see the team experience so much bad luck again. After finishing 4th in 2021 and making a preliminary final, many thought that 2022 could be the year. Well bugger me, hasn't 2022 said "hold my beer".

We have had injuries for the better part of the year: Trbo, Garrick, Parker, Harper, Saab, Paseka, Keppie, Schuster, Aloiai, Lawton, Jrbo, Walker. The best way to to describe how crazy this is: Keiran Foran played most games for Manly this season.

We had Schuster demanding to be #6 and the club management overruling Des on resigning Foran.

We got a small covid outbreak just when we needed all hands on deck before the game against Dragons.

We had a rainbow revolt before the most important game of the year against the Roosters. How did marketing get so much control on such a delicate matter without the input of the senior management and coach?

We had diabolical, game deciding decisions against us vs Parra and NQ (See Junior Paulo 5m forward pass, Reece Robson 6m offside involvement in try).

We continue to have DCE as the worst signing in the history of the club on the books, stifling the salary cap and providing no value for money.

I am amazed that the club feel it prudent to review Des and his coaching structures now, only a year after making a prelim. The uncontrollables are to the extreme end of the scale and, touch wood, unlikely to be repeated. Although I thought that after the 2020 injuries...

 

[Heckenberg]

I doubt it - team mates even go to the toilet with him.

Dce definitely doesn’t share his bag

 

[Shoe1]

I have been shot down here for making the suggestion.

I reckon he is the most likely - not sure if I like it.

I dont think Des will be sacked, nor deserves to be. Penn wont pay him out and employ another coach.

Happy for him to be an assistant.

 

[mave]

Why is Penn in some power struggle with Des?
He already owns the club.

****ing egotistical wanker.

Owners own
Management manage
Footy coaches coach.

Pointless to replace Des with a Penn "yes man".....cause Penn clearly knows nothing about footy.

 

[Karshy]

If Des leaves, I think Mag will become the coach. Penn preferred him over Des in 2018 but got rejected.
Results orientated business will be the excuse used and they will effectively replace the coach who has made the finals 2 of the last 4 years with this years wooden spoon winning coach hahahahah

 

[mave]

I think what I'm trying to say is that as an owner, you don't play power games within the club.
If you don't like the coach, or his results, you sack him, pay him out, and hire another.

You don't play games with sacking assistants and support staff and try and wedge the head coach, with cryptic statements from the new CEO.

You either buy into Dessies way, or you boot him.

Take your pick Scotty.

 

[KNUCKLES]

The behaviour of the “Manly seven” – the players who refused to wear the Sea Eagles’ rainbow jersey to celebrate diversity – is being closely monitored by the public. They are watching every step they take and we have had reports about the company some of them are keeping and the establishments they are visiting. No one has done anything illegal, but the moral police would have a field day if a photo emerges of whom they have been seen with.

Roosters must lose Tedesco to keep Suaalii, warns mentor

The Roosters would never let James Tedesco go, but the task of keeping Joseph Suaalii as well will put huge pressure on the club.

www.smh.com.au

I'm guessing they have gone to visit manase at some point

 

[SeaEagleRock8]

It's tough for we fans that the Penn's always seem to want to take the bargain basement approach. Giving up a massive home ground advantage to the Broncos every year? For some extra cash. Having the Sea Eagles scratch around with the barest minumum front office staff? Staying alive but not prospering.

The demise of Stephen Humphreys has gone way under the radar. Headlines at the time included "Mystery surrounds shock resignation of Manly Sea Eagles boss" and "Chairman cannot comment about sudden departure because 'it's a legal issue'." Humphreys had looked like a CEO windfall for Manly. But in hindsight.... he left a senior position at British Airways to join the club. He was on a trajectory to become an executive vice president of British Airways (as his predecessor at BA did)... and left to become a CEO of Penn's Manly Sea Eagles? Wow. Does this sound too good to be true?

Well without knowing exactly what transpired, we can say for certain it did not turn out too good. For one thing it left Manly minus a CEO. Well, we had Wolman, reputedly the owner of a Point Piper mansion worth $80 million, filling in as 'interim'. I guess Penn didn't offer him enough to ensure he was actually paying attention at the Sea Eagles, because we were left vulnerable to the clumsiest of front office shennanigans, culminating in one of the most brand-damaging events I can recall in sport. And a disastrous, embarrassingly weak end to Manly's season.

And Penn's solution is to knee-cap Des? Great, but without a significant change in Penn's commitment to administering the club on as equally professional a footing as the successful clubs, changes to coach and football staff will probably be like moving deckchairs.

By the way, I agree with those warning 'be careful what you wish for' in terms of the potential for a new owner to turn out even worse. So where does this leave fans? Unfortunately we are left with our hopes for further Manly premiership glory dependent on people who are in effect not accountable.

 

[Rafferty]

I think what I'm trying to say is that as an owner, you don't play power games within the club.
If you don't like the coach, or his results, you sack him, pay him out, and hire another.

You don't play games with sacking assistants and support staff and try and wedge the head coach, with cryptic statements from the new CEO.

You either buy into Dessies way, or you boot him.

Take your pick Scotty.

Imagine if the world was straight up and things actually operated with some integrity!

 

[KNUCKLES]

If Des leaves, I think Mag will become the coach. Penn preferred him over Des in 2018 but got rejected.
Results orientated business will be the excuse used and they will effectively replace the coach who has made the finals 2 of the last 4 years with this years wooden spoon winning coach hahahahah

Please no, I can't stand madge. He is cringe

 

[KNUCKLES]

Dce definitely doesn’t share his bag

Your right DCE seems the type that borrows bread from the neighbours, when he owns the bakery

 

[SeaEagleRock8]

If Des leaves, I think Mag will become the coach. Penn preferred him over Des in 2018 but got rejected.
Results orientated business will be the excuse used and they will effectively replace the coach who has made the finals 2 of the last 4 years with this years wooden spoon winning coach hahahahah

Madge's credibility is shot to ribbons after Fox's Tales from Tiger Town. His inability to do anything other than swear a lot was broadcast to the world. He's finished.

I think what I'm trying to say is that as an owner, you don't play power games within the club.
If you don't like the coach, or his results, you sack him, pay him out, and hire another.
You don't play games with sacking assistants and support staff and try and wedge the head coach, with cryptic statements from the new CEO.
You either buy into Dessies way, or you boot him.

Take your pick Scotty.

Or you save a bit more money by trying to pressure him into resigning, instead of sacking him. Yes it is messier, and can be upsetting to players and everyone in the club, but hey - it's cheaper!

 

[Budgie]

Please no, I can't stand madge. He is cringe

I think cringe is cringe. Ridiculous word. No reflection on your good self intended.

 

[niccipops]

Remember when some big dollars flash money guy bought Newcastle and went broke. Players/coaching staff weren't even getting paid the full amount. The club was almost forced out and rescued at the last minute like when Max saved us.
The good thing about the Penns is that they want to stay with us.
Some of the many bad things are, they don't seem to understand footy at all, or fans - what we want and need. I remember Penn stating 'We've got one of the best young coaches in the business." He meant Barret ffs. As mentioned before taking our home game to Suncorp. Not paying a decent media manager to keep us fans informed.
Penn needs to step up. .
Time for another member/fan forum. I'd consider travelling down from QLD for this.
Does anyone know if Penn can be directly contacted?

 

[KNUCKLES]

I think cringe is cringe. Ridiculous word. No reflection on your good self intended.

Probably why it's called cringe haha

 

[Terry Zarsoff]

If Des leaves, I think Mag will become the coach. Penn preferred him over Des in 2018 but got rejected.
Results orientated business will be the excuse used and they will effectively replace the coach who has made the finals 2 of the last 4 years with this years wooden spoon winning coach hahahahah

The problem there is that Maguire just departed an off-field schmozzle of a club.

So why would he want to jump right back in at another club that gives the Tigers a run for their money on the dysfunctional front?

If you were Maguire, you would much rather join an outfit where everybody is working to achieve the same thing - regular finals’ appearances and ultimately premiership success.

Right now, that does not look like Manly.

 

[Peter C]

I'm hearing from various voices that Penn intends to send Manly to the US competition where he can make more bucks. Granted the NRL owns the Franchise but I wonder if he can tell the players to move? I can't see how, but when there is a will there's a way. Watch this space...the noise is in next 4 years. I wonder what is in the sub clauses inside contracts?

Absolutely absurd

 

[mave]

Or you save a bit more money by trying to pressure him into resigning, instead of sacking him. Yes it is messier, and can be upsetting to players and everyone in the club, but hey - it's cheaper!

That is, yet again, the crux of the problem

 

[Lyonstomenzies]

Shaw and Partners are major sponsors that could most probably facilitate finding someone who was interested.

They are a weath management company so if someone was keen to buy us they could defiantly negotiate that deal.

Their head office is also located in the Sydney hub of money building, Chifley Tower. The building is stacked with private equity companies looking to buy businesses to build up then sell off for more that they bought it for. The Sea Eagles would be a great club to buy to do this.

Here is why.

We would be pretty much dirt cheap for someone with some vision to build.

I know the Northern Eagles we’re not very popular, but the geographic nature of the region combined the north shore, northern beaches and the central coast could be a giant.

That would give us a huge nursery to work around capitalising on the depth of the central coast nursery. Building the club around this region and having say the Wyong club as a feeder would be the best way to bring us out of the depths.

If wealthy owners bought the Wyong Leagues club and through heaps of cash at the juniors and community it would be a good investment for the future.

Do the same with say the Gosford and a Northern Beaches club somewhere and have a network of leagues clubs.
URM would be great owners as they love the club, have put in plenty of sponsorship over the years and their business is doesn’t look like slowing down.

We also need to drop the Blacktown area and give the juniors a base to work from like Gosford.

Gosford Stadium is a great ground to watch footy from. Also playing from Brookie and Gosford would be much better option that what we have in place now.

Only problem would be the name of the club??

We all don’t want to change from Manly, but maybe we could incorporate our existing name and that of the central coast??

Happy to hear everyone’s thoughts on the matter.

 

[mave]

We all don’t want to change from Manly, but maybe we could incorporate our existing name and that of the central coast??

Something like Northern Eagles would be ideal if this proposal was to eventuate.