Rebecca Wilson says NRL boss Dave Smith needs to start making good on his promises

  • We had an issue with background services between march 10th and 15th or there about. This meant the payment services were not linking to automatic upgrades. If you paid for premium membership and are still seeing ads please let me know and the email you used against PayPal and I cam manually verify and upgrade your account.

Jethro

Star Trekkin' across the universe
Staff member
Premium Member
Tipping Member
It’s the big city code with small town execution. The National Rugby League stands on the brink of a world full of opportunity but remains paralysed by its past, one fraught with back biting, provincial ideas and hand brake administrators.

Read More
 
It’s the big city code with small town execution. The National Rugby League stands on the brink of a world full of opportunity but remains paralysed by its past, one fraught with back biting, provin
Dave-Smith.jpg
cial ideas and hand brake administrators.

This week, the NRL made the admirable but very safe choice of Anthony Minichiello as its face of 2014. Understandably gun shy about choosing another troubled young buck to represent the sport, chief executive Dave Smith went for an old hand in what will be close to his last season in the sport.

At the same time, Smith told reporters in Auckland that Sam Burgess would be welcomed back to the code any time he decided he would like to return. The tepid response to Burgess’ imminent departure to the arch rival code of rugby union pretty much sums up his first year in the job – safe, polite and lacking in risk.

Smith is yet to grasp the nuances of his job. He stands way ahead of his counterpart in the AFL, Andrew Demetriou, for his handling of the doping crisis that has gripped both codes for 12 months. His moderation and good sense has been a godsend as Demetriou has floundered from one disaster to another.

The upside is that Smith looks you in the eye. The downside is that, while doing so, he tells you about his grand plans for the sport, few of which have yet been executed.

He will, he promises, soon oversee a sport that attracts millions of social media followers, new digital platforms and thousands of new members who will come clicking through the turnstiles. This will all translate to mega million dollar sponsorship deals and big business support that will not just rival the AFL but surpass it.

He told me six months ago that anyone sitting on an NRL club board would have to undergo a governance course. They would face the same grilling as anyone who sits on a board in business. The opposition he will face from the small time types currently on those boards has been grossly underestimated.

Clubs are on their knees with crippling debt and most of those who do turn a profit do it thanks to leagues clubs and poker machines. Those who run the clubs blame head office and sit on their hands. None of this has changed in two decades.

The Wests Tigers, occupying the vital western corridor from Leichhardt to Campbelltown, have effectively been shaken down and taken over by the NRL. Their finances and bad management were so bad that Smith had no choice but to move in and tell them he was installing his own board. If they don’t start performing on and off the field, they will be forced out of business.

The Cronulla Sharks’ issues are well documented and clubs like St George continue to hide behind their ‘great traditions’ and small town management plans.

The relatively new NRL Commission is utterly toothless. One leading media personality and league expert asked me last week to name one big achievement for the much touted commission. I couldn’t and neither could he.

There are now dozens more staff at NRL headquarters than there were a year ago. They occupy roles in the integrity unit, the enlarged marketing and commercial divisions and now the new digital media department.

The idea is right – get bigger to become a powerhouse like the AFL. The reality is far from it – club bosses remain steadfast in their opposition to genuine change and their clubs reflect it, still operating out of dingy offices, bad suburban grounds and attracting relatively small crowds.

Smith is a genuinely good bloke. He is honest and trustworthy. He is, however, a captive of a system that chews up those wanting change and spits them out. The cartels gang up and prevent it. These faceless club men want more money from the pot but are not willing to help to make the pot much, much bigger.

This season should be a watershed for the code. The AFL has never looked more vulnerable, weighed down by men in suits desperately trying to shore up their power bases.

If Smith can handle the Cronulla crisis with the same clarity as he has done to date, he has the chance to knuckle down and make those promised changes.

Cometh the moment, cometh the man. Smith’s time is here but the alarming signs that not much will change came with the Minichiello announcement. Another safe option, another ‘safe’ season.

Smith should have a look around the dinner table while he is in Auckland for this weekend Nines tournament. Those club bosses he breaks bread with hold the key to the code’s success. His ability to galvanise them will determine his future.

The time of potentials and maybes is over. Mr Smith, over to you.


Rebecca Wilson

http://www.foxsports.com.au/league/rebecca-wilson-says-nrl-boss-dave-smith-needs-to-start-making-good-on-his-promises-for-the-game/story-e6frf3ou-1226827759645
 
RE: Rebecca Wilson says NRL boss Dave Smith needs to start making good on his promises

I stopped reading at DUI Wilson. Is some fool still employing this drunk ? Surely not.
 
RE: Rebecca Wilson says NRL boss Dave Smith needs to start making good on his promises

As much as i hate to admit it she does have a point to a certain degree. Look at how IPL (Big Bash) is reshaping the cricket audience. Rugby sevens is huge world wide as is the rugby world cup. League has to expand and the nines concept can help do that with a hybrid competition consisting of all League playing nations not just the NRL teams. I would have loved to see Fiji,Tonga,Samoa,PNG,USA,Russia,Japan,Canada,Lebanon,Italy,France,Scotland,Ireland,Wales, South Africa,Kenya and some Super League teams all compete in some sort of world R.L nines tournament.
Have a world nines tournament at the start of the year and also in mid year with S.O.O weekends set aside.
 
RE: Rebecca Wilson says NRL boss Dave Smith needs to start making good on his promises

How about we stop linking to her articles?
 
RE: Rebecca Wilson says NRL boss Dave Smith needs to start making good on his promises

Is she dirty because Smith promised her something that he didn't deliver on?
 
RE: Rebecca Wilson says NRL boss Dave Smith needs to start making good on his promises

No, she's just dirty in general. I like Shoe1's idea.
 
RE: Rebecca Wilson says NRL boss Dave Smith needs to start making good on his promises

Rebecca Wilson and Phil Rothfield... Perfect match if I've ever seen one! Slimy ones attract!
 
RE: Rebecca Wilson says NRL boss Dave Smith needs to start making good on his promises

This is the first time I can say I actually agree with her.

I've been saying it for years, well-meaning amateurs that may have pulled on a boot doesn't make them a business whizz. While they have a love of the game this doesn't always translate into effective running of it. Just like a great player cannot always be a great coach.

I wonder how many people work in the marketing department and I wonder if they do have any marketing experience? Are they professional or well-meaning amateurs? I don't see too many unique marketing ideas coming out or maybe it's just me not paying attention.

While they may love the game are they still are so infused with their own tribalism that they could have an affect on game outcomes?

Not saying this is the case but last-year's grand final springs to mind.

I suppose it all comes down to the professionalism of the NRL. Although it is interesting that RW seems to pick on Smith rather than as she alluded to the real cause of holding the game back. Just how much resistance is Smith getting?
 
and now a look at the NRL under Dave Smith's leadership through the eyes of another News Ltd reporter 9 days later, we see a complete opposite of Rebecca Wilson's views:

Under Dave Smith the National Rugby League looks like it means business now

Josh Massoud
The Daily Telegraph
February 24, 2014 11:15PM


THE seeds of change were reflected in juicy red slices of pomegranate, a premium fruit rarely found among the bland fare that’s typically dished-out at rugby league briefings.

In comparison with the highly spin-doctored and scantily detailed summations of previous years, Monday’s annual NRL presentation was largely satisfying and refreshing.

The groaning platters of exotic treats outside the Darling Harbour theatrette suggested what was to be gorged upon inside: a smorgasbord of figures, financials and forecasts that put the game’s true condition on the table.

For the first time in recent memory, there was transparency. There was precision. There was structure. There was a plan.

Click here to read the full article.
 
It's all very well saying rugby league is a business, but is their bottom line the true test of success or should fan satisfaction be their aim? Are there representatives from 'fans' within the NRL administration? It seems to me that the true lifeblood of the sport, we supporters, don't rate adequate consideration. It's more about corporate sponsorship, TV deals etc.
And I know that I'll be told "there would be no RL without sponsorship" but, equally, there would be no RL without grassroots supporters.
 
I like how it is being run at the moment. A breath of fresh air from the Gallop days. We just need to get the Referees right, then we'll be in a good position
 

Latest posts

Team P W L PD Pts
3 3 0 48 6
3 2 1 45 4
3 2 1 28 4
3 2 1 22 4
3 2 1 15 4
3 2 1 14 4
2 1 1 13 4
3 2 1 10 4
2 1 1 6 4
3 2 1 -3 4
3 1 2 0 2
3 1 2 -5 2
3 1 2 -15 2
3 1 2 -22 2
3 1 2 -36 2
2 0 2 -56 2
3 0 3 -64 0
Back
Top Bottom