Waratahs supporters vent their frustrations
By Darren Walton, 20 May 2011 Darren Walton is a Roar Guru
- Tagged:
- Rugby Union, Super Rugby, Sydney Football Stadium, Waratahs
Disgruntled supporters applauded the NSW Waratahs for holding a fan forum at the Sydney Football Stadium on Thursday night. Then, in a venomous and sustained attack, those same 120 diehard fans spent more than an hour condemning the Waratahs for playing drab rugby, lacking adventure and spontaneity and hiding behind statistics.
“Lies, damned lies, and statistics,” one fan said, shooting down Chris Hickey after the NSW coach delivered a power point presentation highlighting that the Waratahs stood sixth on the table, had the fourth-best attack and second-best defence.
“There is an absence of accountability and no evidence of pride,” another said.
“You guys are in the entertainment business and you have a responsibility to entertain.
“I’ve been to all of the great grounds around the world and this is without a shadow of a doubt the most boring ground I’ve been to.
“It is an insult to the crowd … the culture of the club is wrong … fast ball out wide please … stop kicking …”
On and on it went, with some rowdy fans even rising to their feet to vent their anger and cutting off embattled Waratahs chief executive Jason Allen.
Undoubtedly, though, the fans’ greatest beef was the Waratahs continually booting the leather off the football.
Ironically, it was injured winger Drew Mitchell – the `Tahs’ best performer this season before badly dislocating his ankle against Queensland last month – who found himself in the firing line.
Mitchell, along with captain Phil Waugh, coach Chris Hickey, assistants Scott Bowen and Michael Foley and manager Chris Webb were the team representatives who fronted up to fans’ grilling.
Mitchell managed to appease the angry mob only briefly.
“We’re definitely guilty of kicking where there’s more of an opportunity to run,” the Wallabies star said.
“I get frustrated at times as well because I think sometimes we kick it when we should be running.”
Despite the barrage of criticism, Waugh said the forum had been a worthwhile exercise.
“If you’re a fan or supporter, you want to be in touch with the team and have an impact and opening the doors like we did tonight gives the fans the opportunity to do that,” he said.
“I hope their voice has been heard. We’ll take it on board and try to entertain them and keep them supporting.
“Perception’s a big thing. The passion is really good to see.”
Waugh insisted the Waratahs were endeavouring to play an exciting brand of rugby but were letting themselves down with poor execution.
“The frustration comes from fans when you train all week and then go out on Saturday night and not perform and not execute the skill you’ve been practising all week,” he said.
“So that’s the biggest thing for us moving forward and there’ll certainly be times to run the ball and the game will open up when we do that.
“At the same time, it’s a contest and you’ve always got a team up against you with 15 guys who are just as desperate to win as you are.
“That’s the important part of this and the more people understand this, the better.”
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- Explore:
- Rugby Union, Super Rugby, Sydney Football Stadium, Waratahs
May 20th 2011 @ 7:07am
ptovey01 said | May 20th 2011 @ 7:07am | Report comment
Their all a bunch of soft belly bums. Harden up. Fans keep the game alive. If no o e comes to watch you don’t get paid. Don’t tell us we play this way, like it or lump it. If your on top of the table, sure. If you average on the side if poor then pull your head in.
The competition has bonus points which mean the difference between finals and an early summer.
May 20th 2011 @ 7:42am
Tom said | May 20th 2011 @ 7:42am | Report comment
I gave up on them years ago when the rot started and so have most of Sydney and nsw.
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May 20th 2011 @ 7:54am
Rabbitz said | May 20th 2011 @ 7:54am | Report comment
I guess the final quote from Waugh in the article sums it up for me.
It would seem that Waugh (and presumably the others) haven’t got their thick heads around the fact that most rigby followers understand the game. Yes Phil, we know there is another side out there, and we know they are trying to win as well. If you think all of your supporters are mugs then the Tahs deserve to go broke.
May 20th 2011 @ 7:58am
tah fan said | May 20th 2011 @ 7:58am | Report comment
I see no indication from Hickey or Waugh of a willingness to change, or even admit there is a problem. Sigh…
May 20th 2011 @ 8:42am
p.Tah said | May 20th 2011 @ 8:42am | Report comment
I attended the forum and that wasn’t my impression. If I have time I’ll give a more detail account of the evening. Overall the Tahs recognise the issues and genuinely do want to fix them.
May 20th 2011 @ 8:15am
johnny-boy said | May 20th 2011 @ 8:15am | Report comment
The Waratahs are to be applauded for at least holding such a meeting, although they may not have had much choice with their income falling with attendances. A relief to see Drew Mitchell at least acknowledging they could have run it more and the argument that they don’t believe in themselves enough is spot on. Funnily enough it seems to me that the supporters believe in the players, more than the players believe in themselves which is why the fans get so frustrated at seeing them take the gutless option and not backing the ability, their fans clearly think they have. The players should take heart that the supporters believe they could be much better, if only they had a red hot go and consequently drop their fear of failure, knowing their supporters back their ability to get it right eventually. Even if it takes a few goes.
The puzzling thing is that the Waratahs started the season so brilliantly, they looked scarily good and then fell in a heap. Was Muggeltons influence so missed. If so for goodness sake move heaven and earth to get him back. The excuse that they stopped playing so well becuase of injuries just doesnt wash. It’s just an excuse for losing faith in each other once Mugellton left which is a damning indictment on Hickey and co. Hickey is clearly a good club coach who couldnt step up, not unlike players who find the next step too much. For example Dean Mumm going from a good to adequate Super XV 6 to test lock and also not unlike Robbie Deans going from being a good Super XV coach to test coach. The lesson for the Waratahs players is to take the responsibilty to play dynamic rugby on yourselves in spite of the coach, as I beleive the Wallabies finally did with their dour NZ coach. The results can be amazing. Good luck Tahs, except when you play the Reds. Remember the Highlanders are coming soon. You need to start practicing now !
May 20th 2011 @ 8:30am
Willy said | May 20th 2011 @ 8:30am | Report comment
I must be the only Waratahs supporter in Australia who thinks the team and coaches are doing a reasonable job.
They’ve suffered a heap of injuries to key players, and yet have ground out some important results to keep themselves in with a live chance of playing in the finals.
Sure, we’d all like to see them playing fast, open rugby… but that’s easier said than done. When you’re playing third choice (essentially club players) in key positions like hooker and open side flanker, and when you’re having to move players around the back line, it’s bloody hard to play with the smooth cohesion we’d all like to see.
Hopefully the Tahs can start getting key blokes back from injury, and come back from South Africa still up to their necks in the finals race.
And hopefully they can sneak into the finals and get another chance to knock off those Reds.
May 20th 2011 @ 9:45am
Mals said | May 20th 2011 @ 9:45am | Report comment
Good to hear your belief in the team Willy. While alot of so called Tah fans cry into their hankies and stop supporting the Waratahs it is people like yourself that are out there barracking for the team through the good & the bad batches. If fans think 2011 is a bad season they obviously didn’t watch many of the Tahs games in 2007!!
I’m glad no punches were pulled at the forum, I’ll be out at the SFS on Saturday night yelling myself hoarse & hope to see an improved performance by the boys in Blue! 2 things i want to see improve this week – when the Tahs kick, kick with a purpose & execute well, forward runners hit the ball at pace & in pods.
May 20th 2011 @ 10:44am
Willy said | May 20th 2011 @ 10:44am | Report comment
“If fans think 2011 is a bad season they obviously didn’t watch many of the Tahs games in 2007!!”
Geez – I agree with this!
Or even go back to the late 90s and early 2000′s… Scary stuff.
May 20th 2011 @ 1:54pm
Maggie said | May 20th 2011 @ 1:54pm | Report comment
You are not alone Willy.
I go to a Rugby match to see the team I support win. By winning I would prefer to see a good contest for the ball, however if a few successful penalties and well judged kicks (please no low percentage kicks) win the match…..bring it on.
Rugby league is all about advancement and none of the thrills & spills that occur when the ball is contested.
If the Tahs keep winning the fans will come back.
I was at the forum last night and at times it was hardly a “Q & A” more like who could vent their spleen the loudest.
Yes there were a few interesting and valuable points made by both sides but I would reccommend that the Tahs do not give in to the mob mentality that was evident at times last night.
May 20th 2011 @ 8:36am
johnny-boy said | May 20th 2011 @ 8:36am | Report comment
There you go Willy, talking your teams ability to play dynamic rugby down, making excuses. It shouldnt matter who turns up. It’s the atttitude. How many times have you seen no names get a start and lift the team with thier enthusiasm. Witness the Huuricanes a few weeks ago. You need to back your replacements to be able to do the job rather than tell them they are second rate and you have to go back to playing dour rugby
May 20th 2011 @ 10:43am
Willy said | May 20th 2011 @ 10:43am | Report comment
No point in comparing NZ teams with Aussie teams Johnny.
The simple fact is we probably don’t have the depth here to produce five top quality squads of 22 players… and once you start losing some of those key starting players that lack of depth is brutally exposed.
In New Zealand it’s the national game (national obsession) and there are literally hundreds of top quality players running around in the NPC to choose from. We don’t have that luxury unfortunately.
May 20th 2011 @ 8:45am
soapit said | May 20th 2011 @ 8:45am | Report comment
the thing is you don’t learn to play running rugby in a week. i think campo goaded england into changing their style to a running one leading into the 91worldcup final and they couldnt master it first up, giving us a help in winning it. however with anything like this the only way you get better is through practice. so they might even lose a game or two by trying to run a lot (god knows the reds did last year) but over time you’ll get better at it and in the long run it will provide you consistent results. so it requires a long term commitment from the team to persist and get the hang of the different style especially when the other style has been entrenched for so long.
the elephant in the room is whether fans would trade a few wins for a more attractive style. i have to say that i would trade a few wins for long term success (success beyond win/loss ratios that is) and a team i could be proud of. this is the key message that they need to get so they can be confident that we wont skin them if they lose a game from over attacking.
May 20th 2011 @ 9:14am
Next year! said | May 20th 2011 @ 9:14am | Report comment
I attended the Firum also and agree with P Tah . The positive is that the administration DO recognise there is a problem so that in essence is a start.
I spoke with a number of officials and I do not belive them to be arrogant or hiding behind spin – they are genuinly concerned and recognise there are problems.
Unfortunatley there is no silver bullet to the dwindling crwods – such factors as ticket prices, parking , stadium atmosphere are also factors to preformance on the field. If these things ALL start to move in the right direction th Tah’s will be back on an upward slope.
As for the statistics this was dissapointing – give me an hour with the figures and I guarantee I can put together a different story – this is one thing I was genuinly disspointed with. Otherwise it was a useful evening and I applaud the administartion for organising this and see it as a positive step forward.
The take aways from this forum would be very useful for all – Sydney is a very tough market.
Mention should also go to Lachie Turner who attended and spent time chatting to The Neville Nobody’s of this world like me to explain and hear us out – I certainly appreciated it.
May 20th 2011 @ 9:18am
kovana said | May 20th 2011 @ 9:18am | Report comment
Waratahs fans.. What to say…. These fans seem to be an embarrassment to rugby in general.
May 20th 2011 @ 9:38am
King of the Gorgonites said | May 20th 2011 @ 9:38am | Report comment
Try being a Waratah fan before saying such team. Team needs to earn respect. they havent. simple as that. we are not mugs. travelling through sydney traffic for 2 hours, paying $25 just to park, $8 for a beer, overpriced seats, then to watch a team with no passion, no pride, no clue. it hurts. dont be so condesending to waratah fans.
May 20th 2011 @ 10:48am
kovana said | May 20th 2011 @ 10:48am | Report comment
“paying $25 just to park, $8 for a beer, overpriced seats”
Apart from the Rugby the Tahs are playing.. I can live with that.
My village club team is sh*te…. and we have not had 1 player selected for our NPC side… But i will still support them.
However, the prices you stated…. hmm.. Yep if you add that to the mix, i will get pissed off.
Sorry about that.
Solution is simple.. Lower the prices.
May 20th 2011 @ 11:05am
Rabbitz said | May 20th 2011 @ 11:05am | Report comment
Not so simple.
They could *ask* the concession holders to lower their prices, but given the smaller than expected crowds, which means the concessions are not making as much profit, then I would expect the answer to be “sod off”.
The problem is, the Waratahs management need to create a plan which improves attendances and atmosphere before they can afford to make price cuts.
I suppose if crowd numbers go as they are they might go back to Concord where they can control the gate, the concessions and all of that stuff that adds up to making the experience “value for money”.
May 20th 2011 @ 11:56am
King of the Gorgonites said | May 20th 2011 @ 11:56am | Report comment
the other frustrating thing, is that we then watch the reds. a team totally opposite to the Waratahs. a team you would be proud to support. a team that cares. that really amplifies what we are missing with the Tahs. Two years ago they were a team of no bodies. byt with self belief they have won over legions of new fans.
even when the Reds were cellar dwellers, they were still a better rugby team to watch then the under achieveivng and often arrogant tahs.
May 20th 2011 @ 4:42pm
Jiggles said | May 20th 2011 @ 4:42pm | Report comment
KOTG,
I think you are part of the problem.
The fact is the Tahs play good and bad rugby, but they have shown nothing at all over the past 3 seasons to suggest they can play wide expansive in a multiple successive games, and they have shown no consistent form that suggests they can win the competition.
There are three contributing factors to this:
A) A conservative coach who is adverse to risk in tight games
B) a captain who is very unintelligent in his on-field decisions, and is unable to keep up with a game played at width and at pace
C) a 10 and 12 who lack the ability to execute passing both ways at pass, and who are devoid of intelligence in their option taking.
These variables and end result are present every season, yet arrogant fans predict the tah’s to perform much better than there form and ability suggests. They are a good team that are contenders to make the finals but not contenders to win it. And until those factors above change, I can’t understand this belief that the tah’s fortunes can.
With the reds throughout those bad years, they always reached the expectations in which the fans set for them. After 5-7 years of rubbish they identified what needed to be addressed and addressed it. It wasn’t some magical or amazing rise, it is the result of a long term plan being well executed and it started with Phil Mooney and a clean out of top management.
May 20th 2011 @ 9:52pm
Drop kick said | May 20th 2011 @ 9:52pm | Report comment
If you have such a high opinion of the Reds why don’t you jump on the bandwagon and become a Reds fan.