Oh rugby league, how we do love to criticise you. With the 2012 season kicking off on Thursday night, a largely incident free pre-season almost behind us and a shiny new independent commission installed you would think it would be hard for anyone to find fault with the game.
Think again.
Commission chairman John Grant has been taking fire already. His crime? Apparently he loves the camera too much.
It’s a criticism I’ve heard from numerous sources, and most recently on Sky Sports Radio’s Sports Sunday program.
Former co-host Peter Peters said he still wasn’t convinced with the commission because the people involved didn’t really have a feel for the game. He went on to say that Grant loved the cameras.
Now, Peters is entitled to his opinion and strangely I know plenty of others who share his view of the new man at the helm of the game.
It’s a little too early to criticise though isn’t it?
I’m sure some members of the commission are still getting lost inside the huge hallways of Rugby League Central at Moore Park in Sydney.
As a group they’ve only had time to make one major decision and scrapping the McIntyre finals system was widely praised.
It’s a good start and more sensible decisions are needed. The true effect of the commission will only be felt in years if not a decade. To write them off already is extremely harsh.
One of the biggest criticisms in the pre-commission era was that the game didn’t have enough people with high-end business experience involved.
That’s not a problem any more.
In addition to Grant, rugby league now has Gary Pemberton (former Qantas and Billabong chairman), Peter Gregg (Leighton Holdings chief financial officer), Catherine Harris (founder of Harris Farm markets), Ian Elliott (advertising guru), Jeremy Sutcliffe (CSR director), Dr Chris Sarra (respected educator and 2004 Queenslander of the year), and Wayne Pearce (Former Australian forward).
They all underwent a lengthy screening process that weeded out those not suited. It’s safe to say it’s easier to get parking at Leichhardt Oval than a place on the commission.
If they suddenly decide it’s a good idea to put an expansion team in Los Angeles or Hong Kong then you can start questioning their common sense. For now, it’s far too soon.
To paint Grant as an attention seeking camera hog is also wide of the mark.
He’s the face of one of the biggest changes to the code in Australia and it’s important, now more than ever, for him to communicate his aims with the fans.
On Wednesday night the 2012 season was launched with fireworks and flames above Rugby League Central.
Grant was deep in conversation with several coaches who were all keen for a chat. Those close by at any stage of the night will tell you he didn’t sound like a man who was out of his depth talking to some of the best thinkers in the sport.
He was also more than happy to have a chat to reporters who asked and generally made a good impression.
How do you think it would’ve looked if he said “Thanks, but no thanks” to anyone who approached him?
Not good.
There’s a reason his head has been everywhere lately. Everyone wants to know what he thinks about the game and its future direction.
It’s not vanity. It’s just the new guy introducing himself. He should be given room to do so.
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