Expansion and the possibility of a player draft will top Shane Richardson’s agenda when he starts his “ideal” new job as the NRL’s head of game and strategy development on March 9.
Richardson has resigned as South Sydney CEO just three months after the club’s emotional premiership triumph with NRL chief executive Dave Smith creating a tailor-made position for the vastly experienced administrator.
The 59-year-old, who has also worked as CEO for Cronulla, Penrith and orchestrated the merger between Gateshead and Hull FC in the English Super League, is regarded as one of the best minds in the game.
He will be tasked with delivering key projects that support growth and development across of the game from grassroots and schools through to the elite and international levels.
With more than 50 years experience as a player, coach and administrator, Richardson is an old school street fighter whose sharpness of mind is often matched by his tongue.
But there’s no disputing he gets things done as witnessed by the renaissance of Souths, who under his watch went from bootless wooden spooners to cashed-up premiers with over 27,000 members – the highest in the history of the game.
“I have some very firm views that I’ve told to (NRL commission chairman) John Grant about where I thought rugby league could go,” Richardson said.
“At the start of December this opportunity came forward.
“If I wrote down something to do with rugby league, this would be my ideal job.”
The NRL commission is into it’s third year, with a new broadcast deal up for renewal at the end of 2017.
Richardson knows expansion is key to increasing the code’s value with central Queensland, the NSW Central Coast and Perth among the areas interested in having a team.
“The independent commission has been a huge turnaround for the game and it’s taken a while to settle in,” he said.
“But certainly on the commercial side we have done a good job. But on the football side of things we need to go to another level.
“We need to manage the game, the NRL draw, lower tiers, international football and take a view for the long term, three, five and 10 years, that is the task we have given ourselves.
“It’s looking at the structure of football.
“And instead of just piecemealing it all together and saying it’s world nines one week, world something else the next, we have to plan for the long term and the next TV contract … expansion is key to that.”
Richardson will also look at the representative fixture list and said consideration for player welfare is vital to maintaining a good product.
“We have to look at what’s best for the game,” he said.
“We can’t keep asking the players to keep doing some of the super human efforts. It’s about quality not quantity.”
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