So the shoulder charge has been banned, Sunday arvos at Leichardt are on the scrap heap and we’ve got a Welsh bloke who isn’t Jonathan Davies running the show.
Somebody call Dr Peponis because I think I’m in need of a cognition test, stat!
After the most low-key arrival in rugby league since the Hunter Mariners, new NRL CEO David Smith this week begins putting his undies into drawers at rugby league house, before brushing his Barry Beath and jumping into a bed the TV networks ARLC rule makers have so kindly prepared for him.
And while he’s probably just keen to sleep off a bit of jet lag after six months on a plane, even with his new bed’s uneven surface, abrasive prima-doona and an alarm set season-long for 3AM on a Sunday morning, unfortunately first Smith’s going to have to answer the tough questions.
Like, who the exactly are you?
I mean that in the nicest possible way, not having a dig. When I first heard the announcement I was concerned that the lengthy CEO search had netted the former Newcastle player as a favour to Andrew Johns.
But no, the ARLC has gone outside the leagues club foyer to find their man, and now I can see what took them so long – the man is a ghost. Talk about living off the grid. Smith makes John Connor look like Lady Gaga in the exposure stakes.
Even the old Google machine didn’t help to paint a clear picture. Sure there are a few vague things about the army, banks and corporations no one has really ever heard of, which in the world of rugby league normally sets off Radisson Maine style alarm bells.
But I for one am not worried. I’m actually quietly confident.
Because I have a theory.
Let’s look at what we know about Smith.
Military background? Check
Globetrotter? Check
Sharply dressed? Check
Funny accent? Check
Purposefully vague resume? Check
Holy crap, the ARLC has just appointed James Bond as NRL CEO!
It all makes sense now. ‘David’ isn’t his name, it’s a code, like ‘00′. Think ‘David’ Gallop. ‘David’ Moffett.
Running rugby league in Australia has long been regarded as one of the most difficult jobs in the country, and it appears as though during the Super League (Cold?) war, ‘Arko’ and Cannon put into place an elaborative secretive framework to ensure the game’s survival.
Smith isn’t running the show at all, he’s just the agent in the field ready to mop up everybody’s mess and to pull the trigger when needed.
Every so often he’ll get a new assignment from John Grant (M?) and a couple of high tech gadgets like ‘Spidercam’ from David Gyngell (Q?) before racing off to save the world… or at least make sure the Sharks players stay out of Northies.
The shoulder charge and stadium announcements have been nothing more than pre-prepared pressers to throw fans off the scent, similar to South Sydney’s reinstatement the year Gallop took the top job.
All of which I believe bodes well for the game in the long run. Sure it appears as though, like Gallop before him, Smith is likely to keep his cards close to his chest and make a few decisions that will leave the punters shaken, if not stirred.
But hey, if the fate of the world at large (you know, footy) depends on it, then I trust double 0 David to do his main duty.
Giving our game its licence to thrill.
Follow Chris on Twitter @Vic_Arious
Damn Straight
Roar Rookie
Ian Roberts as jaws...no wait, that's a bit scary.
Damn Straight
Roar Rookie
You sick puppy...
Chris Chard
Expert
Shaun Berrigan as 'Oddjob' for his great versatility ...
Mark Young
Roar Guru
Gus Gould as Dr No
Mark Young
Roar Guru
The utility king Kurt Gidley as Oddjob
Chris Chard
Expert
Thanks for the kind words and the inside tip Spiro...but don't most double agents moonlight as boxers these days ;) ? Cheers CC
Arthur Fonzarelli
Guest
Is Smith is James Bond, will John Hopoate get a role as "Goldfinger" ?
The Kebab Connoisseur
Guest
Wanted it noted for the record, I want this CEO sacked. Just wanted to get in first. I know nothing has happened, but eventually it will and I just wanted to be the first one to call for him head. Thank you!
Australian Rules
Guest
Or standing in the shallows tipping an Oak all overt his bikini. ...ew
oikee
Guest
Yes, very sneeky. I will have to keep a eye on the Royals movements over the next few months. And i am not talking earthenware surveillance. :)
Tommygun
Roar Rookie
Gus wouldn't be sipping vodka, he/she would be downing a carton of OAK!
Spiro Zavos
Expert
Chris. your humour masks the fact that you are probably spot on, in a way, with what you've written. I was talking to someone who knows a lot about these things and he told me that it is obvious that the chairman of the ARL board wants to run the show as an executive-chairman. So he appoints someone who acknowledges he knows nothing about the game to a job where instinct for the history of the game and its foibles is crucial to any decision-making. I've yet to read that this is part of an ARU plot to undermine the ARL. But surely if the agent 007 theory can be floated, the double-agent theory must have some air in its balloon? Great stuff, I burst out laughing at some of the lines in this piece.
mushi
Roar Guru
I was thinking more that despite the bumbling and fumbling his way through season after season he’s still alive. But I like yours more.
Chris Chard
Expert
Mills and Boon? Is that Patty and David you're talking about MC ha ha
Chris Chard
Expert
A rugby league identity in drag? Surely you jest AR... Thanks for the mental picture by the way ha ha
Chris Chard
Expert
Well it worked with the Queen at the Olympic opening ceremony so you could be onto something Oikee... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1AS-dCdYZbo
JVGO
Guest
Is that because after every Origin Ricky gets to say to Paul Harragon 'missed by that much Chief'?
JohnM
Guest
Great stuff Chris!
mushi
Roar Guru
Ricky Stuart
JVGO
Guest
If this guy is James Bond international agent of espionage and intrigue, does that make Jon ONeill Simon Templar, Demetriou Matlcok and David Gallop Frank Banner? Maybe Christina Keneally is Diana Rigg then. But who is Maxwell Smart?