If you’ve been waiting for me to weigh into the horrid mess that’s gripped Australian rugby over this past week, then this article is only going to disappoint you further.
It’s just been too damned hard to work out whether what’s been reported is fact or supposition, who knew what and for how long, who’s leaking what info to whom and for what reason, and worryingly, how long does it have to run before a proper resolution is reached.
I don’t know what to believe and what to ignore – and that makes reaching a conclusion almost impossible.
If you believe that any publicity is good publicity, then Australian rugby has certainly got its money worth in recent weeks. What began as a mid-flight argument en route to Argentina a fortnight ago has descended into claim and counter-claim, media leaks and the accompanying conspiracy theories.
Now two separate investigations have the ability to bring a halt – in the short term, at least – to the career of one of the most talented players of a generation.
Kurtley Beale certainly has form in the indiscretion department, and that may well be what brings his career in Australian to a halt. The public support from the playing group is as admirable as it is completely bloody predictable, but not even the support of the players can gloss over a rap sheet that unfortunately has regular entries.
And the question I keep coming back to with Beale is simply, why?
I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing Beale at length, and he came across as a young man well aware that he’s been very lucky in life coming from the background he has. He also recognised that rugby has provided so much for his personal development, from his introduction to the game at St Joseph’s College in Sydney, well into adulthood as a professional player.
Why then, after such a standout season in Super Rugby, where he was instrumental in the Waratahs claiming their maiden title, would he then threaten his standing in the game with a couple of ill-thought and highly offensive photos and messages?
How much of this behaviour boils down to young blokes armed with gadgets and too much time on their hands, or how much of it is due to possible frustration at not being able to crack a starting berth for the Wallabies?
He can hardly be wanting to bring his days in Australian rugby to an end early, because he is off contract at the end of the year anyway. If he really wants to go overseas or switch to league next year, he could just decline any ARU offers that may be on the table and make the decision.
If it is the frustration angle, then what on earth has been going on within Wallabies management that one of the form Australian players in Super Rugby could so rapidly and so spectacularly lose so much of that form on the international stage?
And this is where the focus of this week must rapidly turn toward the preparations for the third Bledisloe, and specifically on how Ewen McKenzie can unite and win back a dressing room that is clearly in disagreement on a number of fronts.
This might be the biggest week in McKenzie’s coaching career, maybe even his biggest in professional rugby. There were utterances yesterday that the ARU had approached Michael Cheika about taking over from McKenzie, to the point where Bill Pulver was forced to deny that was the case.
I don’t know if Pulver used the words, ‘full support of the board’, but it already feels like the result this Saturday in Brisbane could have a major bearing on McKenzie’s future as Wallabies coach.
It’s madness to be contemplating a change of coach with a Rugby World Cup only twelve months away, but as several AFL coaches have discovered in the recent past, it doesn’t take a lot of player discontent to result in a professional coach suddenly packing up his office.
When McKenzie lobbied for, and was appointed to the Wallabies head coach role, he said at the time that he had had good success against New Zealand sides, and believed that he had developed a game plan to defeat the All Blacks. So far, the August draw in Sydney is as close as he’s been in five attempts.
Former Wallabies fullback Matt Burke, was scathing of McKenzie in his Fairfax column on Sunday.
I’m hearing of players looking for direction, but getting none. They are desperately trying to keep the ball in hand and play, but it’s one-dimensional. It looks pedestrian and is easy to defend against.
I believe the tactics have been dumbed down to a style that’s not working with the team; there are intelligent players being stifled because the coach doesn’t have trust in the talent he is working with.
While the suggestion of players not getting the direction they’re seeking could hold water in the current climate, I’d be absolutely astounded if McKenzie doesn’t trust the players to follow his game plan, regardless of whether he’s dumbed it down or not.
And that’s simply because McKenzie selected the players!
The whole reason we see Matt Toomua playing at 12, and Tevita Kuridrani at 13 is because they’re the players McKenzie sees as the best options to play those positions the way he wants them played. It’s why Beale doesn’t also wear the Wallabies 12, and why Adam Ashley-Cooper will bring up his 100th Test cap in the same position he spent many of his formative years playing.
If the players truly have been honest with themselves, they’ll admit they haven’t been playing particularly well, and that this week – maybe more than any other in the last twelve months – is one where they need work with the coach to get the result they all need.
But more importantly, it’s the week where McKenzie must prove beyond all doubt and among numerous distractions that he’s the best man to lead the Wallabies. How he conducts himself this week could determine whether he’s still employed next week.
Chivas
Guest
Actually Mac, I was reading into your response in the same way you read into the post above you... I was not actually suggesting you were running with a lynch mob, but demonstrating how silly it is to read beyond what is written. You did suggest RT is shifting responsibility and blame, so perhaps if your reading comprehension was better, this discussion would not have taken place.
Mick Gold Coast QLD
Roar Guru
DC NZ
Guest
my view is that Link came in with an arrogant Napoleon complex and thought he had all the answers / could run things his way / beat the All B's / get to number one - then reality hits .. Seen it happen a million times in business .. The emperor has no clothes ...
General Duncan
Guest
Mick, I have copied your post as an email to a couple of colleagues who would not have time to read the Roar, but are passionate rugby people. Much of what you say speaks not only to current issues (this whole thread is on the cusp of being tomorrow's 21st century version of fish and chips wrappers anyway) but to a greater malaise beyond just the ARU. I would only amplify by saying that each natural level within the organisation requires a single professional leader. In this case it should be a relatively flat structure to avoid confusion over autonomy and scope of responsibility ("I run you, you make a mistake, am I to blame?" confusion) but peak sharply at the top so the big boss is free to exercise his authority without equivocation. This is of course the triumvirate you refer to in your post. If I were forced to guess at where the MacKenzie / Patston relationship irked the players (if it genuinely did), it would have been that Ewen may have delegated too much authority to his executive officer over time without really intending to, and without disclosing a change in role for Patston to the team. Nothing has the potential to create resentment like a defacto boss. I've been one before (under obviously very different circumstances) and it can be tricky to handle. Delegating too much authority is not uncommon though and usually identified and corrected by the individual in due course and filed away as a lesson for the future. Usually learnt much earlier in someone of Ewen's 15yrs in coaching / management though. Good that we can have this conversation about the obvious leadership issues within rugby without conflation with Beale's actions, which was hardly the popular sentiment 72hrs+ ago. Anyway, you would be interested to know the variety of eyeballs that will have a look at your post around my community.
Mac
Guest
Chivas, peterm and dmac, I am purely reflecting the post above, which claims that Beale is guilty and then explains why the poster thinks Patston is at fault. At no point did I suggest anything about punishing anyone, so the idea of lynch mob mentality is absurd. I wasn't suggesting that Beale is guilty, merely questioning the poster above me. I would suggest reading comprehension lessons for all.
Ken
Guest
I wonder is Hooper or Adam Ashley cooper would be so supportive of Beale if he had sent the same message about their girlfriend s,wives or mothers ,it's shameful how they support a teammate when another member of their team who was subjected to this crap is not supported lHooper is the captain ? wow how low has the wallabies fallen ,John Eales had intelligence ,class and integrity Hopper has long hair ,dresses like a teenager when being interviewed by media and supports a guy who's faced multiple assault charges and now sexual bullying because he's a good rugby player yes that excuses everything hey,how sad.
Every prop or ex prop I know has a zen like state when poked. ;)
Bako
Guest
Great post.
ols
Roar Pro
Not that I want it but Link will go on EOY Tour. They are on the plane Friday week. We'll be lucky if the Beale saga is over by then or maybe if it's even started. So no chance for any further investigation
ols
Roar Pro
An interesting point that has occured to me. In nearly every professional organisation it is standard procedure to have in employment paperwork filled out by applicant to ask if they have received worker's compensation. If this is not part of ARU procedure there is a flaw in their employment procedures. .
Die hard
Roar Rookie
I decried the early and very young selections at the time but was howled down. It all just seemed too easy for Beale and O'Connor and Cooper. And easy earned is not respected. Hence all these late nights rather than early to bed ready to train and toil and eek out that bit of difference the hard way. "Yellow jersey" suggests no sense of history and worth of the team. I would have been sacked on the spot at my workplace and I earn a tenth of what these guys earn. Thank you for your perspective.
Mick Gold Coast QLD
Roar Guru
Thank you General Duncan - also for taking on something which too few are prepared to do. I have shrunk from picking a horse in this race because so much of it is so convoluted - it's much like trying to understand what John Connolly was saying back in his heyday, what he appeared to be doing, what he was actually doing and what he really said in the first place. Without buying in to any of the reported detail of the current high farce I say, for the players, what Mark Loane reportedly said to a Wallaby who turned up to a function disheveled and drunk: "Mediocrity “ships” me." They ought to sit and study what the All Blacks do, what Randwick and Eastwood do and adopt their successful methods to build an unique culture that reflects the high responsibility which accompanies their good fortune. They are the custodians of the culture. They can forget this unquestioning mutual self protective no-matter-what routine too. If something is plain wrong it is plain wrong and they ought, by their age and given the extra life coaching they enjoy, to be honest enough to know that. When Dean Greyling belted Richie McCaw the first two to speak publicly about it were his captain Jean de Villiers and coach Heyneke Meyer, admonishing Greyling for it. On women or indeed anyone involved with the team, waitresses and ticket collectors and ball boys - if these blokes cannot deal with others as they would want to be dealt with themselves then boot them. If the law demands two letters and a bunch of pansies before that can be done then make sure a nominated manager is properly using the latest checklist. The coach and staff would do well to familiarise themselves with "as Caesar's wife". One cannot act with authority if the crew can readily see self indiscipline. The top people cannot ever allow their mantle slip. The crew always reckons it can do better - they cannot but there is no point in giving them a chink in the armor to attack. I'd rather they be issued with life size wall photos of a humorless Abdel Benazzi, Martin Johnson and Richard Loe bearing down on them, to focus their mind on doing their day job. Further, one boss with an able deputy and a genuinely capable captain is the largest committee necessary for the serious decisions, in my book. I'm sure you will, General Duncan, be interested in Grant Fox outlining how the most successful outfit succeeds. Google the-long-promised-grant-fox-interview As to the blokes running the show - in summary I believe they are woefully bad at it, the whole of the Board including John Eales should hang their heads in shame. We have such a long way to go in Australian rugby and it need not have been so.
RobC
Roar Guru
DI PATSTON EXCLUSIVE: The spider’s story: http://www.greenandgoldrugby.com/di-patston-exclusive-spiders-story/
Mick Gold Coast QLD
Roar Guru
I have posted a response I trust you will see General Duncan. Please come back in to check if it has been displayed. Meanwhile I will fish around to find how and to where it disappeared.
bennalong
Guest
Higgers has also come out in support of Beale.
Iwillnotstandby
Guest
The mistreatment of Di Patston by segments of the media is abhorrent. I consider that the contents of the text message clearly show kurtley was well out of order and that he needs to face some consequences which can be determined by his employer. Di Patstons past is irrelevant to to the case at hand. How the wallabies are run are irrelevant to the case at hand. Neither of these offer any exculpating considerations for Kurtleys behaviour. If they are serious in their own right they can be resolved as another set of investigations. Di Patston could have all manner of personal flaws and they would be irrelevant for this investigation. If Di Patston has herself done something wrong that is a separate investigation. General Duncan has summed things up brilliantly. The current investigative focus needs to be on the original allegation, not led astray by speculation, innuendo and misdirection. FACTS. Her relationships? Irrelevant. Her employment history? Irrelevant. What is relevant here is "what did Kurtley do?" "Was it bullying or harassment?" If y s then what sanctions apply. I could probably write something more cogent but to be honest that seems like giving credibility to arguments that should never have seen more than the dark recesses of some agenda driven so-called journalists mind. Speculation passed of as evidence remains nothing more than hearsay.
Jay
Guest
Gosh you guys are rough. Georgina Robinson is both a woman, NSW and rugby lover. To insinuate she would throw another rugby loving woman so badly under a bus, and tarnish a reputation she worked so hard to build, seems far worse than any allegations I have seen against Ms Pastson. Or maybe that's ok because she is a journalist.
Paul from Melbourne
Guest
It doesn't matter which way you look. There are more and more people calling for Pulver's and Link's head. As for Beale, he will get his day in court. http://www.goondiwindiargus.com.au/story/2625440/bob-dwyer-calls-for-michael-cheika-and-stephen-larkham-to-join-wallabies-coaching-team/?cs=12 http://www.canberratimes.com.au/rugby-union/australia-rugby/kurtley-beale-is-not-australian-rugbys-biggest-problem-20141013-115aan.html http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/rugby/ewen-mckenzie-bill-pulvers-future-on-the-line-if-coverup-discovered-over-di-patston/story-fnp0m104-1227090516952
General Duncan
Guest
Yes Mick, probably not my finest post as was rushing through thumb typing while in transit and haven't expressed myself well, was a bit distracted at the time, and was probably still on the defensive from previous interactions which went on to colour my inferences to your post. But hey, if a guy can troll this website for months with his "PALU is Mr Invisible" stuff, then maybe I can be excused for jumping the shark on this post, especially as I think the cause has been worthwhile and the public debate so far has been valuable. No need to get too withering though about my absent self awareness, clumsy self assuredness or lack of recognition of Mick Ellem's name. I was certainly not being churlish to you in my post above, including my thoughts that your points were well articulated. Just tired.
moniano
Guest
what would you judge it on ... they are 2 best team in the world, meaning they are both very successful. And to be successful or be counted successful is to become like them ... take their position ... which is by beating them. I cant understand you say judging success against ABs and SA is stupid.