The Wallabies and ARU have been receiving massive publicity for, unfortunately, all the wrong reasons, since the inflight slanging match on route to Argentina between the Business Manager Di Patson and Kurtley Beale.
That was nearly three weeks ago, yet more information that lies at the bottom this saga continues to bubble to the surface. It was totally inappropriate for a manager to have a public altercation of that nature, and was an indication of being the tip of the iceberg in this case.
Ewen McKenzie sensationally resigned immediately after the third Bledisloe Test between the All Blacks and Wallabies at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane. He was the second domino to fall, the first being Di Patson more than a week ago.
Bill Pulver, the CEO of the ARU, was staunchly defending McKenzie and Patston again at a press conference after the McKenzie resignation. He also said that he was disappointed with the Australian public for the apparent hounding of a ‘good man’, McKenzie, from office.
That is very strong language for Pulver to use, in light of the fact that to curry favour with the Australian public is one of the main tasks of his job. He needs to build the game of rugby in Australia, build television and stadia audiences, build the grassroots and playing numbers. Denigrating the audience and supporters doesn’t sound like a good strategy.
Apparently, Pulver was taking this public position based on his judgement of an injustice to McKenzie and Patston, but was that a wise thing to do? Both of them have obviously played their parts in the emergence of player discontent.
While the personal ramifications of the intense public scrutiny have been severe for both McKenzie and Patston, the rugby public are extremely disgruntled by the bad feelings the saga has generated both within and outside the rugby community in Australia.
Most people want the causes of the problems fixed, and to be satisfied that the ARU is being well run, and the Wallabies are a happy, united team with the best off-field support that they need. They want to feel like the Wallabies have a good chance to win the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
The facts of this maelstrom point toward the sources of the problem as being the dealings with the players by Di Patston, with full support or at least acquiescence from McKenzie. She had risen to Business Manager, and it has been reported that she presented herself to the players as a psychologist, as well as many other tasks.
The only logical conclusion is that the cause of the problem was management failure. The failure of McKenzie to either be aware of trouble brewing around Patston’s interactions with the players, or his support of them through his support for her.
While there is no support for Beale’s position with regards to the sending of the offensive text message, Beale seems to have been the canary in the coalmine.
His irresponsible actions have thrown a spotlight on a festering and untenable situation developing in the Wallaby structure. While the way this occurred was regrettable, to have these serious structural deficiencies in the Wallaby structure illuminated is unquestionably a good thing.
It’s pretty obvious that the purpose of the Beale hearing is to confirm his exclusion from Australian Rugby.
Pulver has been very forceful in his public treatment of Beale, and he gives every indication of following through.
The question is, will the Beale Inquiry take into account the underlying causes of the problems? Or should it have a simpler focus on the text messages he sent?
Pulver, himself, must now join the list of those that should clarify and justify their actions. The more information that becomes known, the better it must be for the long-term health of the ARU as an organisation.
The timing of the Beale inquisition has a genuine whiff of the opposite. Organisational deficiencies off the field will mean less than optimum performances on the field. Jeff Wilson, the ex All Black winger, remarked on Foxtel’s Rugby HQ program that these problems are best aired fully now, so that the Wallabies Rugby World Cup efforts will not be hamstrung by them. Who could disagree with that?
There are also uncomfortable indications that the ARU and Wallaby management structures do not deliver for the players as well as their Super Rugby organisations, which Clyde Rathbone pointed out in his article for The Roar.
Georgina Robinson reported in the SMH a reference by Pulver about the marvellous PR job that had been performed by the ARU Communications Team, notwithstanding that having mentioned that, Pulver then employed an external PR firm to do the job. Does the ARU need more than one person internally to handle ARU PR, when liaison with an external PR firm is apparently necessary anyway?
Many star Wallabies such as Drew Mitchell, Digby Ioane, and Matt Giteau have left to play in Europe, and this upsurge has coincided with the reported ARU financial problems. The ARU needs an organisational structure that is as lean as it can be, and one that is totally committed to delivering on-field performance.
The bottom line to this saga is that it was caused by a management failure, and Beale being let go doesn’t solve anything. Two dominoes have fallen, with Beale on shaky ground, and Pulver trying to shore up his own position.
Open honesty is what is needed now, and blaming the Australian public for denigrating McKenzie is an own-goal by Pulver. His public support for McKenzie and Patston ignores the cause of the problem, and brings into question his judgement. Another own-goal.
Pulver needs to get on the scoresheet fairly quickly, but terminating Beale won’t do it.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.
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