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One day soon, Bill, the penny will drop

20th October, 2014
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A fish rots from the head, so what does that say about Billy Boy? (AAP Image/Dean Lewins)
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20th October, 2014
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One of these days, between 10am last Saturday morning and the release of Ewen McKenzie’s eventual book detailing his side of the story, ARU CEO Bill Pulver will realise all is not right at the pointy end of Australian rugby.

Not even the now-likely appointment of Waratahs Coach Michael Cheika, with a possible dream team of Stephen Larkham and Michael Foley as Wallabies assistants, can paper over the canyon-sized cracks in the administration of the game in this country.

Pulver’s extraordinary press conference follow-up on Saturday night, where he laid blame upon the media, and then the rugby public for the “character assassination” of McKenzie would’ve been funny if Pulver wasn’t absolutely serious.

While my initial reaction was to wonder where this spirited (attempted) defence of McKenzie was ten days ago, it quickly turned to one of disbelief that Pulver was yet again missing the elephant-sized point behind all the media reporting over the last fortnight.

Worse still, Pulver continued down this road of point-missing on Sunday, where in a press conference designed to show that team and head office were looking ahead, there was again not a skerrick of responsibility being taken by captain and especially CEO.

Don’t get me wrong, the reporting of the current mess has been relentless, and in some quarters it’s been more personal than it needed to be. But no matter what you think of what was written, who wrote it, and in what state it was published, the reporting should have been seen for the major questions it has raised – and continues to raise – about the governance of rugby in this country.

And if Pulver can’t see that the reporting has highlighted massive problems and shortcomings within the ARU, then he should prepare himself for some serious questioning of his position, too.

Pulver and the ARU’s handling of this whole affair has been 25 shades of disappointing.

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The current management has now presided over the departure of two very good coaches, both of whom have fallen victim to back-room dealings and varying degrees of player factionalism.

Yet Pulver and Michael Hooper both denied on Sunday that McKenzie had lost the dressing room, a view shared by numerous former teammates turned commentators.

Those denials and that disbelief from all of them is very noble, but it’s worth remembering that it’s still the one and only reason cited so far for McKenzie stepping down. There were “a number of things” McKenzie said he had outlined in his resignation letter, but that was the only reason given when ‘taken up with Bill’.

Cheika looks set to be appointed, with all the confirmation needed coming last night when he answered, “Who wouldn’t be?”, to the question of whether he was excited to be approached to coach the Wallabies.

Cheika did his best to play things down, but his refreshing honesty often failed him.

“There are a few things to be ironed out, obviously the logistics, etcetera. Everything is so close, so we will see how it goes and work it out from there,” Cheika said to reporters waiting for him at the Waratahs headquarters.

There’s little doubt Cheika’s approach to the game and his preference for how it should be played offer the easiest transition for the playing group and game plan employed by McKenzie. If it can be worked out so that Larkham and Foley join him in a New Zealand-style triumvirate approach, it may just be the best possible solution the ARU could possibly have stumbled upon, even without the sudden urgency.

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Whether the three men will coach their respective Super Rugby teams in 2015 remains to be seen, and is no doubt one of the many things to be ironed out. I wouldn’t be overly worried if they do, as long as the Wallabies planning is overseen properly and is not compromised by provincial pursuits, even if that means installing an overarching ‘Director of Rugby’ type role.

However, this sudden and admittedly ideal response to Saturday night’s drama cannot absolve Pulver and the ARU board of their mismanagement of the entire Beale-Di Patston situation, nor should Cheika’s likely appointment save Beale’s backside.

The fact that the Beale camp was able to delay the code of conduct hearing until after the Wallabies squad has left for Europe on Friday is just one of many cock-ups in this whole mess. Beale should’ve been dealt with two days after returning from Argentina, whether he and his manager were ready or not. He should now be reflecting on what his idiotic actions have cost him, not dictating terms.

Instead, where do you think the leaked detail within that “character assassination” came from?

Pulver only needs to see how Cheika’s complete control at the Waratahs has forced change at Moore Park. It’s well documented that he doesn’t suffer fools, and continual mismanagement and the absence of a proper support structure are unlikely to be tolerated for long.

The penny has to drop soon. Too many things have happened in and around the Wallabies on Pulver’s watch for this latest development to be seen as an anomaly.

No matter what happens on or off the field, the buck has to stop with him, however much responsibility he shifts elsewhere. That’s the point of a CEO, and it’s why he ultimately makes the decisions.

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