The blueprint making the NSW Waratahs better and stronger

Founded in 1874, NSW rugby has been strong for over 140 years now.

Even when it wasn’t – say that dark night in Christchurch in 2002 when the Waratahs were touched up by the Crusaders 96-19, or last year, when a side visibly lacking in confidence and self-belief bumbled to losses at home to lesser sides – NSW rugby has always remained the heart and lungs of Australian rugby.

No slight is intended to Queensland by this comment; it’s merely a reflection of reality. Born overseas, I am distinctly disinterested in fuelling, and unqualified to fuel, any parochial interstate war.

It is also a curse as much as it is a blessing; the current unseemly set-to between Sydney’s Shute Shield clubs and the Australian Rugby Union being what many observers identify as a clique of self-interested clubs pursuing their own entitled agenda, arrogantly dismissive of rugby interests beyond Hornsby to the north and the Sutherland Shire to the south.

However, if such diversions can be pushed to the side for a moment, the scary thing for Super Rugby followers in other states – and the positive thing for rugby followers in all Australian states – is that NSW and Waratahs rugby is about to become even stronger off the field and, as sure as night follows day, on the field.

In March this year, the Waratahs appointed New Zealander Andrew Hore to the joint role of CEO of the Waratahs and the NSW Rugby Union, with chairman Roger Davis describing him as “a seasoned administrator, with experience in international rugby circles”, who “has the ability not only to build a sustainable business model for rugby in the state but to also bridge the gap between community and professional rugby through appropriate pathways programs.”

In an age where too many professional rugby administrators are either marking time – content to say neither too much nor too little so as to impede their job security – or else in pursuit of narrow, self-serving agendas, Hore is a breath of fresh air. Instantly warm, authentic and genuine, he is the type of person rugby followers can shake hands and make eye contact with without ever feeling that he is looking beyond or through them for a better option.

As Hore introduces me to ‘2020 Vision’, NSW rugby’s strategic blueprint for success, his passion is palpable, despite this far from being his own baby. In fact, the final document closely resembles a previous plan, now some 15 years old, prepared for a previous administration.

It is here where Hore’s point of difference shines through; as excited as he is by the vision, the goals and the potential contained within, he is one of those rare beasts who gets as big a kick from implementing the plan, pulling in a team around him to work hard and deliver real, sustainable benefits.

The plan is grounded initially in feedback from rugby people involved in all aspects of the game across the state. What came through strongly was the desire of players and administrators to identify with their state; to play for, to aspire to play for, and to serve New South Wales.

It is this core, ground-level connection that renders any notion of a second Super Rugby franchise to be located in Western Sydney dead in the water. Hore concedes the idea may be revisited in the future, but only if done from a position of strength, not as a reactive, problem shifting exercise.

And only if it can be done without diluting the Waratahs brand.

Jed Holloway. Image: NSW rugby/Amanda Allen

The plan itself identifies eight key elements, to ensure the following successes by 2020:

Governance – as much about getting the right, “strong and capable” people at board and executive level as it is about the structure;

Market Positioning – to develop a following of proud and loyal fans and, ambitiously, to be the number one sport for coaches, families, fans, administrators and sponsors;

Commercial/Financial – to attain a membership base of 50-60,000 and to build a strong, diverse and sustainable funding model;

People Development – emphasising growth in home-grown talent, to put in place world class development pathways for players, coaches, referees and administrators;

Brand and Reputation – where every rugby player at all levels and in all forms of the game associates and feels like a NSW Waratah;

Community Engagement – a concerted effort to win back rugby’s traditional heartland and the creation of new ones, to win back parents (particularly mothers) as key supporters of the game, and for clubs and volunteers to feel enabled, supported and empowered to succeed and to be recognised accordingly;

Winning/Success Culture – for the Waratahs to be the number one team in Australia, to consistently play finals and have won at least one more title;

Operations and Facilities – to provide supporters with a world leading experience and to have world-class playing, training and admin facilities in place while ensuring that the needs of clubs are being met.

What is already assumed is the recently announced change to the structure and governance for the Waratahs and NSW rugby, effectively bringing the two boards closer together where, admittedly short of full integration, the two organisations are now all but one and the same.

With combined annual revenue in excess of $24m, in a sport not exactly swimming in cash, it is essential that no resources are squandered, whether they be dollars or time wasted on internal politicking and head-butting.

Indeed, it is at the deeper level of the plan where the intent to invest wisely shines through. It is no secret to anyone who lives in NSW that the AFL has invested millions of dollars into junior development, and while there is dispute about the rubberiness or otherwise of the figures, significant NSW participation levels in excess of 175,000, including around 50,000 in Auskick programs, has partly come at rugby’s expense.

But Hore believes much of this ground can be reclaimed with the right kind of focused effort from his team, even without the same financial war chest. Kids at that age just want to play something; they haven’t necessarily built loyalty to the AFL, and if the mothers can be won back, rugby’s inherent advantages in the junior form – safe, more individual participation within a proper game situation, a pathway to state and country representation – will kick in.

Other levels of detail include more formal alignment of clubs with NSW’s three NRC sides, which is essential if the NRC is to eventually serve its purpose of providing a pathway for talented club players to transition to the Waratahs.

For 2017, players like Irae Simone, Jake Gordon, Ned Hannigan, Harry Jones and Jack Dempsey are making that transition, although the system is not yet operating smoothly enough to provide contract spots for players like Sam Figg, Tyrone Viiga, David Lolohea and others who have, for now at least, slipped through the net.

Jake Gordon. Image: NSW Rugby/Ben Holgate

It is also clear that Hore, a country boy himself, understands that NSW rugby means exactly that; not Sydney and whatever may be left over.

It is rare in Australian rugby for stakeholders to be pulling in the same direction and Hore, who recognises the quality and commitment of people within his staff and across rugby in NSW, seems just the right person to be able to facilitate this.

That brings us back to the festering matter which is more complex than, but for simplicity’s sake can be distilled down to, the Shute Shield versus the NRC as the rightful ‘third tier’ for Australian rugby.

Hore finds himself in the unenviable position of having a foot in both camps, eager for both Sydney club rugby and the ARU’s fledgeling competition to flourish. This saga has some way to play out yet, with press reports citing an imminent announcement that will pitch the 2017 Shute Shield grand final up against the opening round of the NRC.

While his job description does not list ‘peacemaker’, rest assured that Hore, who carries no baggage and old grievances, has both the strategic skill and common sense to identify a sensible, constructive way forward, and also the personal skills to provide either a quiet, persuasive argument or a forthright bollocking as appropriate.

Certainly in this case, it would seem that the aggrieved clubs would benefit from channelling their cause more directly through their state organisation than attacking the ARU head-on, just as the ARU would be better to confine itself more to national matters and high-level direction to provide clear space for the states to get on with administering the game at the local level and to better engage supporters.

Meanwhile, on-field, the Waratahs’ 2017 squad looks strong across the park, and fans should expect to find a more self-assured Daryl Gibson bring out the best of them in the coming season.

Whatever those north of the Tweed or south of the Southern Highlands think about NSW rugby, there can be no denying that for Australian rugby to be successful, NSW must be strong. There is every indication that is indeed the case.