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Lynagh him up as the next ARU CEO

24th August, 2017
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Michael Lynagh (Photo by Ben Hoskins/Getty Images)
Expert
24th August, 2017
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They say never make a decision when you’re angry, so assuming almost a week is enough time to cool off, can I ask Michael Lynagh to consider this: would you take the reins as the ARU’s next chief executive?

Lynagh’s post-Bledisloe spray not only encapsulated the fury and exasperation a lot of Wallabies fans would’ve been feeling. It also made me think that Bill Pulver’s replacement was sitting in a TV studio in London.

“I can’t overestimate how angry I am at seeing an Australian team who have skills that are non-existent,” said Australia’s 1991 World Cup-winning five-eighth in commentary for Britain’s Sky Sports following the Wallabies’ 54-34 stinker in Sydney.

“Passing and catching and making tackles and trusting the bloke beside you are pretty basic, even at schoolboy level.”

Two weeks ago, just after announcing that the Western Force had been axed from Super Rugby, Pulver added that he would step down as boss of Australian rugby as soon as a replacement could be found.

Don’t call off the search, but ARU HQ should at least be aware that an excellent candidate has been located. In London.

If something good can come from the Sydney slaughter, it’s that Lynagh’s tongue-lashing will hopefully put him in the frame as a genuine contender for Pulver’s job.

And why not?

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Michael Lynagh

Michael Lynagh (Photo by Ben Hoskins/Getty Images)

Some seem willing to blame Pulver for the destruction of Aleppo, which betrays the fact that Australian teams – despite anger over the handling of the Super Rugby expansion and rejigged format – have been woefully underwhelming. Nonetheless, there’s no escaping from the fact the Pulver years have been difficult and his successor will be expected to kick some arse.

Lynagh is 53. He’s got 20-odd years of corporate experience in London.

After he finished his playing career in the English Premiership with Saracens, club owner and chairman Nigel Wray helped Lynagh out with a job and he’s stayed in England ever since. He’s worked in commercial real estate, high-end investment firms and is currently managing director of Europe, Middle East and Africa for media company Dow Jones.

He’s got three sons with his Italian wife. His oldest, Louis, recently won selection in England’s under-16s team. He’s firmly entrenched in England.

But he’s Strayan, awroit! His outburst on Sky proved his 20-year stay in London hasn’t frozen off any love for Australian rugby.

The biggest challenges for the next CEO will be to heal the wounds of the recent cull, bring the states and territories together, solidify the NRC and lead the way when it comes to preparing which direction Australia should go in the post-2020 Super Rugby world.

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In 2002, Lynagh worked for the IRB assisting with rugby’s pitch for reintroduction to the Olympics. His experience in the sports business world isn’t extensive.

But most importantly, Lynagh would be respected. Respected by the professional players, the administrators he would be dealing with and the fans he would be preaching to.

He might lack the coalface sports management CV, but he would be a revered figurehead, he’s long-enough retired and been sufficiently removed from the politics of Australian rugby. Negotiating multi-million dollar television and new media deals might not be his thing, but these big sports bodies tend to rely heavily on top-end corporate consultants anyway.

Give him the job – It’s one way of getting his three sons back in Australia and available for the Wallabies!

Perhaps he can share the role with Nick Farr-Jones?

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