Cheika's chaotic culture in crisis

There is another interpretation! Australia are having a crisis of confidence and Cheika is talking up the team and the players at the expense of referees/luck/accountability to bolster a fragile morale.

And from the EARU's very own rugby.com.au a couple of days earlier: https://www.rugby.com.au/news/2017/08/04/10/54/rebels-vru-sale

So yes - there was more to come.....the headline says it all: Rugby Australia emails show Western Force didn’t stand a chance Details have surfaced in an email, obtained by The Sunday Times, that was sent from RA’s former legal counsel Richard Hawkins to VRU chairman Tim North. It was sent on July 11 2017, less than a month before RA closed the Force. It was also addressed to RA chief executive Bill Pulver and head of professional rugby Anthony French. Hawkins said a Deed of Amendment was needed for the put option for transferring ownership of the Rebels to the VRU because it “doesn’t quite work for what we are all contemplating here”. https://www.perthnow.com.au/sport/rugby-union/rugby-australia-emails-show-western-force-didnt-stand-a-chance-ng-b88678742z Thanks for your efforts Nick Taylor. Below is the article on 6 August 2017 in which the ARU claimed to have been blindsided by the Rebels when news leaked of the ownership transfer on Friday night (4 August). http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-08-06/melbourne-rebels-confirm-transfer-of-super-rugby-licence-to-vic/8779434

Simon Cron

Pleasing to see Wayne Smith back from holidays: ""The Australian Securities and Investments Commission is hop­ing to reach a decision soon on whether to take further action against Rugby Australia in line with recommendations made by a Senate inquiry. The Senate inquiry was set up primarily to investigate how Rugby Australia — then known as the Australian Rugby Union — reached its controversial decision to axe Western Force in an effort to save the cash-strapped code and so ensure the other four teams become competitive again in Super Rugby. In the course of its investigations, however, the inquiry concentrated heavily on the ARU’s financial dealings with the other club named as being on the endangered list, Melbourne Rebels. The committee recommended that “the Australian Securities and Investments Commission review the evidence received by the committee regarding transactions involving the Melbourne Rebels”. It also proposed that ASIC “review the financial circumstances reported in the Australian Rugby Union’s annual reports against the evidence presented to the committee”. An ASIC spokesman told The Weekend Australian yesterday that the matter was being investi­gated. “We did note the recommendations and we’re currently considering the matter,” he said. “We would hope to respond as soon as possible, not too long from now.” The unwritten assumption from the Senate committee is that it believed there were irregularities at the former ARU and it was ASIC’s job to determine whether there was a breach of corporation law. ASIC would then need to consider if a prosecution was in the public interest. Although rugby in the West will hold a public forum on ­December 10 to keep the faithful appraised of developments on Andrew Forrest’s Indo Pacific Rugby Championship, there is no question the code is suffering. Further evidence was provided yesterday when the Brisbane Global Tens organisers revealed there would be no WA team in the 12-team tournament at Suncorp Stadium on February 9-10. “We tried extremely hard to find a way to continue to include a team from WA in next year’s tournament,” Brisbane Global Rugby Tens chief executive Rachael Carroll said. “Sadly, during negotiations with several parties it became clear that we would not be able to guarantee that a WA team would be able to meet the player quality obligations of a Super Rugby side.” Yet given that players such as Ben McCalman, Curtis Rona, Pek Cowan, Matt Hodgson, Angus Cottrell, Heath Tess­mann and even Nick Cummins have not committed themselves to any Super Rugby side yet, it is puzzling why a WA team can’t be raised, especially if the leading lights of the Perth Spirit NRC side are thrown in. A change of RA chief executive would surely help the healing process in the West but there is no clear indication a ­replace­ment will be found for Bill Pulver before the final board meeting this year on December 18."" GO ASIC......... http://www.theaustralian.com.au/sport/rugby-union/asic-weighs-up-action-against-rugby-australia-after-force-cull/news-story/4973e89301c64a6daa52e8d76960221d

Great piece. Nails it. Accountability-free zone.

I don't think the senate can do much ASIC may be able to however

Force Fan, Thank you for that information. Cameron Clyne ran rough shod over everybody & everything. He treated the Australian Rugby Public with disdain. What is the procedure if the Senate finds him guilty of misleading & deceptive conduct in relation to the culling of the Western Force?

I agree entirely with these comments.Wallabies should be picked and dropped on form not by contractual obligations including that Fake Captain who never quite makes it in cover defence or close to the ruck or ? anywhere - or wait - the old back inside for the guy with the gas ? Not there now ..And the 5/8 can’t pass or kick and Only now a fast Winger . Give the Coach Captain 5/8 Fake Hannigan Slow Kerebi and a few others a Red Card and pick for a series only.

Some interesting new developments........ Check out the submissions to the Senate Inquiry into the Future of Rugby in Australia . https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Community_Affairs/Futureofrugbyunion/Submissions The Confidential submission #13 has a new attachment which is the minutes of the ARU Board Meeting which was held on 16 August 2016. Item 6.3 .......As such, while the move from 5 to 4 teams in Australia is now considered preferable from both a financial and high performance perspective......... Item 6.4 The Board raised the question of which Australian Super Rugby team would be disbanded in a move from 5 to 4 teams. Mr Clarke noted that a comprehensive review would be conducted before any decision is made in this regard. The timing is very interesting in light of the Alliance Agreement with the Western Force being ratified on 26 August 2016........10 days after the ARU Board Meeting above with no hint to the Western Force or RugbyWA about the culling of an Australian team. Yet another example of the lies, deception and unconscionable conduct by members of the ARU Board in their testimonies before the Senate Inquiry. Feduciary duties of each party in a JV or alliance is to always act in the interest of all parties in the JV or alliance. Can't wait to see how our resident "bush lawyer" responds to this additional titbit of information. We're sure to get some "theoretically speaking" gems of wisdom. But what would others really know? Me? I've only been involved in JVs and AAs with wide contextual application almost continuously over the past 40 years. I understand that more to come this weekend.

Thanks for pointing out the circumstances of Cheika’s appointment. I can’t believe the way McKenzie was treated and the way Beale has been lauded by the sports media this year... he still hasn’t owned up to his part of the McKenzie debacle (nor other players). I hate to say it but we need a broom through the whole system. There are a couple of Super Rugby coaches that may help (particularly Thorne at the Reds) but the system needs an overhaul.

TWAS This email shows that Pulver lied No ifs or buts, he lied Whatever his intentions, whatever he meant to achieve, he was well aware there was a movement afoot to transfer the Rebels to the VRU - whether he was brokering or otherwise facilitating it you may argue - what you can't argue is that he was aware of it. He publicly stated he was blindsided by this turn of events, that he was unaware of it. I don't see any way you can take this, unless you've decided the report is false of which there is no indication.

It always reminds me of "A Few Good Men" - Daniel Kaffee tells his legal team "No matter what's said, don't whisper, don't start furiously writing notes - whatever happens, you look like it's exactly what we expected to happen." You never see the top coaches carrying on like that

Still no article addressing this either here or on Rugby.com.au interesting to see who's covering for who

No irony here, Speak your mind but when you use Junk stats, irrelevant facts or berate people for not having evidence that will stand up in court, this is where it becomes tiresome. When people start to think "Should I write this? TWAS will have something negative or contradictory to say about it and I can't handle that sort of nonsense and won't bother." This is a classic response to bullying that you might want to think about next time you respond to someone's opinion. Here is an example: The Rebels management burned through a tonne of ARU cash. One poster said it was 10 Million your counter argument was that it was only $3M. It was an accurate correction to an exaggeration, but it is still a tonne of cash that was burned through. The argument still holds, just at a lower level. How about: "It was only $3M, but it was still a waste of resource that the ARU should not have allowed to happen" As apposed to: It was 3 Million wasted and that is fine, no problems here, the Force didn't deserve funding parity and it is their fault for losing money.

I tend to use AB's as a reference point for just about everything. They are after all, the worlds best. Cane and Retallic are considered the worlds best at the ruck clean out - moving bodies and disrupting the play for the half back, so it makes sense to use them as an example. So, if Kepu is using the same technique as the gold standard, with the exception of his timing, his technique is fine. I don't agree with your assessment based on the footage. Imagine the Scottish player had done his job properly and was leaning forwards over the ruck attempting a pilfer. The impact would have been over MacMahon, 2 meters sooner and at shoulder height. Instead the Scottish player pivoted sideways and backwards in a "Scared Sh tless" reaction to a 120kg boulder coming at him. (to his credit, I think he had is leg pinned tripping him over) If he had managed to stand up, he had rights to pilfer the ball and needed to be cleared to avoid a turnover or penalty. My stance is that Kepu should not be cleaning out like that, and nor should anyone else. But you can't berate just one player you need to look at a group of offenders.

Wallaby loses are not about the excuses that are about the reasons for the losses. I think most comments have nailed the reasons. The Wallabies owe their ever diminishing supporters heaps after years of sub standard performances and all we get from them is excuses. Hooper played a big part in the departure of Link by adopting his player power attitude, do you remember him referring to non players as staff. Also Beale should have stayed in Pommie land to continue growing up. We are all expected to turn up and support the Wallabies however they rarely turn up. Meanwhile support is diminishing and the Wallabies lose more respect.

To be fair to Hooper, its the nature of his defensive role in the team. Hes there to push the boundaries when we are under pressure and it worked all RC. We just got so smashed in all other areas that he got exposed up north. He's been about our best and most consistent all year.

Doubt that this article would have occured 2 weeks ago before thr England game. M.Cheika had cobbled together a Wallaby Team from the Super Rugby Teams who had a horrific record against NZ Super Rugby teams, something like 0-27. They went within a whisker of winning the Bledisloe Cup.Sure they have had 2 ordinary games,but credit where credits due.Anyway the ARU don't have the money to pay out his contract. I have been a critic of the "Friends of Sydney University Football Club", they have the power as to who can be a director of the ARU etc,but the Sydney University Club itself must be complimented on it's culture.This is what the President said in their latest Annual Report, " At the heart of our approach has been the adoption of a character-based program. When faced with recruitment and selection decisions we have chosen character over talent, focusing on the demonstrated strengths of gratitude, respect, grit and discipline. " Well done Sydney University.

TWAS, You don't have to be an Accounting Expert to understand the difference between "Concise Financial Report" and "Full Financial Report". You are losing the plot. You showed no respect to Stu B and Force Fan. Apologies?