Roar Guru
Joined November 2016
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Location: Western Australia ----------------------- Rugby team: Western Force ----------------------- AFL team: Dockers
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There has been a lot of talk in the past week about what Fremantle should and should not be doing vis a vis trades…
I was lucky enough to attend the inaugural game of World Series Rugby last night between the new Western Force and Fiji A (Warriors).…
Good one Ben. However I can confirm that most Kiwis reckon they owe Australia a favour for taking Russell Crowe (if they even think about it at all). They are in fact still more concerned with under arm bowling.
The insurmountable problem facing Australian rugby in a doomed rivalry with New Zealand
That’s a good yolk
Rugby Australia announce $9.2m deficit, board member fails to be re-elected but coup falls over
It makes you think a bit, doesn’t it. Although 2015 needed a (wait for it) assistance package to bail the Rebels out.
Rugby Australia announce $9.2m deficit, board member fails to be re-elected but coup falls over
Not as bad a result as I had feared. Reset, move forward.
Rugby Australia announce $9.2m deficit, board member fails to be re-elected but coup falls over
My initial response was to somewhat agree with you but I then reconsidered and would say this:
That is a short sighted view. There are literally hundreds of companies that run multiple operating site around the world . They all deal with this issue and the resultant solution is the same. The operations are run on site with a strong sense of “team”. The heavy administration lifting is run off site with a strong level of control.
It would be easy to imagine the Rebels being based in Victoria and heavily influenced and involved in Victorian rugby at every level just as they were at inception. Just as easy for the heavy admin load to be carried by RA including general admin, payroll, accounts payable, coaching appointments, player contracts, recruitment etc, with RA intimately in tune with finances etc of the team. This is just the rugby version of a mine site team based approach. It is a proven work model.
I’m not advocating for this, I simply think you have to think outside the square and not be narrow minded. All options should be considered.
The Wrap: Rebels young gun rockets out of Wallabies contention, and why Samipeni Finau's 'brutal' hit on Edmed was fair game
I’m not sure that was overly relevant but it is true 🙂
The Wrap: Rebels young gun rockets out of Wallabies contention, and why Samipeni Finau's 'brutal' hit on Edmed was fair game
I thought that too but it seems there is a difference between their press releases and the actual proposal tabled. A bit hard to decipher all the b*s really.
The Wrap: Rebels young gun rockets out of Wallabies contention, and why Samipeni Finau's 'brutal' hit on Edmed was fair game
Watched the game. So frustratingly inconsistent. The Force tight 5 performed well particularly in the scrums after an anxious first 10 mins. The Highlanders lineout disruption was excellent and really discomforted the Force throw ins to the point where they lost the ability to use lineouts as a weapon.
The Highlanders obviously watched the Crusaders game and made sure they didn’t leave any space on the outside.
Force just couldn’t convert ball into points. The (marginally) best team on the day won. Not too many highlights ????
Western Force 'let slip' another match in huge blow to finals hopes in one-try game - but it's not all bad news
I’m not “implying” anything. The fact is that the Rebels team is on the paddock and playing because RA stepped in and made sure it happened. The day to day aspects of running the team are happening because RA is making it happen. I am sure that there were and probably still are aspects that could be done better or are even not very well done – but that is secondary to the fact the Rebels team are on the paddock. As I said, it’s a left field thought but one that should at least be considered.
The Wrap: Rebels young gun rockets out of Wallabies contention, and why Samipeni Finau's 'brutal' hit on Edmed was fair game
Correct.
The Wrap: Rebels young gun rockets out of Wallabies contention, and why Samipeni Finau's 'brutal' hit on Edmed was fair game
Yes, I do mean in SR for the next two years. I used the word “development” because I think everyone needs to accept that there would be a “development cost” to doing so. Personally if we were very upfront about it I think RA running the Rebels (with shared admin savings) at a loss (known and controlled) every year of (say) $2m p.a. instead of pretending it was financially viable and having to bail it out every 5 years for $10-22m is preferable. I understand others might say we can’t afford it but I suggest maybe we can’t afford not to.
The Wrap: Rebels young gun rockets out of Wallabies contention, and why Samipeni Finau's 'brutal' hit on Edmed was fair game
Geoff, The administrators report explicitly points to improper behaviour by directors in the form of payments made to directors that shouldn’t have been made. Why wouldn’t a reasonable person form the view that ASIC will want to look closer at that?
The Wrap: Rebels young gun rockets out of Wallabies contention, and why Samipeni Finau's 'brutal' hit on Edmed was fair game
Thanks Geoff, as always your comments about the rugby are spot on. Unfortunately your comments about Rebels aren’t.
1. Why would RA support a DOCA that would see people affiliated with the same directors that have been found to act improperly (both trading while insolvent and improper transactions in favour of directors while insolvent)?
2. Why would RA support a proposal where a cornerstone of the proposal is to fund legal action against RA?
3. The DOCA does not preclude or prevent the ATO taking action to recover their funds from Rebels or Rebels directors (as appropriate) so there is no real certainty hat the DOCA outcomes as proposed will be met.
4. There is an option that you have ignored. RA currently owns the Rebels licence. They are running the Rebels rugby this year and it is quite successful. They are running it leaner than Rebels ever did. We don’t know the full cost yet but there remains an option of RA keeping the Rebels licence and running it themselves as a development team. Left field thought I know …..
5. And finally, the consortium hasn’t guaranteed funding , they have said that they have the capacity to raise the funds and will guarantee the first two years. Why wouldn’t RA keep the licence and provide the consortium the use of the licence for two years only under certain conditions (such as providing audited accounts and banning participation by the current Rebels directors)? At the end of that if the consortium has performed then they get an appropriate action, if they haven’t then the licence is in RA’s hands.
The Wrap: Rebels young gun rockets out of Wallabies contention, and why Samipeni Finau's 'brutal' hit on Edmed was fair game
Geoff, if that were their sole purpose then they wouldn’t have made providing funding to launch legal action against RA (and by extension against rugby in Australia) a cornerstone of their proposal.
The Wrap: Rebels young gun rockets out of Wallabies contention, and why Samipeni Finau's 'brutal' hit on Edmed was fair game
He looked pretty quick running away from the opposition wingers
'Run-on debut like no other': Junior Wallabies flyer announces himself to the world after stunning hat-trick
Ok. A couple of years ago the TAHs publicly stated that they had financial issues and they were only spending 90% of their salary cap. They lost most games but sucked it up. At the same time the Rebels traded while insolvent, kept it secret , and spent all of their salary cap and made a huge loss. Which franchise do you think is the fiscally responsible one trying to do it right by their members and supporters?
UPDATE: RA say they were blindsided over Rebels' finances, reject private consortium claim as administrator backs club's survival
Don’t get us wrong mate. We all love the Tah’s. 😂
UPDATE: RA say they were blindsided over Rebels' finances, reject private consortium claim as administrator backs club's survival
I think expecting the governing body to have a full picture of the finances of each franchise is a fair point. You would expect audited annual accounts with a going concern statement to be a minimum standard. Whether it was a condition I don’t know, but I do know that directors doing the wrong thing don’t always ‘fess up when having accounts and reports prepared
UPDATE: RA say they were blindsided over Rebels' finances, reject private consortium claim as administrator backs club's survival
You’d like to think that RA was across the financial performance of all franchises imo. However if Rebels were trading while insolvent and doing improper transactions as found in the Administrators report , then I can understand why RA wasn’t been kept fully informed .
UPDATE: RA say they were blindsided over Rebels' finances, reject private consortium claim as administrator backs club's survival
James, I think quite a few of us received the same treatment. It was obvious that the Rebels directors were in trouble as as soon as the log of claims was made public but not everyone was prepared to see or admit it. In Geoffs defence he isn’t the first fan to allow his love of the club to blind him to the reality of the situation.
UPDATE: RA say they were blindsided over Rebels' finances, reject private consortium claim as administrator backs club's survival
There’s nothing to suggest RA were shadow directors at all. Just a big slur by Rebels directors to misdirect blame for their incompetence.
UPDATE: RA say they were blindsided over Rebels' finances, reject private consortium claim as administrator backs club's survival
I don’t think the TAH’s and Rebels are comparable tbh. The Tahs have proper accounts and good governance and by the look of it they pay their taxes and bills as they are due. They have said publicly that they were struggling but there is nothing to show they were insolvent last year let alone for the last 5 years. Totally opposite to the Rebels who have hidden their real financial position for the last 5 years.
UPDATE: RA say they were blindsided over Rebels' finances, reject private consortium claim as administrator backs club's survival
It was RA that demanded Rebels have a full independent review of their financial situation in early 2023. Reasonable to think they did this after becoming aware of the situation – not before.
UPDATE: RA say they were blindsided over Rebels' finances, reject private consortium claim as administrator backs club's survival
The fact the RA says they provided cash to the Rebels which was supposed to go to the ATO but the Rebels spent it on other things is a huge statement. If there was an agreement signed on this (likely I think) then the Rebels directors have nowhere to hide.
UPDATE: RA say they were blindsided over Rebels' finances, reject private consortium claim as administrator backs club's survival
My heart says the Force. My head says the Chiefs. I hope I am wrong.
The Roar's Super Rugby expert tips and predictions, Round 11: Are the Aussie sides in for an old-fashioned NZ trip to hell?