Taking a wrecking ball to the club! (Recent Media Reports)

[Lauren]

Why ? The kids have no intrinsic connection to the foundation clubs outside of nostalgia , and legacy , which is really only ever presented to them via someone older .
The connection they have , and quite frankly need to have , is to the brand wests tigers .
Otherwise they have misplaced loyalties , and get stuck .
What value is there for a kid to come through with undying loyalty to Balmain , only for that to not transcend to the main club .
I don’t understand the necessity for pathways to be strong on legacy .
It should all be funnelled towards the idea of wearing a wests tigers jersey , and whatever that means as a club identity.
It’s because of this separation IMHO , why the storm were able to poach Ryan Hoffman , why a kid from Camden only ever had eyes for the roosters , why kids from the Balmain district are constantly lost to Souths .
There’s no intrinsic loyalty to wests tigers because that’s the jersey they put on when they playing youth rep footy .
It’s the big advantage Penrith have . The youth train on 1 side of the field , the nrl team on the other , and it’s all borderline manipulative strategies to create a loyalty.
They’re a Penrith ride or die before they even realise it . This is what we need to get to for our juniors .

Sorry, I probably should’ve clarified myself better in my original post. My point wasn’t about holding onto tradition, but rather about explaining why it’s practical to have Balmain and Wests Magpies representatives on the Wests Tigers board - primarily for our junior pathways.
I don't know why you've twisted it.
Regarding the concern about disconnection from the Wests Tigers identity, last year several Campbelltown juniors stated they dreamed of being Wests Tigers players. Another player from Balmain, Tony Sukkar, expressed the same sentiment. These juniors understand that they are being developed to play for Wests Tigers and that’s where their focus lies. They view themselves as part of the Wests Tigers junior pathway systems.

 

[coivtny]

It's good that the board is now setup, lets hope the independents are indeed independent and bring value to the club.

The issue for HBG to be run professionally is next. There's simply no way that anyone can justify the debenture system. Saying that a bunch of people who donated $100 a few decades ago have a permanent right to manage the club forever is absurd, totally unprofessional. How can anyone argue against wanting HBG to be run by sound businesspeople with acumen and a proven track record of success?

Would you let a hot dog vendor manage your finances? Would you want a student studying an arts degree to give you a root canal surgery? No. Jobs require skills. Being on a board requires skills. Either you have them or you get democratically replaced by someone who does.

I’m asking this with respect. Why is it any of your concern how HBG is run now that an independent board is in place to run WT. if you are a member of the club I could see some reason to be interested but if you are just a fan of WT then I’m not sure why you’d care any more than I care about how Canterbury Leagues is run. Not trying to start a war here, just interested.

 

[Spartan117]

I’m asking this with respect. Why is it any of your concern how HBG is run now that an independent board is in place to run WT. if you are a member of the club I could see some reason to be interested but if you are just a fan of WT then I’m not sure why you’d care any more than I care about how Canterbury Leagues is run. Not trying to start a war here, just interested.

My concern was and still is somewhat is that the HBG board also has/had spots on the WT Board at the same time.

There was little to no segregation and whilst the HBG directors may have been excellent at running their other business they had no idea how to hire and support good Rugby League leaders.

Just look at how good the club is now with Richo,

The previous Board(s)should have recognised poorly performing leadership / culture.

 

[Magpie_Magic]

With repect to the juniors it's up tho HBG who funds both and the respective junior leagues to decide what they're called.

But it could be explored that the Wests Magpies juniors are simply called WESTS.

And the Balmain juniors are simply called TIGERS.

This naturally denotes pathways into the Wests Tigers whilst providing visibility to both parent JV clubs as well as providing visibility for Wests Ashfield.

 

[coivtny]

My concern was and still is somewhat is that the HBG board also has/had spots on the WT Board at the same time.

There was little to no segregation and whilst the HBG directors may have been excellent at running their other business they had no idea how to hire and support good Rugby League leaders.

Just look at how good the club is now with Richo,

The previous Board(s)should have recognised poorly performing leadership / culture.

I agree to a point particularly when referring to the past but from here on HBG has one spot on a 7 person board and I just don’t think that gives WT fans any say in how the HBG board is constituted.

 

[weststigers]

On paper, things look promising. Good mix of experience and sounds like each member has a specific role to play based on their experience. Time to give them a chance and see how they go without too much noise from us lot.

 

[Spartan117]

I agree to a point particularly when referring to the past but from here on HBG has one spot on a 7 person board and I just don’t think that gives WT fans any say in how the HBG board is constituted.

I can see your point.

I would like to see our board being truly independent of the HBG and focused on the Wests Tigers Club

 

[Magpie_Magic]

I can see your point.

I would like to see our board being truly independent of the HBG and focused on the Wests Tigers Club

That’s yesterday's news.

 

[Magpie_Magic]

It's good that the board is now setup, lets hope the independents are indeed independent and bring value to the club.

The issue for HBG to be run professionally is next. There's simply no way that anyone can justify the debenture system. Saying that a bunch of people who donated $100 a few decades ago have a permanent right to manage the club forever is absurd, totally unprofessional. How can anyone argue against wanting HBG to be run by sound businesspeople with acumen and a proven track record of success?

Would you let a hot dog vendor manage your finances? Would you want a student studying an arts degree to give you a root canal surgery? No. Jobs require skills. Being on a board requires skills. Either you have them or you get democratically replaced by someone who does.

Skills what skills?

Just pokies and the need to keep the lights on.

 

[balmain boy]

I’m asking this with respect. Why is it any of your concern how HBG is run now that an independent board is in place to run WT. if you are a member of the club I could see some reason to be interested but if you are just a fan of WT then I’m not sure why you’d care any more than I care about how Canterbury Leagues is run. Not trying to start a war here, just interested.

Because they're the owners of Wests Tigers. Why would anyone want owners who don't have a clue what they're doing? They don't have the skills for the positions they hold, it's that simple. They've held Wests Tigers and Wests Magpies back for a long time (as have the Balmain board to the Balmain Tigers).

If Balmain had one or two business minded individuals on the board in the 90s they would have bought the site of Le Montage for a million bucks and turned it into a massive revenue generator for the club. Instead they had unqualified buffoons (who might mean well) that ultimately don't have the acumen to make business decisions. The club was broke a decade later due to these poor decisions. Wests and Balmain are still run by the same buffoons who've run them for decades, and how much success have they brought each respective club over the past few decades?? Very little.

Imagine what qualified people could do for our junior pathways programs and leagues clubs rather than having morons that just want power and to squabble like seagulls on a chip at every opportunity. Their time has passed. These ancient clubs still have 3 representatives on the WT board, these same people have been responsible for decades of failures.

And yes I am a member of HBG. I haven't been to Ashfield for a while as the club is a #$%!hole. There's absolutely no reason for anyone to go there, other than to gamble. Crappy little sports bar, crap food, boring drinks, no atmosphere, parking a nightmare. Imagine what competent board members could help Cook (the only one with an ounce of acumen) do. The Dogs club is a much, much nicer venue that I would gladly visit, if it wasn't for all the Dogs signage everywhere.

 

[coivtny]

Because they're the owners of Wests Tigers. Why would anyone want owners who don't have a clue what they're doing? They don't have the skills for the positions they hold, it's that simple. They've held Wests Tigers and Wests Magpies back for a long time (as have the Balmain board to the Balmain Tigers).

If Balmain had one or two business minded individuals on the board in the 90s they would have bought the site of Le Montage for a million bucks and turned it into a massive revenue generator for the club. Instead they had unqualified buffoons (who might mean well) that ultimately don't have the acumen to make business decisions. The club was broke a decade later due to these poor decisions. Wests and Balmain are still run by the same buffoons who've run them for decades, and how much success have they brought each respective club over the past few decades?? Very little.

Imagine what qualified people could do for our junior pathways programs and leagues clubs rather than having morons that just want power and to squabble like seagulls on a chip at every opportunity. Their time has passed. These ancient clubs still have 3 representatives on the WT board, these same people have been responsible for decades of failures.

And yes I am a member of HBG. I haven't been to Ashfield for a while as the club is a #$%!hole. There's absolutely no reason for anyone to go there, other than to gamble. Crappy little sports bar, crap food, boring drinks, no atmosphere, parking a nightmare. Imagine what competent board members could help Cook (the only one with an ounce of acumen) do. The Dogs club is a much, much nicer venue that I would gladly visit, if it wasn't for all the Dogs signage everywhere.

That's a lot to unpack so I think we should just agree to disagree. Never been to Canterbury but, like you, I'm a member of HBG and don't mind Wests Ashfield for a feed.

 

[Magpie_Magic]

It's good that the board is now setup, lets hope the independents are indeed independent and bring value to the club.

The issue for HBG to be run professionally is next. There's simply no way that anyone can justify the debenture system. Saying that a bunch of people who donated $100 a few decades ago have a permanent right to manage the club forever is absurd, totally unprofessional. How can anyone argue against wanting HBG to be run by sound businesspeople with acumen and a proven track record of success?

Would you let a hot dog vendor manage your finances? Would you want a student studying an arts degree to give you a root canal surgery? No. Jobs require skills. Being on a board requires skills. Either you have them or you get democratically replaced by someone who does.

The charge that the directors and management of HBG lack qualifications or skills is groundless when these people have been involved in a positive growing entity.....decades of experience can't be ignored.

Penrith and Cronulla recently got into a decent financial mess with people in charge that may meet your matrix but failed in practice.

It appears you are a minority who is unhappy at WA.

 

[twentyforty]

Again.... Ignorance is bliss.
It wouldn't have been an issue,
If the boards were actually separated and didn't include the same waring individuals.

Richo is anything but ignorant mate.
He’s staying in his own lane and making it known numerous times. By shining a light on this separation of the boards he is also showing a degree of intolerance for those who may be tempted to change lanes.
I agree it wouldn’t have been an issue if the WT board was independent, but it hasn’t been has it? Is there anyone who doesn’t understand this? 😂
This is leadership in action and you’ve seen first hand why Richo has such a good reputation.

 

[BAGNF05]

Richo is anything but ignorant mate.
He’s staying in his own lane and making it known numerous times. By shining a light on this separation of the boards he is also showing a degree of intolerance for those who may be tempted to change lanes.
I agree it wouldn’t have been an issue if the WT board was independent, but it hasn’t been has it? Is there anyone who doesn’t understand this? 😂
This is leadership in action and you’ve seen first hand why Richo has such a good reputation.

Im sure his big trap has got him into plenty of Barney’s but you gotta love his honesty.

 

[batboy]

Richo is anything but ignorant mate.
He’s staying in his own lane and making it known numerous times. By shining a light on this separation of the boards he is also showing a degree of intolerance for those who may be tempted to change lanes.
I agree it wouldn’t have been an issue if the WT board was independent, but it hasn’t been has it? Is there anyone who doesn’t understand this? 😂
This is leadership in action and you’ve seen first hand why Richo has such a good reputation.

Agree - I was replying to the same comment you replied to by expanding on your comment.
the previous garbage was ignorant.

The Magpies blowhards are trying to convince everyone there was no issue with the board
- when half their board just sacked the other half (in what seems like a long thought out process, with instances from years back)
after the remaining group took the chair from the ousted group members a year or so prior.
And most of these folks involved have served the WT's board at this time...

Yeah right - no issue at all!!

 

[gallagher]

Agree - I was replying to the same comment you replied to by expanding on your comment.
the previous garbage was ignorant.

The Magpies blowhards are trying to convince everyone there was no issue with the board
- when half their board just sacked the other half (in what seems like a long thought out process, with instances from years back)
after the remaining group took the chair from the ousted group members a year or so prior.
And most of these folks involved have served the WT's board at this time...

Yeah right - no issue at all!!

No issue according to Richo. But you go with the social media guys. They know what's really going on. 😅

 

[Lestronge]

Sorry, I probably should’ve clarified myself better in my original post. My point wasn’t about holding onto tradition, but rather about explaining why it’s practical to have Balmain and Wests Magpies representatives on the Wests Tigers board — primarily for our junior pathways. That's it.

I don't know why you've twisted this into something else.

Regarding the concern about disconnection from the Wests Tigers identity, last year several Campbelltown juniors stated they dreamed of being Wests Tigers players. Another player from Balmain, Tony Sukkar, expressed the same sentiment. These juniors understand that they are being developed to play for Wests Tigers and that’s where their focus lies. They view themselves as part of the Wests Tigers pathway development systems.

I didn’t twist anything . You said one thing , and I replied to that thing with I believe the correct response . My opinion of course .
Now you’re clarifying , which is fine , so obviously that will potentially lead to a different response . Naturally .
As for what you’re saying about the players . It’s all good to use the ones that have bought in as examples , and it’s awesome and really good to hear.
But my point is directed at the kids who are on the fence , and not entirely sold.
They’re the ones that we need to engage , and get over the line .
We just lost Onitoni Large . Israel Folau , Ryan Hoffman , James Tedesco (he’s probably not a good example , as it was wests tigers who screwed that up , not some lack of engagement ) .
These are the kids Penrith are finding a way to keep .
Phil Gould himself spoke about the power of having the academy boys train near the nrl team .
Manchester United do the same thing / similar . The fields are near each other so you can look across the fence and see the first team training , and let your mind wander .
It’s a powerful tool , of which we don’t have . Hopefully with the academy being built /COE there will ways the team can manufacture this . But I’m still of the belief I think the 3 regions being under different banners undermines this .
And it’s obvious with the Balmain/ wests nonsense on here . That’s not even really relevant to what the issues were with the review , but somehow still became the main talking points . Too many people stuck in the past , in positions of influence .
A holistic approach IMO is the only way forward . But like I said , if I’m wrong , then I’m wrong . And it’s kind of thing I’d be happy to be wrong about . Because I’ve still got my Balmain jersey . There’s a lot of nostalgia there . I’m just not one to get stuck in the past . I see it as necessary for telling your story , but am absolute anchor for moving forward most of the time .

 

[Magpie_Magic]

No issue according to Richo. But you go with the social media guys. They know what's really going on. 😅

Just like dyed in the wool Magpies bringing buck the maggies.

Plenty of science fiction being pedled.

 

[Lestronge]

No issue according to Richo. But you go with the social media guys. They know what's really going on. 😅

Why can’t both be true ?
Richo puts out the fires , the social media guys point out the fires are there.
I don’t understand how the idea that HBG were dragging thier heels and needed a kick in the butt , externally , helped Richo get the review completed , is being dismissed as complete fiction. It’s as plausible as it is implausible.
I don’t know the truth . But with the announcement yesterday , and the finality of that announcement , I don’t see what harm the petition did . Outside of rightfully IMO , point out the ongoing issues at the governance level . If anything it helped lower the bar that much more , to make the announcement all the more appear to be this magic fix .
It’s obviously not , it’s a long road ahead now , but I don’t really see where the harm was .

 

[gallagher]

Why can’t both be true ?
Richo puts out the fires , the social media guys point out the fires are there.
I don’t understand how the idea that HBG were dragging thier heels and needed a kick in the butt , externally , helped Richo get the review completed , is being dismissed as complete fiction. It’s as plausible as it is implausible.
I don’t know the truth . But with the announcement yesterday , and the finality of that announcement , I don’t see what harm the petition did . Outside of rightfully IMO , point out the ongoing issues at the governance level . If anything it helped lower the bar that much more , to make the announcement all the more appear to be this magic fix .
It’s obviously not , it’s a long road ahead now , but I don’t really see where the harm was .

Plausible, implausible you may be right. I'm just going on what our CEO said. He called it ridiculous and petty.
I'm gonna go with him, not with people outside the organisation.
I don't think it caused harm either, never said it did. I actually said last week that all it did was cause a forum argument. It had no effect on the club.