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Well wouldn't that be an ideal scenario here đ đ work your magic smPrior owners bailed
Governing body taken over
Well wouldn't that be an ideal scenario here đ đ work your magic sm
Who here actually received a call?Why interim Tigers boss Shaun Mielekamp is sitting down with frustrated fans for coffee
It takes a brave man to front up to success-starved Wests Tigers fans, but interim CEO Shaun Mielekamp isnât the kind of guy to take the easy way out. Meet the club boss doing things differently.
Pamela Whaley
February 22, 2026 - 12:00PM
Shaun Mielekamp, the man behind Usain Boltâs internationally famous stint at Central Coast Mariners and Penrithâs Pink Panthers jersey, is now turning his attention to the Wests Tigers with the difficult task of uniting and reassuring a fan base scarred by past traumas.
Interim CEO since a sensational boardroom breakdown in December which cost his close mentor and former club boss Shane Richardson his position, Mielekamp does not yet have job assurance, but he makes up for it in confidence.
In the few short months heâs been in charge, the decorated sports administrator has had around 60 one-on-one coffees and phone calls with members to hopefully help frustrated fans feel heard.
https://www.supercoach.com.au/nrl/?source_code=SCWEB_EDL2
All they have to do is ask.
âWeâve had three fan forums and a 1000 coffees and a 1000 phone calls. A lot of one on ones,â Mielekamp tells this masthead.
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Wests Tigers chief executive Shaun Mielekamp. Picture: Tigers
âMembers call up, they book in a time and I go and catch up with a coffee, give them a tour.
âI wanted to give the members the opportunity to hear from each other as there are so many questions.
âSo thereâs been a lot, itâs been really positive, and itâs been a really good way for me to hear from the fans exactly their experiences, what theyâre passionate about and for me to assure them theyâve got a voice and itâs being heard.â
You donât often hear of this level of accountability and openness from an NRL boss, especially with a fan base who have been hurt so many times before.
But itâs a job Mielekamp says heâs fallen in love with.
âThose fans are the reason I come to work every day. I have fallen in love with those club and the fan base and the members that are here over the last two years that Iâve been here,â he says.
âAnd they deserve some success. Iâve really got some good friends emerged through from that, but I can see theyâve put in so much of their lives into this club, so for me thatâs what gets me up every morning and keeps me extremely motivated to work as hard as I can for them.â
HOW TO FIND STABILITY
As an administrator, Mielekamp had spent a few years at South Sydney, and then Penrith, followed by Western Sydney Wanderers, before he was approached by the Mariners where he spent nine years before joining the Wests Tigers in 2024.
For the most part, the hardest work has been done to get the club to a competitive standard off the field.
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Mielekamp was once the merchandise/licensing manager at the Panthers.
His job now is to find stability and success, which are the two most common concerns to pop up during three fan forums now.
Others are stadium plans, recruitment, and how to unite two sides of an amalgamated club, which has been a source of tension for years.
Members have been invited to air their concerns, push for answers, and vent, as well as get a tour of the clubâs facilities.
Thereâs one to come in Campbelltown.
Some forums have been more intense than others, but the passion is undeniable.
Itâs an unusual position to be in for Mielekamp too, to reassure fans of the stability of the club from an interim position.
âItâs firstly about being honest, I can only play whatâs in front of me,â he says.
âThe most important thing is a bit of success. On field success, continued success off the field will deliver that stability and thatâs what weâve got to stay focused on.
âSo it is hard to make promises that you canât really fully guarantee. But all I can say is the strategy to stability is through success.â
He plans for the future as if the job is his.
âI do feed back to my past history, I did have a three-month contract that lasted nine years, so it keeps you on your toes, it keeps you driven every day,â he says.
âSo I donât mind it. I relish in this mode. If I just do a cracking on things will take care of themselves.â
Itâs been 21 years since the 2005 premiership, and 14 seasons without a finals appearance.
The frustration is palpable.
âThe important thing is we donât need to get back on track. Internally the four walls here, nothing has changed, so thatâs really the key message to get to the members as well because they donât know and want to really understand what is happening,â he explains.
âBut itâs the same exact team, itâs the same coaching staff, itâs the same playing group.
âAnd it has been two years to build the club to this point.â
Heâs come in just as the team was starting to show signs of promise for future success.
âWinning is a real key part. Through all the changes and the turmoil, the ones who get forgotten sometimes are the players on the field are the players on the field and the members in the stands,â he continues.
âSo making sure the focus is on those guys is what a football club should be doing.â
PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE
On the agenda is stadium planning with Leichhardt Oval to undergo renovations this season, followed by Campbelltown Stadium in 2027.
From a football department, the ongoing development of pathways is crucial.
While Bolt stole a lot of the headlines over Mielekampâs almost nine years with the Mariners, across his tenure they went from âa club on its kneesâ to winning absolutely everything. And producing homegrown talent way key to that success.
âWhile the Usain show was happening, behind the scenes the really hard work was being done by the football staff and team in developing through our academy and our coaches and I see the synergies here,â he says.
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Jamaican sprint legend Usain Bolt arrives at Sydney Airport ahead of his Mariner trial. Picture: AAP Image/Erik Anderson
âIâm really passionate about believing the Wests Tigers can have the best rugby league pathway in the world, but weâve got a long way to go, thereâs a lot of really hard work to get into that and we have to make sure we understand what is the best way to unlock the talent that comes through and keeping that talent at the Wests Tigers.
âSo much of that will come through from coaching, some will come through from the amount of revenue and resources you can drive into that space, but thatâs a big part of this club.â
The main speed bump heâs seeing at the moment is a lack of patience.
âEveryone might be in a bit of a rush at times. Young talent can be flown through really fast instead of being given time to nurture, and just consistency of messages,â he says.
âIf thereâs continual change itâs hard to establish a continual process.
âSo it is something that will take a long slow burn.
âIt took nine years at Central Coast Mariners, Iâm not saying itâs going to take that long, but itâs something we need to be really clear about and stick to the plan.â
SHOOT YOUR SHOT
Heâs unafraid to take big swings.
And while the Tigers donât need the kind of spectacle that was the âUsain Bolt showâ from 2018, his willingness to make a big move ultimately paid off in corporate dollars and international brand recognition, which was a turning point for the Mariners.
The idea to offer the greatest sprinter of all time an A-League contract was first joked about, and then quickly became a reality when a close friend offered him the contact information and he dared ask the question.
âThe player agent came to me and said, âMate, I think youâre the only CEO who would actually listen to this, everyone else is going to hang up the phone to meâ. It was a time,â he says.
What followed was eight weeks of absolute hysteria, paparazzi in bushes, journalists in trees watching training, and around the clock coverage of the worldwide spectacle.
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Usain Bolt is greeted by Mariners CEO Shaun Mielekamp. Picture: Brett Costello
It was brief and controversial, but it worked.
âIt was interesting, it was amazing, I couldnât believe it as it was unfolding. When we had word that Usain was really open to, and genuinely wanted to explore, his football career, to speak to Usain about a genuine journey as an athlete wasnât being presented to him anywhere else around the world,â he explains.
âThey were all talking to him about his brand, and commercials, and money and revenue.
âAnd ultimately our pitch was, âYouâll get treated like a footballer. Youâll come in, youâll be able to train in the pre-season, and weâll treat you like a footballer and continue to stick through from thatâ.
âWhen we played at Campbelltown Stadium and he scored the two goals, we couldnât believe it, but also it was amazing to see his development in such a short space of time as a footballer, and he does have a left foot.â
The biggest takeaway for Wests Tigers fans? Donât ask, donât receive.
Ask the man for a coffee, he might say yes.
On SEN radio this morning
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Wests Tigers interim CEO Shaun Mielekamp (1/4/26)
Podcast Episode ¡ Kick Off with Brandy and Jimmy ¡ 31 March ¡ 12minpodcasts.apple.com
Jimmy smith one of the great tigers death ridersThanks for the link champion @Tigerwould đ
HBG back in the news today. Article on the SMH website. Behind a paywall.
hopefully they can remove this debenture system
The Sydney Morning Herald
The Tigers have begun the season in style. But their owner is under the microscope again
Chris Barrett¡5 min read¡Apr 2, 2026
The owner of Wests Tigers is facing a fresh investigation into a decades-old system that gives 20 people effective control of a $100 million leagues club operation and the NRL joint venture.
The Holman Barnes Group has a 90 per cent stake in the Tigers and holds the balance of power on the NRL teamâs board, as well as running the Wests Ashfield club.
Holman Barnes Group owns Wests Ashfield and Wests Tigers.Matt Willis/Alamy Stock Photo
HBG was cleared by Liquor and Gaming NSW in July after an initial probe into a complaint of board misconduct and governance failures at the organisation, which was formerly known as Western Suburbs Leagues Club.
However, the stateâs clubs regulator said it was investigating again.
âLiquor and Gaming NSW is looking into complaints between December 2025 and January 2026 about the Western Suburbs Leagues Club,â a spokesperson said.
HBG chairman Dennis Burgess (right) pictured with former director Tony Andreacchio in 2021.Edwina Pickles
âThese complaints relate to the operation of a debenture system and the clubâs compliance with the Registered Clubs Act 1976.
âAs these inquiries are ongoing, no further comment can be made at this stage.â
A HBG spokesperson said it had âcomplied with all requests from Liquor and Gaming NSW dating back to late 2024, providing detailed responses and supporting information to their satisfactionâ.
âWe were informed last year that there was no further action to be taken at the time,â the spokesperson said.
https://zero.click/878d9617-fd1a-4d91-9cf3-89c6e3ba567c
âAny subsequent complaints appear to be an extension of the scope of the original complaints, and we will be treating those in full co-operation with the regulator. We take all such matters with utmost professional compliance and will act in accordance with all regulatory requirements.â
HBG is believed to be the only registered club in NSW to continue to operate such a system, in which five of seven board positions must be filled by 20 so-called debenture holders and the clubâs 28,500 members can only vote on the remaining two spots.
The system originated in 1955 with founding members issued with debentures in return for providing $100 each to get the club off the ground.
The debentures are non-transferrable. HBG said they could not be assigned, sold or passed on, including to a relative after a holderâs death, and vacancies were filled by a process in which candidates were considered by a selection committee and the board had final approval. The selection committee is appointed by the board.
Liquor and Gaming NSW last year found the debenture system âto be lawful and not to confer any unlawful or undue advantage to membersâ.
Former Wests Tigers chief executive Shane Richardson (left) pictured with Tigers chairman Barry OâFarrell and independent director Michelle McDowell.Steven Siewert
But it is under the microscope again following a year of upheaval in 2025 in which HBG chair Julie Romero was ousted in a boardroom coup and long-time chief executive Simon Cook also departed.
In December, HBG then axed Tigers chairman Barry OâFarrell and three other Tigers independent directors, who had been installed after a governance review and had held the majority on the board.
HBG cited inadequate communication as their reason for intervening before reinstating the independent directors at the request of the NRL.
But HBGâs representation on the board was increased, ensuring it has the numbers to call the shots despite former NSW premier OâFarrell being chairman.
According to corporate records only two of the independents â OâFarrell and Michelle McDowell â still sit on what is now an eight-member Tigers board.
Tigers chief executive Shane Richardson, who had delivered the clubâs first profit in a decade, quit in response to the board shake-up, walking away with a seven-figure payout after just 18 months of a four-year contract.
HBG also settled late last year with former director Rick Wayde after he brought Supreme Court action against it.
Asked about the cost of legal fees and payouts during the past year, the HBG spokesperson said it âdoes not publicly disclose commercially sensitive information, including legal costs or employment-related payments, unless required to do so under applicable law or regulatory obligations, which in this case it is not required to do soâ.
The Tigers in December also extended the contract of head coach Benji Marshall until the end of 2030.
Marshallâs Tigers have begun the season impressively, defeating the high-flying New Zealand Warriors in Auckland last Friday to rise to third place before their Easter Monday contest against Parramatta at CommBank Stadium.
I dont see how....its ridiculoushopefully they can remove this debenture system
Liquor and Gaming NSW last year found the debenture system âto be lawful and not to confer any unlawful or undue advantage to membersâ.
High demand.Well if he has merchandise experience I hope he improves the Roar Stores service. The last 2 occasions I received a product I didnât order (shirt didnât match the picture) and lost my special order club cap. They attempted to smooth it over by sending some training gear but thatâs not what I wanted. I wanted a cap. You call and they are either closed or it gets put through to someone with no idea. Or the product or size you want is out of stock. Amateur hour.