actually Happy you're completely missing the point by reading into the article support for all the negative things that you find wrong with the club atm. Unfortunately almost none of it is fact - pretty much all of it is opinion without any actual evidence backing it up. And everyone has an opinion…
Lets look at the article para by para:
The Wests Tigers have just a couple of months to get their act together at the top or face the possibility of a season of angst on and off the field. - no facts at all - I happen to agree with it but the same thing has been written countless times in threads in this forum that actually back this statement up with at least some analysis of the various sides of the argument.
**The news coming out of Tigers HQ** since their final game this year has been predominantly bad and incoming coach Mick Potter **could have** major issues to deal with by way of on-field morale, as well as sour player relationships with officials. - ie. i've read the forum and some people think this. Personally I think the news of Potter in is fantastic. Sour player/official relationships - might be true but I reckon it's certainly not true in all cases. As in any workplace not everyone will get along. Deal with it.
**I am painting a rather bleak scenario** [because it means people will read this and some will agree with me because it's human nature and it will get me audience] here but there are so many factors pulling against the joint venture club that good times seem aeons away. - Actually, I personally think good times are within the next 2 seasons. But I wasn;t the 'one fan' he discussed his story with.
In recent days, highly regarded Dave Trodden stepped down from his position as alternate chairman. He will immediately be replaced by Balmain Tigers’ nominee Nick DiGirolamo - WOOHOO AT LAST 2 FACTS! - before the Wests Magpies nominee – said to be former ABC weatherman Mike Bailey – takes the chair. (the Mike Bailey bit appears to be supposition for now but will probably be true. He didn;t get these facts from actually talking to anyone or doing any sort of investigation - he read a press release which has been posted everywhere)
Trodden said he stepped aside to allow a new man to fill the hot seat and bring fresh ideas and maybe even a new modus operandi to the administration. - yep, straight from the press release again. Quality journalism skills required there and gives no idea of what that new modus operandi may be or what some fresh ideas might help with. Wouldn;t want to actually think eh tim. Regurtitation is far easier.
Fair enough, he had done the job for eight years but **I believe** vacating the chair at this point in time could hinder more than help the club over a difficult period in its history. - why do you belive this? spoken to anyone with actual knowledge? what can you actually add here mr prentice other than a completely uninformed opinion? Again, a stopped clock tells the right time once a day so it might be right but only by chance. There's penty of information here in the forum that provides much better analysis of the situation and is worth reading to actually learn something from.
There are other formidable bumps in the road that will need plenty of smoothing:
* The controversial exit of long time coach Tim Sheens and a long-running, payout dispute
- FACT - well done!
*The loss of star players Beau Ryan and Chris Heighington to Cronulla - FACTish - yes they've gone to Cronulla. Personally (as discussed in many places in the forum with actual reasoned discourse) neither Ryan nor Heigho are superstars and as a football team we are, in my opinion, better off without them - and the return of their best forward, Gareth Ellis, to England - Gareth missed most of last season, Robbie was better than him and tbh Woods was probably better when his contribution across the season was actually examined. ie. very dodgy opinion misstated as a fact.
* The axing of the Wests team from the State Cup (leaving a Balmain Tigers stand-alone unit) - blatant attempt to further stir up trouble (and therefore audience) by stating a complete lie as a fact.
* Increasing uncertainty over the future of Leichhardt Oval along with Balmain Leagues Club - FACT (as far as a wonderfully nebulous line like 'increasing uncertainty' can be factual. thanks for summarising what took many pages to discuss with actual information into one thought bubble sound bite. Scoop!)
Heck, the good people of Newcastle think they have troubles on the horizon. The Wests Tigers have plenty – and they are much closer at hand. They are right here, right now. - Heck! and…....
I had some **recent conversations with some ardent Wests Tigers fans** and they are willing to overlook most of the administrative dramas but rate the loss of key men Heighington and Ryan to the Sharks as “unforgivable.” - hahahah i read some forum posts and picked the ones that agreed with my plan to get audience!
The popular Ryan left because the Tigers administration kept promising to present him a long-term contract but failed to deliver over two seasons. - first i've heard of the 2 seasons bit - but I do agree the way this played out was dodgy - good result with Beau leaving though to be blunt. As a para in an 'article' this is sloppy and gives nothing new, no analysis or no explanation of the point he is supposedly trying to make. He's hanging it out there so people can run off frothing at the mouth.
Ryan, a dedicated Tigers man, insists he had to leave because the Sharks offered him guaranteed security – a contract on a table and even a pen to sign on the dotted line. see above, he obviously watched that episode of the footy show, or read the many many times it got rewritten elsewhere.
**From what I hear**, the Tigers playing group were shocked and bitterly upset when Ryan and Heighington joined Cronulla. yep - Benji even cried! From what i've heard, they got over it. And there's also been whispered discussions that some players think that Beau mucked around too much at training... Take your pick - it's all freely available and already discussed gibber.
**One supporter** told me he believed Ryan and Heighington (plus lion-hearted English import Ellis) were the salt of the team while flashier types such as Benji Marshall and Robbie Farah took most of the bows and credit for any WT success. - "One supporter" this is the funniest, sloppiest, most insulting to a reader's intelligence para in the article. (oh, & I completely disagree with the one supporter. Sorry of it was you Happy)
If that is the case, the Tigers may struggle for on-field cohesion in 2013\. - yes, we may well - new coach after 11 odd years will do that to a team.
**The Tigers folk I spoke with** were also highly displeased with the signing of Braith Anasta as they consider the Roosters stalwart a player long past his best first grade years. - again - i read a couple of posts on a forum and took the ones I agree with. fwiw I disagree with these 'Tigers folk', but i'm not writing his post.
**One told me he** and his family had bought a season ticket for 2013 but all expected to finish out of finals contention again, even with the addition of a new coach and a handful of new recruits. - woohoo! is this the same 'one' he spoke to earlier? I once spoke to someone who believed that Elvis was still alive. Another stupid paragraph. But again - no question he may be right, although I think we will make the 8 myself. But again, he didn;t ask me as I wasn;t sitting beside him at the pub after his 15th schooner.
Stephen Humphreys, the club’s CEO, seems to be a very capable operator, and I notice that most speak in glowing terms of his ability. He may need to become the ultimate peacemaker as the merger is working anything but smoothly. - FACT on the merger not working smoothly - he probablty could have gone into that story a bit more. There's hundreds of pages here that he could have cribbed info from. Obviously no actual club sources with valid knowledge could be bothered talking to him. Or he couldn;t be bothered asking them.
Perhaps the turmoil will act as a galvanising agent for the club and its players as they prepare in earnest for 2013\. Sometimes, great strength is a product of adversity in sports. - yep, another nothing para.
If it isn’t in the Wests Tigers camp, watch for persistent storm clouds to swirl over the golden west for much of the coming season. - and finishes up with a lovely weather analogy. Thanks tim - you're about as talented as a toenail clipping.
\
\
geeze, I really have too much time on my hands atm.
