Why bother with a review??

[Tom Shines]

I'm sure it will.

If you think this is the end of the Wests Tigers being a political hotbed that at times eats itself alive, you're sadly mistaken. From my perspective its really just more of the same.

I'd by lying if I said I didn't think that on the surface, Shane Richardson isn't an upgrade on Pascoe, or that Barry O'Farrell's connections in NSW are not as useful to our club in comparison to our now former chairman.

but come on... This was a total hatchet job!! The replacements were clearly lined up, they're already in place. Bang! Done. I have yet to see any telling points or 'findings' with respect to corporate structure or why the NRL advised structural overhaul made to our board in 2014 is now outdated and needs reform. It's clear the review that was ostensibly there to inspect the structure of the club but it was really an excuse to put in place the (admittedly decent) personnel that Wests had lined up and wanted. Which was my original point.

So I don't see this as the great circuit breaking event in terms of how our club makes decisions. (Just yet). I get anxious when I see new faces at our club trying to mostly import what has worked at other clubs. That just doesn't work here. Shane Richard

Yeah maybe ..

I doubt any Organisation commences down this path without an outcome predetermined …

I mean… given the levels of disfunction …. they arent going to do a “review” and then produce a report saying that all is ok and no changes need to be made…

There have been rumours for months that they have been sounding out the likes of John Coates and others …. I would say the writing has been on the wall for Lee and Pascoe the moment the review was announced …

Also… in respect of the findings and decision making… give it a little bit of time to be announced and worked through…the story got leaked prematurely once again … I wonder how that happened 😄

 

[TIGERS]

Yeah maybe ..

I doubt any Organisation commences down this path without an outcome predetermined …

I mean… given the levels of disfunction …. they arent going to do a “review” and then produce a report saying that all is ok and no changes need to be made…

There have been rumours for months that they have been sounding out the likes of John Coates and others …. I would say the writing has been on the wall for Lee and Pascoe the moment the review was announced …

Also… in respect of the findings and decision making… give it a little bit of time to be announced and worked through…the story got leaked prematurely once again … I wonder how that happened 😄

Thanks for the measured reply man. I'm here to debate and talk about ideas.

I hope that the findings are subsequently released. If there are findings backed up by hard and truly specific evidence, then fine. But I'm not holding my breath.

There is a very specific kind of knowledge required to run Wests Tigers successfully as an exec that I don't think you can actually learn or codify unless you are actually up close to it have been in it for a few years. Both Steve Noyce and Warren McDonnell had their fair share of wooden spoons and abject embarrassment working at Wests Magpies in the late 90s, but at the same time both of them played an absolutely crucial part in all the amazing things happened the mid 2000s that are primarily the reason why we are all (irrationally) still typing here. Tim Sheens had his fair share of wooden spoons before joining us as well.

What would happen if you had asked someone 'review' the club under Steve Noyce in 2002 in a similar fashion to this 2023 review?? Fairly or unfairly, what would the results of that review demonstrated?? How bad were things then? Would it show all the complex nuances and context behind just how difficult it was at that time to keep a joint venture alive let alone successful?? Id venture it would have just would have said.... (X, Y, Z is bad. Hoppa, Terry Hill, etc, club needs this, strategy, jargon, buzzwords..... Improvements in the recruitment department, we need a clear out, bring in someone with experience from a 'big club', do what whatever the roosters do). Think about it, was there ANY demonstrable evidence that the people behind the scenes at WT in 2002 did indeed posses the knowledge to make decisions that put the club on the path to a Premiership? Probably not. But look what they did.

I'm not making any actual comparisons. Maybe Lee and Pascoe truly sucked. There is plenty of evidence for that. But my point is, there are just so many intangible elements that go into making the right decisions at this club. These elements are not always readily apparent and can't ever be fully or accurately measured by outsider perspective or by counting volume of wooden spoons the club has won in recent history

Anyways. If this shank job actually does the trick I'll be happy about it nonetheless.

 

[Tom Shines]

Thanks for the measured reply man. I'm here to debate and talk about ideas.

I hope that the findings are subsequently released. If there are findings backed up by hard and truly specific evidence, then fine. But I'm not holding my breath.

There is a very specific kind of knowledge required to run Wests Tigers successfully as an exec that I don't think you can actually learn or codify unless you are actually up close to it have been in it for a few years. Both Steve Noyce and Warren McDonnell had their fair share of wooden spoons and abject embarrassment working at Wests Magpies in the late 90s, but at the same time both of them played an absolutely crucial part in all the amazing things happened the mid 2000s that are primarily the reason why we are all (irrationally) still typing here. Tim Sheens had his fair share of wooden spoons before joining us as well.

What would happen if you had asked someone 'review' the club under Steve Noyce in 2002 in a similar fashion to this 2023 review?? Fairly or unfairly, what would the results of that review demonstrated?? How bad were things then? Would it show all the complex nuances and context behind just how difficult it was at that time to keep a joint venture alive let alone successful?? Id venture it would have just would have said.... (X, Y, Z is bad. Hoppa, Terry Hill, etc, club needs this, strategy, jargon, buzzwords..... Improvements in the recruitment department, we need a clear out, bring in someone with experience from a 'big club', do what whatever the roosters do). Think about it, was there ANY demonstrable evidence that the people behind the scenes at WT in 2002 did indeed posses the knowledge to make decisions that put the club on the path to a Premiership? Probably not. But look what they did.

I'm not making any actual comparisons. Maybe Lee and Pascoe truly sucked. There is plenty of evidence for that. But my point is, there are just so many intangible elements that go into making the right decisions at this club. These elements are not always readily apparent and can't ever be fully or accurately measured by outsider perspective or by counting volume of wooden spoons the club has won in recent history

Anyways. If this shank job actually does the trick I'll be happy about it nonetheless.

Watch the whole Richo conference …. He handled the Juornos with an ease I havent seen by anyone connected with the Tigers ( coach CEO or Chairmen) previously … he has no “specific knowledge of Wests Tigers” but I believe given his background he could turn this club around …

Cant dwell on the past … he is a fresh start … now I predict people will start worrying about wnether he is only here for six months or hopefully it’s a couple of years …

 

[Magpie_Magic]

Watch the whole Richo conference …. He handled the Juornos with an ease I havent seen by anyone connected with the Tigers ( coach CEO or Chairmen) previously … he has no “specific knowledge of Wests Tigers” but I believe given his background he could turn this club around …

Cant dwell on the past … he is a fresh start … now I predict people will start worrying about wnether he is only here for six months or hopefully it’s a couple of years …

100%.

But he was on his way with or without a review.

Wanted to work with benji and Morris who were appointed by dissolved board.

Board changes were coming also.

Review just sped things up and created some destabilisation.

 

[Halbrowne61]

This is one of the rare times I would say this is a positive. You reap what you sow. Hopefully the plan is for Richardson to be here a long time.

I have another view that he may not be CEO beyond the 6 months, provided he can put ideas/plans in place that others can follow.

 

[Tom Shines]

I have another view that he may not be CEO beyond the 6 months, provided he can put ideas/plans in place that others can follow.

6 months is too short a time IMO…

 

[Halbrowne61]

6 months is too short a time IMO…

I don’t disagree, just feel that his appointment may be more a consultancy. Anyway, happy he’s here and hope however long it is, he can lift us forward.

 

[Champ1]

"Inability to set and maintain a strategic direction / 5 year plan" = Tim Sheens resigned mate. It wasn't the Board. The 5 year plan simply meant 2 years with Sheens as our interim-coach and then a 3 year contract for Benji. It was a 5 year succession plan. It was never this Phil Gould style magical penrith-esq roadmap thing that the hack journos have cracked it up to be. Tim Sheens will be succeeded by Benji. The main end result of said plan was Benji Marshall becoming our Head Coach and that is precisley what has ended up happening. Its been the least tulmutious or acrimonious change of head coach this club has ever gone through.

"What do a local real estate agent, a painter and a former musician have to add to the running of a modern professional sporting organisation?" = They dont ''run'' the professional sporting organisation. Thats the executive and the football department's Job. Board members represent club members and other stakeholders, vote on who is CEO and Coach, and approve key exec decisions. (A somewhat well known actor owns South Sydney FYI and they don't do so bad.)

''Off the field we go from one blunder to another,'"
Like what specifically?? Beyond News Corp windups and hack jobslike Anzac Jerseys.

"There is something fundamentally wrong in our club"
Look, the fundimental problem often shifts. Its hasn't always been the same people at the helm. The problems that has inhibited our clubs success have not been a consistent thread. There have really been 3 development cycles where different coaches and regimes have either got it wrong or have been unlucky.


If the external reviewers know so much, why aren't they running football clubs?

Just read this old post. Sounds like a board member, a CEO or chairman masquerading as a punter trying to justify the pathetic job the former managment had done . Thank goodness for that review & the result!

 

[Tucker]

Just read this old post. Sounds like a board member, a CEO or chairman masquerading as a punter trying to justify the pathetic job the former managment had done . Thank goodness for that review & the result!

Yep, 100% a club shill.

 

[innsaneink]

I have another view that he may not be CEO beyond the 6 months, provided he can put ideas/plans in place that others can follow.

If we need another CEO in six months I dunno why they'd wish to follow their predecessor, you don't get to that level in business doing things the way others do them