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ARU Governance Report

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Brumby Jack

Steve Williams (59)
It may not be the greatest change but at least it's a start.

It says in the report that the last constitution was written in 1949 and hasn't had much, if any, change since then.
 

louie

Desmond Connor (43)
Can one of more intelligent folks at on the forum explain to an idot like me in simple terms what all this means?
 

Hugh Jarse

Rocky Elsom (76)
There is a lot to like in the report.

Reform must percolated downwards.
Finally, one of the most important ‘next steps’ is for the Member Unions and Super Rugby teams to undertake their own process of Governance reform. In the end, unless the Member Unions and Super Rugby teams match ARU’s efforts, the prospects of success are limited.

Community Rugby Issues
One of the big challenges facing Rugby as a whole, from the grassroots to the elite level, is the lack of understanding or awareness throughout the Rugby community of the vision and purpose of Australian Rugby. As a result, individuals that I met with were uncertain of where their organisation sat within the Rugby system and what their role should be, let alone how they related to the other bodies.

This absence of clarity impacts negatively on many aspects of Rugby; from player development and pathways, talent identification, increasing community participation, communication with stakeholders, and developing revenue sources, including government funding and corporate sponsorship.

The configuration of community Rugby is complicated and fragmented, and this was a point raised throughout the consultation process. Ensuring that everyone, at all levels, has a clear understanding of where they sit, what their role is and how they relate to others is a simple and effective way of making sure the whole show runs more smoothly.

The structure of Community Rugby, while varying significantly between Member Unions, more often than not includes numerous organisations at different levels, many with their own boards and management.

The multiple layers of administration have led in some areas to duplication and inefficiencies of programs and resources between Member Unions and the ARU. There was also a degree of confusion about who is responsible for many aspects of community Rugby, including developing and implementing strategies to grow participation.

In short, the current structure could be said to be delivering mixed results at best. And yet the importance of a healthy community Game cannot be overestimated.

Community Rugby fulfils all those tasks that any parent whose kids take part in weekend sport is familiar with, including organising competitions and representative teams, undertaking programs to recruit and train players and engaging and supporting coaches, match officials and other volunteers.

However, the extent to which community Rugby undertakes these tasks successfully reverberates across all levels of the Game. While the Wallabies might be the financial engine of Australian Rugby, the community Game is its beating heart.

A point agreed by everyone throughout the consultation process was that a strong, sustainable community Game was a prerequisite for the long-term success of Australian Rugby.

Players and their friends and families at the local level are the most compelling advocates for Rugby throughout the broader community. Indeed, developing junior Rugby is more about ensuring the next crop of fans and supporters than it is about identifying future Wallabies. Without this loyal and committed base of support the professional teams are ultimately playing to empty stadiums.

As with the professional Game though, the competition for the hearts, minds and weekends of the Australian public is fierce and it will only get tougher.

While the ARU currently provides significant financial resources for community Rugby to the Member Unions, community Rugby has essentially been left to conduct their own operations.

Promoting greater accountability and clarity throughout the current system is required to increase the successful coordination and delivery of programs and services.

The benefits of increased coordination are clear, including greater leadership and direction, removing layers of duplication and inefficiency, better targeting of resources and improved communication with participants and volunteers.

This will not just ensure that finite resources are utilised more effectively, it will also open up greater opportunities to realise other revenue sources, such as sponsorship, membership fees and government funding. Similarly, it will enable ARU and the Member Unions to more successfully exploit opportunities, for example, by utilising Sevens Rugby to expand into new markets.

This doesn’t necessarily mean centralising community Rugby. Rather, it will ensure that all levels of Rugby are working to a clearly understood and agreed strategy, with common goals and objectives.
 

wamberal

Phil Kearns (64)
It's a start. Intentions matter a lot more than words, of course, as my old mum used to say "fine words butter no parsnips, son".
 

FiveStarStu

Bill McLean (32)
It's an interesting voting system once the union-run teams are taken into account.

RugbyWA would be happy.

NSWRU 3
QRU 3
ACTRU 2
RugbyWA 2
VRU 1
Rebels 1
SARU 1
TASRU 1
NTRU 1
Players 1
 

kronic

John Solomon (38)
Having separate votes for the union and teams is interesting.

Aren't the QRU/Reds and Rugby WA/Force one and the same? IIRC the Brumbies are separate entities, as are the Tahs.
 

matty_k

Peter Johnson (47)
It's an interesting voting system once the union-run teams are taken into account.

RugbyWA would be happy.

NSWRU 3
QRU 3
ACTRU 2
RugbyWA 2
VRU 1
Rebels 1
SARU 1
TASRU 1
NTRU 1
Players 1

I know they will probably vote similarly but you need to separate the Tahs and NSWRU if you are doing the same for VRU and Rebels.
 

Braveheart81

Will Genia (78)
Staff member
I think it is highly unlikely that the Super Rugby vote will differ from the state rugby union vote.

In practice it will just be NSW and Qld having 3 votes, and WA and ACT 2 votes.

I'll be surprised if the Rebels and VRU don't vote as a bloc as well.
 

Hugh Jarse

Rocky Elsom (76)
1 vote for the professional elite outfits.

1 Vote for the Community outfits (2 if you are big).

At least 4 parties needed for a majority vote.

Seems about right.
 

kronic

John Solomon (38)
SEN (Melbourne Sports Talkback) just had Rebecca Wilson on to discuss the findings. Geez, one of the biggest scum journos on the face of the earth.

Had no idea about the report, more Anti-Rugby jibberish. Wish these tools would just f**k off.
 

Scarfman

Knitter of the Scarf
Why will it have a short term focus?

Compared that to he NSW centric system we have now I don’t see how that structure can be a bad thing.

I'm not convinced that all the ails of rugby are NSW's fault. I'm happy to reduce the NSW vote, as has been done, but that doesn't per se, solve anything.

If you judge administrators on one or two year cycles, you have a bunch of administrators motivated to reap short-term rewards, that's all.

But look, some of the detail quoted above looks encouraging, so let's see.
 

Hugh Jarse

Rocky Elsom (76)
SEN (Melbourne Sports Talkback) just had Rebecca Wilson on to discuss the findings. Geez, one of the biggest scum journos on the face of the earth.

Had no idea about the report, more Anti-Rugby jibberish. Wish these tools would just f**k off.
I think Ms Wilson was a Cranbrook Rugby Mum.

Pity the Network there didn't do a better job of educating her.
 

FiveStarStu

Bill McLean (32)
I know they will probably vote similarly but you need to separate the Tahs and NSWRU if you are doing the same for VRU and Rebels.

NSWRU and Waratahs Rugby are separate entites joined by ownership, aren't they? The NSWRU have licenced the team to an entity that they own? Or am I incorrect? (Not being facecious - I'm actually not sure)

The reason I count the Rebels and VRU differently is because they are two different entities by ownership and control. While in all likelihood they'll vote as a bloc, the VRU has no control over the Rebels' licence, save for their seat on the Rebels board.

If sh*t were to go down and the NSWRU needed the Waratahs' vote, they could strip the licence from the operating body. Not so with the Rebels.

Anyway, much of a muchness.
 

nomis

Herbert Moran (7)
I thought the two best recommendations were 12 and 13:

Recommendation 12:
That ARU work in collaboration with Member Unions and Super Rugby teams to develop a National Charter for Australian Rugby which outlines the roles and responsibilities of all organisations at all levels of Rugby.

Recommendation 13:
That ARU be acknowledged as the ‘keeper of the code’ for Rugby in Australia from the grassroots to the elite level.

Someone to sort out who does what so that everyone works in harmony; and someone to take responsibility for the grassroots.
 

Scarfman

Knitter of the Scarf
Yeah, Recommendation 12 + the detail above looks good. Keep the reform going all the way down.

But if reform goes all the way down, money has to as well.

Put it this way - I wish there was a TryRugby program within 50kms of where I live.
 

matty_k

Peter Johnson (47)
NSWRU and Waratahs Rugby are separate entites joined by ownership, aren't they? The NSWRU have licenced the team to an entity that they own? Or am I incorrect? (Not being facecious - I'm actually not sure)

The reason I count the Rebels and VRU differently is because they are two different entities by ownership and control. While in all likelihood they'll vote as a bloc, the VRU has no control over the Rebels' licence, save for their seat on the Rebels board.

If sh*t were to go down and the NSWRU needed the Waratahs' vote, they could strip the licence from the operating body. Not so with the Rebels.

Anyway, much of a muchness.

If true I'll happily apologise over a few beers on Thursday. Maybe someone more knowledgeable like waratahjesus or Lindommer could weigh in.
 

p.Tah

John Thornett (49)
Can one of more intelligent folks at on the forum explain to an idot like me in simple terms what all this means?
I'm not one of the intelligent folk on the forum but I just read the whole report (impressive for someone with my attention span) and I was very impressed with Arbib. His recommendations are sound but the way he leads into them is very clever. There are also some great insights into rugby in this country which explains a great deal.

Anyway my summary of the report:
'Rugby in Australia is facing a challenging period. To survive it and thrive we must reform our Governance structure. Every stakeholder in the game must understand their role and even if they do not agree with the goals of the organization, they must all be pulling in the same direction'.
 

waratahjesus

Greg Davis (50)
NSWRU owns the Tahs but has sold the operating license to Tahs inc. I have no idea who would sit on the restructured board in regards to the set up.
 
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