Missed Opportunity?

With the current malaise in Rugby League I am minded to recall a brilliant quote on leadership by one of our greatest leaders, which states:

“To each there comes in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique to them and fitted to their talents. What a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that which could have been their finest hour.” ― Winston S. Churchill

As a game we have been wringing our hands for the past 4 months not really knowing which direction to take the sport during these extraordinary times. The game has debated, conducted Working Group analysis and numerous meetings to no end. I feel we missed an opportunity to take the game on a new journey shaping its future for the benefit of the whole game.   

Last week the decision by Super League Clubs to vote for remaining apart from the governing body, was on initial reflection the wrong one. It appeared short sighted and one which would continue with a costly and divisive governance for the game. It now seems that it was a wise move; but may drive a bigger wedge between the elite competition and the lower tiers.

How can businesses continue to operate with confidence in these circumstances? With no ability to plan the next phase of their business cycle, you will never really obtain any agreement between the 31 Clubs, so strong leadership is now required by everyone. The game is wringing its hands and seemingly incapable of taking those tough decisions in order to move the game and the individual businesses forward.

The game managed to obtain a significant loan from the government which was an excellent result, in my view however this is not demonstrating leadership it is simply asking your Bank Manager for a loan to fix a short to medium term problem.

There are only two decisions to make to help the game and Clubs move forward, firstly a decision on Promotion and Relegation which in turn would answer the other key question of whether the Championship/LG1 would continue this season.  If the answer on the first question was to halt P/R then the answer to the Championship/LG1 was to void the season, financially this would be the only sensible decision to make.

There is an argument that the situation is constantly changing, which it is. However at some point you have to make a decision based upon the most reliable data and advice, we cannot simply kick the can down the road in the hope of a cure or the virus disappearing altogether.

Clubs are a business and all businesses require clarity and some idea of the journey they are to undertake and to effectively plan for the future. By constantly delaying critical decisions it creates anxiety and a lack of confidence for all stakeholders and ultimately results in a lack of investment.

With the end of the current Sky TV deal fast approaching at the end of 2021, will it result in a further distancing of Super League from the rest of the game?  If so we will probably end up with a similar structure to the NRL; with the remaining Championship Clubs becoming feeder Clubs for the Super League.

Finally, back to Winston Churchill’s quote, I do feel that we missed a real opportunity to implement major transformational and structural change to ensure the game is fit for the future and to bring the game back together.