Both Richard Reid and
Wayne Graham say Otago rugby will benefit from losing
day-to-day control of the Highlanders.
In sweeping, but not completely unexpected, changes revealed
yesterday, the Highlanders will establish a new management
team to take control of the struggling franchise.
A Highlanders general manager will be appointed, with Rugby
Southland chief executive Roger Clark the immediate favourite
to take charge, and the Otago Rugby Football Union will cease
most of its operational links with the franchise.
Both parties say the separation is necessary and makes sense
given the expansion of the Super 15 has effectively made
running the Highlanders a full-time job.
"It's very positive news. It's something we've been working
on for some time and the board fully supports what is going
to happen," ORFU chairman Graham said.
"We're delighted that we've been able to unravel the
complicated process of the past. It's been a cumbersome
set-up with a distinct lack of focus or urgency. Now we've
got a business model that will be productive."
Graham acknowledged the existing arrangement was not
providing results on or off the field, when asked if the ORFU
had done a good job running the Highlanders.
"I think you could probably say it's been a caretaker role.
If it was working, there wouldn't have been a change, so it
obviously wasn't working.
"There's been a general lack of focus and a lack of priority.
People have been wearing two hats, and there is no room for
that in professional sport."
Graham said the ORFU would need to consider its own structure
now it was returning to life as a stand-alone union.
That might lead to "significant cost adjustments" but did not
necessarily mean job cuts.
Reid has been chief executive of both the Highlanders and the
ORFU for nearly three years but is pleased the jobs will be
separated.
"I've been a proponent of this since I arrived, more or less.
They're both big jobs, whether you're running Otago or the
Highlanders, and they need some focus," Reid said.
"When you have staff that are shared across both businesses,
it gets very complicated. So I think this is the right thing
to do."
Reid, who does not plan to apply for the Highlanders role,
thought the ORFU had done its best to run the franchise.
"People have tried as hard as they can. Often it comes back
to what happens on the field, which can be beyond your
control," he said.
Clark, after three months as Highlanders project manager, has
confirmed he will apply for the new general manager role.
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