And former All Black coach Laurie Mains confirmed he is not seeking re-election to the ORFU board.
Mr Mains, who has spent two years on the board, said yesterday other commitments meant he could not dedicate the time to the board again. He was elected in 2009, and he and Richard Bunton were due for re-election at the union's annual meeting on February 27.
Mr Mains (65) had taken over the ownership and running of the Invercargill branch of G.J. Gardner (he also has a franchise in Dunedin) and felt he could not give his time adequately to board matters.
"Plus I am pretty comfortable we have got a very strong board and now we have got good Otago people coaching the team. So I am more relaxed on that side of it," Mr Mains said.
"It was a tough decision to make [to not stand]. This board has worked very hard to try and resolve what have been historic issues. These are ongoing, so it was tough to walk away.
"It was incredibly disappointing to learn of the debt situation late last year but I do believe the current board can fix everything up and see the way forward." Mr Bunton is believed to be seeking re-election.
The ORFU brought in change manager Jeremy Curragh last month to try to steer the union through its financial problems.
The union was due to record a sizeable loss, and was working through financial issues, Mr Graham said yesterday.
The auditors had not yet signed off on the loss, he said.
This year would be tough financially as the union had commitments to player contracts.
The Otago union had spent about $1.1 million on players last year and Mr Graham said he wanted that to be down near $700,000, a more realistic figure the union could afford.
Players would still get paid this year, but wages would be going down next year, he warned.
"The reality is the ITM Cup has become a semi-professional competition where players have to have another job or be a student.
"The model is stretched to its limit and we have got to make some changes. Every union round the country is the same. They are all feeling the pressure." Mr Graham hoped financial matters would be clear-cut by the end of this week, including the loss for last season.
"We've got to get the balance sheet worked out. We owe too much money and can't afford to pay it."
