Had a discussion 'around the water cooler' today and we were talking about the wranglings of the Board and whether the disharmony at the top still permeates and infects our club.
Things 'appear' to be somewhat settled at the moment but that could be due to the fact that we're having a better season on field this year, so there's less reporting of our traditional tumult.
One of my colleagues opined that, as an Eels fan, he would love to call all stakeholders and political power brokers into a room and issue the ultimatum that, for the sake of the ongoing success of our mutual love, they should all 'bury the hatchet' and put their ambitions, egos and agendas to one side for the good of the Eels - even if that meant they remove themselves from the administration of the club.
We wondered if such a person, who could command the respect, or at least the attention of those power brokers actually exist, and we arrived at one Jarryd Lee Hayne.
Hayne is about to enter into negotiation for probably the most lucrative contract in NRL history over the next few months, but imagine if he were to go to the Board, the power brokers, the stake holders, the Fitzgeralds and the Spagnolos and their respective team of footsoldiers, and said. "I don't care how much money you throw at me, get your shit together upstairs or I'm gone".
We know Hayne loves his club, and to be honest, he's the only person who wields enough power to actually quell the influence, and infighting, of the Spagnolo and Fitzgerald camps.
If Hayne were to publicly declare the reason for not re-signing was that the upper echelon of the club couldn't pull together, the fan backlash would be huge and the club knows that would result in a drastic reduction in the number of memberships, sponsors, TV games and ultimately, on field results.
We've all yearned for a settled admin, and during the course of this contract negotiation, Hayne could play perhaps the biggest role during his tenure at Parramatta, to unite the club!
If he did that, I'm certain he would go down as the greatest Eel ever!
Thoughts...?
Replies
IMO Hayne don't give two frigs about anything just as long as he is paid! no player I have ever heard gets involved with administration ramblings they know their place in the organisation and that's on the footy field, the bean counters are the front office clowns!
I agree the front office has been a disgrace for years but Jarryd Lee Hayne ain't going to be any saviour!
Hayne needs to be on the park this weekend!
This was a hypothetical scenario. It requires you to use your grey matter rather than attempt to scuttle me on another thread about whether or not Hayne laces a boot against the Warriors.
Be clever mate - think about everything you just said and re-evaluate. You've already made it clear that, in your view, Hayne is a prima donna that has the coach wrapped around his finger. If that's your position, you cannot then turn around and say that he doesn't get involved with front office ramblings - particularly when good judges have suggested that his contract renegotiation will include 'marquee payments' - of which he'll be part of the discussion - so that he is appropriately recompensed while shoring up enough funds to re-sign our best and brightest on appropriate salaries such that we don't lose them to our competitors.
If you think that my comments are clouded by inebriating substances, based simply on my avatar, then you are letting yourself down!
Lift your game son!
Understand the theory however I think it is going a bit beyond what a player should be required to do.
In any case, very much doubt JH would take such a frontline stance against the ongoing disharmony. I think it would do little for his mind being on football and more than anything, it would see yet another Parramatta circus played out in the media - which, apart from the membership tampering, is something we have enjoyed being on the quiet side in recent months compared to prior years.
I agree with that.
And I'm not sounding out some 'çall to arms'. Intriguingly, some folks seem to dismiss this theory out of hand. It is a hypothetical - one which I don't imagine will occur.
Would be interesting though.
As if our board gives two hoots about what hayne wants. They would publically come out and blame each other for hayne leaving and continue to worry about their own interests.
We were having this very debate today.
The question we posed was, "Is Hayne, a. wanting to get involved at such a high level of club administration; and b. is he actually smart enough to motivate the warring factions to lay down their arms.
My view was that he is a footy player, first and foremost, but my colleagues, rightly in my view, made the point that the only man that has even a chance of changing the landscape is Hayne - for reasons I've already mentioned.
A horrible thought. Let's hope you're wrong, and I'm wrong.
Let's hope that players play footy and administrators administer. If it were only so simple!
I wonder, would the masters allow themselves to be held over a barrel by a mere player? In Fitzgerald & Spagnolo you have a pair of very self assured men (some may say arrogant). I think their attitude would be "there's a good boy, you just go play footy and leave the admin to us son"
While Jarryd is a great footballer, he isn't a Cameron Smith, he does not command the same level of authority, regardless of what Eels fans think of Smith, he does walk tall with clout, even Bellyache acknowledges that Cameron runs his own race to a large degree. I think Smith could manipulate a board, i don't think Jarred has the maturity or articulation.
That, I think is the $6m question. What we do know is that Hayne has recently articulated personal views on the running of the club, and I think we all suspect he was commander-in-chief in getting rid of DA, SK and possibly RS.
He seems to like BA, and the Board aren't frightened to bullet a coach if Hayne wants it to be so - or at least that's my reading of the landscape (and I could well be wrong).
If they're prepared to sack a coach, commit to a large financial payout, and appoint an individual, all based on what our marquee player wants, is it not unreasonable to think that the powers-that-be would listen to him if he were to issue an ultimatum?
My opinion, 'at the water cooler' was, should Hayne play such a card? What if the admin calls his bluff? My colleague attitude was, 'well let them - you know what will come of it if he walks - their positions will become untenable under the weight of public backlash'.
It is a reasonable argument.
Again, I'm not suggesting that any of this SHOULD happen - I'm merely presenting it as a hypothetical and I find it interesting that so many respondents dismiss it out of hand.
The best result would be for Hayne not to ask everyone for peace but instead to release a statement saying "I will only re-sign if Roy Spagnolo leaves the club for good". That would then put Roy on the spot to step away. If Roy refuses, the entire Eels community would be against him and if he does step down then there can be peace at boardroom level.
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