Eels Blogs

Interesting questions have been raised (constantly) about our club and a SCAPEGOAT to blame.

Personally I am usually quick in seeing obvious problems and when you look at the period my experience covers, I have seen most of the things that only Parramatta supporter's can lament and relate to. 

This particular one is a quandry, I think MONS needs to go, but I don't actually blame him for any of the events that recognise the damage that has been outlined. I think he could be sitting back in his arm chair asking how he ended up in this mess?.......... I don't think he has ever been the final decision maker on most of the things we would like to blame him for.

The other protaganist and yes Scapegoat is Jim Saratinos? So I am going to critique both him and MON's and explain why they have been blamed 

The pathways coaches are recognised for their strong roles in rescuing the situation post Covid and I see no blame evolving there (unless it is still evolving).....the fan base tend's to overate them (our juniors) because we should be so strong in this area, yes we are a Development Club and we do provide a lot of players.....we would it seems not be overly good at bringing through the ones that we would like to claim. Maybe we are just victim's of that process as we have struggled to obtain balance with juniors and recruitment and in endeavoring to satisfy that equation.......Fcuked up Both!

Reverting to MONS you need to go back to his recruitment, he probably was never the right guy to table as General Manager Football whereas the reality is that the first grade coach in both BA's and JR's terms have been the final arbitar in almost all decisions outside of the financial impact of cap and policy. I think MON's has probably done a fine job in structuring and recruiting pathway coaches, even the women's coach. 

So this leads me to the final "scapegoat" Bernie Gurr! What!! you say....the guys the best thing to happen post the renaissance!.... yes that's true! he did a great job...but did he finish it?

I blame Bernie because he recruited MON as a General Manager Football, a role that he showed was pretty toothless because BA's power was at its peak and he (BA) really was the guy, making the decisions on recruitment and retention. Yes the position (GM) was part of the review, but a more constructive process would have allowed the person to grow into the role where the structure allowed it to.

MON's went about his business developing pathways and faciltating people in lower level's behind First and Second Grade and executing signings made for him. Never really empowered in the primary sense..

Jim Saratinos inherited Bernie's role, Jim is obviously a fine administrator and financial manager.....as a CEO empowered to be much more decisive about football matters, he simply wasn't !

Based on his inexperience in that role which he basically stayed out of and during the initial period that he came in, he saw/ recognised that BA had things under control and was content to leave it at that.

Intelligent people do quickly learn just the same and all the time this was happening Jim was learning heaps about the football side and I can only presume making judgements of the relative incumbents. He never had the football background or experience that Bernie had, who would have maybe acted very differently if he chose to stay on.....he left for greener pastures in the states, but is to this day still a passionate Parramatta supporter.

So we were left with our primary scapegoats and to evaluate the thoughts that come through this forum, we need to understand better than we do that things are not as Black and White to just go out and attack individuals for the perception of their failures.

Too many people on here put themselves in a position of decision makers, whereas they have no real understanding of how business works or things happen, everyone is entitled to an opinion, not saying that, just saying that the intelligence and actual judgement of making these things happen are stuffed up in a lot of busineses without thinking the guys have no fcuking idea!

I can only think of our politicians in comparison, but just remember, you put them there as well!!!

I don't have the answers BTW but Iam writing this so an understanding of the pieces that make up the "Parra Lament" are understood better. Everyone seems to have the answers by "sacking MON and JS" without understanding how pieces fit and what needs to be done......My initial reaction is that MON needs to go, because his credibility has now got huge question marks and that JIM needs to stay as I think we need a CEO like him but with the understanding of having proper GM Football who reports through him.....the GM Football needs a lot of thought because I would actually have Ryles also reporting to him, with a clear defintion I might add. Obviously that person needs to be very "powerful" to command such a role! 

An after thought by the way and not a recommendation, is that Jason Ryles could be a great GM Football and he appoints a coach to work under him! Early days for such a move, but I think that's where a lot of these processes need to head in the sense of how a coach is perceived......Foz's example of a coach and what he is achieving is an example that the modern day coach can keep it simple and the GM does the slogging!

An heirachel structure at Parra could be  GM Football runs all Football Matters.....reports through CEO for Finance & Administration Matters...... . First Grade Coach reports through and appointed by GM Football,........ Manager Pathways and Administration reports through GM Football.