Eels Blogs

Since the AGM, I've been pondering our club structure. I don't think anyone can possibly think the currnt structure makes any sense at all, except perhaps when you get into accounting and financial matters but I keep getting told how hard it is going to be to shift the football operations into the District Club.

So maybe we need three distinct entities, the third being the Parramatta Eels, which operates as a partnership between the District Club and the Leagues Club (and its supposedly meant to be a partnership as it stands but its hardly an equitable one)

It would have two representatives from the District Club, ideally people with deep footballing knowledge who can contribute on the basis of player development and culture. The members of the District Club (including season ticket holders) would vote for its board and representatives and it would have a CEO who's role is the running of the district competition and grassroots junior development.

It would have two representatives from the Leagues club. Ideally, these representatives would have business experience, likely from accounting or operations background who's role is to make sure that the grant from the Leagues club is spent wisely. The members of the Leagues club would vote for its board and representatives and its CEO would be run the club business.

And then the NRL and junior rep teams would operate from an independent entity. In addition to the four representatives from the partner organisations, it would would have two independent board members who would be appointed on merit, as a joint appointment between the two clubs. Ideally they would be appointed based on sports administration experience and corporate sales/marketing experience. Its CEO would run the NRL side and junior rep teams with a mandate to achieve on-field results and maximum business performance. 

So the end result is you end up with your two top footballing directors, your two top business directors, and two specialist directors. You get clear delineation and understanding of who is responsible for what and so board members can run on their specific experience for each board. You equally enable Leagues Club Members and District Club/Season Ticket Holder members to have their say in who is running the place. You get clear annual reports focused on their specific parts of the bigger entity and AGMs where you know what you're there to discuss. You start the NRL side in a fresh entity unencumbered by debt going into an era where football clubs should be starting to edge towards independent profitability (or at least lesser losses).

Now I'm sure there are going to be issues - legal, financial, or whatever - and maybe people out there who know the constitution or whatever could point out difficulties, but it seems to me that a structure of this kind could break up the uncomfortable present-day structure, which best as I can work out, was primarily a tax dodge exercise made in the late nineties.