Board behind new plan
Directors ready to make mark after AGM change
GOLD Coast District Rugby Union directors will now serve three-year terms and a competition name change is off the table as outcomes of an annual general meeting.
Stakeholders convened at Bond University at the weekend for a vote, which notably saw the board tenure extended.
The procedure of having three of the seven-member board step down – though they could then be re-elected – has been removed, with returning chairman Kim Bending saying the move will reap rewards.
His board are now entering their second season in charge.
“That gives us a chance to (make our mark) and that’s important,” Bending said.
Kevin Traynor beat two rival applicants to claim the final place on the board that had been left vacant since Chris Miles’ departure earlier this year.
“Kevin has got a good rugby background. He’s an independent, he’s not affiliated with any of the clubs,” Bending said.
“He came through the ACT rugby and the Brumbies, he’s on the board of the Brisbane Junior Rugby Union, Sunnybank and also with Australian Rugby Union at a junior level so he has got a good resume.
“He has semi-retired to the Coast.
“He has got a passion for the game, which helps big time. He is a good community person … we thought that he would be ideal in setting up strategies and a few other programs we have got lined up for him.”
Bending’s previously touted name change from “District” to Gold Coast City Rugby Union was not nominated in the end.
“I have sort of gone cold on the idea because of Mount Tamborine, Yatala, Beaudesert and Casuarina, we are a little bit broader,” he said.
“I love the idea of making it Gold Coast City but it may alienate some of those outer clubs so at this stage I have just left it as it is.”