Mako management storm Melbourne
Tasman rugby has learnt plenty from NRL coach Craig Bellamy in recent days.
The question is, can Mako fans expect to see head coach Leon MacDonald take on a more explosive persona in the coaches box this season?
MacDonald, assistant coach Shane Christie, Tasman Rugby Union chief executive Tony Lewis and commercial marketing manager Les Edwards spent five days in Melbourne last week to gain insights into the commercial, administrative and highperformance coaching operations from three of the city’s big sporting brands.
As well as visiting the Melbourne Storm NRL side and the Melbourne Rebels Super Rugby team, the delegation also sought the wisdom of the St Kilda Saints AFL club and VFL club Williamstown Seagulls.
The trip followed a similar venture to Brisbane in 2017, where the TRU toured the set-ups of the Brisbane Broncos (rugby league), Brisbane Heat (cricket), Firebirds (netball) and Queensland Reds (rugby union) franchises.
‘‘To take that next step up you need to learn from the best, but also share with the best because it’s not just one-way traffic,’’ Edwards said.
‘‘They don’t know everything and they loved hearing from Shane and Leon, especially, given his past experience with the Crusaders and the success of the Mako .... [Tasman] have mana over there too.’’
MacDonald and Christie were able to engage with the Storm’s high-performance group, which included head coach Craig Bellamy and welfare manager Andrew Blowers, a former Blues and All Black loose forward.
The pair also attended a team training session and were invited to sit in on the team’s review of their round two 8-10 loss to the West Tigers as well as preparations for the following week’s match against the North Queensland Cowboys, which they won 30-14.
‘‘It was good to hear from [Bellamy] after a loss instead of a win because he did get stuck into his boys and basically reemphasised their mantra, which was around simplicity and execution,’’ Edwards said.
The Tasman delegation also had lunch with the coaching teams of the Storm and the South African-based Sharks Super Rugby team, who were in town to play the Rebels.
Time with the Rebels - who share their AAMI Park highperformance facilities with the Storm - saw MacDonald compare notes with 35-year-old head coach David Wessels, who has held coaching roles within the Western Force and Cape Town-based Stormers teams.
Tapping into the wisdom of other codes, the Tasman delegation also visited St Kilda’s new $30 million club facilities in the suburb of Moorabbin.
They also met with the coaching staff of the Williamstown VFL club, which Edwards said drew many parallels with Tasman in terms of developing pathways for aspiring players.
‘‘Player welfare is definitely front and centre with a lot of these organisations, as it is with us,’’ he said.
‘‘The AFL draft is very much a youth identification project which is what our academy is ... these guys at Williamstown end up with about five guys that get drafted by the AFL so it’s really tough if you haven’t been identified at a young age, but there still is that opportunity – what it says to me is that community clubs are important because those gold nuggets do come through.’’