Castle falls on sword as RA chief executive
AUCKLAND: Raelene Castle has resigned as chief executive of Rugby Australia.
Following a series of turbulent months in which Wallaby greats have repeatedly called for her to be removed from the top office in Australian rugby, Castle reportedly pulled the trigger yesterday afternoon in a call with Rugby Australia interim chairman Paul McLean.
The Kiwi executive was previously chief executive of Netball New Zealand from 2007 to 2013 before taking control of Rugby Australia.
Castle released a statement to ABC 7.30 host Leigh Sales.
‘‘I love rugby on every level and I will always love the code and the people I have had the honour of working with since I took this role,’’ she said.
‘‘I made it clear to the board that I would stand up and take the flak and do everything possible to serve everyone's best interests. In the last couple of hours, it has been made clear to me that the board believes my no longer being CEO would help give them the clear air they believe they need.
‘‘The game is bigger than any one individual — so this evening I told the chair that I would resign from the role.
‘‘I will do whatever is needed to ensure an orderly handover. I wish the code and everyone who loves rugby nothing but the best and I would like to thank the people I work with and the broader rugby community for their enormous support.’’
The Sydney Morning Herald reports Castle saw the writing on the wall when she was excluded from a board of directors’ conference call on Wednesday night. The report claims Castle was not even aware until yesterday that sections of the board had lost faith in her administration.
She appeared on the ABC show last night, having previously agreed to a prerecorded interview. She dropped her bombshell resignation just minutes before the programme aired her earlier interview.
It ends a tumultuous era of Australian rugby with Castle overseeing the shambolic quarterfinal exit at last year's World Cup where her relationship with former coach Michael Cheika reportedly fell apart.
Castle has also been criticised for her handling of the Israel Folau legal battle and the dire situation the game finds itself in as it tries to find an interested television partner for a broadcast deal beginning next year. —
The New Zealand Herald