Blues send Tew an SOS
IT’S JUST gone from bad to worse at the beleaguered Blues – and now the big boss has been asked to step in.
The Blues, who won their third game of the season on Friday night at Eden Park against the Bulls, are in the midst of a power struggle for control of the troubled franchise between the Auckland Rugby Union and private investors who are now refusing to work together after a major boardroom stoush.
In an unprecedented move, New Zealand Rugby has been asked to mediate and resolve the split after the joint venture broke down to the point where the non-functioning board cannot make any meaningful decisions about the future of the franchise, including those involving coach Sir John Kirwan.
The Sunday Star- Times can reveal NZR chief executive Steve Tew has been directly contacted and asked to settle the contentious question of ‘‘who rules the Blues?"
Tew did not return calls from Dublin but until he acts, the struggling franchise will remain in limbo, effectively without the power to make any movement on vital coaching appointments among other issues, and further drawing out the soap opera surrounding Kirwan’s future.
The Star- Times has confirmed the dysfunctional stand-off with a number of sources. The messy situation came to a head after former top referee Glenn Wahlstrom and ex-Auckland coach Maurice Trapp recently resigned from the Blues board to take up positions with NZR.
Brian Wilsher and Greg Edmonds were appointed as Auckland rugby’s two new directors on the six-man board. They are then understood to have opposed reappointing Kirwan. That created a ‘‘significant falling out’’ with the rest of the Blues board which has caused major unrest and threatened $5 million of private investment. Both parties involved in the franchise must agree to pass any decision on Kirwan’s future.
Independent Blues chairman Tony Carter confirmed to the Star-Times that NZR had been called in to mediate.
‘‘ The board were a very united one prior to the recent change in directors,’’ Carter said. ‘‘What I’m prepared to say publicly is the board have not reached a consensus.
‘‘The constitution requires a consensus and therefore we need to have further discussion. I’m not going to say which directors are of one position or another. I don’t think that’s appropriate.
‘‘ It’s a complex, challenging situation. I think messy is probably a bit pejorative. New Zealand Rugby are the employer of the head coach and assistant coach and it was appropriate to seek their guidance on it. We’ll continue to work through the issues as a board and reach a consensus about the best way forward for the Blues. I’m hopeful we would make some progress in the coming weeks. Clearly it’s not a good situation to have such speculation in the media. The sooner we can reach a resolution everyone supports the better.’’
Poor on- field results – the Blues have won 16 from 45 games under Kirwan over the past three campaigns – have contributed to the strain.
But the frosty relationship between Auckland rugby, specifically the behindthe-scenes involvement of chief executive Andy Dalton, and the Blues private investment arm has been brewing for some time.
It has been claimed that Dalton tried unsuccessfully to block the Blues’ move to establish a new multi-million dollar training base at Alexandra Park later this year.
That, and the recent standoff, have seen frustrations reach boiling point, ultimately leading to the impasse.
The heat is now on Tew and NZR to accept the mediation request. Finding the right person to solve the mess will be challenging.
What I’m prepared to say publicly is the board have not reached a consensus. Blues chairman Tony Carter