Club pin all hopes on Gould

The appointment of the Nathan Brown-Phil “Gus” Gould axis at the New Zealand Warriors is the biggest shake-up at the NRL club in years.

It’s a move that could have seismic implications — and it’s a gamble, although the Warriors hierarchy will argue the biggest risk was not to take one. Brown will be confirmed as the Warriors’ 11th head coach today, with Gould employed as a “consultant”.

In terms of embarking in a new direction, nothing on this scale has happened since 2001, when Eric Watson bought the club. He cancelled all existing player contracts, started a new entity and overhauled the front office. This isn’t quite as dramatic but it’s not too far away, and mainly because of Gould.

The 62-year-old is one of the most respected minds in the game, and is seen as a change merchant, but also tends to bring plenty of chaos.

There had been a degree of continuity at Mt Smart since May 2014, despite the ups and downs, as Andrew McFadden and Stephen Kearney (and the people around them) had broadly similar ideas about coaching and how to run a club.

That has gone now. Gould will bring a different approach, and history shows the consultant title will mean little.

He has never been comfortable in the background and favours the sledgehammer over the scalpel.

Look at the recent Penrith experience. A former player, he was a hero when he guided them to an emotional first premiership in 1991.

He went back as general manager in 2011 and had some big wins, including persuading the state government to invest tens of millions into the sport in the area and beefing up their player nursery, with a $25 million academy.

But there was the sacking of Ivan Cleary in 2015 — he looked “tired”, according to Gould — and the subsequent axing of his successor Anthony Griffin in 2018, with Penrith in the top four, four weeks out from the finals.

Gould departed in April 2019, declaring his work was done, and the club is in a much more stable position. But Australian critics have been quick to point out the Panthers’ NRL team is flying now, at the top of the table, without the considerable shadow of Gould in the background. So why Gould, and why now? As they embarked on their coaching search, following Kearney’s abrupt axing, the Warriors hierarchy identified a lack of high-level league IQ as one of their biggest issues.

The board, derived from Autex, doesn’t have a background in the sport and they haven’t had a football director-type figure since Brian Smith’s departure last year.

They wanted a director to oversee the operation, recalibrate the development pathways and act as a sounding board for the first grade coach.

Given his background and prominence, Gould didn’t take long to identify, and the challenge will appeal, along with the fact he’ll have plenty of power but no ultimate responsibility if things go south.

The Warriors will hope Gould’s influence and gravitas assist with the NRL powerbrokers across the Tasman, and also help convince the New Zealand Rugby League to invest in local pathways for a mutually beneficial outcome.

But can he deliver? It will be a big test, especially as the club have scratched almost all their teams below NRL level for 2021 and local playing talent is constantly plundered by rival teams, with seemingly superior scouting networks.

Brown is less of a surprise. When he was contracted as a technical adviser last November, it felt like he was being assessed, despite chief executive Cameron George telling the Herald at the time, “he’s not here for that at all, that’s never even crossed my mind”.

Brown was then high on the list of contenders following Kearney’s exit in late June, before surprising club hierarchy by pulling out of the race a few weeks later.

But by then, Todd Payten had begun to prove himself, impressing many in incredibly difficult circumstances.

But once Payten turned down the club’s offer, which was for a shorter term than Brown’s expected threeyear deal, the former Knights coach was again a front-runner.

Brown’s appointment won’t set pulses racing, although he has some upside. He’s young (47), with hopefully his best coaching years ahead of him and he showed a commitment to developing young, local talent at the Knights.

But he has achieved only moderate success in an NRL coaching career of more than 250 games, and couldn’t see his Newcastle project through to its conclusion, despite being given plenty of time by a patient board.

The long-suffering Warriors fanbase might have a slightly different feeling as they digest this news.

Instead of “here we go again”, it’s more like “where are we going this time?”

Nobody quite knows, and the Payten situation feels like a jewel may have slipped through their fingers.