Is the PNG club even gonna happen?

[Red&BlackBear]

They are absolutely the definition of a skeleton organisation. They have a board with next to no staff. How on earth can you call that “organisational structure” to be “almost fully complete”?

You think colours and a moniker is branding complete? No logo, no functioning website, no contact details, no fixed address.

In two very short paragraphs, I think you are doing a pretty good job of demonstrating who the dumb dumb is around here.

Majority is set up in the background.

Just because it isn’t in the media flashing in our faces, it doesn’t mean that the work isn’t being done or they aren’t as advanced through the building of the organisational framework as some (ie you) would otherwise think.

Much of it is lined up, some elements ie business positions offered or agreed to by certain recruited individuals are under NDA’s due to the nature of it. The commercial manager position was in the works for weeks prior to the announcement. Fair bit of that is happening.

There’s a delicate balance happening as a result of the NRL owning the club.

 

[SirPies&Beers]

They are absolutely the definition of a skeleton organisation. They have a board with next to no staff. How on earth can you call that “organisational structure” to be “almost fully complete”?

You think colours and a moniker is branding complete? No logo, no functioning website, no contact details, no fixed address.

In two very short paragraphs, I think you are doing a pretty good job of demonstrating who the dumb dumb is around here.

nah not really youre throwing up these ridiculous opinions with no substance. so youre a dumb dumb, there's an entire sub forum dedicated to the club. maybe take a visit there chump

Majority is set up in the background.

Just because it isn’t in the media flashing in our faces, it doesn’t mean that the work isn’t being done or they aren’t as advanced through the building of the organisational framework as some (ie you) would otherwise think.

Much of it is lined up, some elements ie business positions offered or agreed to by certain recruited individuals are under NDA’s due to the nature of it. The commercial manager position was in the works for weeks prior to the announcement. Fair bit of that is happening.

There’s a delicate balance happening as a result of the NRL owning the club.

well there ya go.

 

[Wb1234]

Wa govt slow giving money to the club vs PNG getting everything they want on a silver platter

Nrl owns the bears so this kind of oversight is fine. I’m sure the issue of the proposed recruitment officer was a huge embarrassment to Pvl and his board

Meninga could be on thin ice too as collateral damage

 

[Matua]

Mal's background is cook islands. Indigenous population in WA probably see AFL as part of their community like koori's with league in NSW..but yeah be Kevin Sheedy

That's not correct, IIRC his ancestors are from Vanuatu.

 

[flippikat]

Majority is set up in the background.

[Snipped for space].

There’s a delicate balance happening as a result of the NRL owning the club.

That's the key point. The NRL probably don't want much Bears stuff released while the current season plays-out.

Everything from logo to website to merchandise will likely get a reveal in October at the earliest - once the Grand Final has been played, and any reveals can get the airtime they need without having to cut-through the on-field events.

It gives the Bears a good span of time to get everything together, and it means anything for sale hits the market in that lucrative Christmas shopping period.

 

[SirPies&Beers]

That's the key point. The NRL probably don't want much Bears stuff released while the current season plays-out.

Everything from logo to website to merchandise will likely get a reveal in October at the earliest - once the Grand Final has been played, and any reveals can get the airtime they need without having to cut-through the on-field events.

It gives the Bears a good span of time to get everything together, and it means anything for sale hits the market in that lucrative Christmas shopping period.

Majority is set up in the background.

Just because it isn’t in the media flashing in our faces, it doesn’t mean that the work isn’t being done or they aren’t as advanced through the building of the organisational framework as some (ie you) would otherwise think.

Much of it is lined up, some elements ie business positions offered or agreed to by certain recruited individuals are under NDA’s due to the nature of it. The commercial manager position was in the works for weeks prior to the announcement. Fair bit of that is happening.

There’s a delicate balance happening as a result of the NRL owning the club.

you post this and next minute just like that head of recruitment in dane campbell and head of pathways in ian millward are sorted.

 

[Canard]

Majority is set up in the background.

Just because it isn’t in the media flashing in our faces, it doesn’t mean that the work isn’t being done or they aren’t as advanced through the building of the organisational framework as some (ie you) would otherwise think.

Much of it is lined up, some elements ie business positions offered or agreed to by certain recruited individuals are under NDA’s due to the nature of it. The commercial manager position was in the works for weeks prior to the announcement. Fair bit of that is happening.

There’s a delicate balance happening as a result of the NRL owning the club.

For mine, it looks like they are well advanced.

How a recruitment agent having a list of recruitment targets could be a "scandal" is a "only in the NRL" thing.

 

[Growthegame]

That's the key point. The NRL probably don't want much Bears stuff released while the current season plays-out.

Everything from logo to website to merchandise will likely get a reveal in October at the earliest - once the Grand Final has been played, and any reveals can get the airtime they need without having to cut-through the on-field events.

It gives the Bears a good span of time to get everything together, and it means anything for sale hits the market in that lucrative Christmas shopping period.

The Dolphins first jersey was unveiled at a grand final.

Perhaps the Bears logo will be as well.

 

[Gobsmacked]

Peter V’landys has Perth Bears dancing on a leash​

The rugby league boss’s conditions for the new NRL club involve caps on spending, irking directors.

Mark Di StefanoColumnist
Sep 9, 2025 – 6.54pm

The directors of the Perth Bears gathered at North Sydney Oval in August to convene the second board meeting of the NRL’s newest club. For footy, they’re no slouches.
The inaugural nine-person board is chaired by former Liberal cabinet minister (and Scott Morrison consigliere) Ben Morton, with his former colleague (and Bears fan) Joe Hockey alongside, Cash Converters’ Peter Cummins, legal academic Emma Garlett, former WA Cricket chief executive Christina Matthews, ex racing administrator John Dumesny, former copper Jacqueline Johnstone, North Sydney businessman Daniel Dickson and Nine broadcaster James Bracey (another Bears tragic).

Rugby league chief Peter V’landys talks up the Bears in Perth. Getty Images
One of the orders of business was poring over the club’s constitution, which had been finalised by NRL headquarters. A draft had been submitted to the corporate regulator months earlier, outlining how much control the Sydney-based Australian Rugby League Commission (the board of the NRL) would have over the Perth operations.
The ARLC is chaired by Peter V’landys, and because the Bears are effectively owned by the NRL, it was always going to be this way. But now, there were numbers attached to it. One “special condition” stood out.
The Perth Bears would need its annual budget approved by the ARLC. But also any “purchase, sale or disposal of assets” over $50,000 outside the budget would need sign-off from Sydney.

That is, if the Perth-based organisation wanted to buy office furniture, some laptops, vending machines for the players, and it wasn’t declared ahead of the financial year, chief executive Anthony De Ceglie would need to check with V’landys if it was okay to invoice.
It was viewed by some on the board as almost an insult to their governance bona fides. Why go to the trouble of even having a board if every sneeze was being monitored by Nurse V’landys?
They were pretty much handpicked by him in the first place. It explains the presence of figures such as Dumesny and Johnstone, both friends and associates in the racing industry. Some directors have internally called for the 50-grand threshold to be raised significantly.

Ball & chain​

Governance hand-wringing is certainly not the Perth Bears’ most immediate problem. The glacial pace of setting up the organisation is catching some offside.
A story in The Australian last weekend suggested one of those was Mal Meninga, who was reportedly getting cold feet about signing on as the club’s inaugural coach. He’s been facing questions for the last week about his attempts to hire Gold Coast Titans recruitment manager (and friend) Ezra Howe. He’s facing possible legal action for allegedly building a spreadsheet of players he’d like to poach for the Bears while still employed by the Titans.

There were also delays in the West Australian government releasing funding for the upstart organisation, which necessitated an interest-free bridging loan from the ARLC.
V’landys keeping the Bears on a tight leash isn’t just an insight into how he operates when money is involved. The spending threshold will likely be the same by the time the NRL gets its other expansion club up and running in Papua New Guinea. It’s slated for 2028, and one PNG official has already been embroiled in a corruption scandal.
Some on the Morton-led board believe, quite rightly, they should be given more freedom to conduct their own business.
Another “special condition” in the Bears’ constitution is that any new hire with a salary over $300,000 also needs ALRC approval. Last week, the club named Katie Roberts as its first commercial manager. Roberts is well-liked and was hired after doing more than seven years with Racing & Wagering WA.
With a CV like that, of course, she’d get V’landys’ blessing.

Peter V’landys has Perth Bears dancing on a leash

The rugby league boss’s conditions for the new NRL club involve caps on spending, irking directors.

www.afr.com

It's funny that the way it written is supposed to be bad that our game is being run by someone who is responsible with cash. I'm supposed to be disappointed he's not letting them piss money up against the way?
Hilarious.

 

[Gobsmacked]

Majority is set up in the background.

Just because it isn’t in the media flashing in our faces, it doesn’t mean that the work isn’t being done or they aren’t as advanced through the building of the organisational framework as some (ie you) would otherwise think.

Much of it is lined up, some elements ie business positions offered or agreed to by certain recruited individuals are under NDA’s due to the nature of it. The commercial manager position was in the works for weeks prior to the announcement. Fair bit of that is happening.

There’s a delicate balance happening as a result of the NRL owning the club.

What the bloody hell are you on about?
It's either fully set up and running or it isn't.
Fact is, it isn't, actually very far off from the prospective of being a fully functional day to day NRL club. They're literally TODAY in an article complaining about spending on office furniture ect being scrutinized.. office furniture. They are still in the process of making KEY hires! No logo, no Jersey ect.

Look, it's totally fine, that's not an issue at all, it's a work in process and probably where we'd expect it to be.
But don't go telling everyone it's done,all done, go home. Heaps of work to do, f**king heaps !

 

[Gobsmacked]

you post this and next minute just like that head of recruitment in dane campbell and head of pathways in ian millward are sorted.

Get his autograph.

 

[flippikat]

The Dolphins first jersey was unveiled at a grand final.

Perhaps the Bears logo will be as well.

I'm guessing about a week after the GF, give or take

 

[Red&BlackBear]

What the bloody hell are you on about?
It's either fully set up and running or it isn't.
Fact is, it isn't, actually very far off from the prospective of being a fully functional day to day NRL club. They're literally TODAY in an article complaining about spending on office furniture ect being scrutinized.. office furniture. They are still in the process of making KEY hires! No logo, no Jersey ect.

Look, it's totally fine, that's not an issue at all, it's a work in process and probably where we'd expect it to be.
But don't go telling everyone it's done,all done, go home. Heaps of work to do, f**king heaps !

Ok.

Not sure you actually read what I typed. Good for you.

 

[Vlad59]

Ok.

Not sure you actually read what I typed. Good for you.

He’s not very bright that one.

 

[Ideas Man Stephen]

Majority is set up in the background.

Just because it isn’t in the media flashing in our faces, it doesn’t mean that the work isn’t being done or they aren’t as advanced through the building of the organisational framework as some (ie you) would otherwise think.

Much of it is lined up, some elements ie business positions offered or agreed to by certain recruited individuals are under NDA’s due to the nature of it. The commercial manager position was in the works for weeks prior to the announcement. Fair bit of that is happening.

There’s a delicate balance happening as a result of the NRL owning the club.

I would expect the bloody Commercial Manager position to be in the works for weeks prior to the announcement. Anything less would be a travesty. I would expect plenty more to be as well.

But as far as confirmed right now, the majority of what is setup in the background?

The club has how many employees?

The club’s logo looks like what?

The club has which sponsors?

The club has established which supporters group?

The social pages of the club are posting what?

The club has what email address?

The club has invited how many player agents to a Perth to sell the location?

The hospitality programme of the club looks like what?

The WA player pathway looks like what?

The coach and his assistants live where?

The place is a shell by any definition. In some circumstances that’s ok and to be expected. For some others, it is cause for concern.

From other reports, it sounds like most decisions so far are coming out of Sydney. This was one of my biggest concerns all along. How is it a good idea that key decisions and appointments on the management of a professional Perth RL club are being made by a group of individuals based in Sydney?

 

[Red&BlackBear]

I would expect the bloody Commercial Manager position to be in the works for weeks prior to the announcement. Anything less would be a travesty. I would expect plenty more to be as well.

But as far as confirmed right now, the majority of what is setup in the background?

The club has how many employees?

The club’s logo looks like what?

The club has which sponsors?

The club has established which supporters group?

The social pages of the club are posting what?

The club has what email address?

The club has invited how many player agents to a Perth to sell the location?

The hospitality programme of the club looks like what?

The WA player pathway looks like what?

The coach and his assistants live where?

The place is a shell by any definition. In some circumstances that’s ok and to be expected. For some others, it is cause for concern.

From other reports, it sounds like most decisions so far are coming out of Sydney. This was one of my biggest concerns all along. How is it a good idea that key decisions and appointments on the management of a professional Perth RL club are being made by a group of individuals based in Sydney?

There is no cause for concern. It’s tracking along as it should be.

As I said majority is already set up in the background.

All questions you’re asking here have plans in place, most appointments for key personnel have been locked in but not yet formally announced. This extends to key items such as head office location, commercial spaces, logos, sponsors, social media IP’s, even third party interests via player managers for proposed targeted players etc etc etc.

How you’re looking at it isn’t a true reflection of what it actually is. However if that’s your view, cool.

 

[Pippen94]

PNG and Perth have potential to be giants. Small time clubs are frightened

 

[Perth Red]

None of the Perth positions so far have been advertised so are obviously head hunting, speeds up the process and doesn't require a HR dept I suppose. Now the snr management are getting in place they'll be responsible for building their teams. Commercial is probably the priority so we can get sponsors, logos, merch, memberships etc and cash flow happening. Mal, Anthony and Dane will be building the player shopping list and having behind closed doors conversations. Excited to see Ian Millward in charge of pathways. A world of experience and such a key role for WA jnr development.

re PNG not sure how far along they are with appointments but they have 12 month extra time than us so not such a rush. They've got some big structural issues like the stadium and village to sort out. In theory they cant sign anyone for 14 months so the football side is less urgent.

 

[Red&BlackBear]

None of the Perth positions so far have been advertised so are obviously head hunting, speeds up the process and doesn't require a HR dept I suppose. Now the snr management are getting in place they'll be responsible for building their teams. Commercial is probably the priority so we can get sponsors, logos, merch, memberships etc and cash flow happening. Mal, Anthony and Dane will be building the player shopping list and having behind closed doors conversations. Excited to see Ian Millward in charge of pathways. A world of experience and such a key role for WA jnr development.

Can confirm that a lot is in place already and other elements are towards the end and getting primed to being formally positioned.

Some of it, NRL PR machine is waiting until off season to make noise about it so it can pick up positive coverage.

Some of it - mainly on a commercial level has NDA’s in place due to certain individuals being unable to leave their current tenures until their 4-6 week notices have concluded. Therefore Bears can’t announce much.

Sponsors, corporate partners and commercial opportunities are lined up as well. They’ll get announced soon enough.

It’s building nicely. Anthony is working overtime.

 

[Growthegame]

I would expect the bloody Commercial Manager position to be in the works for weeks prior to the announcement. Anything less would be a travesty. I would expect plenty more to be as well.

But as far as confirmed right now, the majority of what is setup in the background?

The club has how many employees?

The club’s logo looks like what?

The club has which sponsors?

The club has established which supporters group?

The social pages of the club are posting what?

The club has what email address?

The club has invited how many player agents to a Perth to sell the location?

The hospitality programme of the club looks like what?

The WA player pathway looks like what?

The coach and his assistants live where?

The place is a shell by any definition. In some circumstances that’s ok and to be expected. For some others, it is cause for concern.

From other reports, it sounds like most decisions so far are coming out of Sydney. This was one of my biggest concerns all along. How is it a good idea that key decisions and appointments on the management of a professional Perth RL club are being made by a group of individuals based in Sydney?

Let me guess, if you don’t know about it didn’t/hasn’t happen right? lol