http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/...barrett-sacked-for-gallen-20100728-10w48.html
EVIDENCE has surfaced of Cronulla chairman Damian Irvine's attempts to unseat captain Trent Barrett and replace him with Paul Gallen as he continues to cling to power in the Sutherland Shire by his own vote.
Irvine on Tuesday night survived a six-and-a-half hour meeting of the club's football and leagues club boards that ended at 12.30am but there is speculation a vote of no-confidence will be called in coming days. He retains the support of four directors - his appointees Denise Aldous, Jenny Reynolds and club accountant Craig Douglas, as well as Sharks sponsor and B2B Commercial owner Ricky Surace but the four others board members - Keith Ward, Jim Barnett, Greg Holland and Paul Walker - are understood to want him removed.
Their demand for change stems from several issues including Irvine's failure to consult the board before accepting Ricky Stuart's resignation last week, his approach to Nathan Brown to replace Stuart earlier this year and his move to sack Barrett as captain.
The chairman last week denied reports of a fractured relationship with Barrett, who last Friday confirmed he would retire at the end of the season. However, an email sent by Irvine to then coach Stuart and Sharks chief executive Richard Fisk on April 23 shows he was behind a move to install Gallen as captain.
Labelled in the subject line as ''An idea going forward'' the email, which was provided to the
Herald by a club source and has been viewed widely at the Sharks, is directed chiefly towards Stuart and asks him to consider replacing Barrett with Gallen.
''The captaincy of the first-grade side is a football decision and is obviously yours to make, Ricky. So please don't think I'm trying to interfere, just help,'' Irvine wrote, before adding: ''I think Trent is fantastic and doing a great job so don't take this the wrong way. I'm just saying that if you want it, the players want it, Paul wants it and Trent is happy, there is no reason why he [Gallen] shouldn't be captain in my opinion and I would support and explain that to the full board.''
The email continues: ''We've committed to Paul for four years and we've told him we're starting a clean slate so nothing in the past should be taken into account. All I care about is the now and the future.'' In the email, Irvine also wrote that he was not entirely aware of the circumstances - an alleged racist slur against then St George Illawarra forward Mickey Paea - which led to Gallen stepping down from the captaincy in May last year. The chairman did not return calls yesterday but last week played down suggestions of a rift with Barrett.
At the time the email was sent Barrett was still weighing up whether to continue his career into next year or retire. His relationship with Irvine is understood to have begun to unravel in March when the chairman turned his back on Barrett in the dressing room in Auckland following a disappointing individual performance in a 30-16 defeat to the Warriors.
According to sources, Barrett told Irvine to ''f--- off'' because of his presence in the dressing room after another game this season.
Stuart, who in May announced he would leave the Sharks at the end of the season and a fortnight ago decided to depart immediately following a heavy loss to Manly, had barely been on speaking terms with Irvine since Christmas when he first became aware of an approach to Brown, the coach of English Super League side Huddersfield, to replace him in the top job at Cronulla.
Fisk left the club in June and admitted he did not see eye to eye with Irvine on some issues during his time running the football department at Cronulla.
As reported by the
Herald, Irvine has since been under scrutiny for attacking the Sharks' previous administration in online forums under the pseudonym ''Beeker Shark'' and for his support of the new Cronulla Leagues Club general manager Deborah Feening, who is under investigation for alleged fraud at the Marconi Club.
