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Arko calls for a united Manly
March 16, 2009
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Ken Arthurson says his beloved Sea Eagles will overcome their recent dramas if they band together, writes Greg Prichard.
Manly's legendary former administrator, Ken Arthurson, says the Sea Eagles must follow a simple formula if they are to emerge from the drama surrounding Brett Stewart being charged with sexual assault and successfully defend their title this season.
"There is strength in unity - that never changes," Arthurson said yesterday. "This team has come a long way in the last few years and they have achieved a lot. Their success has given them unity, and the players understand that. What they have got to continue to do, above all, is support each other - on and off the field.
"If a player feels that what is going on - whether it's bad publicity surrounding the club, or a disappointing result, or whatever - is getting him down, he shouldn't keep it to himself. He should give a teammate a call, because they are the ones who are going to best understand what he is feeling. Look to your teammates for support - that's how it has always been in the past and that's how it will be in the future."
The Sea Eagles are in crisis after their alcohol-fuelled season launch, last Friday week, got out of hand. Second-rower Anthony Watmough was involved in a physical confrontation with a club sponsor at the launch, but worse was to come, when fullback Stewart was allegedly involved in an incident that led to him being charged with sexual assault.
Stewart was stood down from playing in the first four rounds by the NRL for breaching its code of conduct, and Manly were fined $100,000 by the league. Watmough was fined $10,000 by the club.
The 79-year-old Arthurson, the former long-time secretary at Manly and later chairman of the Australian Rugby League, now lives in Queensland, but was at ANZ Stadium for Saturday night's first-round game between the Sea Eagles and Bulldogs. He presented the Bullfrog-Arko Cup, named after himself and the late former Bulldogs secretary Peter Moore, to the Bulldogs side that whipped Manly 34-12.
Afterwards, Arthurson was in the Manly dressing room, and spoke individually to a number of players and coach Des Hasler. The Sea Eagles had opened the game well enough, but as soon as they fell behind they lost intensity and looked distracted, like the week had worn them out.
"I was just trying to lift their spirits by focusing on the positive," Arthurson said. "I congratulated them on their great victory in England [in the World Club Challenge]. They were the first Australian team to win there for a few years, and that's very hard to do, because the Australian teams are only just getting ready for their season while the Poms are already into theirs.
"I told the players they need to remember what they are capable of doing in this game, and 'Dessie' to keep his chin up and believe the club will come through all of this. It had been a tough week for all of them, and I think the team was a bit flat against the Bulldogs, but by the same token the Bulldogs played extremely well. The best team won on the night, and Manly don't have any complaints about that.
"Manly's behaviour in recent years has been exemplary. They set a standard for other teams, and I think there has got to be some recognition of that at a time like this. I've got no doubt Manly can go on and compete for this year's title. It was Manly against the rest in the past, with everyone else hating Manly, and that had the effect of uniting us. Now the club will bond together as a way of dealing with the drama."
The Sea Eagles are adamant the off-field drama cannot be used as an excuse for a poor performance. Hasler made his dislike of the two-referees system clear after the loss to the Bulldogs, but when it came to the result he said: "They were too good for us. They came out quick and showed a bit more intensity than we did. We were undisciplined in the first half - we gave away too many penalties and made a few unforced errors.
"We were a lot more competitive in the second half, but congratulations to the Bulldogs and congratulations to Hazem El Masri [for breaking the competition's points-scoring record]."
Manly captain Matt Orford added: "We're all professional footballers. This is our job, and definitely not one player in our team would use that [the off-field drama] as an excuse."
March 16, 2009
LINK
Ken Arthurson says his beloved Sea Eagles will overcome their recent dramas if they band together, writes Greg Prichard.
Manly's legendary former administrator, Ken Arthurson, says the Sea Eagles must follow a simple formula if they are to emerge from the drama surrounding Brett Stewart being charged with sexual assault and successfully defend their title this season.
"There is strength in unity - that never changes," Arthurson said yesterday. "This team has come a long way in the last few years and they have achieved a lot. Their success has given them unity, and the players understand that. What they have got to continue to do, above all, is support each other - on and off the field.
"If a player feels that what is going on - whether it's bad publicity surrounding the club, or a disappointing result, or whatever - is getting him down, he shouldn't keep it to himself. He should give a teammate a call, because they are the ones who are going to best understand what he is feeling. Look to your teammates for support - that's how it has always been in the past and that's how it will be in the future."
The Sea Eagles are in crisis after their alcohol-fuelled season launch, last Friday week, got out of hand. Second-rower Anthony Watmough was involved in a physical confrontation with a club sponsor at the launch, but worse was to come, when fullback Stewart was allegedly involved in an incident that led to him being charged with sexual assault.
Stewart was stood down from playing in the first four rounds by the NRL for breaching its code of conduct, and Manly were fined $100,000 by the league. Watmough was fined $10,000 by the club.
The 79-year-old Arthurson, the former long-time secretary at Manly and later chairman of the Australian Rugby League, now lives in Queensland, but was at ANZ Stadium for Saturday night's first-round game between the Sea Eagles and Bulldogs. He presented the Bullfrog-Arko Cup, named after himself and the late former Bulldogs secretary Peter Moore, to the Bulldogs side that whipped Manly 34-12.
Afterwards, Arthurson was in the Manly dressing room, and spoke individually to a number of players and coach Des Hasler. The Sea Eagles had opened the game well enough, but as soon as they fell behind they lost intensity and looked distracted, like the week had worn them out.
"I was just trying to lift their spirits by focusing on the positive," Arthurson said. "I congratulated them on their great victory in England [in the World Club Challenge]. They were the first Australian team to win there for a few years, and that's very hard to do, because the Australian teams are only just getting ready for their season while the Poms are already into theirs.
"I told the players they need to remember what they are capable of doing in this game, and 'Dessie' to keep his chin up and believe the club will come through all of this. It had been a tough week for all of them, and I think the team was a bit flat against the Bulldogs, but by the same token the Bulldogs played extremely well. The best team won on the night, and Manly don't have any complaints about that.
"Manly's behaviour in recent years has been exemplary. They set a standard for other teams, and I think there has got to be some recognition of that at a time like this. I've got no doubt Manly can go on and compete for this year's title. It was Manly against the rest in the past, with everyone else hating Manly, and that had the effect of uniting us. Now the club will bond together as a way of dealing with the drama."
The Sea Eagles are adamant the off-field drama cannot be used as an excuse for a poor performance. Hasler made his dislike of the two-referees system clear after the loss to the Bulldogs, but when it came to the result he said: "They were too good for us. They came out quick and showed a bit more intensity than we did. We were undisciplined in the first half - we gave away too many penalties and made a few unforced errors.
"We were a lot more competitive in the second half, but congratulations to the Bulldogs and congratulations to Hazem El Masri [for breaking the competition's points-scoring record]."
Manly captain Matt Orford added: "We're all professional footballers. This is our job, and definitely not one player in our team would use that [the off-field drama] as an excuse."
