The trouble shooter
14 July 2004
His happy-go-lucky persona might not suggest so, but Sharks coach Stuart Raper is the man most likely to break the clubs premiership duck. Peter Badel reports.
It's hard not to be impressed by Stuart Raper.
In a fraternity dominated by taciturn, paranoid, hard-nosed tacticians whose ashen faces suggest an NRL coaching gig is tantamount to 80 minutes at the dentist, Raper is a mentor seemingly having fun.
Watch the rookie Sharks coach at a game next time.
If hes not punching the air, hes trading high fives, hugging his troops or screaming down the walkie talkie.
Unbridled emotion, Stuart Raper-style, is in vogue at Cronulla.
And how the club is responding. Eight weeks out from the finals, the Sharks are entrenched in eighth spot.
Its a significant feat given the off-season bloodletting that culminated in the sacking of the abrasive Chris Anderson, whose my-way-or-the-highway attitude never quite seemed to gel at a club renowned for its squeaky-clean identity.
But, in Raper, the Sharks have not inherited a soft touch.
In his 12-year existence as a coach, hes fashioned a reputation as a troubleshooter of sorts; a popular pragmatist who greets the hurdles, then promptly sets about kicking them down.
Hes aware the Sharks have never won an NRL premiership since their birth in 1967.
And you get the impression that if anyone can provide that watershed title, it is Raper, who delivered two lower grade titles in his last coaching stint at the Sharks in the mid-1990s.
I dont know about this so-called monkey on Cronullas back, I just want to see the club win a comp, laughs Raper, who returned to the Shire over summer as Andersons assistant before being thrust into the hot seat.
I remember watching them as a kid in 1973 (when they lost to Manly in their maiden grand final) and I cried in 1978 when they didnt win as well.
My approach to this job is that I cant change the past 30-odd years and my side cant take the responsibility of whats happened in the past. I dont want us to be burdened by the history of the club, and Ive been part of that history. Instead I want to be the future of this club and thats how I want the players to look at it.
Right now, we have a lot of steps to take. But it would be my lifes dream to break this duck and bring Cronulla their first premiership.
His pedigree is unquestioned.
In 1992, his first year of coaching as captain-coach of Eden, he steered the Group 16 side to the premiership. The following year they lost in the decider.
In 1994, he took Cronullas under-21s to the title in his debut season the clubs first triumph in that grade since their maiden premiership in 1973.
In 1995, Raper was promoted to reserve grade and watched his charges crash in the grand final.
Twelve months later, he exacted revenge, becoming the first coach in Cronullas history to claim more than one piece of silverware.
But his record in England is just as remarkable.
When he took charge of battlers Castleford midway through 1997, the club was on the brink of relegation.
Two years later, they had been transformed into a premiership force, falling one game short of the grand final, before Raper embarked on a bitter-sweet three years with giants Wigan.
The 39-year-old was largely a success at Wigan: under his leadership, they lost the 2001 grand final and won the 2002 Challenge Cup.
Yet Raper was sacked a year later, the victim of a player push driven by meddling supremo Maurice Lindsay.
I had a great time over there, the league folk are just so passionate and I matured a lot as a coach. People here think Im a rookie, but some of the pressures and expectations over there are the same as the NRL and have held me in good stead, says Raper.
The Castleford offer came out of the blue. I didnt apply for it. They had lost 12 games straight and needed a quick fix. If I knew how hard a job it was, I probably wouldnt have gone.
Raper will never forget the night that saved Cas and probably his coaching career.
It went down to the very last game of the season and had we lost, I could have been back in Australia the next week. I ended up staying six years, he says.
We beat Sheffield, it was the day Princess Diana died. With 15 minutes to go, the heavens opened up and flooded the ground, I went out on the field and the boys threw me in the water, it was up to our ankles, then they tumbled on top of me.
When we got to the rooms, our bags were floating in the rooms and sewerage had banked up. It was an amazing first year.
Amid the chaotic scenes, however, Raper paused for a glimpse around the room. He had built a club on self-belief and mateship.
This season, he has made his instructions clear to the players.
He wants them playing for the jumper, just as he had as a crafty back-rower whose lack of size restricted him to eight top grade games for the Sharks and Wests in the mid-1980s.
Solidarity is now the buzzword at Toyota Park. Every Friday, the players get together for a barbecue, and they participate in team building activities such as catamaran racing.
There is a real solidness here, says halfback Brett Kimmorley.
Adds prop Chris Beattie: Stuart is very different to Chris (Anderson), hes more laid-back. But he is an extremely hard worker, he has a real passion for the game and it comes out in his coaching.
The important thing, too, is that Stuart has brought some stability to the place. In the next 12 months, the club will only improve on the field.
But Raper knows being a fun-loving coach will count for nothing if he cant deliver what the club ultimately wants and needs a premiership. He just hopes the players share his belief.
People say with all the money going around now players cant play for the jumper but there is still a lot of passion in rugby league. These guys spend a lot of time together, they respect each other, they understand they are there for the same cause, they need each other, says Raper.
One of my coaching philosophies is unity.
Two players cant win you a comp, but if you get a tight unit that believe in one another and want to win for each other, they become very hard to beat.
14 July 2004
His happy-go-lucky persona might not suggest so, but Sharks coach Stuart Raper is the man most likely to break the clubs premiership duck. Peter Badel reports.
It's hard not to be impressed by Stuart Raper.
In a fraternity dominated by taciturn, paranoid, hard-nosed tacticians whose ashen faces suggest an NRL coaching gig is tantamount to 80 minutes at the dentist, Raper is a mentor seemingly having fun.
Watch the rookie Sharks coach at a game next time.
If hes not punching the air, hes trading high fives, hugging his troops or screaming down the walkie talkie.
Unbridled emotion, Stuart Raper-style, is in vogue at Cronulla.
And how the club is responding. Eight weeks out from the finals, the Sharks are entrenched in eighth spot.
Its a significant feat given the off-season bloodletting that culminated in the sacking of the abrasive Chris Anderson, whose my-way-or-the-highway attitude never quite seemed to gel at a club renowned for its squeaky-clean identity.
But, in Raper, the Sharks have not inherited a soft touch.
In his 12-year existence as a coach, hes fashioned a reputation as a troubleshooter of sorts; a popular pragmatist who greets the hurdles, then promptly sets about kicking them down.
Hes aware the Sharks have never won an NRL premiership since their birth in 1967.
And you get the impression that if anyone can provide that watershed title, it is Raper, who delivered two lower grade titles in his last coaching stint at the Sharks in the mid-1990s.
I dont know about this so-called monkey on Cronullas back, I just want to see the club win a comp, laughs Raper, who returned to the Shire over summer as Andersons assistant before being thrust into the hot seat.
I remember watching them as a kid in 1973 (when they lost to Manly in their maiden grand final) and I cried in 1978 when they didnt win as well.
My approach to this job is that I cant change the past 30-odd years and my side cant take the responsibility of whats happened in the past. I dont want us to be burdened by the history of the club, and Ive been part of that history. Instead I want to be the future of this club and thats how I want the players to look at it.
Right now, we have a lot of steps to take. But it would be my lifes dream to break this duck and bring Cronulla their first premiership.
His pedigree is unquestioned.
In 1992, his first year of coaching as captain-coach of Eden, he steered the Group 16 side to the premiership. The following year they lost in the decider.
In 1994, he took Cronullas under-21s to the title in his debut season the clubs first triumph in that grade since their maiden premiership in 1973.
In 1995, Raper was promoted to reserve grade and watched his charges crash in the grand final.
Twelve months later, he exacted revenge, becoming the first coach in Cronullas history to claim more than one piece of silverware.
But his record in England is just as remarkable.
When he took charge of battlers Castleford midway through 1997, the club was on the brink of relegation.
Two years later, they had been transformed into a premiership force, falling one game short of the grand final, before Raper embarked on a bitter-sweet three years with giants Wigan.
The 39-year-old was largely a success at Wigan: under his leadership, they lost the 2001 grand final and won the 2002 Challenge Cup.
Yet Raper was sacked a year later, the victim of a player push driven by meddling supremo Maurice Lindsay.
I had a great time over there, the league folk are just so passionate and I matured a lot as a coach. People here think Im a rookie, but some of the pressures and expectations over there are the same as the NRL and have held me in good stead, says Raper.
The Castleford offer came out of the blue. I didnt apply for it. They had lost 12 games straight and needed a quick fix. If I knew how hard a job it was, I probably wouldnt have gone.
Raper will never forget the night that saved Cas and probably his coaching career.
It went down to the very last game of the season and had we lost, I could have been back in Australia the next week. I ended up staying six years, he says.
We beat Sheffield, it was the day Princess Diana died. With 15 minutes to go, the heavens opened up and flooded the ground, I went out on the field and the boys threw me in the water, it was up to our ankles, then they tumbled on top of me.
When we got to the rooms, our bags were floating in the rooms and sewerage had banked up. It was an amazing first year.
Amid the chaotic scenes, however, Raper paused for a glimpse around the room. He had built a club on self-belief and mateship.
This season, he has made his instructions clear to the players.
He wants them playing for the jumper, just as he had as a crafty back-rower whose lack of size restricted him to eight top grade games for the Sharks and Wests in the mid-1980s.
Solidarity is now the buzzword at Toyota Park. Every Friday, the players get together for a barbecue, and they participate in team building activities such as catamaran racing.
There is a real solidness here, says halfback Brett Kimmorley.
Adds prop Chris Beattie: Stuart is very different to Chris (Anderson), hes more laid-back. But he is an extremely hard worker, he has a real passion for the game and it comes out in his coaching.
The important thing, too, is that Stuart has brought some stability to the place. In the next 12 months, the club will only improve on the field.
But Raper knows being a fun-loving coach will count for nothing if he cant deliver what the club ultimately wants and needs a premiership. He just hopes the players share his belief.
People say with all the money going around now players cant play for the jumper but there is still a lot of passion in rugby league. These guys spend a lot of time together, they respect each other, they understand they are there for the same cause, they need each other, says Raper.
One of my coaching philosophies is unity.
Two players cant win you a comp, but if you get a tight unit that believe in one another and want to win for each other, they become very hard to beat.
. Stuey is a great coach who to me will lead us to our first Premiership or at least to some sort of success, he has given us the ability to win without key players in BK and Peach and has created a real sense of passion throught the club - players and supporters alike. His attitude, laid-back at times but serious when required is a feature I expecially like in a coach, a bit of character.
