Knights Tew on Hill's critique

[Pumba]

Knights Tew on Hill's critique
BY ROBERT DILLON

KNIGHTS chairman Rob Tew has defended the club's management and coach Brian Smith after staunch criticism from one of Newcastle's founding fathers, Michael Hill.

Hill delivered a stinging critique of Smith's three-year tenure in an opinion piece in The Herald yesterday and said the veteran coach should have been told to "move on immediately" after signing for the Sydney Roosters.

Newcastle's longest-serving chairman declared that key aspects of Smith's reign have been contrary to the club's traditional values and must be regarded as failures.

In particular, Hill argued that Newcastle's junior teams had been unsuccessful under Smith and the coach's policies were "directly against the founding philosophy of giving local juniors a pathway to represent their own area".

Hill also queried Smith's decision to release a host of home-grown first-graders like Josh Perry, Clint Newton and Anthony Quinn and declared that the "essential respect between players and coach must have been affected" by the coach's recent decison to join the Roosters next season.

Tew has penned his own forthright response on page 19 in today's Herald.

He said yesterday Hill was entitled to his opinion but disagreed with the sentiments expressed, which he said were unlikely to help the Knights, who are already under pressure after three consecutive losses.

"I'm not bothered with the fact that he's made a comment, because I think everyone who feels strongly about the club should have an opinion," Tew said yesterday.

"But his comments in my view are not necessarily balanced and not necessarily fully informed about our current situation, so in that respect they are probably unhelpful in the current climate."

In his article today, Tew argues that Hill has selected "only those parts of the club's history that suit the particular points he is putting forward".

He writes that it is simplistic to judge Newcastle's junior-development system by the participation in under-age finals series.

He also says that the circumstances surrounding Smith agreeing to join another club, while under contract to Newcastle, "were not unique in rugby league, nor are they unique at the Newcastle Knights".

He says the decision to allow Smith to continue coaching Newcastle until season's end was "not unlike a number of decisions the club has taken with coaches in the past; it's just that this one has been publicly stated".

Tew believes Newcastle's board has dealt with the Smith issues "in the club's best interest and based upon all the information available".

Herald

 

[Serc]

Tew has penned his own forthright response on page 19 in today's Herald.

Has anyone got a copy of this (online or otherwise) somewhere? Can't find it on the Herald website...

 

[Karmawave]

Tew writes that it is simplistic to judge Newcastle's junior-development system by the participation in under-age finals series.



That's fine Mr Tew, so we should judge the juniors on the overall talent level - which is below POOR anyway. What's the point?

 

[antonius]

The whole lower grades/junior system is crap.

 

[roopy]

The whole lower grades/junior system is crap.

I don't think it's so bad.
Mathews last year was the best under 16s i've seen, and Ball next year should be even better.
The new recruitment guy already has us back on track - we just need another year or two for it to filter through.

 

[antonius]

I don't think it's so bad.
Mathews last year was the best under 16s i've seen, and Ball next year should be even better.
The new recruitment guy already has us back on track - we just need another year or two for it to filter through.

We've lost 3 years of the "filtering through" that's what p!sses me off. Call me old fashioned roops. I want the days of watching Flegg, Premier league, first grade back, with the odd Ball game thrown in, watching our juniors come through, players I can relate to mate. For me that's all gone out the window, it's not all Smiths fault either, The players going to local clubs seemed like a good idea at the time, but I've changed my mind. The NRL need to re-think the structure of the lower grades.

 

[Serc]

I swear I've heard somewhere that they might be bringing back PL in the near future...when the Storm announced they are pulling their CC team next year and putting it into the NSW cup/2nd tier/reserve grade/whatever competition, Waldron said:

“We recently advised the New South Wales Country Rugby League of our decision to end our relationship with the Central Coast and submit our own team in the NSW Premier League for the 2010 season and beyond”

That is unless they have no idea what they are talking about and the current arrangements with the NSW cup etc etc are continuing

 

[roopy]

We've lost 3 years of the "filtering through" that's what p!sses me off. Call me old fashioned roops. I want the days of watching Flegg, Premier league, first grade back, with the odd Ball game thrown in, watching our juniors come through, players I can relate to mate. For me that's all gone out the window, it's not all Smiths fault either, The players going to local clubs seemed like a good idea at the time, but I've changed my mind. The NRL need to re-think the structure of the lower grades.

The players in the local league will be a huge success if a few local kids aim up for NYC and firstgrade next year - and it is already happening with that Adams kid getting a trial for firstgrade and Pulivea or whatever already in NYC.
The guys learn stuff at training and get to keep match fit in the local comp - and all at zero cost - perfect.

 

[roopy]

I swear I've heard somewhere that they might be bringing back PL in the near future...when the Storm announced they are pulling their CC team next year and putting it into the NSW cup/2nd tier/reserve grade/whatever competition, Waldron said:

“We recently advised the New South Wales Country Rugby League of our decision to end our relationship with the Central Coast and submit our own team in the NSW Premier League for the 2010 season and beyond”

That is unless they have no idea what they are talking about and the current arrangements with the NSW cup etc etc are continuing

He means the NSW cup.

 

[antonius]

The players in the local league will be a huge success if a few local kids aim up for NYC and firstgrade next year - and it is already happening with that Adams kid getting a trial for firstgrade and Pulivea or whatever already in NYC.
The guys learn stuff at training and get to keep match fit in the local comp - and all at zero cost - perfect.

Yep and that's great roops, but the general Mr public that turns up at first grade doesn't see them unless they make first grade, and the player misses out on the experience of playing in front of a big crowd (he misses the the feel of what it means to be a Newcastle Knight)

 

[Nuffy]

"Pot meet Kettle" with Hill bagging Smith and by extension the current Board.

Hill's legacy over the last few years at the club was appalling, the state of the club when he left was appalling.

With all the dramas surrounding the club recently, how did Hills comments do anything to improve the situation, it seemed like a pretty cheap shot to me.

 

[antonius]

All bagging aside Nuffy. A day at a Knights game these days pales into insignificance with a days at games during the early 2000's Sure we had the players, but where did they come from, how were they recruited, how were they brought through? Those players are still out there, we just don't identify them anymore, or bring them through our system. They don't just stop exsisting, they are out there, our recent system just hasn't found the time or space for them. Talent doesn't just cease to exsist, it's here we just don't find it these days.

 

[Nuffy]

Mate, I agree 100% but to be fair, it happen well before Smith came on the scene.

Our recruitment and retention has been poor for years.

You know we've got a problem when we can't even talk to someone like Tahu.

Lets hope that Stone understands the problem and gets the structure in place and brings back some proven talent spotters / developers like Rip Taylor.

 

[antonius]

Mate, I agree 100% but to be fair, it happen well before Smith came on the scene.

Our recruitment and retention has been poor for years.

You know we've got a problem when we can't even talk to someone like Tahu.

Lets hope that Stone understands the problem and gets the structure in place and brings back some proven talent spotters / developers like Rip Taylor.

Don't even start me on that!!

 

[Newie is God's Country]

Typical football board past and present bickering. Best thing is for A privatisation and a complete reboot at board level. Look at what Ossie has done for the eels. The guy has done more in five weeks than Fitzgerald did in the last ten years. I am going to go out on alimb and say the eels will win the comp. St George are looking well and truly over their shoulders now.

 

[Alex28]

Hill and Tew both have their weaknesses here - whilst it is f***ing rich for Hill to go and bag Smith given he oversaw a decade of the Knights riding on Joey's coattails, Tew has been part of the board that allowed Smith to abandon the juniors. Pot, kettle, all that...

 

[antonius]

It's pretty sad when Tahu (reportedly) considers the Eels as his club, and is the club he wants to return to league with! WTF he's one of ours.

 

[Hanscholo]

I might be wrong, but wasnt Quinn purchased by Melbourne while Hagan was still at the club? He was never released, and certainly Smith had nothing to do with it. Am i mistaken?

 

[Hanscholo]

I don't think it's so bad.
Mathews last year was the best under 16s i've seen, and Ball next year should be even better.
The new recruitment guy already has us back on track - we just need another year or two for it to filter through.

Thats right. I think the abuse Smith is getting for the juniors is somewhat unfounded. You cant expect to turn a long term system like jnr development into a 3 year success story. Its just not possible. I was expecting to see it work over the next 3 years.

Hill is claiming that because we released a few locals that we somehow sold out the purpose of the clubs existence...No, they are a first grade football side, no jnr system in the world has ever sustained the type of flow that is required to maintain a top class side infinitly. The players that were let go were done so because they werent up to it, and lets be frank, we havent seen high quality jnrs coming through since about 2004. So what was smith to do? I find this retrospective laughable. Its more white knights bullsh*t, it would seem that they run our club still.

 

[roopy]

and lets be frank, we havent seen high quality jnrs coming through since about 2004.

Mullen
Pato
McManus
Snowden
Seu Seu
Walsh
Dureau
Natusch
Uate

Nothing wrong with our juniors in 2006 and 2007 - but since then we only have Joel Edwards (I don't count Tovo because he spent one year in our juniors and was terrible).