Revamp or perish: Ribot
December 12, 2004
FORMER Melbourne Storm executive director John Ribot has called for rugby league's "top-heavy" administration to be slashed, with a single entity to run the game.
Ribot believes an American football-style administration, with a commissioner to rule over the game, is inevitable in Australia to eliminate duplication of duties and personnel.
"We don't need an ARL, we don't need an NRL and a NSWRL and everyone fighting each other," Ribot said. "It just defies logic.
"There's got to be a merger, bring it all together. It doesn't matter what you call it. Call it what you want, but lay down the swords.
"We should be more conciliatory, look at the big picture and ask how we get there and let's get on with the game.
"If you look at all the major professional games in the world, no code would tolerate what we tolerate. We still have vice-presidents and all this sort of stuff that went out 40 or 50 years ago."
Ribot said those people should be acknowledged for the great things they had done for the game but should not be decision-makers in the game.
"In outfits like the NSWRL, because you've endured over time in our game you get made a vice-president and given a vote in how our game should be run. Our game should be cutting-edge stuff; it should be about the best of the best."
Ribot, who was a consultant to the Queensland Lions in their successful bid to join the new A-League, points to soccer's revolution as a blueprint for league.
"Why do you pay someone like John O'Neill what he's getting paid? Because he's cutting edge," Ribot said. "Look at what he did with the (rugby) World Cup.
"The government told soccer that because it was such a world game they would give it assistance, but only if it got its act together in the front office.
"We've just got to get the best people running our game; it doesn't matter where they come from. We haven't got our act together. There's just too much duplication. Look at the (American) NFL. They appoint a commissioner and he gets resolution on issues and if he doesn't run it the right way he gets the sack. He runs it and it just works.
Ribot said the code's historical reliance on leagues clubs had created an administrative quagmire.
"The biggest problem is that we have always had a false economy based on gaming, so we have never had to focus on driving our business based purely on the sport," he said.
"We've always had another form of revenue and I don't think that's been good for our game. We haven't had people focusing on the business model of running a rugby league team, running a rugby league competition and running rugby league as such.
"We've always had this other thing on the side and it has blinkered our thoughts on where we should be going. We're just too top-heavy."
I don't care one way or another about Ribot but it makes sense about streamlining the administration and cutting down the reliance on the leagues clubs and running the league like a proper business.
