Brent Read: Manly’s on field success a product of off field unity, tell AFL they’re dreaming about Western Sydney
For years the Sea Eagles has been a club rent by personality clashes and ancient feuds, but Manly are now flying high with a fresh sense of unity.
NRL
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The boardroom nestled in the back of Bob Fulton Stand at 4 Pines Park has been quiet of late. Manly, a club that has been a hornet’s nest of political upheaval and coaching drama over the years, is enjoying some serenity as they prepare for a sudden-death final against the Sydney Roosters on Saturday night.
It is almost two years since the club parted ways with coach Des Hasler in the wake of the Pride jersey fiasco and majority owner Scott Penn – who also happens to be the chair – insists the club is aligned.
Yes, there has been some dissension and angst about plans to bring the club’s pathways in house, but that aside the Sea Eagles appear in sync.
Everyone involved with the NRL side, Penn says, are on the same page, reinforcing a message that he first heard 20 years ago when he attended a conference at Pebble Beach and listened to former San Francisco 49ers coach Bill Walsh and legendary players Joe Montana and Jerry Rice reveal the secrets to their success.
“The big thing they really pushed from a success platform was the four Cs – chairman, chief executive, coach and the captain all being in alignment,” Penn told Weekend Read.
“I can honestly say we are all in alignment. We all communicate well, we all talk, and we are all clear on where we want to go.
“If you are fractured at any of those levels, it doesn’t work. That is what it is about – being in communication, being clear about where we want to go.
“We all have the best interests of the club at heart. Our sole focus is on the best interests of the club, it is not any one individual. It is not personal.
“If we have the greater good of the club at the forefront of all our decisions, that is the best we can do. That is legitimately our focus.
“It is not in the best interests of the owners or the directors, it is the best interests of our fans and supporters.
“We’re all on the same page, probably for the first time in a long time.”
You certainly couldn’t say that two years ago as the club grappled with a fractured playing group and a divide between coach and board.
Hasler’s departure eased some of the tension and chief executive Tony Mestrov has worked in lock-step with coach Anthony Seibold to slowly piece the club back together, the reclamation project facing its next challenge at Allianz Stadium with the Sea Eagles only two wins from a grand final.
In the background, they remain locked in a legal stoush with Hasler over his sacking at the end of 2022, having tried and failed to settle the matter through mediation.
That fight will resume after the season is over.
For the moment, their only concern is beating the Roosters.
“We have a three-year plan starting this year,” Penn said.
“First year was getting our house in order. This year was getting back in the finals and starting to challenge for top four. It is about building for the future.”
With the team heading in the right direction, Penn and Mestrov have zeroed in on funding their stadium plans.
The dream is a 22,000-seat venue, potentially with a roof.
There have been talks with UFC officials and San Francisco 49ers powerbrokers, but government support will ultimately dictate whether it goes ahead.
Penn is confident progress is being made on a project that could cost upwards of $300 million.
“That would be an incredible legacy that we could leave for the district,” he said.
“We do this because we are passionate about it. It would be phenomenal to not only deliver a ground that a modern-day NRL team should be playing out of, but if we could create a precinct that creates a community where everyone can come.”
Penn and his family have ploughed millions into the club over the years – their financial reports suggest in excess of $10 million, although the figure is coming down as the club continues to operate in the black.
It isn’t about money though. There were moments when they questioned their investment and commitment to the club, although those days are long gone.
Their win over the Bulldogs last Sunday reinforced what the club meant to them.
“There have been times where we haven’t been happy with how things have been going,” Penn said.
“Not that it is about control, but those times when we were stumping up a lot of cash to keep the place afloat, then other people potentially spending that money not the way we wanted it to be spent, then you go, ‘Why are we doing this?’
“Credit to everyone for staying strong.
“It is one of the coolest things on earth to be involved in a footy club.
“It is really a childhood dream. To be able to live it – Sunday was special. My son, I have never seen him so excited. I could see in his eyes how important it was.
“All Manly fans felt the same way.”
TELL THE AFL BOOSTERS THEY’RE DREAMING
Can’t say I really know Mark Robinson, but I spent a bit of time in Paris recently with some of his colleagues and they tell me he is a cracking bloke.
I know of his reputation in Melbourne and he is one of the heavyweights of sports journalism with our sister paper, where he covers the AFL with intelligence and authority.
His opinion carries plenty of weight, but Robbo lost his way this week when he predicted on Foxtel’s AFL360 that AFL would usurp rugby league in his lifetime in Sydney.
Despite pouring hundreds of millions into the game in Sydney, and most notably the western suburbs, AFL is still a niche sport in the city.
The Sydney Swans have done an amazing job and carved out a place on the Sydney sporting landscape, securing a strong and loyal fan base.
"Before we're dead AFL will take over Rugby League (in NSW)"
— Fox Footy (@FOXFOOTY) September 18, 2024
📺 Watch #AFL360 on Ch. 504 or stream via @kayosports: https://t.co/7kvglvpWSCpic.twitter.com/s3hgLhH3fD
GWS, on the other hand, have barely made a dent. Much has been made about the Swans’ sellout crowd on Friday night with rugby league being played next door at Allianz Stadium.
Hello, can we talk about GWS and the crowd they pulled at Engie Stadium last weekend.
Just over 18,000 and there were plenty of Brisbane Lions fans who made the trek down to help fill the ground.
Meanwhile, there were more than 50,000 at Accor Stadium to watch the Bulldogs go about their business against Manly on Sunday afternoon.
A couple of nights before that they couldn’t fit any more in at Penrith as the Panthers faithful watched their side send off their stadium with a big win over the Sydney Roosters.
There was a sellout in Townsville and well over 20,000 at AAMI Park in Melbourne. Rugby league has broken attendance and viewing records this year.
It has shattered its own ceiling and amid the hubris from the AFL, rugby league is banging at its door, edging closer to becoming a national game again and preparing to sail into uncharted waters.
The sort of waters that AFL can only dream of navigating. In a matter of weeks, Perth and PNG will be announced as the NRL’s 18th and 19th teams.
There is every chance at the same point, the NRL will confirm a 20th team will be added by 2032, although it seems likely they will take their time before determining where that team will be located.
The South Island of New Zealand is the short-priced favourite but the NRL wants to get it right. The last thing they can afford is for a team to fall over.
The NRL will expand its international tentacles at a time when the domestic game is thriving and America is on its radar.
The AFL is welcome to keep banging its head against a brick wall in western Sydney while rugby league takes on the world.
Originally published as Brent Read: Manly’s on field success a product of off field unity, tell AFL they’re dreaming about Western Sydney
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