Eels legend Ray Price among members to endorse vote of no confidence in Parramatta board
The Parramatta board has been served a vote of no confidence in a letter endorsed by two club legends which accuses it of ‘failing its supporters, members and players’.
Parramatta legend Ray Price and grand final-winning prop Terry Leabeater have endorsed an explosive letter which includes a vote of no confidence in the current administration and board.
The letter, which was formally sent to Eels chairman Sean McElduff this week, has also been supported by former sponsors, members, junior league officials and business owners.
McElduff fired back on Tuesday, strongly disputing the letter’s contents.
Described as a “letter of demand” and compiled by several perpetual members, including former sponsor Andrew Eagleston, the five-page document is strongly-worded over multiple issues inside the club.
It details an “unacceptable and ongoing situation relating to the PNRL operations, and the results delivered by the organisation. This letter serves as a vote of no confidence for the chairman and selected members of the PNRL Board.”
“The Parramatta board and management are failing its supporters, members and players and this trend will continue unless significant changes are made to the structure of the board and management,” it continued.
The letter claims Parramatta’s Junior Rugby League has been “neglected” and questions the Eels’ recruitment and retention policy while identifying the junior players who have excelled after leaving the club.
Never one to back down from a fight, Price spoke passionately about the letter on Tuesday, while expressing disappointment additional former Eels players had elected against signing the letter for fear of repercussions.
Speaking with News Corp, Price said: “These blokes (the administration and board) are ******* with the whole club.
“They’ve all got to be sacked. They haven’t got a clue. When they get a good person there, they do their darnedest to get rid of them. The part I can’t understand is why we have so many of our juniors playing for other clubs.
“And I’m really dirty I haven’t got the support of my fellow players. Some said they didn’t want to get involved. You can’t do anything or succeed in anything if you don’t get involved. We can’t fix the club if we don’t all get together.”
Eagleston claims he has the support of hundreds of members.
The letter reads in part: “The club has people in positions that are not delivering results for its members, nor are they able to deliver strategic and targeted solutions, this has resulted in a distinct lack of structured leadership within the organisation.
“The culture within Parramatta does not encourage nor welcome open communication with its members. The shortfall of rugby league knowledge on the PNRL board is reflected throughout the organisation, the members would like a concise and unfiltered financial summary of where Parramatta are positioned financially.
“The current board and management structure is disrupting the growth of the organisation and undermining the performance of the team.
“There needs to be a significant increase in suitably skilled Parramatta people involved in the Parramatta Eels. The chairman of the PNRL is a self-admitted soccer fan and a staunch St George Dragons supporter.
“The identification of talent within the district is a major issue. The club is ignoring its junior talent and is making no effort to stop the exile of many talented juniors to other rival clubs.”
McElduff questioned the letter’s accuracy and sought to dispel much of its contents.
“From 2010 to 2016, we never made the finals once. We got busted for cheating the salary cap five times. We (the board) have been in for five years and made the finals four times. We lost $12m in 2016 and over $30m in the previous six years. In 2016, the club lost $12m. Last year, the club made a profit and this year the club will make profit,” he said.
“We had four juniors make their NRL debut this year – that’s the largest number of debutants that Parramatta have had in more than 10 years. Last year, we had two. We were number one in terms of membership in the NRL this year. This year, the NRL gave a women’s licence.”
“We have established a new facility at Kellyville where we have a 20-year lease, five playing fields, new office and training facilities and we have a plan and funding in place to construct a new Centre of Excellence and a community centre, which is going to cost us $60m. If we were a bunch of misfits, we wouldn’t have been able to arrange that.”
Why Eels fans can feel confident long wait will soon be over
He doesn’t necessarily agree but newly re-signed Brad Arthur isn’t a fool — he knows his coaching legacy at Parramatta Eels will be judged purely on whether he can snap an excruciating 36-year premiership drought.
“Yep, I’m going to be judged on whether we win a premiership or not — that’s part of my job,” Arthur said. “I get it, don’t worry, I want to win one. I’m desperate to.”
After penning a two-year extension, Arthur opened up to News Corp on his new deal, the future, expectations and hunger.
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GREAT EXPECTATIONS
While failing to win a grand final, Parramatta has emerged as an NRL juggernaut on and off the field.
“I started eight years ago and have I put the club in a better position than when I started? Definitely. And when I leave, the club will be in a better position than when I started,” Arthur said.
“Our fans, members and sponsors can come to every game and know we’ll be right in the game. We will have a crack at winning. We know we can match it with the good teams but the challenge for us is to find that extra bit now to make sure we’re doing that all the time.
“I know everyone wants us to win a comp and my expectations are the same, as is the board, players, everyone at the club. It’s hard to do but we’re doing our best. We’re not there but we’re getting closer.
“They’re tough to win. It’s hard to win each week. The hardest game to win is when you’ve lost a couple in a row and you’re trying to get back on the horse. At the start of the year, you have to get a few wins early. It’s a tough competition, every team is going out there wanting the same thing.
“Every side on their day can be a good team. Some teams have a little bit more class than others but you’ve only got to be off five or ten per cent and that’s enough.”
THE WAIT CONTINUES
As impressive as Parramatta were in the finals, the Eels fell short. Again.
“Four out of the last five years we have made it to week two of the finals. There are only a few clubs that can say that. But I think our club has also judged me on other things. That’s why they are keeping me.
“We are debuting young blokes, we are getting more local talent in the team, we are getting better and we are tight as a group. I don’t know too much about the finances but I know the club is doing well, sponsorship is good, we have a new stadium, there is a new facility (high performance centre).
“All those things contribute and I feel like the club is judging me on that. If it was just about a premiership maybe I would have been gone. We’re still not quite where we want to be but we’re in the top half a dozen clubs in the competition.
“That’s a good starting point for us. But we’re not content — we want to be better. No one is getting comfortable but we are doing a pretty good job.”
CONTRACT CONFIDENCE
The new deal extends Arthur’s tenure at Parramatta until the end of 2024.
Having agreed to a new two-year extension on Friday night, Arthur (202 games as head coach) is now expected to pass Brian Smith (243), who coached Parramatta for nine-and-a-half seasons between 1997 and 2006.
“I’m not too worried about records or my own personal milestones,” he said. “But it’s good for the club, good for my family but it’s also a good reflection on the board — led by Sean (McElduff, chairman) and Jim (Sarantinos, CEO) and the work of Mark (O’Neill, general manager of football).
“They have put a lot of faith in me, they believe in me. That helps because I’m not looking over my shoulder all the time. I’m comfortable with the decisions I make — I’m not making decisions scared. That’s how I want our team to play — don’t go out there trying not to lose, go out to win.
“The coach has a lot of responsibility and he has to get the job done but chopping and changing the coach all the time isn’t always the best long-term plan for a club, in my eyes. I reckon the club has done a good job by sticking to its guns.
“Parramatta has always been in my bloodline. Things don’t always go to plan but it would be great to continue to coach the club for as long as I can. But I’m also a realist, I know it has to come to an end at some stage.”
HUNGER AND DESIRE
Does the constant scrutiny, headlines and pressure affect him?
“No, I love it,” Arthur said. “I don’t take it personally because I know everyone has a job to do. Personally, all you guys in the media, sponsors and fans, you all have expectations, as we have, but I always feel like I’ve been treated fairly.
“If we’re not playing good enough and we’re not doing a good enough job, and you report on the facts, well they are the facts and I’ve got to wear it. I’m more than happy with that.
“I’ve only ever been treated fairly so it doesn’t worry me one bit. That’s part of my job. I know I get paid well to do it and I’ve got a good life. I don’t have one complaint — except not winning the comp.”
TIGHT KNIT GROUP
The TAB has Parramatta on the sixth line of betting for next season, paying $13 to claim the title. And Arthur knows his side can create history.
“We are keeping this team together. I feel that we got closer than ever this year — we know what it takes to be in the hunt in those finals, the intensity you need to play at. I reckon the boys will come back in the pre-season knowing that they’re good enough now,” he said.
“Sometimes belief is a bit of hope as well. But there is no more hope — they know they’re good enough and the goal is finding that level of intensity, desperation and desire every week. That is what clubs like the Melbourne Storm and Panthers do, that’s how they play every single week.
“Guys like Reed Mahoney and Dylan Brown haven’t yet got to 100 games. We’re still young as a squad. Will Penisini has played four or five NRL games and has now played in the finals for us. I know as a coach I’ve had an impact on players’ lives that have come to our team. Hopefully they have become better players and enjoy our club.”
PANTHER PREMIERS
Surely it must sting to watch bitter Western Sydney rivals Penrith win the grand final?
“I’m happy for Penrith. It’s good that a western Sydney club won the competition,” he said.
“It’s also good for us as well in that we’re not far off Penrith either. We were right in the contest with them (8-6 loss in elimination final). We were beaten by a goal kick in one of our biggest games of the year by the team that actually won the comp.
“I see it as a good thing that they did win the comp. Last year we were beaten by Melbourne and they went on and won the grand final. We’re right there in tough games. But no one is sitting back on our laurels and saying: ‘We’re getting close, that is good enough’. We’re not.”
OFF CONTRACT EELS
Parramatta has multiple star players coming off contract after next season, including Clint Gutherson, Reed Mahoney, Ryan Matterson and Junior Paulo
“That will take time. We have to get the process right. But we have the desire to keep every one of those blokes and everyone of those players has the desire to want to stay,” Arthur said. “It doesn’t always work out that way but we will be doing our utmost.
“It’s a good thing we have other clubs chasing our players. And it’s a good thing when bookies roll the odds out we’re in the top four, fix or six chances. It could be a lot worse — we could be down the bottom and no-one gives us a chance.
“If we’ve got other clubs chasing our players then obviously we’re doing something right.”
COVID QUEENSLAND
Arthur has snuck in a quick post-season holiday with family in Cairns. He returned to Sydney on Sunday.
“I’ve worked it out, I’ve been away for nearly 14, 15 weeks. We had to do it for the comp to keep going and it’s been better than what you guys have gone through in Sydney. It’s been good but I’m looking forward to getting home. I’m definitely not complaining,” he said.
EEL DEAL: PARRAMATTA KEEP FAITH IN KING ARTHUR
Arise King Arthur.
Just two months after his job was being questioned and dissected, Brad Arthur will become the longest-serving coach in Parramatta’s 74-year history.
Having agreed to a new two-year extension on Friday night, Arthur (202 games as head coach) is expected to pass Brian Smith (243), who coached Parramatta for nine-and-a-half seasons between 1997 and 2006.
Arthur now has three years to run down Smith’s 41-game lead. Like Smith, Arthur has yet to win a grand final.
A horrid mid-season stretch, where Arthur’s Eels lost five of six games, had the Eels coach under increasing pressure, despite having another year to run on his current deal.
Arthur, 47, fended off the criticism and has signed a new contract, keeping him in charge at Parramatta until the end of 2024.
Retaining Arthur is a robust sign of faith by Parramatta’s board. Arthur signed a two-year extension in August, 2020, and has now secured another term.
Having escaped from that mid-season slump, Parramatta reached week two of the NRL finals before being eliminated in a gruelling game by western Sydney neighbours and eventual premiers, Penrith.
“As a club we are all in this together, we share the same drive to constantly improve and set the standards that will deliver the results that our loyal members, fans and sponsors are looking for,” Arthur said.
Shock contender in mix to enter Tigers’ den
—Michael Carayannis
Wests Tigers have begun interviewing potential assistant coaches, with premiership-winning coach Shane Flanagan right in the mix.
The Tigers have two positions available to assist Michael Maguire as they head into a season-defining year for the coach.
Flanagan has already been interviewed and he sits at the top of the queue.
Itis understood that ex-Parramatta captain Nathan Cayless and former South Sydney lower-grade player Ryan Carr are also among the potential candidates.
Flanagan has strong support from those within the club. The famed review into the club, which almost led to Maguire’s sacking, asked the coach to surround himself with high calibre assistants.
Flanagan is easily the most credentialed having led the Sharks premiership glory in 2016 and finished his stint with a 55 per cent winning rate. He was a St George Illawarra assistant coach in 2020 before joining Fox League this year.
Flanagan wants to return to coaching and is open to providing support to Maguire.
Cayless most recently spent the past two seasons working as an assistant coach at the Roosters. He was replaced by Brett Morris heading into next season. Since retiring at the end of 2010, Cayless has held coaching positions at his former club Parramatta and the Warriors.
Carr played under Maguire during a stint at South Sydney before transitioning into a coach. He was appointed South Sydney’s under-20s coach in 2017 where Pat Richards, who is part of the Tigers coaching staff, was his assistant.
Carr has also coached Mounties and Parramatta in the NSW Cup and spent a season as head coach of Featherstone Rovers in the competition below the Super League.
Ex-Bulldogs coach Dean Pay was also linked to the role.
The Tigers are on the lookout for new coaches after Wayne Collins was not re-signed following the review. The club this week also announced that Shane Millard, who joined the club last year, was also moving on.
Meanwhile, the Tigers have officially unveiled Tyrone Peachey on a two year deal worth about $750,000.
Peachey returns to Sydney after a three-year stint on the Gold Coast.
He could line-up in the halves to start the season given the long-term injury to Adam Doueihi. Peachey, who played three games for NSW in 2018, joins Jackson Hastings and Oliver Gildart as new recruits at the Tigers next season.
“I’ve been really impressed by Madge (Maguire) and the way he approaches the game and I’m looking forward to working under him,” Peachey said.
“I know that I perform my best when I’ve got a strong coach who can keep me accountable and I’ve really enjoyed speaking with him lately.”
The Tigers still have about a $1 million for three spots left on their roster.
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