Moedogg
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Canterbury Bulldogs and Des Hasler: Where did it all go wrong?
Des Hasler had no say in the club’s strategic plan, but he may be judged according to it. Picture: Justin Brierty
They laid it on the line at the start of 2015. Canterbury officials made a big song and dance as they outlined a strategic plan to make them the country’s premier sporting club in the space of five years.
Two years later and that ambitious missive hangs like a millstone around the neck of every club official, none more so than Des Hasler, despite the coach having minimum input in the plan.
The Bulldogs targeted two grand final wins by 2019 and are yet to produce any. Given the negativity surrounding the club’s exit from the finals and the state of their squad, a premiership next year looks beyond them as well.
They planned a top-four finish every year in the NRL and NYC. This year, the first-grade side finished seventh and exited in the opening week of the finals. The NYC side languished in 11th.
The club talked about contracting local juniors but homegrown players are sparse on the ground and Hasler is the man in the firing line, the bullseye he is now sporting owing much to the club’s inability to meet its goals despite lavish spending on their coach and football department.
Hasler was hailed as one of the club’s greatest signings when he was stolen from Manly by former chief executive Todd Greenberg, in a deal worth in excess of $1 million, and given unfettered power.
He arrived with a flotilla of his own personnel but also with a charter to win the club a premiership. Five years have passed and the club has two grand finals to show for that investment, a worthwhile record anywhere bar the Bulldogs, it appears.
Hasler’s future will be discussed at a board meeting this afternoon with the walls closing in. He may survive, but his power will be heavily diluted and the situation appears untenable.
Sources within the club suggest the swing in momentum hasn’t been sudden, but a gradual build-up of frustration which has exploded over the past fortnight.
Club legend Terry Lamb provided a snapshot of that fury earlier this season when he talked about Hasler not understanding the DNA of the club. It is understood he later apologised to Hasler, although his comments were reiterated this week when former teammate and Bulldogs director Steve Mortimer laid into Hasler.
Club officials insist Mortimer went rogue and his future as a member of the board could now be in jeopardy. But when Mortimer talks, Bulldogs supporters tend to listen. He remains, in many respects, a voice of their people.
The supporters watch Michael Ennis win a grand final at Cronulla and wonder why he was dispensed with in favour of Michael Lichaa, who has struggled to make any imprint at the Bulldogs.
They question the decision to sign Will Hopoate when he refuses to play on Sundays. Mutiny pervades the air around Belmore. Hasler has already felt the backlash, suffering the ignominy of having his staff culled, the spurned including long-time allies Noel Cleal and John Novak.
His football department budget is set to be slashed after a year in which the club suffered financially by disappointing performances and dwindling support.
It is understood the club was nearly $1m under budget this season, their financial performance not helped by fans turning away at a lack of imagination on the field.
The football club is backed by an affluent leagues club that swims in rivers of gold. Yet the leagues club is in the process of undergoing a redevelopment worth more than $100m, so cash isn’t as readily available as it once was.
The days of rampant spending are over. There was a time when members of the coaching staff would point at the smokestacks in the distance when quizzed over their spending.
It is understood this season each and every player was given his own pair of wrestling shoes, another indication of the largesse which exhibited not only Hasler’s attention to detail, but his penchant for extravagance.
More evidence? The NRL covered the travel costs of up to 27 players for interstate and overseas games. Canterbury often took upwards of 35, the extra additions coming out of the club’s coffers.
The purse-strings are now being tightened. There is also the element of self-preservation about the current predicament. Canterbury are due to hold board elections in 2018 but the club’s existing directors will be judged on next season.
If things go pear-shaped again, they may find themselves sacrificed at the membership altar. Yet it is Hasler who is under the gun despite a record that is the envy of many and a reputation which should ensure he finds another job in no time.
The Bulldogs’ strategic plan described their vision as being “the family club that unites and inspires”. Hasler may beg to differ.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/spo...9eafcd329292563d1086e5a5b#load-story-comments
All that extravagant spending and nothing to show for. What happened to the hyperbaric chamber?
Des Hasler had no say in the club’s strategic plan, but he may be judged according to it. Picture: Justin Brierty
They laid it on the line at the start of 2015. Canterbury officials made a big song and dance as they outlined a strategic plan to make them the country’s premier sporting club in the space of five years.
Two years later and that ambitious missive hangs like a millstone around the neck of every club official, none more so than Des Hasler, despite the coach having minimum input in the plan.
The Bulldogs targeted two grand final wins by 2019 and are yet to produce any. Given the negativity surrounding the club’s exit from the finals and the state of their squad, a premiership next year looks beyond them as well.
They planned a top-four finish every year in the NRL and NYC. This year, the first-grade side finished seventh and exited in the opening week of the finals. The NYC side languished in 11th.
The club talked about contracting local juniors but homegrown players are sparse on the ground and Hasler is the man in the firing line, the bullseye he is now sporting owing much to the club’s inability to meet its goals despite lavish spending on their coach and football department.
Hasler was hailed as one of the club’s greatest signings when he was stolen from Manly by former chief executive Todd Greenberg, in a deal worth in excess of $1 million, and given unfettered power.
He arrived with a flotilla of his own personnel but also with a charter to win the club a premiership. Five years have passed and the club has two grand finals to show for that investment, a worthwhile record anywhere bar the Bulldogs, it appears.
Hasler’s future will be discussed at a board meeting this afternoon with the walls closing in. He may survive, but his power will be heavily diluted and the situation appears untenable.
Sources within the club suggest the swing in momentum hasn’t been sudden, but a gradual build-up of frustration which has exploded over the past fortnight.
Club legend Terry Lamb provided a snapshot of that fury earlier this season when he talked about Hasler not understanding the DNA of the club. It is understood he later apologised to Hasler, although his comments were reiterated this week when former teammate and Bulldogs director Steve Mortimer laid into Hasler.
Club officials insist Mortimer went rogue and his future as a member of the board could now be in jeopardy. But when Mortimer talks, Bulldogs supporters tend to listen. He remains, in many respects, a voice of their people.
The supporters watch Michael Ennis win a grand final at Cronulla and wonder why he was dispensed with in favour of Michael Lichaa, who has struggled to make any imprint at the Bulldogs.
They question the decision to sign Will Hopoate when he refuses to play on Sundays. Mutiny pervades the air around Belmore. Hasler has already felt the backlash, suffering the ignominy of having his staff culled, the spurned including long-time allies Noel Cleal and John Novak.
His football department budget is set to be slashed after a year in which the club suffered financially by disappointing performances and dwindling support.
It is understood the club was nearly $1m under budget this season, their financial performance not helped by fans turning away at a lack of imagination on the field.
The football club is backed by an affluent leagues club that swims in rivers of gold. Yet the leagues club is in the process of undergoing a redevelopment worth more than $100m, so cash isn’t as readily available as it once was.
The days of rampant spending are over. There was a time when members of the coaching staff would point at the smokestacks in the distance when quizzed over their spending.
It is understood this season each and every player was given his own pair of wrestling shoes, another indication of the largesse which exhibited not only Hasler’s attention to detail, but his penchant for extravagance.
More evidence? The NRL covered the travel costs of up to 27 players for interstate and overseas games. Canterbury often took upwards of 35, the extra additions coming out of the club’s coffers.
The purse-strings are now being tightened. There is also the element of self-preservation about the current predicament. Canterbury are due to hold board elections in 2018 but the club’s existing directors will be judged on next season.
If things go pear-shaped again, they may find themselves sacrificed at the membership altar. Yet it is Hasler who is under the gun despite a record that is the envy of many and a reputation which should ensure he finds another job in no time.
The Bulldogs’ strategic plan described their vision as being “the family club that unites and inspires”. Hasler may beg to differ.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/spo...9eafcd329292563d1086e5a5b#load-story-comments
All that extravagant spending and nothing to show for. What happened to the hyperbaric chamber?
