Seeya Later Gladiator

Russell Crowe watching on next to John Sutton

Russell Crowe is selling his shares in the Rabbitohs. That one sentence is enough to create a big news story and also send panic through a large section of Rabbitohs fans. Some are angry at him, some are worried about the future and some are saying ‘I told you so’ about selling the club to him in the first place.

What I want everyone to do is calm down and realise that Russell Crowe is not the be all and end all of the club and he would be the first person to tell you that. This change, whilst obviously a big deal, isn’t as big a deal as people seem to be thinking it is.

There is a lot yet to occur and we can’t be totally sure what the future ownership structure of the club will look like, but no matter what happens the club is both protected and self sufficient enough to handle it.

First of all, no matter who Crowe sells his shares to (and Holmes a Court if he sells too for that matter) and no matter what percentage of the club they own, they cannot make decisions such as turning the Rabbitohs into the Perth Pirates. The 25% of the club the members still own hold the veto rights on all decisions involving the name, colours, logo and location of the club. The club can move stadiums within the “Sydney basin” but can’t actually move away. Also people seem to jump to some sort of conclusion that Crowe is simply going to sell to the highest bidder, which is likely going to be some movie villain, Gordon Gecko style corporate raider who comes in and destroys the club. Whether or not this new owner is stroking a white cat in a swivel chair at the time I’m not sure.

Second of all, there is a chance that either the members or Souths Juniors will end up owning the club. Obviously this would require the members finding the funds to pay whatever the club ends up being valued at or the Juniors affording it, but it is an option that could occur, however I get the feeling it is most likely the club will remain in private ownership.

Here’s the thing people need to realise about 2012 Souths compared to 2006 Souths. In 2006 the club needed Russell Crowe and more specifically the money he was willing to put into the club, not just in terms of the purchase price, but also all the money he put in to keep the place going. But in 2012, thanks to that money and the hard work of people on and off the field the club is actually self sufficient. In 2013 - the last of Crowe’s ownership - the club will either turn a profit, or at least break even and therefore who actually owns the club won’t matter. The NRL grant to clubs is increasing significantly and is actually going to be higher than the salary cap, which means the NRL grant should fund most of the costs of the club in general. Add onto that the fact that Souths have the highest membership and sponsorship revenue in the NRL, or at least of the Sydney clubs, the club is in a position to run itself without having an owner as emotionally invested as Crowe.

Contrast this to the situation in Newcastle where Nathan Tinkler’s demise is putting the Knights in danger. But the Knights are in the position the Rabbitohs were in six years ago when Crowe bought the team, not the position the Rabbitohs are in now. The Knights are not self sufficient as their own entity and without money coming in from ownership, they were always going to be in trouble. This difference is why we should be thanking Russell Crowe for what he did and appreciate that now is the time for him to move on and deal with his personal life.

So yes, there is a chance the club will be bought by someone “outside the family” who sees it as a way to get into the high life of owning a sports team and potentially as a smart investment now that the business is actually viable. But in this day and age people need to appreciate that sports teams are just that... businesses. It is in the interests for the new owner that the club continues on the path it is on both on and off the field and whether they are a fan of the club or not won’t matter.

Finally, this issue seems to be bringing out a lot of the in-fighting between the ‘Yes’ and ‘No’ camps from the original vote to sell the club in the first place. We really should be past this. ‘No’ voters should clearly be able to see that the club is in a much better position than it was when we voted and appreciate that this wouldn’t be the case without the course of action we took. ‘Yes’ voters need to move on from the George Piggins hate and realise that entire thing is now just a chapter of the past. In fact the media as a whole need to stop going to George every time they want a quote on Souths. I understand the man did a lot and was a big piece of the club’s history, but you don’t see past administrators of other sports teams being interviewed constantly, no matter how influential they were once upon a time.

It’s time to put that entire thing to bed and appreciate the fact that we support a club that is highly competitive both on and off the field and the future is bright, with or without a movie star leading the way.

That’ll Do Rabbit, That’ll Do

Adam Reynolds opening the scoring against the Raiders

And so just like that the Rabbitohs season is over. Surprisingly almost all the Rabbitohs fans I’ve spoken to or seen post online seem to have a very similar mindset after the team was eliminated in the preliminary final.  Whilst the result was obviously disappointing, the loss was fair and yet so cruel due to the untimely injury to Adam Reynolds who is arguably the team’s most important player. That, in and of itself, is a huge statement to make about a rookie but there you go.

All fans seem to be very content with the result of the season as a whole, finishing third on the ladder, qualifying for the preliminary final and the emergence of several new players such as Reynolds, Everingham and Justin Hunt, as well as the development of others like Farrell, Peats, McQueen etc.

What I love most however, is that whilst the fans are quite content with how the season played out, the players themselves aren’t in the same boat. Nathan Merritt was quoted as saying he sees the season as a failure and that is exactly how I want him to feel. I don’t want him to feel like a failure, he most certainly isn’t, however if the team is happy with just being competitive, then the concern would be that 2012 is as good as it will get.

We see 2012 as a success because we naturally assume that a young team, with a first year coach will improve going forward. It makes sense that if the Rabbitohs can perform this well with youngsters and rookies in many positions as well as the first year of a new system, each year after will be even better. However, you really never know with this stuff. Look at the Tigers and Warriors change in fortunes from 2011 to 2012, or the Eels from 2009 when they made the Grand Final until now.

A friend of mine who supports the Eels warned me that I shouldn’t be satisfied with just getting this far because you never know when you’ll get this close again. When the opportunity is there, you have to take it. Not every team can be Melbourne or Manly and contend for years on end. The hope is that the Rabbitohs will be more like the Storm, where Maguire learned from Bellamy, and be able to turn a promising season into a successful era; however it is certainly not guaranteed.

As important as 2012 was for the Rabbitohs, 2013 is even more important. They will enter the season not just with expectations to be serious contenders, but anything short of the 2012 performance will be considered a failure, not just by the team but by the fans as well. Was 2012 the start of something, or one good year?

After years of being quite unlucky with injuries, 2012 was about as lucky as a club can get in that department for the Cardinal and Myrtle. Roy Asotasi was the only long term injury and he returned in time and in form to make a solid contribution to the finals series. Nathan Merritt missed the first part of the season but hit the ground running as soon as he returned. Even the Greg Inglis suspension could be considered a stroke of luck as it enabled GI to refresh his body for the backend of the season, whilst the team went 2-1 without him.

We can’t assume 2013 will be quite as lucky in that regard. The club has the depth now to cover for most positions, especially in the forwards, but it doesn’t surprise me to see rumours of interest in Blake Ayshford and Sandor Earl to add depth to the backline stocks. I’m also a fan of Jordan Tongahai who plays left centre for the Toyota Cup side.

Another question is whether Souths will be impacted more during Origin in 2013. Obviously Inglis will be missing. Te’o is another who might be selected for Queensland and then you have the possibility that Adam Reynolds might be called up for NSW or even finally Nathan Merritt might get his chance. If that happens, will the Rabbitohs have the form slump that the Storm and Broncos experienced after Origin was over and if so, will they be able to bounce back the way the Storm did and Broncos didn’t?

Optimistically I see the Rabbitohs getting at least as far as they did this year, but I certainly won’t be taking it for granted. For now I’ll spend the offseason content and very proud of the performance of a team that hadn’t won a finals game since I was a baby. Being there to see the team beat the Raiders and win a finals match is an experience I’ll never forget and for that I thank Michael Maguire and the entire team.

Now for South Sydney to march on. Glory Glory.

That Unfamiliar Feeling

This guy goes alright

As I write this I am sitting on Jetstar flight 513 to Melbourne as I prepare to watch my beloved Rabbitohs compete in the finals. I’m also visiting my sister and her new puppy, but you don’t care about that. This experience is certainly unfamiliar to me and most Rabbitohs fans under the age of 35 or so. Sure everyone knows that the Rabbitohs haven’t won the Grand Final since 1971 and that we have only even competed in one finals match since 1989, but some people don’t realise that the Rabbitohs haven’t won a finals match in my 27 years on this earth.

Now obviously there is no guarantee at all that we will see a victory in 2012, but with a guaranteed double chance, the second of which is a home game, I would like to believe there is a pretty decent chance you will see the Rabbitohs in the preliminary final in two weeks time. A friend of mine (a Roosters fan no less) already texted me suggesting we are already only one win away from a grand final, as he sees it as being nigh on impossible for us to lose both of our next two games. I wish I had his confidence.

Sure I do think we are a good chance to qualify, but there is also a chance we repeat the efforts of 1989 with back to back losses leading to elimination and fans wondering what happened. Hopefully no current Rabbitoh ends up being remembered as the 2012 Steve Mavin.

As I wrote previously, I still am conditioned to be pessimistic about the Rabbitohs, even as we are firmly entrenched into this new era of professionalism under Michael Maguire. Then again, if I thought we were certainly going to lose on Saturday, I wouldn’t be on a plane to Melbourne right now (that may be a lie; after all I’m still visiting my sister).

Anyway, the feeling it seems that I and other Rabbitohs fans have right now is one of excitement, but also restlessness. There is the old saying “Act like you’ve been there before”, but the problem is we haven’t been there before and thus we are acting accordingly. The whole concept of having to wait and find out when our game is so we can book finals tickets and flights etc was completely foreign to myself and my other Rabbitohs fan friends. Within a few minutes of the game being announced, I had three texts from friends about flights and tickets and when we were heading down etc. We’re like kids in a candy store, only if the kids had been driving past the candy store every day without going inside, only now are we allowed to go in and buy a lolly. We just hope that lolly tastes like victory and that the players are better than we are at acting like they’ve been there before.

Glory Glory fellow Rabbitohs. Enjoy your lolly.

About Last Night

No caption necessary

As I write this, it is about 20 hours since Adam Reynolds scored the winning try for the Rabbitohs against the Roosters, in a match where the existence of karma and even maybe Newton’s third law were proven beyond reasonable doubt. Yes I know, we already knew about the Newton one.

When I woke up this morning I wanted to write something, anything, to sum up what being at the game last night was like for a Rabbitohs fan. Unfortunately, I sat down and was still speechless. How does one put into words something like this?

Having been on the losing end of the exact same loss in round 1, I know how it feels to be on the other end of this sense of euphoria and bliss. But, it’s having gone through that feeling, which makes this feeling all the more special.

There is a part of me that feels sorry for my friends who support the Roosters. I can empathise with how they felt last night and today, having been there only a few months ago. However, another part of me feels that they deserve to go through it, as the counter balance to their euphoria and joy from the previous encounter. Plus, they are Roosters fans; I never want them to be happy.

I wrote recently about going through the highs and lows of being a sports fan in a short period of time. That day it was in reference to Cadel Evans' failed attack, but it pales in comparison to the roller coaster of emotion that all 20,000 people at Allianz stadium went through last night.

Rabbitohs fans are not conditioned to believe that those sorts of results will happen in our favour. We are scarred not only by losses like round 1, but years of missed opportunities, bad bounces and players who didn’t know how to win. Not anymore. This really is “new Souths” and the fact that the 13 guys on the field wearing cardinal and myrtle did believe that result could happen; it has now spread to the entire fan base.

Watching the players embrace not only each other, but also the fans in the “Burrow” shows that in an industry where players often are just mercenaries, these guys not only get how much we as fans care, but they care equally as much.

It was fitting that the winning try (and goal) was scored by Adam Reynolds. Not only has he been a perfect reflection of the change and improvement in the club throughout this season, but you couldn’t find anyone in that stadium who was more of a Rabbitoh than he. It was a moment every fan grows up dreaming of and if it couldn’t be me wearing the 7 jersey and scoring that try (because I’m the obvious alternative.... maybe I’ll even fill in when he plays for NSW next year) then I’m so glad it was him.

Whatever happens through the rest of this season, whether we go all the way or simply bow out in the finals series, I will never forget being at that game last night and really, isn’t that what being a sports fan is all about?

Pavlov’s Rabbit

It’s an understatement to say it hasn’t been easy being a Rabbitohs fan in the last 20 years or so. Both before and after readmission the team hasn’t been able to deliver on the field, even as they cleaned up their act and became one of the most professional clubs off the field.

We (yes I speak about the teams I support as if I am one of the players, deal with it) have only made the finals once since 1989, in 2007, when we lost convincingly to Manly at Brookvale Oval. In the last few years the Rabbitohs have finished just outside the top 8, always left to lament the ‘what ifs’ of winning one more game and making the finals.

                                               

As I write this the Rabbitohs sit at 7 wins and 4 losses and more importantly, sit 4th on the ladder and equal on point with the second placed Broncos. However, despite the fact that nearly halfway through the season the team seems destined to be playing finals footy in 2012, Rabbitohs fans like myself seem preconditioned to expect the worst, or at the very least, never get our hopes up.

Fan of good teams go into games with confidence, expecting to win. I know this because some of the other teams I support have actually had some success in recent years. But no matter how good the Rabbitohs are, I find myself going into every game a nervous wreck, just waiting for the other shoe to drop or something to go wrong. No lead ever feels safe; always concerned an important player is about to have their season ended by cruel injury, concerned a simple bounce of the ball will undo us.

Fan of some other teams, the Chicago Cubs for example, know exactly how I feel.

It’s an instinct that is so hard to block out after experience tattoos it into your mind and psyche. You can even feel it in the crowd, that nervous tension, which I think even the players feel and sometimes can become a self-fulfilling prophecy. When there is a feeling in the air that a team will blow it, inevitably they do just that... until one day they don’t.

See, as a Boston Red Sox fan I had the same emotions about the Red Sox that I did the Rabbitohs. In fact the Red Sox history of losing was much more disheartening than the Bunnies. But all it takes is the team somehow, inexplicably beating the odds and winning as the Red Sox did in 2004 and again in 2007. Once that monkey gets off the back, it really is gone forever.

If the Rabbitohs were any other team, I would go into each game confident, knowing that we are not only as good or better than our opposition on paper, but we are most likely above them or equal with them on the ladder (after all we don’t play the Storm again in the regular season). But over the last few years the Rabbitohs always lost games when they were the favourite and so that feeling of expecting to win actually makes us even more scared than usual.

Hopefully by next year or the year after, that monkey will be lifted and Rabbitohs fans can go into each game without that fear. It would certainly do my heart a world of good.