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New Rugby Australia chairman Daniel Herbert has revealed he and fellow board members had voted unanimously to end Hamish McLennan\u2019s three-year reign late on Sunday night, deciding the code could no longer prosper under his leadership.<\/p>\n
The RA board voted to remove McLennan following a series of meetings and phone hook-ups over the weekend that were sparked by a letter of no-confidence being sent on Friday on behalf of six member unions.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe feel that moving forward the game requires everyone to unite,\u201d Herbert said on Monday. \u201cWe felt that would only be achieved with a change of chair.\u201d<\/p>\n
The state and territory unions \u2013 Queensland, the ACT, West Australia, Tasmania, South Australia and Northern Territory \u2013 had signalled they were prepared to call an emergency general meeting to have McLennan removed but, ultimately, it was the RA board that delivered the coup de gr\u00e2ce, less than two months after Australia\u2019s disastrous World Cup campaign ended.<\/p>\n
Sources close to the board who spoke anonymously due to the confidential nature of the meeting said all sitting board members had voted against McLennan continuing as chairman, including RA CEO Phil Waugh, a close ally of his. McLennan told this masthead on Monday night that he and Waugh had not spoken since Sunday\u2019s vote.<\/p>\n
After the board voted against McLennan, Herbert\u2019s name was put forward for the vacant chairman\u2019s role, although his subsequent appointment came as a surprise to the rebel unions who had sent the letter of no confidence in McLennan.<\/p>\n
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New Rugby Australia Chair Dan Herbert.<\/span>Credit: <\/span>Jamila Toderas<\/cite><\/p>\n Herbert, a former Wallaby who played 67 Tests for Australia between 1994 to 2002, told reporters on Monday he hadn\u2019t gone into the meeting hoping to land the top job, saying: \u201cIt wasn\u2019t something I coveted, I tell you that. I was quite happy in the background.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAll the other directors asked me if I would take the position and given that was united, I accepted,\u201d Herbert said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe joined the call [on Sunday night] and then both of us [McLennan and I] were asked to leave the call. Then I joined and was told of the decision. Then he was called and asked to rejoin the meeting. He asked for the result and didn\u2019t rejoin the meeting.<\/p>\n \u201cBecause Hamish and I had a vote, that was the only split. Everything else was unanimous. I guess the faith the other directors put in me to do it got me over the line.\u201d<\/p>\n Ousted Rugby Australia chairman Hamish McLennan. <\/span>Credit: <\/span>Kate Geraghty<\/cite><\/p>\n Herbert said he wanted to be in the role for the long term and was looking forward to working alongside Waugh, his former Wallabies teammate, during a tumultuous period for the game. Two new RA directors will also be appointed in the coming months, most likely before RA\u2019s annual general meeting in late April.<\/p>\n Like McLennan, Herbert believes the centralisation of high-performance and commercial operations is the key to improving the code\u2019s fortunes on and off the field.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat I\u2019m excited about – it\u2019s why I joined – I think I can add value in an area that I know is broken,\u201d Herbert said.\u201cI know what\u2019s broken, I think I know how to fix it, I think I can select some good people to get around it and I think I\u2019ve got good instincts around the type of people we need to fix it and run it.<\/p>\n \u201cMy fear is that we don\u2019t move quickly enough because it\u2019s not a switch that you flick. It takes a bit of time and we\u2019ve got to start soon.\u201d<\/p>\n Queensland Rugby Union chairman Brett Clark, who had telephoned McLennan on Friday to tell him of the intention to have him removed, said the rebel unions did not believe Waugh had been able to do his job properly with McLennan at the helm.<\/p>\n He also said the decision to replace Dave Rennie as Wallabies coach in a Rugby World Cup year had been the last straw, adding \u201cno-one really wanted to take ownership of the Eddie Jones decision\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cWe also formed a view that the chair at the time was not the person that we thought could effectively lead us into that next generation of rugby,\u201d Clark said. \u201cIt was never a personal attack at Hamish. It was around his cultural fit, his value and some of his decision-making.<\/p>\n \u201cWe think rugby can be great again. We\u2019re buoyed by the fact that Daniel Herbert has taken the position as chair. We just felt that Phil [Waugh] probably didn\u2019t have enough airspace or opportunity to actually do what he was employed to do. The final straw probably culminated from the Rugby World Cup.\u201d<\/p>\n Clark refuted suggestions that the appointment of Herbert, who had held senior roles at the QRU from 2008 to 2016, was the result of a Queensland coup.<\/p>\n \u201cHand on heart I can honestly say I was totally shocked when I got the call on Sunday night. We\u2019d all been working around the clock about these discussions around the last three days. I got a call saying Dan Herbert is now the chair. I had no idea Dan was even in consideration \u2026 let alone put his hand up.\u201d<\/p>\n McLennan was a man of few words on Monday when contacted by this masthead.<\/p>\n \u201cThe grapevine works in mysterious ways,\u201d McLennan said. \u201cSometimes life isn\u2019t fair but no dramas. I\u2019m really proud of what we achieved in a short period of time. The World Cups in 2027 and 2029 will be really special. I\u2019m really energised about the next chapter.\u201d<\/p>\n Sports news, results and expert commentary.<\/i><\/b> Sign up for our Sport newsletter<\/i><\/b>.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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