- Hamish McLennan’s tenure at RA appears to be on thin ice
- Six state representatives have demanded he walk away
- Follows Eddie Jones as ‘captain’s pick’ ahead of the World Cup
- Also criticized after signing NRL Young Gun Joseph Suaalii
- If McLennan doesn’t walk away from RA, he’ll probably be fired
Embattled Rugby Australia chairman Hamish McLennan appears to be on borrowed time after multiple calls for his resignation.
Six fed-up state representatives have demanded he walk away, with Queensland Rugby chairman Brett Clark declaring on Friday that McLennan “is not the right cultural fit for the way we want our game to be represented.”
It comes after McLennan hired Eddie Jones as Wallabies coach – which turned out to be a disaster – after Australia failed to progress beyond the group stages at the World Cup for the first time.
He was also responsible for signing Sydney Roosters NRL young gun Joseph Suaalii to a multi-year contract worth a whopping $5.3 million from 2025.
Now McLennan has done that lost the support of most voters in Australia because he “exercises undue influence over Rugby Australia’s operations and executives.”
The six member unions have called for McLennan’s immediate resignation and if he does not walk away they will convene an extraordinary annual general meeting within a fortnight where his fate will be sealed, the newspaper said. News Corp.
Rugby Australia chairman Hamish McLennan appears to be on borrowed time after multiple calls for his resignation
The development comes after McLennan hired Eddie Jones as Wallabies coach and Australia failed to progress beyond the group stages at the World Cup for the first time.
One source said: “We are giving Hamish the opportunity to step down with dignity.
“But if he decides not to, we will have the votes to continue him. He’s a dead man walking.’
McLennan is also pushing for states and territories to operate under a centralized model, which has been met with criticism.
Only the NSW Waratahs have signed the agreement at this stage, which will see RA operate their operations from January 1 next year.
Only nine votes are needed to unseat McLennan, meaning if he makes an effort he can’t contest the outcome.
A letter from state representatives called on McLennan to resign immediately, citing a “lack of confidence in his leadership, or the direction he is taking rugby in Australia.”
They also believe that McLennan is not ‘act in the best interests of the code.
McLennan was responsible for signing Sydney Roosters NRL star Joseph Suaalii to a multi-year contract worth a whopping $5.3 million from 2025
“Over the past twelve months, Mr McLennan has made a series of telephone calls which have damaged the reputation and reputation of our game and led us to question his judgment and understanding of elite sport,” the letter continued.
“His decisions and captain’s picks have directly led to a historic failure at the Men’s Rugby World Cup and the Wallabies’ international ranking at an all-time low.
“Furthermore, Mr McLennan’s use of player poaching to threaten other sports and boost our own stock and performance alienates us from having joint conversations with the other major sports to improve participation within the Australian community.
“If we do not make the necessary changes to the leadership of our game now, these opportunities will be lost and our game will continue to fail for decades to come.”
ACT Rugby chairman Matt Nobbs stated that McLennan is ‘not the right person to take us forward’, while WA Rugby chairman John Edwards expressed concern over the governing body’s ‘fiscal management’ and will ask McLennan to ‘resign now for the good of our game.’
On Saturday, McLennan reportedly said he plans to fight for his position.
‘This will be the defining moment for the rugby battle. It’s all about money and control, and we’ve been failing for years. We live in interesting times,” McLennan told the Sydney Morning Herald.
‘This is about principles. They don’t actually put the game first and it’s about self-interest and parochialism.’
