Rugby League Independent Commission

[DIEHARD]

A man's mission to unite NRL

MICHAEL Searle is sipping Earl Grey tea as he gazes through square-rimmed designer glasses across Sydney Harbour and beyond.

We're sitting in the executive club suite of the Sheraton on the Park. Here, 21 floors up, horns blasting from CBD traffic snarls are reduced to a faraway murmur.

It's an image at odds with the burly forward who carted the pill up for Gold Coast during their first NRL incarnation in the late 1980s.

It's also at odds with the no-nonsense chief executive who butted heads with David Gallop until he got his way in 2005, realising a six-year dream to get the Coast back into the comp. And it's certainly at odds with the man charged with perhaps the toughest diplomatic mission since Cain and Abel parted ways - unifying rugby league under one, truly independent governing body.

But, as the front-rower said to the actress, looks can be deceiving.

Beneath the serene exterior purrs an engine that would rival any of the V8s zooming round Mt Panorama this weekend.

How else could Michael Searle command a thriving accountancy firm, head an international talent management group that boasts some of the world's top surfers, run an

NRL franchise and be responsible for setting up the Indigenous-All Stars game next year? Oh, and there's that small matter of brokering a commission to take over the running of the game.

He may not just be the hardest worker in rugby league, Michael Searle could be the hardest working man in Australia. "I'm an 18-hour-a-day guy," he admits. "But I don't have any difficulty bouncing out of bed on a Monday. I really am living the dream. I was raised a Catholic but if I believed in reincarnation, I'd say

I must have had a really, really crappy life last time around because I've been blessed this time."

Searle can be found at his desk at Titans Marine Parade headquarters in Southport from 5am. The other night he text messaged a colleague at 11.41pm. He is Mr Perpetual Motion of rugby league administration.

Yet today he estimates eight of every 10 waking minutes is spent working on the proposed independent commission.

It's an obsession borne out of not just a love for the game, but a profound knowledge of where he'd be without it. "I owe everything to rugby league," he says. "It gave my grandfather an opportunity after the second world war, it gave my father a career and our family an existence on the Gold Coast that we would never have had if it wasn't for rugby league.

"The only reason that my dad moved from Tamworth and my mum from Werris Creek to the Gold Coast was because that's where he played his football. It's given me an opportunity to get a degree and it's given my children a life they would never have expected.

"So I will dedicate my life to the game for no other reason than the game has been good to me."

From the viewpoint of a boy who grew up in the fast-buck days of the Surfers Paradise white-shoe brigade - those shady property developers that cast a pall over the strip for decades - the game has also been good to his community. "Getting the Titans into the NRL has just unified the city behind a cause," he explains.

"The Gold Coast has always been accused of being soulless. But now it seems to have almost created a level of passion among the kids and that's all anyone cares about. When I was a kid you were almost looked down upon being from the Gold Coast.

"You were almost second class. Now the kids are proud of their city - there's a sense of ownership and community." But one community's league love affair is not enough for Searle. His mission knows no geographic bounds.

He may have been raised a Catholic, but he is spreading the good word of the league with the evangelistic zeal of a missionary man.

Which might just explain how the notion of an independent commission taking over the game from those uneasy bed partners, the Australian Rugby League and News Limited, publisher of The Daily Telegraph, went from dead in the water to an imminent possibility in the space of 17 months.

It was Searle who, in May 2008, assembled fellow NRL CEOs Bruno Cullen (Broncos), Denis Fitzgerald (formerly Eels), Shane Richardson (Rabbitohs), Brian Waldren (Storm), Steve Burraston (Knights) and Tony Zappia (formerly Sharks) for the first meeting to discuss a unified force for league. Fittingly, they met at the game's spiritual home, the SCG.

It was a delicate summit. Two of those present (Waldren and Cullen) ran clubs owned by News Limited so any talk of shifting ownership of the game away from its 50 per cent partners was avoided.

"Any discussions around the shifting of equity was never openly discussed in a group format because

it would have made everyone uncomfortable," Searle recalls.

"So the equity being shifted to a non-profit entity probably came out of a sub-unit of that because the original concept was about restructuring the branding, and the equity shift came out of what we would be aiming for if we were

to move forward for the next

100 years."

That first meeting went all day and into the night. There have been 15 in Sydney since and one on the Gold Coast. They last for three to six hours.

Searle has gathered powerful allies, including Harvey Norman's Katie Page, former Qantas chairman Gary Pemberton and Sydney Roosters chairman Nick Politis.

Politis, one of league's true powerbrokers, helped ensure crucial figures such as Nine Network chief executive David Gyngell got on board. But Searle is adamant a far more potent force has driven the mood for change: the fans.

"Everywhere I go people ask me, 'When are we going to get it?' It's one of the few things I have seen come up in the game where it hasn't been howled down.

"I think people see there is a real benefit to this new structure and everyone wants to see the game

do better."

NRL's well documented off-field troubles this year have only galvanised the mood for reform, says Searle. "I think what (the off-field scandals) did was solidify a lot of fans who said, 'You know, this is part of my fabric ... I did grow up in a rugby league suburb, town or city, I love the game'. I had a discussion with Wayne Bennett the other day. He said, 'I always knew how much Queenslanders love their league, but I never realised the passion down here, they really love it in Sydney'.

"Often when things are bleak and you have dark days, people sit up and say, 'I'd hate to see my game die'.

"You almost have to lose something before you appreciate how valuable it is to you."

Searle has felt that, like when David Gallop rang him on August 16, 2004, to tell him the NRL was rejecting the Gold Coast's reinclusion proposal, that the money would instead be spent on junior development officers.

Searle told the game's chief, "That's fine Dave, that's your choice, but you can stick your development officer and your witch's hat right up your ****."

Nine months later, the Gold Coast were back in the NRL. "When I'm passionate about something, I go hard for it," he says. "I think I've had to substitute hard work because I'm not the most intellectual person in the world - hard work has been the only way I got anywhere."

That work appears ready to deliver Searle his most significant payoff yet: the game he loves being truly unified.

Daily Telegraph

[Grimmace]

well this article puts a dampner on the new commission I hope its not true though :
Colin Love's secret deal blocks John Howard

By Phil Rothfield and Rebecca Wilson

JOHN Howard is unlikely to become the first chairman of a new NRL commission, even though Gold Coast Titans boss Michael Searle approached the former prime minister to take on the job.

Searle might be one of the men bringing the commission together, but he has not been charged with the responsibility of selecting possible commissioners.

That will come down to discussions between News Ltd (publisher of The Sunday Telegraph), the ARL and NRL clubs.

Searle was obviously unaware of rumours that a secret deal has been struck by News Ltd and the Australian Rugby League to ensure that current ARL chairman Colin Love is handed the chairman's role for two years.

We understand that the only reason the idea of a commission proceeded was because the ARL made it a condition that Love would be the first chairman.

We also understand it is unlikely Love will relinquish that role to anyone, including the former PM.
.
Last week's The Daily Telegraph story on the approach to Howard caused some angst at NRL headquarters.

Just 24 hours earlier, the federal Labor Government had handed the NRL more than $11million in funding to build a new headquarters.

Certain Labor figures made it well known to the NRL they were not happy about the prospect of Howard becoming chairman when it was the Labor Party which engineered the funding initiative.
Source: Sunday Telegraph

[DIEHARD]

Colin Love's secret deal blocks John Howard

JOHN Howard is unlikely to become the first chairman of a new NRL commission, even though Gold Coast Titans boss Michael Searle approached the former prime minister to take on the job.

Searle might be one of the men bringing the commission together, but he has not been charged with the responsibility of selecting possible commissioners.

That will come down to discussions between News Ltd (publisher of The Sunday Telegraph), the ARL and NRL clubs.

Searle was obviously unaware of rumours that a secret deal has been struck by News Ltd and the Australian Rugby League to ensure that current ARL chairman Colin Love is handed the chairman's role for two years.

We understand that the only reason the idea of a commission proceeded was because the ARL made it a condition that Love would be the first chairman.

We also understand it is unlikely Love will relinquish that role to anyone, including the former PM.

Last week's The Daily Telegraph story on the approach to Howard caused some angst at NRL headquarters.

Just 24 hours earlier, the federal Labor Government had handed the NRL more than $11million in funding to build a new headquarters.

Certain Labor figures made it well known to the NRL they were not happy about the prospect of Howard becoming chairman when it was the Labor Party which engineered the funding initiative

Source: http://www.news.com.au

[DIEHARD]

I would be disappointed if this was the case. I think Colin Love has had his chance. Also the position of chairman of the commission is very important and high profile. I believe we need a new face, that symbolises a new era...

[DIEHARD]

FIFA's man could help shape NRL

He's the man who masterminded the independent review and commission of Football Australia - and now he's been sounded out about doing a similar job for the NRL.

Anter Isaac, an influential administrator with Football Federation Australia for more than a decade, has met with Titans boss Michael Searle, the architect behind league's push for a new governing body.

The pair were introduced by Bulldogs legend Steve Mortimer, a long-time advocate of an independent rugby league committee. At the meeting, Searle indicated that Isaac, now a consultant to FIFA, could play a role in establishing a body to replace the partnership of News Ltd and the Australian Rugby League.

''I haven't discussed any formal role but they're aware I was involved in the process for football,'' Isaac said. ''Informally, [Searle] said he would get in contact with me and that he believes there is a role for me down the line.

''They're aware of my experience and the fact I now consult to FIFA on matters of organisational performance and assessment, in terms of improving governance and member associations and structure.''

Isaac, whose cousin Lancen Joudo made his NRL debut for Cronulla this year, has the credentials to play a role in a rugby league restructure.

The managing director of business performance consultants Kleinmann Wang, he was an integral part of FFA's restructure and recently advised Lucas Neill regarding the Socceroos' bid for a Western Sydney A-League franchise. Coincidentally, he worked with Searle's sister at Football Australia almost a decade ago.

While he stressed there was no formal approach for his services, Isaac confirmed he would like to be involved in the biggest shake-up in league's 102-year history.

Asked for his initial thoughts on how league could improve its structure, Isaac said: ''What I did suggest was that before any independent commission is instituted, there needs to be an independent review into the game. I'm very strong on that. I believe that each [stakeholder] needs to be heard.

''There needs to be a detailed understanding of what each of them brings and how they can each become more effective in propelling the game forward.

''I ask the people I've spoken to for the strategy for the game - not just for five or 10 years but 10 or 20 years. A lot of the time they don't seem to know. From what I can understand, the stakeholders haven't been part of that process. They need to be because they're at the grassroots.

''That's one thing that soccer did [in 2003] but perhaps not as well as they should have.

''I think we can do it better than the AFL did it 25 years ago and what football did five years ago.''

Meanwhile, John Ribot, one of the architects of the Super League war and now a member of the Queensland Rugby League, vehemently denied speculation he was angling for a commissioner's role.

''One of the great furphies that's come out is that I want to be an independent commissioner - nothing could be further from the truth,'' Ribot said from San Francisco.

''That's not an ambition at all, but I want the game to have an independent commission.''

There were rumours that News Ltd may be prepared to step away from the game as soon as November 1. A potential stumbling block is the fate of the Melbourne Storm once News Ltd divests its interests in the club.

Ribot said the new governing body had to ensure the Storm's future - and said a $30 million guarantee to the club over a five-year period would be a good start.

Source: LeagueHQ

[DIEHARD]

No compromise: time has come to lay foundations for the future
PHIL GOULD

On December 13, 2009, I wrote: "The 16 NRL clubs need to come together as one and demand the ARL stands down immediately; to allow the formation of an independent commission to run rugby league in this country."

That time has come.

Tomorrow, 64 key personnel from the 16 NRL clubs - the coach, captain, chairman and CEO of each - will gather in Sydney for the most important meeting in the game's history. These 64 men, our game's real leaders, hold the future of Australian rugby league in their hands.

I offer no advice to these people. I do plead with them, however, to accept NO COMPROMISE on what is right for our game.

That's right -no compromise. Close enough is not good enough on this very important issue. This is not the time for half measures.

We need the 16 NRL clubs to show the strength and unity to speak with one voice. We need them to send the strongest message to the ARL that our game needs a truly independent governing body to control rugby league in this part of the world and we demand they cease resistance to this all-important change.

Media company News Limited has opened the way for our game to become independently owned. We need to seize upon this tremendous opportunity and make it happen. At the same time though, we need to do it right, and this means standing up to self-interested parties who are simply trying to protect their power bases.

I'm sure once the delegates hear today's presentation from Gold Coast Titans CEO Michael Searle they will be motivated to move forward into an exciting new future.

TRUE INDEPENDENCE IS A MUST

For an independent commission to be formed, both current owners of the game, News Ltd and the Australian Rugby League, need to walk away.

From what I understand, News has made a number of significant concessions during negotiations to make this happen.

As I reported on December 13, the ARL, motivated in no small way by the John Ribot-led QRL, is digging in for all its worth to hold onto its power bases. (This, of course, is the same John Ribot who brought us his "vision", which resulted in Super League, pain and significant misery to rugby league in this country.)

This is why our 16 NRL clubs need to be strong and accept nothing short of the best people to sit on the new independent commission.

The word ''independent'' means free from external control and constraint, not controlled by outside forces.

If we are to make the move towards an independent commission to run our game, we need this new commission to be truly independent.

It's no good forming a new entity if we simply appoint people who are aligned to, loyal to, working for, or running agendas for former owners.

The new commission should be free of the paradigms that ruled former management structures. It should be free to appoint the best management and staff.

The independent nature of the new governing body will allow us greater latitude, marketing and selling of our product to broadcasters and sponsors.

It will give us greater control over the development of the game at both grassroots and representative levels because there will be greater transparency in how and where our money is being spent.

It will give us greater bargaining power when negotiating with governments on issues of funding for social welfare, education and indigenous programs.

Independence will give our game its best chance of solving our problems, tackling our challenges and competing with rival codes.

Above all else, though, independence means we return ownership of the game to the people who matter most - our fans.

News Ltd believes it is time to remove itself from the ownership of rugby league.

The ARL needs to be told time is up - end of story.

THE ARL IS IN SURVIVAL MODE

Since it was announced the 16 NRL clubs were to meet on January 18 to discuss the formation of a new commission, the ARL has been stung into action.

After years of lying dormant and happily living off handouts from the NRL, the ARL now wants to protect its share of the action.

No one at the ARL has so far lifted a finger to assist in negotiations to free our game from media ownership, nor to deliver us a new governing body. Now at the 11th hour, after all the hard work has been done, they're saying "OK; we'll take it from here."

While the rest of us were getting ready for Santa Claus and bringing in the new year, these political animals have been playing catch-up, trying to convince key figures within the NRL clubs to fight against the new model.

The ARL and QRL have run a scare campaign in recent times designed to discredit the proposal. The exaggerations, and triviality of some of these criticisms simply highlight their desperation to survive.

Searle will be addressing these matters tomorrow.

Before Christmas, and following pressure from the QRL, ARL chairman Colin Love sought a private meeting with News to put forward the ARL's solution.

The wish list is highly predictable.

The ARL and the QRL will want guaranteed funding to continue with their operations. They want representation on the commission to protect their own interests. They want to appoint their own people to key positions. Of course, any or all of the above would only dilute and ultimately weaken the independence of the new commission - and this is the key point.

The new governing body needs to divorce itself from the old guard and form a professional, vibrant and progressive management structure to take our game into the future.

As part of the development process to form new governance, it was originally ''conceded'' that Love would be the inaugural chairman of the new commission. This is a consequence of the concept of "compromise" that I have always found intolerable. Anyway, as it turns out, Love's failure to control the ARL and deliver agreement to the new commission has been viewed as a sign of weakness in his leadership credentials. He has lost support and his chances of being appointed chairman have nosedived.

Love has also learned he does not have the support of the QRL. Key figures at the QRL have seriously questioned his authority.

They do not want him involved with any new management structure and have secretly put forward their own nominations for chairman and delegates to sit on the commission.

Again, such factional in-fighting and self-interest is typical of the ARL, and further evidence we should distance ourselves from this decaying organisation.

It has been suggested Love could redeem himself by delivering the ARL vote for a truly independent commission. However, I get the feeling that boat has sailed.

THE NEW MODEL IS SOLID

The ARL's claims the constitution of the new model is vulnerable or that representative and grassroots football are not protected are totally flawed. These accusations are a ruse to create confusion among the clubs or delay the process of change.

The model being proposed by Searle at the meeting tomorrow is based on the same model utilised by major sports around the world such as the English Premier League, US Major League Baseball, the NBA, the NFL etc.

These codes rely on development and grassroots sports and the Premier League accommodates more international football than any sporting body on the planet.

The model proposed for rugby league, if anything, is even more conservative than these other codes; with the major difference being that the fans will own the game.

All constitutions have mechanisms for challenge or appeal, like the constitution of today's ARL. However, several experienced campaigners in these matters have assured me this model and the governing constitution is as solid as any they've seen.

THE NRL CLUBS NEED TO STICK TOGETHER

Tomorrow's meeting of the 16 NRL clubs will in the future be viewed as a landmark occasion in the history of rugby league.

I guess much will discussed, with questions raised and answered.

This is a chance for the clubs to gain independence and to unify our game under one banner. It gives us the opportunity to appoint a strong-minded, progressive and professional management structure and rid our game of self- interest.

The bottom line, however, is that by the end of the meeting the clubs have reached one result - that the game needs an independent commission to take us into the future.

The clubs must be unanimous. They must speak with one voice. They must send a clear and definitive message to the ARL that they want this to happen now.

If the clubs remain united, they represent a highly valuable commodity, with an extremely powerful voice.

Over to you, gentlemen.

Source: http://www.smh.com.au

[DIEHARD]

Clubs stand united for game's evolution
Adam Gardini

All 16 NRL clubs today stood united as they voted to support plans for the introduction of an Independent Commission (IC) to run rugby league in Australia for the start of the 2010 season.

The historic meeting held this morning at Sheraton on the Park in Sydney was attended by delegates representing all 16 NRL clubs, including CEO?s, chairmen, club coaches and captains.

Club delegates heard a one hour presentation from Restructure Committee Chairman Michael Searle and contributions from fellow members Shane Richardson (CEO Souths) Bruno Cullen (CEO Broncos) and Steve Burraston (CEO Knights).

The mood of the room was buoyant as Searle, the Managing Director of the Jetstar Gold Coast Titans, detailed what the commission would mean to the many stakeholders of the game.

?The fact that we had so many of the club's represented at the highest level today means that we are on the right track,?? said Searle.

?Their contribution was positive and there was no hesitation when they were asked to outline their position of the proposed economic model of an Independent Commission.??

Richardson added: ?16 Chairmen, 16 CEO's, 16 Captains and 16 coaches were all in the one room and all in agreeance that this is the right way to go. That in itself is a momentus occasion.??

The motions which were resolved in principle at today?s meeting were:

1) The 16 NRL Clubs represented agreed to create, and to support, an Independent Commission (IC), for the administration of rugby league in Australia;

2) The IC is to be truly independent from its inception in accordance with the criteria outlined in the presentation today;

3) The operative date for the establishment of the IC is to be the date of kick-off of the 2010 NRL season if possible.

All club delegates were taken through the process of change throughout the history of Rugby League in Australia and also presented a snapshot of a number of professional sport models from around the world including the NFL, MLB and the English Premier League Soccer.

One of the more important aspects to the outcome of today's meeting was the signalling by the clubs that the IC should be totally independent from when it is established.

Committee member Bruno Cullen explained that in the first instance the commissioners will be selected by the Partnership Committee of the ARL and News Limited.

"While the NRL Partnership Committee would select the initial members it wouldn't be a case of the ARL select three and News Ltd pick three delegates. We would seek from the partners that it would be a truly independent commission with absolutely no allegiance to the existing owners of the game or the stakeholders of the clubs from the date of inception,?? said Cullen.

A 30-minute Question and Answer session at the end of the presentation gave the opportunity for the clubs delegates to drill down even further and find out more about how the new IC would work. Among the talking points were the game?s TV broadcasting rights, which are up for renewal in 2012.

The meeting ended with all club CEO's signing a motion which now provides the platform for the changing of the game forever.

"This economic model allows for the profits of the game to be retained by the game and that will allow the game to prosper and become the number one football code in Australia,?? said Searle.

"The motion will now be given to the NRL Partnership and we are hoping that they will meet in coming weeks to decide the future direction of the game in relation to an Independent Commission??

Snapshot of the game under the new structure:

1) The Independent Commission, consisting of eight independent commissioners, will be a non-profit company which with the NRL Management Team run the game.

2) Any profits made will be retained for the game.

3) The new structure will centralise game development and its funding.

4) Commissioners will be subject to a stringent independence test. Part of the criteria for that test will include that they cannot have been associated with a club, or an associated entity such as its league's club, as an owner, a major supplier of employee or consultant either paid or in a voluntary capacity for at least three years. This test would apply to the 16 NRL Clubs, NRL, ARL, NSWRL, QRL, CRL or News Ltd.

5) The new proposal provides for the non-financial and financial support of the Melbourne Storm for at least six years at which time the club's business model allows for self sustainability to ensure the long term future of the Melbourne Storm.

6) Today's briefing was to allow the clubs to become fully aware of what stage the negotiations are at.

7) The change will allow the game to be better positioned to keep players from defection to other sports as well as provide better funding solutions for the growth and development of the game at grass roots level.

8) The new structure will allow the clubs to better funded to fight economic challenges and having the independent commission will also bring heightened professional and business acumen and corporate governance to the game.

9) The state bodies (QRL, NSWRL, CRL) will continue to run their respective competitions independently of the ARL Commission and will continue to manage the Teams in the State of Origin series including team selections and management.

10) The renewal of media rights in 2012 would result in additional monies being retained by the game because all profits go back to the running of the game.

11) The new commission will require a vote of 14 to 16 members (clubs) to change the commission which is one of the most stringent requirements in world sport outside of the NFL

12) Commissioners will require a 75 per cent majority of clubs to obtain election which is also one of the highest benchmarks in world sport for the election of officers.

13) The Commission proposal also outlined the security measures to ensure that grass roots development and representative football was protected for years to come through the stringent design of the rules of the Commission and as a direct result of the broad definition of the "game" of rugby league to ensure that all stakeholders and aspects of the game have been included in this definition. (Game by definition = junior rugby league, schoolboys and school girls rugby league, women?s rugby league, Indigenous rugby league, Country Rugby League, State Rugby League, Wheelchair rugby league State Of Origin, International Rugby League and the Telstra Premiership.

Source: http://www.titans.com.au

[DIEHARD]

Nothing makes me happier than seeing the progress and support of this cause. Well done to Michael Searle and the rest of the prime movers behind this.

Also well done for possibility naming the new IC the ARL Commission. The ARL to me is more a spirit than an organisation. As guardians of the Australian game dating back to 1928. And I love the idea of a new ARL Commission taking the game, for the first time to it's full potential.

Also well done for point 13 outlining the fullscope of the game of rugby league, all those branches of the game are close to my heart and I hope they get further support and recognition going forward.

[titansrawesome]

if my facts are right the salary cap has been extended by 600k which means less player and talent drain, thats what i'm happy about.

[DIEHARD]

NSW set to shut out Queensland in independent commission vote

THE Queensland Rugby League is braced for the possibility it could be strong-armed by the NSW contingent of the ARL board at a meeting today that could potentially deliver an in-principle agreement on the introduction of an independent commission a day out from the NRL season kick-off.

The QRL remains opposed to News Ltd's proposal that the ARL relinquish its 50 per cent share of the voting rights to elect the eight commissioners, with the clubs to receive 16 votes in total and the NSWRL and QRL to receive only one each.

But aware that NSW holds a decisive 6-4 advantage on the ARL board, when chairman Colin Love and chief executive Geoff Carr are included, Queensland directors are prepared for the prospect of being outnumbered in a vote today.

''The QRL hasn't changed its view. It depends on what NSW do,'' QRL managing director Ross Livermore said. ''Anyone that's got six votes to four could win anything if it goes to a vote.

''We are saying the ARL should retain 50 per cent of the voting rights in the not-for-profit company. I don't know how [the NSW board members] will view it because I know there's a couple of them there that have been in discussions that may have a different view to that.''

The QRL has a scheduled monthly board meeting tomorrow but is aware it could be trumped if the numbers are stacked against it today. ''If people want to vote and get down to that level let's see what the result is,'' Livermore said. He stressed the QRL already supported an independent commission ''irrespective'' but was concerned about how it is constructed and how the commissioners would be elected.

Carr said speed bumps which needed to be cleared en route to a commission were ''not a Queensland issue or a NSW issue''.

''We all want what is best for the game. The game is 102 years of age, we want to make sure sustainable for the future,'' Carr said. ''In talking to News Ltd, they are very determined to get it right.''

http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/

[DIEHARD]

QRL to go down fighting in IC vote

THE Queensland Rugby League says it will be disappointed but will "cop it on the chin" if it loses at an ARL board meeting today to decide the future of the game's first independent commission.

The issue has been simmering since late last year and supporters of an IC will have something to cheer about following the ARL board meeting in Sydney.

It is believed a compromise has been hammered out that will give the QRL and the NSWRL constitutional power, but limited control, over the IC's set-up.

The 10-member ARL board consists of chief executive Geoff Carr, chairman Colin Love and four representatives from the NSWRL and the QRL.

The ARL was hoping to present a united front on the issue, but it is believed Carr, Love and the NSWRL delegates are prepared to push on without the QRL's support.

"I'd be very surprised if the Country Rugby League (CRL) and blokes from the grassroots areas went that way," QRL managing director Ross Livermore said. "I just think they should remember the heritage and go from there, but that's their choice to make.

"You get on there as a director of the ARL and you look at what you think is in the best interests of the future. If something goes against, you've got to cop it on the chin."

The ARL and News Limited (publisher of The Australian) have been in talks for several months on ending their association with the game and handing control to the 16 NRL clubs through an IC.

The QRL has been portrayed as a major stumbling block in the march towards independence after agitating that both it and the NSWRL should not surrender all of its power to the IC.

The QRL wants to maintain a 50 per cent say on the make-up of the eight-member commission alongside the NSWRL, but the backers of an IC have said it could not be truly independent if that was the case.

It had always been hoped that something could be in place before the start of the season - even if it was an agreement with the detail to be hammered out later - but that will now hinge on today's meeting.

"Our view is that the ARL - through the NSWRL and QRL - should retain 50 per cent membership in there," Livermore said.

"We should retain 50 per cent membership, we've got that now, we owe it to the stakeholders, the game's 100 bloody years old and why would you hand up that?"

The QRL has consulted AFL chief Andrew Demetriou to help it decide whether there was room for state-based bodies in an independent set-up.

Livermore said he had concerns about handing over total control to rugby league clubs as some were privately owned.

"The AFL hasn't got that problem because their clubs are all there and they're all elected by committees," he said.

"You haven't got private owners putting their hard-earned in and looking to get a return."

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/

[DIEHARD]

Australian Rugby League backs independent commission

IN an historic day for rugby league, the Australian Rugby League has finally thrown its full support behind an independent commission to run the game.

An ARL board today has formally agreed in principle to a model put forward by News Limited.

The move all but seals the introduction of a new eight-member commission to run rugby league.

News Limited and the ARL will now step aside.

The ARL is due to release a press statement with additional details this afternoon.

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/

[Coaster]

wow,

I didnt think it would happen, great news for League, still unsure about Love and Carr inclusion, but the game can now move forward.

I just hope we dont stuff this up, we have a chance of greatness, and we always seem to shot ourselves in the foot

[DIEHARD]

Massive news for Rugby League. Can't wait for the press release.

Hope they call it the ARL Commission!!!

[DIEHARD]

ARL announces support for Commission
ARL

The Board of the Australian Rugby League has today agreed in principle with News Ltd. on the model for a single, Independent Commission to conduct and control the sport of Rugby League in Australia.

The Independent Commission will be a not for profit entity that will include the NSW and Queensland Rugby Leagues as well as the sixteen clubs.

The eight commissioners will also be members of the not for profit entity ensuring that the Commission is truly independent of both the clubs and the Leagues.

The Chairman of the Australian Rugby League, Mr Colin Love AM, said that Commission would represent a key step forward in the future of the game:

?The ARL believes that the in-principle agreement arrived at today will deliver a truly Independent Commission to run Rugby League.

?There is still a huge amount of detail to be worked through but today?s agreement is a major step in the process.

?Both partners have committed to regular meetings to work through each of the points that will need to be discussed and the complex legal agreements that are involved.

?People need to understand the there is still a lot of work ahead.?

Source: http://www.australianrugbyleague.com.au