Graham Annesley appointed new Titans CEO

[Leeroy]

Good appointment.
Hoping his first priority is to create a BOD.
He needs more troops if he is going to achieve any progress within the current structure of the organisation.

[shamus]

Are you guys going to judge this CEO by how many times he posts in this forum and how often he sits with the Legion?

Not sure what you are getting at. TBH not many Legion folks post here (some but not a lot). I am certainly not Legion and again to be honest I am not fussed on a few on them but again some are nice folk. (How you doing Brad?) Then again you will find bad apples everywhere. Each to their own I guess.

Crap, the way I worded that makes Brad a bad apple. Too late for me too edit...stuff me dead it's past Midnight and the claws are coming out and hair is growing. I only have a few minutes...

But to answer your query, DM posting was nothing short of fantastic. He showed he cared and although not every query was answered he did his best. He had to be diplomatic in some responses or totally avoid issues for obvious reasons. As for sitting with the Legion, not really rocket science. Once again, just getting amongst the fans to generate more fans. But I ain't Legion so maybe a legionaire can answer that?

[Titanic]

Was a member of the inner cadre that ran the NRL before the ARLC ... I wouldn't get your hopes up too soon ... there are still scars over things such as broadcasting rights and licensing to name but two ... jury is still out ... definitely a Searle man of the "I have a dream" persuasion.

[Smakked]

Her has good credentials , but time will tell , some one mentioned he is mates with Searle, so there is a mark against his name already for me.

[Griff0]

Every second article or forum post is about him getting fired up. if he isnt in searle's pocket this could be good.

[Toads]

That's the thing though. It seems they start out in Searle's pocket 'n either stay there 'n survive, or fall out with him 'n move on. Seems a bit of a history of it with players, employees 'n even CEO's..

[Titanic]

That's the thing though. It seems they start out in Searle's pocket 'n either stay there 'n survive, or fall out with him 'n move on. Seems a bit of a history of it with players, employees 'n even CEO's..

And which of any referees in the history of the game have ever been anything other than a pedantic believer in their own importance ... this one took it even further and became a five minute politician ... I don't hold any great hope, can't you guys remember the fiasco that was the NRL?

[TITAN PETE]

He is a personal friend of Searles but i met Daryl Kelly today & he assures me he is employed to run the club & will be hiring & firing where required.

[C-Whiz]

He is a personal friend of Searles but i met Daryl Kelly today & he assures me he is employed to run the club & will be hiring & firing where required.

This sounds good.

I don't subscribe to the theory that being a friend of Searles immediately means you are his "yes" man. As others have suggested, time will tell, but I also think time is fast running out for the "wait and see" approach, and I would expect some rather swift decisions and changes before the end of the year, otherwise it will look like more of the same pretty quickly.

[TITAN PETE]

Ex-MP promises to revive Titans
Travis Meyn | 08:47am August 29, 2013

NEW Gold Coast Titans boss Graham Annesley is determined to win back the city's support, admitting there had been a "disconnect" between the club and the region it represents after years of uncertainty.

Annesley yesterday resigned as NSW Minister for Sport and Recreation to take up the chief executive officer's role at the Titans.

The appointment of the former NRL chief operating officer and Origin and Test referee is a massive coup for the Titans, who have been searching for a CEO since David May's resignation in June.

Annesley, 57, and wife Erica will relocate in late September following a 10-day US holiday. He said his first priority was to win back public support following years of financial turmoil and poor results.

"The Titans clearly have to reconnect as much as possible with the community," he said.

"Because they have been through some difficult times through the last few years, maybe there's been a slight disconnect.

"Without community and fans, clubs simply don't exist. Re-establishing the club's reputation in the community as belonging to the community is really important.

"I don't want to get into the nitty- gritty about how we'll do that but that's what I'll be working on from day one."

Annesley's appointment came as a shock with the Titans not expected to land a candidate with such a high profile and reputation.

His relationship with senior NRL and government figures will be crucial to the Titans as will his NRL background.

Titans majority owner Michael Searle played a large part in luring Annesley with the two having a strong friendship after working closely during the Gold Coast's NRL bid in the early 2000s.

"I was closely involved with the Titans bid when they were admitted to the competition and they've got an incredibly bright future," Annesley said.

"I know they've been through some tough times but the worst of that's behind them. I'd like to think I could make a contribution to their future success."

The Titans will hope Annesley's appointment is long-term.

Searle resigned under mounting pressure in July last year and May lasted only 11 months in the role.

Annesley said he was determined to bring stability to the club.

"Everything I've done in my life has been about providing stability and leadership and bringing people together," he said.

"When it comes to sport, people are already very emotionally attached so we just need to harness that energy and point them in the right direction.

"All of the key elements are in place. It's a matter of getting everyone pulling in the same direction."

Annesley tearfully announced his resignation in NSW Parliament yesterday after two years as a politician.

"The two-and-a-half years I've had out of the game has reinvigorated my love for the game," he said.

"I'd spent my life involved with rugby league and having almost a decade at the NRL as chief operating officer, it's something that's been in my blood."

Annesley will visit the club today to meet staff and players.

Interim Titans CEO Darryl Kelly said the club was fortunate to secure someone of Annesley's calibre.

[Toads]

He is a personal friend of Searles but i met Daryl Kelly today & he assures me he is employed to run the club & will be hiring & firing where required.

That's great news. Always good to get a Forum Members perspective on Titans Staff 'n Players when they meet them in person.

But the the big question of 'when required' is of some concern. Surely we require a new Coaching Staff to replace the proven under achievers. If not, how long down the path do we progress with the current mob until it's critically required (personally, I think we're at that point already).

By the way, that's not directed at you solely, Pete. Just putting a general question out there.

[Mr Stupid]

Annesley said he was determined to bring stability to the club.

"Everything I've done in my life has been about providing stability and leadership and bringing people together," he said.

Doesn't sound like there'll be any major changes occuring. I'm resigned to the coaching staff staying as is next season. The new CEO will just be trying to sell the idea to the fan base.

[Steve]

He is a personal friend of Searles but i met Daryl Kelly today & he assures me he is employed to run the club & will be hiring & firing where required.

Was the same said of DM?

[Geeman]

Not sure how to post the whole article, but here is the link...
http://www.nrl.com/im-at-titans-for-...0/default.aspx
Says Searle could be on his way out of the football side of things to concentrate on the Titans 4 Tomorrow, which, if true can only be a good thing.

[C-Whiz]

Ex-MP promises to revive Titans
Travis Meyn | 08:47am August 29, 2013

"The Titans clearly have to reconnect as much as possible with the community," he said.
"Without community and fans, clubs simply don't exist. Re-establishing the club's reputation in the community as belonging to the community is really important.

"I don't want to get into the nitty- gritty about how we'll do that but that's what I'll be working on from day one."

Surely one of the first things that you would expect to happen to "reconnect" would be for the Titans to re-establish an online forum.

That's going to be interesting.

If it does, I wonder if the "True Titans Fans" on Facebook will deem it worthy of their comments if it's "official", or if they will just keep their circle-jerk going on Facebook.

Sorry, this comment may hi-jack the thread.... I'll start a new thread for comments about this.