Dragons set for shake-up in privatisation agreement with WIN Corp
St George Illawarra officials have opened internal discussions to change a key condition of its privatisation agreement with WIN Corporation in a move designed to add stability to the under-fire club.
The Dragons have been in the headlines in recent days following an alcohol-fuelled altercation between two players in Mudgee in the aftermath of the club’s disappointing performance in the Charity Shield against South Sydney on Saturday.
Dragons fans on the hill at Kogarah.Credit:Getty
While the Dragons have endured a tumultuous few seasons on the field – headlined by a raft of player behaviour issues – there is a strong push within the organisation to strengthen the club’s off-field position by adding certainty and stability to a club that has faltered significantly in recent years.
Under the buy-out agreement signed in 2018, which saw media giants WIN purchase the Steelers’ 50 per cent share in the joint venture club, the St George side of the merger agreed to a rotating chairman system.
The club also agreed that Peter Doust would step down from his role as chief executive of the NRL club after 18 seasons in charge.
It has meant that for the past five seasons the club has had four leaders at the helm – Andrew Gordon, Brian Johnston, Craig Young and now Andrew Lancaster.
WIN Corp’s Andrew Lancaster is chairman of the Dragons.
Lancaster recently took over as chairman from Dragons legend Young, who stepped down from his role as director after it emerged that he had provided a reference on official club letterhead for Brett Finch during his court proceedings.
Sources with knowledge of the situation speaking on the condition of anonymity due to the confidential nature of discussions told The Herald there was support within the organisation to adjust the policy to guarantee a chairman a minimum of three years in the role.
That will provide the person in charge with time to not only develop and maintain relationships with key stakeholders at the club, but execute plans over a long period.
The current model doesn’t allow for that, with change of leadership altering the course of the business significantly every 12 months or so.
St George Illawarra left a lot to be desired with their showing against the Rabbitohs in Mudgee on Saturday.Credit:Getty
A change to the structure will likely see Lancaster – the right-hand man of billionaire WIN boss Bruce Gordon and a board member of Nine Entertainment Co – remain as chairman until 2025, handing WIN the power in the marriage.
While the St George brand and history is one of the strongest in Australian sport, WIN have deep pockets and are the financial backers of the football club.
WIN’s commitment to Wollongong and the south coast was evident late last year when it secured a $40m funding agreement with the NSW government for a high-performance centre at the University of Wollongong.
Construction is expected to begin late this year with the Dragons to move out of its current WIN Stadium facility and into the new community-shared complex by the 2025 season.
As reported by News Corp last year, a survey sent out to select club members caused conjecture when respondents were asked about what the club should be called in the future. Reports alluded to the potential removal of Illawarra from the club’s name.
Sources told the Herald the club is not considering a name change but admitted to an internal push for the club to be referred to as just “The Dragons”, instead of “Saints”.
The club insists its commitment to the Illawarra is evident in its recent agreement to build its training facility at the University of Wollongong.
In a recent interview with The Daily Telegraph, Lancaster said: “The survey was a part of a broader engagement with our internal and external stakeholders to provide clarity on how we are perceived as a club”.
Sports news, results and expert commentary. Sign up for our Sport newsletter.
Most Viewed in Sport
From our partners
Source: Read Full Article