Sources suggest a bitter feud has erupted between long time Wests Tigers coach Tim Sheens and recently appointed CEO Scott Longmuir, with some believing that Longmuir will be the fall-guy and could be sacked in the days ahead.
The situation has forced Wests to hold an extraordinary board meeting to deal with the major fallout between Longmuir and Sheens, and it seems the CEO is the man that will lose out – because he does not have a contract with the club.
Apparently things turned sour when new CEO Longmuir created a new job description for Sheens, added in to the description were key performance indicators (KPIs) and details around how Sheens’ has mapped out the future direction for the joint venture club.
Veteran coach Sheens was apparently furious with the new rules that had been applied by essentially a new kid on the Wests Tigers block in Longmuir.
Fortunately for Sheens, the directors also seem to be on-side. The directors feeling that Longmuir should have at least run the new conditions by them before slapping them on the coach.
While coach Tim Sheens has a contract until the end of 2010, there are still concerns over the Tigers team now being able to make a single finals appearance since their fairytale NRL Premiership in 2005. It’s been 3 long years in the wilderness since and should they miss out again this year, surely the heat will get turned up.
It’s believed this is the reasoning that Longmuir used to add the new conditions and KPIs to the Sheens job description. With player recruitment queries also being thrown in.
While only being at the helm of the Wests Tigers since late 2008 after veteran Steve Noyce quit the post – Longmuir seems to have no qualms in trying to reshuffle things, having no hesitation around the clubs political lines of Wests and Balmain, and now laying down the future for the coach.
When giving the job in 2003, Sheens has not only done a fair job on the NRL side of things – his ability to walk the fine line between the rival factions has been extremely impressive, he’s kept most internal parties happy.
He got on well with previous CEO Steve Noyce, however since Longmuir rose to power – previously the club’s marketing manager – the key driver seems to be future sponsorships and of course getting the sponsors means consistent on-field results.
The Wests Tigers unlike their Sydney rival clubs who need consistent hefty grants, have the luxury of 3 licensed Leagues club outfits – Balmain Leagues, Wests Ashfield and Wests Campbelltown – who all seem to be doing fairly well.
When new CEO Longmuir got the nod, he didn’t ask for a contract – as he felt he needed to prove himself first.
This could be his downfall, with the rookie set to have no fallback if the board are forced to make a call on the future. Choosing the non-contract party is a lot simpler and cheaper than forcing a contracted man out.
According the the Daily Telegraph Newspaper in Sydney, a new Wests Tigers CEO was already being mulled over by their officials.
What do you think the Tigers should do? Has Tim Sheens done enough since 2005? Should he be given a licence forever, given his guidance to the glory in 2005? Please comment below –