From the Sidelines with Corry Ihuhua

FORMER Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) boss Dirk Conradie, if given another chance to head the NRU, should ensure that he puts the rugby house in order for the survival of the game in the country.

Although Conradie had to “temporarily” call it quits early this month, he is once again standing for re-election as NRU president and is currently the sole candidate for the post. It will be interesting to see how he would want to repair the dented image of the game which he led for almost five years.Conradie together with his executive committee stepped-down early this month after four prominent rugby clubs put pressure on them due to certain irregularities during their reign.The main point for their ousting was the exorbitant amounts Conradie and his executive committee members paid themselves after the 2003 Rugby World Cup held in Australia.Now, Conradie has personally vowed that it is not over yet.He also has the support of at least eight clubs to go for another term at the helm of the NRU.Although there are several milestones that the NRU has achieved during Conradie’s first five-year reign, it will be up to him and the clubs that are backing him to take the union to a different level – if re-elected.The biggest worry is that there is no-one to challenge him to the post and this will in fact put him in a commanding lead to automatically bounce back.The clubs that have been fighting to oust him have not come up with a candidate for the position and this will basically not change much when the General Meeting is set to take place next month.The onus is upon the dissatisfied clubs to provide an alternative if they feel that Conradie and his executive are not up to scratch to run the NRU.Conradie in the meantime, if re-elected, should come up with a comprehensive master plan on the entire operations of the union.The point is, Conradie should not try to prove a point that he is back at the helm of the union, but should be able to demonstrate how it should be run professionally, efficiently and more transparently.In fact, Conradie has to take stock of all things that went wrong during his period and what areas he can improve on, while the road ahead should be clearly defined.It won’t be easy to come up with fresh ideas at this stage, but it will be wise for Conradie to surround himself with the right people who have an interest in the game and who care about its future.The right people can be the ones that oppose him or it can be others who have not had the opportunity to be at the forefront of the game at the highest level.It is crucial for knowledgeable people to take charge of the affairs of the game and to seriously address its shortcomings.At this stage, the union desperately needs funding for its leagues and some of its operations.No sponsor has come forward for this purpose and it will be good if Conradie, or any other new president who comes in, looked into that.The clubs travel long distances to meet their league commitments, but there is little if not no income, coming from the union in complementing their efforts.The development aspect of the game also needs some attention.For long now, the game has been not visible in schools in the black settlements, such as Katutura – despite Conradie’s pledge to address the issue.Now is the time! The selection of national teams should also be reviewed as talented players are often left-out due to favouritism.Importantly also, the disaster of the Rugby World Cup must be sorted out.Once some of these issues and any other problems are solved, it will be easier for the union to embark on new initiatives, as they will have clear minds and less worries.The respective club representatives to this General Meeting when electing a new president, should embrace each other for the common good of rugby, a sport that was once considered as second to football in Namibia.It will be interesting to see how he would want to repair the dented image of the game which he led for almost five years.Conradie together with his executive committee stepped-down early this month after four prominent rugby clubs put pressure on them due to certain irregularities during their reign.The main point for their ousting was the exorbitant amounts Conradie and his executive committee members paid themselves after the 2003 Rugby World Cup held in Australia.Now, Conradie has personally vowed that it is not over yet.He also has the support of at least eight clubs to go for another term at the helm of the NRU.Although there are several milestones that the NRU has achieved during Conradie’s first five-year reign, it will be up to him and the clubs that are backing him to take the union to a different level – if re-elected.The biggest worry is that there is no-one to challenge him to the post and this will in fact put him in a commanding lead to automatically bounce back.The clubs that have been fighting to oust him have not come up with a candidate for the position and this will basically not change much when the General Meeting is set to take place next month.The onus is upon the dissatisfied clubs to provide an alternative if they feel that Conradie and his executive are not up to scratch to run the NRU.Conradie in the meantime, if re-elected, should come up with a comprehensive master plan on the entire operations of the union.The point is, Conradie should not try to prove a point that he is back at the helm of the union, but should be able to demonstrate how it should be run professionally, efficiently and more transparently.In fact, Conradie has to take stock of all things that went wrong during his period and what areas he can improve on, while the road ahead should be clearly defined.It won’t be easy to come up with fresh ideas at this stage, but it will be wise for Conradie to surround himself with the right people who have an interest in the game and who care about its future.The right people can be the ones that oppose him or it can be others who have not had the opportunity to be at the forefront of the game at the highest level.It is crucial for knowledgeable people to take charge of the affairs of the game and to seriously address its shortcomings.At this stage, the union desperately needs funding for its leagues and some of its operations.No sponsor has come forward for this purpose and it will be good if Conradie, or any other new president who comes in, looked into that.The clubs travel long distances to meet their league commitments, but there is little if not no income, coming from the union in complementing their efforts.The development aspect of the game also needs some attention.For long now, the game has been not visible in schools in the black settlements, such as Katutura – despite Conradie’s pledge to address the issue.Now is the time! The selection of national teams should also be reviewed as talented players are often left-out due to favouritism.Importantly also, the disaster of the Rugby World Cup must be sorted out.Once some of these issues and any other problems are solved, it will be easier for the union to embark on new initiatives, as they will have clear minds and less worries.The respective club representatives to this General Meeting when electing a new president, should embrace each other for the common good of rugby, a sport that was once considered as second to football in Namibia.