Rob Clarke interim RA boss as Carroll confirms long-term interest
Australian Olympic Committee boss Matt Carroll says he still wants to help lead Australian rugby out of the mire despite the sensational resignation of board member and friend Peter Wiggs on Wednesday.
As former Bill Pulver deputy and Rebels chief executive Rob Clarke was installed as interim chief executive for the next three to six months, Carroll took a call from interim RA chairman Paul McLean on Wednesday morning and said he was prepared to become managing director under the former Wallabies captain.
Australian Olympic Committee chief executive Matt Carroll.Credit:AAP
Carroll told the Herald, however, that while RA was welcome to talk to other candidates for the top job long term, he was not prepared to undergo a formal interview, saying his interest in rejoining the organisation was not "a career move".
"I put my hand up because I care about the game, I have a lot of knowledge and experience of professional sport that I can bring to the table and that I can bring to the table quickly," Carroll said.
"That hasn't changed but my interest would depend on who the chairman was, because you need to know and trust who you are working with. If Paul was happy to stay on for the forseeable future, I would be happy to be involved."
Clarke told the Herald he had no interest in the permanent position and wanted to leave "what happens in the board room, to the board room".
"I'll leave what happens in the board room to the board room, I really don't want to get distracted by that side of things other than to say that I would encourage everyone to unite on the challenges that face the game, which are many and significant," he said. "Parochialism and politics rarely combine to achieve productive outcomes."
He said he had agreed to serve only until the board could finalise a permanent replacement, which he expected to take between three and six months.
Wednesday's developments came after an explosive 48 hours that saw Wiggs, a private equity entrepreneur and Supercars chairman, resign in protest over the RA board's blocking of his leadership demands.
Wiggs said that if he accepted the chairman position, he wanted Carroll as chief executive and former RA boss John O'Neill as a non-executive director on the board.
A board source told the Herald the seven other directors on the conference call baulked at Wiggs' terms and insisted that, while Carroll was a well-credentialed option, they at least had to meet him and run some sort of abridged recruitment process for other candidates.
Although they have never worked together, Carroll's close friendship with Wiggs was raised as a potential conflict of interest.
This attitude is backed up by an email exchange between Wiggs and McLean, leaked to News Corp publications, in which McLean suggests the board stick to the original plan to appoint former Ten and News Corp executive Hamish McLennan as chairman, broker a meeting between McLennan and Carroll, and retain Wiggs' services as a "lead director".
In reply, Wiggs said he was disappointed by the email and would resign on Wednesday morning. Board sources confirmed he did so.
The scenario still leaves the RA board with a decision on how much due process it is willing to forego to secure Carroll's services.
The Mosman-raised sports administrator, whose first job was in the construction industry, has served in several top roles in rugby, including as deputy CEO to O'Neill, CEO at NSW Rugby, general manager of the 2003 Rugby World Cup and, most recently, as executive adviser to the 2019 Rugby World Cup Organising Committee.
He has also spent the past two months navigating the AOC through the coronavirus crisis, which saw the 2020 Tokyo Olympics postponed until next year.
Carroll also served as O'Neill's deputy at Football Federation Australia. After last leaving RA in 2013, he ran Yachting Australia before joining the AOC as chief executive in 2017.