Burnt by Firepower, Mitchell flowers at Tahs
Burnt by Firepower, Mitchell flowers at Tahs
Jamie Pandaram
April 8, 2011
IT WAS late 2009 when Drew Mitchell, on tour in Europe with the Wallabies, received an audacious telephone call.
The caller was Tim Johnston, the boss of failed fuel technology company Firepower - which owed Mitchell hundreds of thousands in unpaid sponsorship money - asking if he'd like to be involved in a new business venture.
Mitchell agreed to meet, uninterested in Johnston's new pitch but with the intent of cornering one of Australia's most wanted men for some answers. A meeting was set but first Johnston said he had to return to Australia to attend his daughter's 21st birthday party.
Advertisement: Story continues below As soon as he touched down in Brisbane on November 2 he was apprehended by customs officials and Mitchell never got his answers.
When he agreed in 2007 to join the Western Force, Mitchell signed contracts drafted by Firepower pledging riches for three years. Like the many investors who lost about $100 million when Firepower was liquidated, he was left confused and furious.
But that experience was crucial in shaping the man who returns to Perth this week as vice-captain of the NSW Waratahs.
''The Waratahs' [offer] wasn't the biggest offer that I got but I wasn't going to be scorned again by the lure of the big money in front of me,'' Mitchell said of his move to Sydney last year. ''I was 23 at the time, I am 27 now, you come to realise there's probably more important things.
''I had spoken to each of the provincial teams. With the Waratahs, I wanted to get back closer to home [Brisbane], have more time with those who are close to me.''
Fortunately, the Force were also able to survive despite losing millions in sponsorship - which resulted in the departures of Mitchell and star five-eighth Matt Giteau - but the situation looked shaky for a time.
''There were things written about me, about going to a few clubs, and things written about mates of mine, that they are greedy,'' Mitchell said. ''It is very easy to look at things with a one-sided point of view but there is more to it than meets the eye.
''I was there for three years wondering where 40 per cent of my wage was. By no means am I playing the 'poor me' card, I know families lost their life savings, far more than what I did.
''Myself, Gits, every day we would spend chasing Firepower, Tim Johnston, just to know when we were getting paid, if we were getting paid. I was thinking, 'it just shouldn't be happening'. I was lucky enough to get money for the first year - albeit 12 months later - but the following two years I got nothing.
''I purchased houses thinking I was going to get a certain amount, then, come payment time, things were a lot tighter than what I'd anticipated. It wasn't a welcome distraction by any means, it consumed your thoughts outside of footy.
''When it is affecting your day-to-day life, it is hard to put that aside.''
Mitchell was also finding it tough being on the other side of the country to his family, with their short visits not enough to quell his feeling of isolation.
Since joining the Waratahs he has developed into one of the team's most respected figures, and was inducted into the team's four-man leadership group alongside Phil Waugh, Dean Mumm and Berrick Barnes at the start of the season.
With the murky history behind him, Mitchell is well-equipped to dish out advice to younger teammates. ''By no means did I feel I was coming to the Waratahs as a leader, the first few months you are feeling things out,'' he said. ''There was already a dynamic here before I got here, there is a way things are done and you're deluded if you think you can come in and change that. As it has evolved, my position in the group through age and experience, there is a leadership role for me now.''
With Waugh and Barnes sidelined this weekend, Mitchell becomes the deputy skipper under Mumm.
NSW's on-field leadership will be closely scrutinised tomorrow night but the left winger has no grand speeches prepared. ''I like to have a voice if I feel that what I have to say is worthwhile,'' he said. '' … if it really needs to be heard.''
Mitchell is all too familiar with hollow words.
http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-union/un...407-1d695.html
