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Thread: Billionaire Andrew ‘Twiggy’ Forrest dismissed reports his interest in Western Force i

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    Billionaire Andrew ‘Twiggy’ Forrest dismissed reports his interest in Western Force i

    Twiggy hits back. Love it

    Billionaire Andrew ‘Twiggy’ Forrest dismissed reports his interest in Western Force is waning
    Nick Taylor
    The West Australian
    Tue, 1 December 2020 3:13PM
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    Nick Taylor
    Andrew Forrest is committed to the Force.


    Billionaire Western Force owner Andrew Forrest has blasted reports that he is not committed to the long term future of the Super Rugby club, dismissing them as complete and utter nonsense.
    And the mining magnate has revealed his ambition is to make the Force the strongest club in world rugby.
    Forrest fought a bitter three-year battle with Rugby Australia after they controversially dumped the Force, refused his $70 million offer to keep them alive and saved Melbourne Rebels.
    He is now the most powerful player in Australian rugby and has been openly courted by RA who want him inside their tent
    Forrest is furious at Eastern States media reports claiming his “generosity may be beginning to wane,” that he is “not completely committed to the next Super Rugby season” and that “questions have been raised about how long he will continue to remain involved.”
    He hit back: “I am 100 per cent committed to the Western Force and securing the future of rugby union in Western Australia. Any suggestion to the contrary is complete and utter nonsense.
    “We strongly suspect these rumours are being sown by the parties that sought to damage the Western Force in the past.
    “It is this off-field disharmony that led to the disastrous near terminal funding decisions of the former board of Rugby Australia.
    “The rebirth of the Force is one of Australia’s great sporting stories.
    “My ambition is to now make the Western Force the strongest club in world rugby, with far more locally grown players.
    “We have only just begun on this journey and I am committed to seeing it through for many years to come.
    “Our commitment to grassroots rugby cannot be questioned. As recently as July, Nicola (his wife) and I announced another $5 million to create an elite pathways program in Western Australia.
    “This is on top of the $2 million we had already committed to women’s and children’s rugby in WA.
    “We want to build and support our passionate rugby community, the young players, the mums and dads, the schools, the clubs, the volunteers, and make Western Australia a true rugby heartland.”
    The Force were invited into this year’s Australian Super Rugby competition and will play in both next year’s domestic and trans-Tasman competitions.
    New RA chairman Hamish McLennan has been fulsome in his praise of Forrest who said McLennan had provided a “real light at the end of the tunnel” - unlike the last RA administration that he described as “puerile, pathetic, short-sighted and unfair”.
    Forrest has said he would be prepared to look at investment in RA if changes are made to governance that would unlock the stranglehold of the NSW and Queensland unions.
    RA said it has also had informal discussions with Forrest on private equity investment.

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    Veteran valzc's Avatar
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    That should the turds up!

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    Legend Contributor brokendown gunfighter's Avatar
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    take that!

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    Legend Contributor Alison's Avatar
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    A great ‘rack off!’ if ever there was one!

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    Veteran Bakkies's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by valzc View Post
    That should the turds up!
    Wayne lost me in his article when he mentioned the names involved with reforming his swamp.

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    'I may be a Senator but I am not stupid'


    https://omny.fm/shows/the-alan-jones-breakfast-show/cameron-clyne

    Link to Senate Report http://www.aph.gov.au/senate_ca

    https://www.change.org/p/rugby-australia-petition-for-cameron-clyne-to-resign-as-chairman-of-the-rugby-australia-board

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    Couldn't get all of the Wayne Smith article, behind the paywall. What names and what swamp?

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    A fairly predictable spin to be put on the news regarding revenue distribution from SR. Probably why it was so quickly dispatched to the long grass, but good to see nonetheless.

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    Quote Originally Posted by AndyS View Post
    A fairly predictable spin to be put on the news regarding revenue distribution from SR. Probably why it was so quickly dispatched to the long grass, but good to see nonetheless.
    I have heard him talking a few months ago on a UK based podcast, and he is on a mission to build the Force and WA into a powerhouse of rugby. Dream on any Eastern Staters, if you hope he now switches off and thinks "Mission accomplished, I saved the Force"..
    In fact get out of his way, because he wants to help make Australia a rugby powerhouse again and see them win back the Bledisloe and the World Cup again.

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    Quote Originally Posted by wholetruth View Post
    Couldn't get all of the Wayne Smith article, behind the paywall. What names and what swamp?
    What? The bit about Tim North QC in charge of legal ??
    Wayne smith article below —

    Andrew Forrest has stressed he is “100 per cent” committed both to the Western Force and Rugby Australia and has dismissed rumours to the contrary as evidence of the same disharmony that led to the turmoil of 2017 when the Australian Rugby Union, as it was then known, culled the Perth club from Super Rugby.

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    Rumours have been rife in Australian rugby for some time that Forrest was considering backing out of his support of the Force and the sport overall. But the Perth mining billionaire interrupted his global “green tour” to contact The Australian to set the record straight.

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    “It’s amazing to me because I always thought you judged a person by their actions and my actions have been completely supportive of the national body,” Forrest said.

    He has placed only one condition on Rugby Australia. “If they adopt a world-leading constitution which would lead to a world-leading game of rugby in Australia, then I would continue to strongly support them.”

    He said that any suggestions he was contemplating pulling back on his support for the Force or rugby in Western Australia were “complete and utter nonsense”.

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    “We strongly suspect these rumours are being sown by the parties that sought to damage the Western Force in the past. It is this off-field disharmony that led to the disastrous near-terminal funding decisions of the former board of RA.

    “Our commitment to grassroots rugby cannot be questioned – as recently as July, Nicola (Forrest) and I announced another $5 million to create an elite pathways program in WA. This is on top of the $2 million we had already committed to women’s and children’s rugby in WA.

    “The rebirth of the Force is one of Australia’s great sporting stories. My ambition is to now make the Western Force the strongest club in world rugby, with far more locally grown players. We have only just begun on this journey and I am committed to seeing it through for many years to come.”

    RA chairman Hamish McLennan said good progress was being made in drafting a new constitution under legal experts Tim North, QC and Bruce Hodgkinson, SC. “There are a few points in contention that we are working through and we are evaluating the impact of any private equity deal in the future and how that would affect the constitution,” McLennan said.

    It is believed that RA does not want to rush a decision on the constitution until it has observed what New Zealand and South Africa intend to do with private equity. There are some head-spinning ramifications from taking on a private equity partner and RA does not want to be faced with rewriting a newly-drafted constitution to make allowances for them.

    While RA is being circled by CVC Capital Partners, Silver Lake and other private equity firms, it is possible it will approach Forrest to be involved in any such venture. The Force owner did not rule out such a deal.

    “If Rugby Australia approaches me more than philanthropically, I will consider any such approach,” he told The Australian.

    While there has been some criticism of the decision to include the Force in the split of the broadcast deal, it would have been inequitable to exclude them.

    “Two points are worth noting here,” said RA CEO Rob Clarke. “One is that the Western Force have been a key part of standing up a domestic competition this year. And as we look to trans-Tasman expansion, (they are) a key part of ensuring that Australian rugby has equally footing with New Zealand and how future competitions are going to evolve.

    “At the same time, the five (Australian) teams were part of our broadcast agreement that we have done with Nine and Stan. It (the Force) is an important piece in the financial equation.”

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    Do I sense a backdown Mr Smith?

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    Legend Contributor Alison's Avatar
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    How does Tim North get to be involved in drafting a new constitution? And how much is he being paid?

    Note to Minderoo lawyers: be hyper alert for trapdoors, Trojan horses and all manner of tricks and shams in any legal document you receive from RA.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Bakkies View Post
    Wayne lost me in his article when he mentioned the names involved with reforming his swamp.
    Just goes to show nothing much has changed at RA with Clark and that great legal mind Tim North from the Rebels! We need to make sure they don't shaft us again!

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    Quote Originally Posted by Alison View Post
    Note to Minderoo lawyers: be hyper alert...
    If both Minderoo and RugbyWA haven't both learned that lesson (and learned it well), there's not much hope going forward.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Alison View Post
    How does Tim North get to be involved in drafting a new constitution?.
    Any handshake, count the fingers.

    Quote Originally Posted by wholetruth View Post
    Do I sense a backdown Mr Smith?
    Or was it Tom Decent?

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    Immortal Contributor shasta's Avatar
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    Really people? The past is the past. All those wolves in sheep's clothing are now really nice little puppies who are giving the Force lots of free money - no strings attached. You all need to move on.

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