Fourth Grade shows the way as Southern Districts hit reset button
As Southern Districts’ fourth grade side held on to claim a 22-17 victory over Western Sydney in last weekend’s semi final, it took them a little longer to get off the field compared to what it used to.
The fourth graders, most now in their 30s, are slower than they used to be. Many of them are fatter and greyer too.
But between them, they’ve played more than 1800 games at Souths across the grades and seasons, and they’ve used that experience to win 12 straight matches and book a spot in the preliminary final against Randwick this Sunday.
The performances and the spirit of the Southern Districts fourth grade side has been a rare highlight in what has otherwise been a fairly tumultuous year at Forshaw.
But on the back of their fourth grade side, Southern Districts are ready to turn things around.
“Besides fourth grade, it’s been a really disappointing season, on and off the field. There are a number of reasons for this, but I’m happy to admit that we got some things wrong in recent times,” Rebels president Brad Devine admitted to Rugby News.
“A few years ago, we made a commitment to try and professionalise our rugby program and we went about doing that with a very single minded focus.
“Unfortunately, there were some unintentional consequences of that which became apparent a little further down the track.
“We arrived at some difficult conclusions midway through this year from both a financial perspective and also from a broader cultural perspective and we decided to change direction. We’re really only at the very start of that process now.”
Under the guidance of then club head coach Todd Louden, Southern Districts went all in on their plan to build a high performance rugby program in late 2019.
The Rebels had played in first grade grand finals in 2012 and 2014 and finished the regular season in the top three on several occasions through the 2010s.
But the success starved club, which formed following a merger of St George and Port Hacking in 1989, were still chasing an elusive Shute Shield premiership.
“The club had been extremely prudent with their spending over a few years and had built up a pretty decent cash reserve,” Devine explained.
“The previous board decided that the time was right to start investing that money to build a high performance rugby program that could compete in the increasingly competitive Shute Shield competition.
“But then Covid hit in 2020 and we continued to fund the rugby program. I think it’s fair to say that we underestimated the financial impact that Covid would have on the club over the following seasons.
Devine argued that Souths were potentially more heavily impacted by Covid than other clubs.
Souths own and operate their clubhouse and generate a significant portion of their income from rugby and non rugby events at Forshaw.
This caused significant financial stress off the field, while on the field things weren’t going much better.
The Rebels recruited heavily to fill gaps in their playing group and lost a number of talented young juniors and former colts in the process.
And the results still didn’t come.
“After 2020, many of the players that we recruited left. Then after 2021, the same thing happened again. That turnover and the lack of continuity was making it very hard to build success and it was financially draining at the same time.
“At the top level, you’ve got to be semi professional. These guys are one step away from playing professional rugby either here in Australia or overseas and there is obviously money involved with supporting a semi professional team.
“But at the same time, we’ve also got to manage guys who are playing for the love of the game.
“At the end of the day, I think we lost track of the fact that we are a community rugby club that has a semi professional element. We had somehow flipped it around and tried to be a semi professional club with a social element and that caused trouble.”
While Devine said some elements of the high performance program, like the club’s medical program and new gym facilities will benefit the club in the long run, other practices had to change.
While they were chasing first grade success, the club had fairly public fallings-out with the Southern Rugby Alliance, a not for profit aimed at promoting rugby in the Southern Districts region, and the Rebels’ extremely successful women’s Sevens program, who left the club and now play as Burraneer.
“We certainly could have handled things better with both the Southern Rugby Alliance and the women’s Sevens program,” Devine admitted.
“I take responsibility for the actions of the club. I think we were probably too focused on building our high performance program and we overlooked the importance of those relationships.
“We’ve met with both organisations in recent weeks and we’re all prepared to work together because I think all parties want the best for rugby in our region. But that work has only just started and we’ve still got a fair way to go.”
Devine and those on the board that will remain after the club’s AGM later this year, along with representatives from a number of stakeholder groups across the region are in the early stages of a whole club strategic review.
They’re openly and actively hitting the reset button and Devine says the club is committed to doing whatever it can to reward the loyal rugby community in Sydney’s south, all of whom have stuck with the club through this difficult season.
“It’s going to be a big job but there are a lot of good people that want to get the club back to where it should be,” Devine said.
“We’ve restructured our rugby department and appointed Matt Barr as club coach moving forward. We’ll be hiring a full time first grade coach in the near future and we’ve also got Tim Rapp working closely with the club.
“Those two, alongside the board, will be responsible for helping the club rediscover our DNA which was so strong just a few years ago.
“From there, we’ll look to hire a coach and eventually recruit or reengage with players that fit that DNA because we can never afford to forget who we are and what we’re about as a club.”
Devine knows that a lot of the DNA the club is looking to rediscover remains in his fourth grade side, who play Randwick on Sunday at 10:30am.
The Rebels will be hard to miss at Coogee Oval, with prams, toddlers and nervous partners scattered along the sidelines in support.
It’s not the first grade success Southern Districts went searching for a few years ago.
But it may be the success the club needs to kick start a much needed rugby revival in Sydney’s south.