Otago rugby is in a period of transition and a community desperate for success will simply have to be patient.
That was the clear message from Carisbrook yesterday, as major on- and off-field structural changes were revealed for the first time.
Phil Mooney moves from Otago coach to co-coach with a colleague to be named, and Richard Reid becomes Otago Rugby Football Union general manager, with the chief executive title expunged.
All that is left is player news, and the union is promising developments in that area next week.
The changes fit with the overall theme of Otago rugby, which has undergone seismic change at management and governance level over the last 18 months.
But until change leads to success for the province's struggling flagship team, the union will find praise in short supply, something the chairman acknowledges.
"I think we've done a hell of a lot of good work this year. But people rate you on the performance of the ITM Cup team," Graham said yesterday.
"That's got to be a priority. We understand that and we appreciate there is some heat on us. But we're working as hard as we can in a very big job."
A big step for Otago has been severing (most) ties with the Highlanders.
Until earlier this year, the ORFU was contracted to provide services to the franchise, but that became a difficult relationship that did not benefit either party.
Now the two businesses are separated, with the exception of three employees who fulfil dual roles.
Reid, formerly the chief executive of both the Highlanders and Otago, now concentrates on Otago, with Roger Clark handling Highlanders duties.
The role change has led to the new ORFU general manager title, with Graham saying Reid had a new job description and key performance indicators, and would be reporting to the board (as before) on the day-to-day organisation of Otago rugby.
The ORFU was entering a challenging "transition period", Graham said.
While it had sold Carisbrook to the Dunedin City Council, it was still responsible for the upkeep of the ground, and it looked forward to shedding that obligation when the union moved to the new stadium.
"For the board the ideal situation is that we can just focus on rugby, bringing kids through and having a good ITM Cup team.
"That would be a perfect world: a lean, mean streamlined machine so we can just look after Otago rugby.
"We're still a property manager, running a ground and ticketing and a whole lot of things that distract us from what we should be doing. In about eight months' time, we want a model that will be highly productiveand cost-effective."
The ORFU, as has been well documented, is struggling financially, though it expects to record only a small loss at its next annual meeting.
It is still trying to find a way to trim expenses at the same time as looking after amateur rugby and building a successful senior team.
Graham said the 2011 budget was being drawn up and the union was looking for "bang for our buck".
He declined to comment on whether further restructuring could lead to job losses.
In terms of player recruiting, Graham said there would be news next week.
The union would reveal 21 contracted players, with eight or nine new faces.
Former All Black and Otago first five Tony Brown is one, and the Otago Daily Times understands former Auckland utility Ben Atiga and exciting Wellington prospect Buxton Popoali'i will also be coming south.
Initiatives like the apprentice scheme and the Lakes scholarship had been introduced this year, and Graham said his board, containing "really strong rugby people", had spent hours on player recruiting and the coaching review.
"The restructuring has been a difficult time, so we want to do what we can to help."
Reid has always supported the Otago-Highlanders split and said it was a sensible move.
He said, while he had held dual roles for three years, Otago rugby was always his primary employer, and he did not have to think twice when offered the ORFU general manager role.
While Otago's terrible performance in the ITM Cup cast a shadow over the whole province, it did not mean the union was failing.
"We've got a new board that has been in operation for nine or 10 months, and we've got good, hard-working staff who work their butts off. I do think we're heading in the right direction," Reid said.
"But it's still really hard work. No rugby union is saying it's all beer and skittles. Rugby is not the income generator it once was. It just isn't.
"The Otago union has struggled along for quite some time. We've done some things successfully and some that have been unsuccessful.
"Over the last couple of years we have gone through complete professional and amateur reviews to set the business up for the future."
