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Speaker 1: This is Thoughtsfix Howard by News Talks.
Speaker 2: Ed be Hello there, and welcome into a fresh episode
Speaker 2: of the Sports Fix podcast. As February rushes towards its
Speaker 2: climax thing penultimate day, Thursday, February twenty seven, I'm Jason.
Speaker 3: Fine, does that mean it's the end of summer?
Speaker 4: Oh?
Speaker 2: Look, I don't think you need to bring the podcast
Speaker 2: down this.
Speaker 3: I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'm missing the sun already. It
Speaker 3: didn't take long to disappear. But no, the sun is
Speaker 3: shining from the podcast. That's all we need to know.
Speaker 2: Right indeed, And yes, you're right, it is towards the
Speaker 2: end of summer, so I guess. Look, I was going
Speaker 2: to say we get into the winter codes, but Rugby's
Speaker 2: twelve months of the year. Now our big news today
Speaker 2: around CLAYT. McMillan, I've got some thoughts, You've got some thoughts.
Speaker 2: Anybody we can check to in a position of authority
Speaker 2: around this?
Speaker 3: How about the Chief executive Officer of the Chiefs his
Speaker 3: name no, Simon Grafis is going to join nas to
Speaker 3: talk about how this developed, what happens next. So as
Speaker 3: many questions I can throw at Simon, they'll be coming
Speaker 3: up shortly.
Speaker 2: Looking forward to that and as I say, a few
Speaker 2: other issues to kick around in the chamber, plus the
Speaker 2: latest and sports news, So let's get into it. In
Speaker 2: other news, let's get you underway with some of the
Speaker 2: big sports stories around today. Warriors coach Andrew Webster has
Speaker 2: addressed what's become an annual question from the club's fan
Speaker 2: base ahead of the new NRL League season, posed by
Speaker 2: Mike Hosking.
Speaker 3: Is this our year?
Speaker 5: I hope?
Speaker 3: So I'm as confident as it being the last two seasons.
Speaker 3: So one year we come out and did it, the
Speaker 3: second year we didn't.
Speaker 2: So hopefully third the chant the English Premier League Football
Speaker 2: Crown is another step closer for Liverpool. That's full time.
Speaker 2: Liverpool go thirteen points there, We're just ten.
Speaker 1: Games to go and the title gets ever closer.
Speaker 2: In honest lots first fantastic year in charge, the reads
Speaker 2: of meeting Newcastle to nil at Anfield the same time
Speaker 2: as their nearest rivals Arsenal Drew nill All at third place,
Speaker 2: Nottingham Forest and Josh Gary's just two shots off the lead.
Speaker 2: After his first round at Golf's New Zealand Open, he
Speaker 2: started with a five under pass sixty six to be
Speaker 2: two shots back in a typer third.
Speaker 4: Bit of a shaky start the first few holes, made
Speaker 4: a few rough swings and listen, two or three good
Speaker 4: chances and to come home strong after my first bogeon
Speaker 4: like thirteen. It was good to bounce back to three
Speaker 4: birdies on the truck. So I haven't lost too much
Speaker 4: touch of the leaders. So that's the goal.
Speaker 1: Round one leading a VEX. We've got just the ticket.
Speaker 1: It's Sports Fix powered by News Talks IVY.
Speaker 3: We'll join now on the Fixed podcast by the CEO
Speaker 3: of the White Couple Chiefs. His name is Simon Grafis.
Speaker 3: He joins us now. Simon, quite a big day for
Speaker 3: the club and welcome.
Speaker 5: Yeah, it's a big club.
Speaker 6: And just to clarify, it's not just the Waykido Chiefs
Speaker 6: were obviously whole Chiefs region which Wakido is one of them.
Speaker 5: But yeah, happy, happy to carry on.
Speaker 3: I think that's very very important that you define that
Speaker 3: and you've made a lot of Chiefs fans very happy.
Speaker 3: My apologies, that's all good.
Speaker 6: Yeah, but yeah, big day for the club in terms
Speaker 6: of obviously the news that break today around around Clayton,
Speaker 6: and yeah, he's certainly been.
Speaker 5: Had a massive presence with the club.
Speaker 6: And although disappointed, it's also we do celebrate that stuff too,
Speaker 6: you know. We in a lot of ways, we're here
Speaker 6: to developed players and coaches and it's good to see
Speaker 6: them go on to bigger and better things and hopefully
Speaker 6: we're you know, we're an important part of that that
Speaker 6: development cycle.
Speaker 3: How long have you known? How long has it been
Speaker 3: chatted about, because obviously he had to peel away from
Speaker 3: his contract.
Speaker 5: We're at the.
Speaker 3: Club and end Z are so long negotiations signon.
Speaker 5: I don't know. I don't think it's been that long.
Speaker 6: And look, Clayton and I have got a really good,
Speaker 6: good relationship and Clayton's kept me informed right from when
Speaker 6: it was highly unlikely. But as the process has gone through,
Speaker 6: it seems to have got more and more likely until
Speaker 6: sort of, you know, last week, it was like jeepess,
Speaker 6: this thing looks like it's going to happen.
Speaker 3: Quite a distraction. I'd expect for everybody pretty good to
Speaker 3: get it out of the way now before we get
Speaker 3: our hands on it and start circulating rumors, right ah.
Speaker 6: And look to be fear that's what we you know,
Speaker 6: we were we were actually planning on trying to trying
Speaker 6: to keep a lid on it until our by around.
Speaker 6: We thought that would be a better way to deal
Speaker 6: with it in terms of the team. But it is
Speaker 6: what it is, so therefore we've just had to front
Speaker 6: foot and and and just come.
Speaker 5: Out with it.
Speaker 6: But yeah, look, I hope we want to minimize the
Speaker 6: distraction the team of you know, they've got to focus
Speaker 6: week to week and if they do a job each week,
Speaker 6: then you know, then then then we might we might
Speaker 6: be in a position to have a crack at another title.
Speaker 5: You know.
Speaker 3: I'm presuming they approached him or did he have fear
Speaker 3: is out looking to advance his career.
Speaker 6: I'm not one hundred percent sure, but obviously Clayton was
Speaker 6: up in Ireland with the All Black fifteen and they
Speaker 6: played Monster, so I imagine he probably You know, we've got
Speaker 6: a John Ryan came down to play for the club
Speaker 6: a couple of seasons ago. Alex Nankevill's up there. There
Speaker 6: are a couple other players that he's coached, so he
Speaker 6: knows some of them.
Speaker 5: I don't know.
Speaker 6: It's while he was up there, I imagine he probably
Speaker 6: he might have made some connections. Yeah, I'm not out
Speaker 6: sure they.
Speaker 3: You said before Simon that it's very much it's not
Speaker 3: a development club because you're there to win titles, but
Speaker 3: there's a lot of trains it going on with players
Speaker 3: advancing and with coaches advancing as well. He happy with
Speaker 3: that as a club in the way things work through.
Speaker 6: Well, I think it's just part and parcel of it,
Speaker 6: you know, Like in terms of players, you'd probably have
Speaker 6: up to twenty percent. Players normally change each season and
Speaker 6: and there's an element of always changed at a coaching group.
Speaker 6: I think, you know, the head coach is probably a
Speaker 6: little bit different. But if you have a lookover history,
Speaker 6: you know, five years out of a head coach is
Speaker 6: actually probably a good run. So as a club, we
Speaker 6: have to have plans in place for succession for all
Speaker 6: our roles, whether that's head coach, the rest of the
Speaker 6: coaching group, players back off of staff, you know, like,
Speaker 6: so we need to we need to make sure that
Speaker 6: we've got got things in place to carry on past
Speaker 6: any one person.
Speaker 3: Oh, it's interested in the nature of contracts in the
Speaker 3: sporting world. They don't appear to actually mean a great deal.
Speaker 3: You kind of walk away from them if it suits you.
Speaker 3: Is that a fair thing to say? Contracts aren't really that.
Speaker 3: They don't stick people to their roles, do they. Ah?
Speaker 6: No, I'm not sure about that because I mean, you're like,
Speaker 6: they don't want to get into the technicalities of it.
Speaker 6: But Clayton, Clayton was contracted here till the till the
Speaker 6: end of twenty six, but he actually had an exit
Speaker 6: clause at the end of twenty five, so he's actually
Speaker 6: what he's doing is actually aligned with his contract. So
Speaker 6: there's no he's not walking away from anything. He always
Speaker 6: had an option to get out of it. Hoped I'd
Speaker 6: hoped obviously that he would have he would have done
Speaker 6: the full term. But so this is probably just a
Speaker 6: year earlier than we're probably what we're planning for.
Speaker 3: So what happens now you are plenty going to try
Speaker 3: and strive to win this elusive title for the club
Speaker 3: and Clayton McMillan. When do you start looking for a replacement?
Speaker 3: Who do you talk to around that? Have you already
Speaker 3: done that? What is that that process? Simon? To find
Speaker 3: the next man off the rank.
Speaker 6: Yeah, Look, that's a great question, but we're Look, we're
Speaker 6: pretty focused on making sure this isn't a big distraction.
Speaker 6: So I think the key thing for us is to
Speaker 6: keep everyone aligned with what they've got to do week
Speaker 6: by a week, and then we will go through a process.
Speaker 6: We've finished the season, done our review process, so then
Speaker 6: go through a process for head coach.
Speaker 3: Thanks for your time. Simon grafis CEO of the Chiefs Sports.
Speaker 3: The head coach of Afghanistan's men's A cricket team, Jonathan Trott,
Speaker 3: said no side would ever again take Afghanistan lightly after
Speaker 3: they knocked to England out of the champions Trophy overnight.
Speaker 3: I don't want to correct you, Jonathan Trott, but i'd
Speaker 3: suggest there isn't a cricket team in world cricket that
Speaker 3: takes Afghanistan lightly. It's only been a handful of years
Speaker 3: since they were admitted into the international fold. In that
Speaker 3: time they've come up some quiet outrageous results. In fact,
Speaker 3: the last four ODI series they've secured victory. No, not
Speaker 3: against the big heavy hitters in the big punches, but
Speaker 3: they got South Africa cooked and they can interrupt, worry,
Speaker 3: upset and beat great teams New Zealand only know too
Speaker 3: well the strength of Afghanistans watching that game last night.
Speaker 3: It started off slow, it was a bit of a crawl,
Speaker 3: but like in all good games of one dance national cricket,
Speaker 3: slowly but surely the team with the bat builds and
Speaker 3: builds and builds, post a huge total and then defend
Speaker 3: that total. It was all on the line for England.
Speaker 3: They lose that they are out of the champions Trophy,
Speaker 3: and they did and they are gone. It's not the
Speaker 3: home stretch for Afghanistan, but it's close taking on their
Speaker 3: Australian team in a couple of days time. As far
Speaker 3: as me referencing the men's cricket team, I think that's
Speaker 3: very very important. There is much debate around the legitimacy
Speaker 3: of the Afghanistan men's team in world cricket and weather
Speaker 3: due to the Taliban's outrageous treatment of their women, whether
Speaker 3: Afghanistan cricket should be allowed to compete at that level.
Speaker 3: I don't think that punishment meets it out towards Afghanistan
Speaker 3: men's cricket team will do anyone any favors. International sporting
Speaker 3: pressure indeed help unravel the South African apartheid government. But
Speaker 3: in this case, the Taliban don't care about sport. They
Speaker 3: don't care about cricket. They just care about oppressing the females.
Speaker 3: To take away afghanistan joy through cricket is just downright
Speaker 3: cruel and it will achieve nothing.
Speaker 1: The Chamber is now in session on Sportsfax.
Speaker 2: Let us assemble this the two of us can two
Speaker 2: people assemble in the chamber? Why here we are?
Speaker 3: It's an assembly?
Speaker 2: They were just like a school. Do you know that
Speaker 2: there's a law? I digress here. There's a law in
Speaker 2: the UK that you have to have three people to
Speaker 2: constitute a riot. Two people cannot write, but three people can.
Speaker 3: Is it in a fray with two people? I don't know.
Speaker 2: Maybe it's an assembly, I'm not I.
Speaker 3: Don't remember that term being used a few years ago.
Speaker 3: I'm not quite sure where you're afraid came Horetually it
Speaker 3: might have been. That's what it was. Go figure, Yeah,
Speaker 3: we definitely digress. Let's get back to subject if we can.
Speaker 2: Indeed, yeah, we'll bring it back to sports and Clayton McMillan.
Speaker 2: We've heard from the Chief CEO. Interesting thoughts there. Look,
Speaker 2: I find it hard to have any negative feeling towards
Speaker 2: Clayton McMillan about this. I'm sure some Chiefs fans will say, hey,
Speaker 2: you should have stuck it out, you had another season.
Speaker 2: But look, I think for his development and for the
Speaker 2: long term future of what he might want to achieve,
Speaker 2: it's a pretty good move.
Speaker 3: Isn't it. I like what someone was saying around the
Speaker 3: fact that, look, they understand that they don't keep players
Speaker 3: and coaches forever. This is not a destination. This is
Speaker 3: almost a transition as they come through learn about the
Speaker 3: fine art of coaching. And we know that mc millan,
Speaker 3: he's an aspirational kind of character and I expect he
Speaker 3: wants to go on to the top job. So he's
Speaker 3: done that for five years. He hasn't won a title,
Speaker 3: but he's won was the highest percentage of the last
Speaker 3: five years when it comes to a super coach of winning.
Speaker 3: So that's fantastic. Now he's going to the Northern hemisphere.
Speaker 3: And what do they say about all black coaching, Jason,
Speaker 3: what do they say you need.
Speaker 2: International experience or I had my mic offtal experience. I
Speaker 2: was listening to you and sort of gazing into the
Speaker 2: middle distance. You need international overseas experience Darci.
Speaker 3: Yeah, and that's what he's getting in spades. Of course
Speaker 3: he was over there Worth the All Black fifteen, hung
Speaker 3: out with Munster, would have had a few words and
Speaker 3: he's moved on from there. I don't think he goes
Speaker 3: with any grief from anybody from what he's done with
Speaker 3: the Chiefs.
Speaker 2: Do you know somebody said to me this morning when
Speaker 2: this news was out that if they don't win Super
Speaker 2: Rugby this year, the Chiefs, then Clayton McMillan could look
Speaker 2: back on his tenure in charge of the Chiefs with
Speaker 2: some sense of missed opportunity, failure.
Speaker 3: Weren't you No?
Speaker 2: I tried to find a different word the guy I
Speaker 2: was talking to He said failure, But I don't say.
Speaker 2: Look if you make if you make two, he's made
Speaker 2: three finals now, hasn't he. In like, I think they
Speaker 2: were the best team two years ago, lost to the
Speaker 2: Crusaders in the final that was in Hamilton, probably should
Speaker 2: have won. I'm not sure they were the best one
Speaker 2: of the best two teams last year, but that massive
Speaker 2: performance by Wallace a Titi in the semi to beat
Speaker 2: the Hurricanes, not by himself but with the Chiefs got
Speaker 2: them into the final where they were well beaten by
Speaker 2: the Blues. I think they're the best team in the
Speaker 2: first couple of rounds this season, could go to the final.
Speaker 2: But if they weren't to win it, duce, how would
Speaker 2: you judge Clayton McMillan.
Speaker 3: This is difficult because I remember being criticized for saying
Speaker 3: that Ian Foster failed as the All Black coach because
Speaker 3: he got to the final but he didn't win it.
Speaker 3: And if you're being super hardcore about this, there's winning
Speaker 3: and everything else is last. It doesn't matter. That's how
Speaker 3: people will get mark when they look back in time.
Speaker 3: What did you win? Oh you got to finals? Do
Speaker 3: you had a winning record? Fantastic? Did you win anything?
Speaker 5: No?
Speaker 3: Well next please? I mean is that harsh?
Speaker 2: No, it's not harsh, not when it comes to rugby
Speaker 2: in our country, and certainly not when it comes to
Speaker 2: the All Blacks. Maybe a little bit more lenience is
Speaker 2: required in super rugby. But I think you're right about
Speaker 2: the All Blacks. That's I mean, that's who we are.
Speaker 2: We are New Zealand and much as it sounds harsh
Speaker 2: and losing All Blacks team is not acceptable.
Speaker 3: Well, he's not going to the All blacks. Yet he's
Speaker 3: still got a while to go.
Speaker 2: So let's not put the cart before the horse, if
Speaker 2: you will, Jason, I will not put any carts before
Speaker 2: any horses. But I do want to ask you about
Speaker 2: something that goes a bit quicker than a horse and
Speaker 2: a cart, and that is Liam Lawson in a Formula
Speaker 2: one vehicle. Now put some context around this for us,
Speaker 2: if you would. I saw he was second fastest in
Speaker 2: the opening round of practice. Is that or the opening
Speaker 2: round of testing? Can you get context to lips and texting?
Speaker 3: So they both of the drivers, both some self and
Speaker 3: max first step and get a squirt around in Bahrain
Speaker 3: as they start, I suppose putting their cars through their paces.
Speaker 3: Not they go one hundred percent. They still need to
Speaker 3: keep some secrets, if you will, tucked up their sleeve
Speaker 3: before the first event in Melbourne in two weeks time.
Speaker 3: But it's the real first time you actually see all
Speaker 3: of the cars on the track having a look. So
Speaker 3: Liam ended up finishing eighth right across the day. But
Speaker 3: he's still got another day to see what he can
Speaker 3: pull out of that. So I don't think you can
Speaker 3: read too much into it. He had we off here,
Speaker 3: do we spin he didn't stick it into the hoardings,
Speaker 3: which is a huge positive. You know, the car came
Speaker 3: back with four wheels, which is good. But apparently that
Speaker 3: same corner Max fish Stamp and actually had a little
Speaker 3: off a few years ago as well. But I don't
Speaker 3: think he can read too much into this or any
Speaker 3: of the results yet. It's just you know, getting some
Speaker 3: time getting your feet under the desk. If I think
Speaker 3: you will, we'll know a whole lot more when it
Speaker 3: comes to qualifying in two weeks at Albert Park.
Speaker 2: All right, well, just before we go, I do want
Speaker 2: to mention Liverpool because they won this morning against Newcastle
Speaker 2: and have gone thirteen points clear at the top of
Speaker 2: the Premier League ladder. All be up with a game
Speaker 2: in hands, right, Tell me I was hoping you wouldn't
Speaker 2: put me in this position. It doesn't feel like they can,
Speaker 2: but d us they're my team, so anything is possible
Speaker 2: here mate. Look, I think to all observers, you know,
Speaker 2: biased and unbiased, it's theirs to lose now. They have
Speaker 2: opened up a huge gap between them and the chasing pack.
Speaker 2: If they can hold their nerve, it would be quite remarkable.
Speaker 2: And Arnaslot's first year as coach to win the thing. Look,
Speaker 2: I I'm feeling confident. Like I say, it's a big
Speaker 2: buffet to Paul back, but well we've been around sport
Speaker 2: for long enough to know, dus that funny things happen
Speaker 2: in these games that we track and we follow, So
Speaker 2: I'm not counting any chickens. Put it that way.
Speaker 3: Good idea. One thing on this though, what has he
Speaker 3: brought to Liverpool that's given them such outrageous success so far.
Speaker 3: That's a massive buffer, Jay, It really is.
Speaker 2: Yeah, structure. I think you know, Jurgen Klopp was a
Speaker 2: generational manager for Liverpool and really you know, put them
Speaker 2: on the right track, and he did win the Premier
Speaker 2: League in the COVID season, you know. But I think
Speaker 2: arna slot's coming and ends really has just without too
Speaker 2: much pomp and ceremony, without too much outward beating of
Speaker 2: any chests, he's just made the team better. You look
Speaker 2: at Marmott, Clara and Virgil van Dyke, two of the
Speaker 2: best players on the planet. That is the spine of
Speaker 2: that team. Van Dyke had center back Mahmod Zalah, the
Speaker 2: most potent attacker in Europe and probably the world, and
Speaker 2: then he's just built everybody else around them. So I think,
Speaker 2: in very broad terms, he has just made an already
Speaker 2: team you know, better and a lot better, good enough
Speaker 2: in fact, to see off all comers. So yeah, we're
Speaker 2: about to see what happens over the next couple of months.
Speaker 3: We've run out it, sorry, potent attacking force in Europe
Speaker 3: except for Chris Ford. Now you can finish it.
Speaker 2: Okay, Yes, Liz, I've ring fenced the Sheriff of Nottingham.
Speaker 2: Don't you worry about that. He is still He's still
Speaker 2: our guy. That is all we have time for in
Speaker 2: the affray the Chamber.
Speaker 1: Today us a Vinion It's Sports Fix with Jason Hyne and.
Speaker 2: And on that note, that ends the Sportsbooks podcast for today, Thursday,
Speaker 2: the twenty seventh of February. We really appreciate you downloading
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