Rugby: Plan to break deadlock over Kirwan's tenure

John Kirwan's selection strategy has shifted from playing for pride and competition points to one of development. Photo / NZME.

Blues CEO’s proposal will almost certainly be a compromise deal.

As Blues coach John Kirwan effectively runs up the white flag on the season, chief executive Michael Redman is working on a proposal which he hopes will break the board's deadlock on Kirwan's future.

The impasse between the board - split between those who want to retain Kirwan and those who don't - is such that the full board meeting scheduled for last week was postponed. The board's last meeting was on April 28.

"There didn't seem to be any point unless there was a path towards a resolution on the stalemate," chairman Tony Carter said yesterday.

Carter revealed Redman was working on breaking the deadlock, thought to be between the private investment side of the board - Murray Bolton, Laurie Margrain and John Morgan, who want to keep Kirwan - and Auckland Rugby representatives Brian Wilsher and Greg Edmonds, who want him gone.

Carter refused to elaborate on Redman's proposal, but it will almost certainly be a compromise that would see Kirwan stay for a fourth and final year as head coach while the board looks for an alternative. Given the dispute has dragged on so long, a quality alternative is unlikely to be found in time for next season.

Another key development is likely to be a change in how the dysfunctional board makes decisions. For now, they must get there by consensus, but in the future it is likely to be a case of majority rules, a move that would shift the balance of power to Bolton's bloc.

Carter said he believed the new investment model worked, but that "some of the detail led to the impasse". Asked if that meant a change in governance from consensus to majority-rules was necessary, he said: "Yes, I'd be happy to be quoted as agreeing to that."

Earlier yesterday, when asked how the board could continue to work together, Redman said: "That's the key issue - to arrive at an agreement between the shareholders that's palatable to everybody. I don't know what that looks like today. There's work to be done, possibly with New Zealand Rugby's assistance, to resolve that."

Kirwan, meanwhile, has selected a team to play the Crusaders at Eden Park tomorrow without former All Blacks Francis Saili and Frank Halai, who are both in their final weeks at the franchise.

The odds of Kirwan's injury-hit team beating a Crusaders outfit who still have slim hopes of making the playoffs will be long, but they would have been potentially shorter had Saili and Halai been involved instead of Hamish Northcott and Matt Vaega, in their first seasons at this level.

When that was pointed out to Kirwan, he said: "That's a fair observation, but it's about us more than anyone else.

"It's an opportunity for these young guys to step up and take on some of the best in the world who are desperate to win so, for us, that's a real character moment.

"For us, the season is gone. It's not for the Crusaders, but if we come out of Saturday night and say, 'Wow, those three or four boys are looking really good next year,' that's a positive for us."

That effectively means Kirwan's selection strategy has shifted from playing for pride and competition points to one of development.

"Obviously we're taking the field to win. It's hard on those guys who are leaving but we have to make some solid decisions for the future."