Lefau issues response

Member of Parliament and Board member of the Samoa Rugby Union, Lefau Harry Schuster, has responded to a call for him to resign. The call was made by former Manu Samoa player, Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu. Lefau’s response came in an open letter addressed to Fuimaono-Sapolu. It is published here in verbatim:

Dear Mr Eliota Sapolu, I forward the following comments in response to the sensationalist and presumptuous views expressed in your Samoa Observer commentary entitled “Lefau Must Resign”.

In your comments you presume that my motive in shifting focus onto local players for developing a team for the next rugby World Cup challenge is because I want to “control them”, and that I’m “out of my depth with intelligent Samoan players playing overseas”.

I assure you that I do not fear “intelligent” players and have no interest or need to control any current or future Manu Samoa player.

In respect of my “views on rugby being obsolete” as the game is now professional and complicated, I hold the humble view that the only thing that has changed in recent times when the game went professional is that players are now paid to play and it has become a fulltime job.

In all other respects it remains the same simple game of rugby - a knock on is a knock on and you have a scrum; a forward pass is a forward pass; and two teams compete for eighty minutes and the one that has more points at the end of eighty minutes wins!

Of course there are technical experts as you refer to such as nutritionists and skills coaches - these specialists were engaged in the 2011 and the current campaign.

Board members and Administrators do not (and are not expected to) perform these tasks.

My view to focus on local players is not a recent or accidental thought.

I note that although you rubbish my view on a local player focus you then go on to say it is something you too have been saying for years! For your information this is the reason that I and the S.R.U Board sought assistance from World Rugby to build a High Performance Centre at Tuana’imato complete with a fully equipped gym, accommodation block, administration centre and two rugby fields.

The Samoan government assisted with this objective by granting the S.R.U a lease of 36 acres of land on which the High Performance Centre is built. The S.R.U High Performance Facility is the only one built with World Rugby funding for any World Rugby member.

This initiative provides and promotes a pathway to fulfil the aspiration of local players to play in the Manu Samoa 7s and 15s. It also complies and fulfils the World Rugby rules for inclusion in its international competitions that a national member union can only be eligible to be included in World Rugby international competitions if it has a domestic development program and competitions.

Without local players and local competitions we would not be allowed to play in the World Rugby 7s series and the 15s Rugby World Cup.

The High Performance programme has produced results in the short time it has been established.

One of its successes was producing and training the athletes that won the World Rugby 7s world series in the 2010/2011 series. In the current Rugby World Cup team 7 athletes were trained and graduated from the program e.g. Ofisa Treviranus, Alafoti Faosiliva, Jake Grey, Viliamu Afatia, Faatoina Autagavaia, Vavao Afemai, and Patrick Faapale.

Logovii Mulipola, one of our best props also graduated from the H.P.U program but was unfortunately injured when the Manu Samoa team was assembled for the World Cup.

You continue to assert that the S.R.U Board is has a “culture of corruption, favouritism and poor management”. In response to the issues highlighted following the 2011 World Cup campaign, a new C.E.O, Faleomavaega Vincent Fepuleai has since been appointed.

Subsequently he has responded (continuously) to sensationalist efforts such as yours, to reassure all S.R.U stakeholders that these matters are being systematically addressed.

Furthermore for your information, the coaches select the players they have confidence in. The Board members have no day to day contact with players such as that which they have with coaches and therefore have no influence on players and the way the team is operated.

In terms of the professional calibre of the S.R.U Board that you are questioning, you insult the people who come from various professions and callings who give time voluntarily to be on the Board.

They have in depth experience from their various professional disciplines and life experiences and consist of accountants, economists, lawyers, teachers, a church minister and senior civil servants. This is a totally different make up from the one you described as “old rugby players who are broke, depressed and dumb”. For your further information, of the current Board, 7 members have in depth experience in negotiating, finalising and monitoring multimillion dollar international contracts.

Contrary to your presumptuous allegations, the S.R.U do run the S.R.U on business lines and are very effective considering the limited resources available and accessible to it. The Board runs Samoan rugby taking into account both business interests and principles as well as the interests of rugby.

In terms of monetary resources, 70% is spent on the Manu Samoa 15s leaving only 30% to be allocated for Manu 7s, Manusina 15s and 7s,Samoa A, under 20 and development.

If the Board were to utilise a purely business focus then focussing on rugby 7s would be the best business approach to take. It takes less resources and has produced the highest yield in results in that we are consistently in the top 6 of the World and have won a World Series.

However, our young people are greatly blessed with rugby talent and the Union therefore continues to develop all facets of rugby irrespective of the limited resources.

As for your continuous baseless calls for me to stand down, it is not a matter for you to decide.

I continue to serve Samoan rugby in this capacity as long as I have something to offer Samoan rugby and as long as the stakeholders of the S.R.U accept that I am of use in the union.

Finally, whether or not I am in the S.R.U Board, I will continue to assist rugby at the local level.

Anyone can criticise - it’s a free world!

However the productive avenue is to go help a local rugby club by coaching, managing or raising funds to help the team.

By the way, you are welcome to express your views publicly in the formal and social media but please feel free to express your views directly to me, face to face if you wish to.

Yours sincerely,

Lefau Harry Schuster