Welcome to the March CEO Update with Easter almost upon us and as the NRL team heads into a bye weekend following the opening five rounds of the competition.
The season to this point has been highlighted by the big win over the Dragons in the local derby, however coupled with three narrow losses and I know our coaching staff and playing group continue to work hard and are determined to deliver a strong next up performance when we host the Roosters on Friday week.
In relation to that game, after a number of sell outs last year and on the back of a full house in round one earlier this season, I encourage those who are not yet members to either sign up to guarantee admission or to purchase tickets early to avoid missing out on what should be another exciting game.
Thanks to the more than 14,000 Members to have already committed their support in 2023.
Away from the NRL and Club management and our Board of Directors led by Steve Mace were pleased with the member turnout at the AGM and the response to the Annual Report.
In addition to delivering a positive financial report, at the AGM we shared the news that we have had further unavoidable and unfortunate delays on the construction of the new Leagues Club project. The team is working hard to get an exact completion date, with early 2024 looking the most likely scenario. Work continues in trying to understand the best way to claw back time and to achieve an earlier completion and club re-opening.
We will keep you informed via this monthly CEO update and through other club communication channels when new information becomes available.
In the interim, please continue to patronise Sharks at Kareela which has certainly proven to be an outstanding second home for our members and their guests.
Also revealed and announced at the AGM was the Club’s purchase of 94 Cronulla Street, the old Westpac Building, located at the southern end of Cronulla Mall.
The acquisition of this valuable piece of real estate adds to the Club’s asset portfolio, with plans to accommodate administration staff and to open a Sharks merchandise store, giving us a presence in one of the Shire’s most prominent retail, entertainment and restaurant precincts.
The purchase was detailed on our Sharks website. CLICK HERE to read more.
Announced in the previous monthly update were plans to honour former player Paul Green at the game against North Queensland with the decision made to strike a Medal in his honour. Discussions have continued, the Paul Green Medal has been struck and will be presented to the best player in the match against Cowboys in round 9. Many of Paul’s family, friends and former teammates will be in attendance that evening and we look forward to honouring his legacy with the first Paul Green Medal match.
While on the topic of our former players, congratulations to my commercial and events team, led by Kylie Lucas, on delivering a very well received Great White Sharks ‘Old Boys’ Day at the game against the Warriors last weekend. We had players from our very first team in 1967, mixing with members of our 2016 Grand Final winning squad, with the rain last Sunday failing to put a dampener on their annual reunion and celebrations.
Following will be further reports from the various departments, reporting on all areas and aspects of the business from the past month.
So please take the time to read this month’s CEO Update, and again I encourage you to stay tuned to our media channels for Sharks news and member updates.
Thanks for your continued commitment and support and we hope to see you at PointsBet Stadium on Friday, April 14 for the Roosters clash and for all the big games throughout the season.
Woolooware Bay Development
Our property development partner NOVM are pleased to share that Stage 4 of Woolooware Bay is progressing steadily, although the challenges of the past two years - from labour shortages and supply chain issues to extreme weather - have meant they’ve experienced unavoidable delays.
In the residential buildings, the external façade works are progressing at pace and a much better idea of what the buildings will look like from the outside is becoming apparent, with the Quest Apartments building now showing its final form as the scaffolding is removed.
Concrete is continuing to be poured on all of the residential buildings with significant pours occurring almost every day as Building E is scheduled to complete their structure in April and Buildings A, B, C & D to follow soon after.
And see following the most recent drone photos of the Woolooware Bay Town Centre precinct.
Dino Mezzatesta
CEO
For those who have yet to do so, now is a great time to join Sharks at Kareela, with plenty of exclusive food and drink discounts available to Members throughout April and into May.
Visit Sharks at Kareela and reception staff can assist in joining you up or go to the Sharks at Kareela website and the ‘Membership’ link. If joining for 5 years, you’ll automatically go into the draw to win a share of over $2,000 in EFTPOS Cards.
In further Member benefits, back by popular demand are the Mega Meat and Seafood Raffles, with over $4,000 in meat and seafood up for grabs for 60 lucky winners across two big nights. So be sure to be in the Club on April 19, then again on May 24 to win.
To honour the past and present servicemen and women who bravely served and sacrificed to protect our freedoms, Sharks at Kareela welcome Members and guest to Sharks at Kareela to view the ANZAC Day March live on the big screen from 9am. Two-Up will then commence from midday and run through until 4pm in the Main Bar. Come and enjoy a cold beverage and a Gourmet Brekkie Roll to commemorate this special day.
Sharks at Kareela has also proven to be the best place, outside of PointsBet Stadium, to catch all the NRL action Live and Loud. The $6 VB Schooners and Footy Footlong Hot Dogs are popular on game days, made even better with a big crowd of enthusiastic Sharks fans cheering on the Black, White & Blue! If not going to the game, come down to the Club and enjoy the atmosphere.
And we encourage Members to start thinking about where to take mum on Mother’s Day in May. One of the busiest days of the year at Sharks at Kareela, we encourage early bookings for lunch and dinner to avoid missing out.
For golfers, greens renovations are complete, and the warm autumn weather has helped the ground staff to present the course in outstanding condition. Come down for a game, then visit us upstairs in the Club sometime soon.
Those members and fans attending the two PointsBet Stadium games so far this year will have noticed a couple of new initiatives.
Situated in front of the Peter Burns Stand on the eastern side of the stadium is our Aramex sponsored ‘Lifeguard tower’, from where the ‘Shark Alarm’ is sounded to welcome the NRL boys onto the field. While also in 2023 the Madimack ‘Hot Seat’ has been awarded to a member at each home game, with great prizes on offer.
We thank two of our major partners in Aramex and Madimack for their continued support.
Another of our valued corporate partners in Pilot also had some fun with a few of our players recently shooting a hair loss advertisement set to run during the current NRL season. Keep an eye out for the commercials which are coming soon and thanks to Wade Graham, Toby Rudolf, Blayke Brailey and our former skipper Paul Gallen for showcasing your acting talents!
While with much interest surrounding the Women’s game, stay tuned for some partnership announcements over the coming weeks as we continue to prepare for our first season in the NRL competition. A number of apparel sponsor properties have been snapped up, however front of shorts and lower back of jersey are still available. Those interested in making enquiries can contact our commercial department to find out more.
The Sharks Have Heart strategy is now fully operational with the recent launch of our anti-racism program One Heart during Multi-Cultural Round. A Kurnell Primary School visit by Sharks Have Heart staff and NRL players Nicho Hynes, Will Kennedy and Ronaldo Mulitalo was extremely well received by the students, with news channels on hand to report on the success of the Sharks latest schools anti-racism initiative. Since the Kurnell visit and One Heart launch, the program has been in high demand from schools right across the Shire.
CLICK HERE to see our website article for more on the One Heart launch.
Also during March, Toby Rudolf smashed his target of $10,000, successfully reaching $42,000 raised from shaving his head and beard as part of World’s Greatest Shave. As promised by Toby, the eyebrows will also come off during the upcoming bye round. Three-year-old Elsie stole the show by being by Toby’s side throughout the shave, with funds raised going to the Leukemia Foundation for people living with blood cancer. Thanks to all, including the many generous Sharks Members and fans for their support of Toby.
In round one a new initiative saw Aedan Bonner from Cronulla Sharks Water Polo acknowledged as the community Volunteer of the Round at our first home game. Aedan had the honour of sounding the Shark Alarm from the Aramex Lifeguard tower prior to the kick-off against the Rabbitohs, with part of our Sharks Have Heart strategy to recognise and reward volunteers who are contributing to a thriving sports sector and connected community.
CLICK HERE to read more about Aedan and the Lifeguard tower and look out for the Volunteer of the Round and Shark Alarm on game days at PointsBet Stadium in 2023.
Finally, the Junior Jaws school holiday programs are coming up again on April 19. Rugby league skills will be the focus with an added educational session to be delivered about leadership on and off the field. The Mini Mermaids are also back, with the session conducted by our brilliant Mindspec Parts Mermaids.
Spots are filling fast, CLICK HERE to register.
Again Sharks games at PointsBet Stadium have proved to be one of the hottest tickets in town, with a sell out for our game in round one, following on from the six occasions the full house sign went up in 2022.
We also had good attendance for our round five match against the Warriors despite the inclement weather and we thank all those members and fans who braved the rain.
Now at 14,000 members in 2023, soon it will be your last chance to join as a GA member for this season, or maybe join the family from as little as $555.
Once joining the ‘Sharks family’ special player access and member-only events will continue to be conducted throughout the season, with our recent members open training session prior to our local derby game against the Dragons, very well attended.
From next week we are set to announce dates and venues for regional and interstate meet and greets, while our game in Coffs Harbour is also selling fast. Be sure to book tickets and organise travel at your earliest convenience to avoid disappointment.
And we also encourage all members to keep details up to date. Regular communications are sent via email, including important messaging, so please let our membership department know if you are not receiving or have changed your email address.
Thanks again to all those who have joined us in the Black, White & Blue for 2023.
As announced by Dino at the AGM and also in his welcome in this CEO Update, was the exciting news relating to a new Sharks shop in the heart of Cronulla.
After the club purchased 94 Cronulla Street, the old Westpac Bank Building, plans were immediately put in place to include a new Sharks Store which will make shopping for the latest Sharks gear a lot more accessible and convenient. Once plans are finalised and a construction schedule is in place, we will communicate a potential opening date to members and fans.
Until the new merch outlet opens its doors later this year, we can continue to meet all Sharks merchandise needs at the store at Sharks at Kareela, on game days at PointsBet Stadium or via our online shop. The Sharks merchandise van will also be on site for our regional game in Coffs Harbour and for our round eight match at Accor Stadium when we play the Bulldogs.
Also coming soon are two of our 2023 themed jerseys, the Anzac round jersey which the players will wear when we tackle the Bulldogs away from home in round eight and our Indigenous Jersey, scheduled for release closer to round 12 when the NRL squad will play the Knights in the special design.
This year the indigenous range also includes a Sharks polo and training hoodie.
More on alternative Sharks jerseys, and the third drop of the extremely popular Heritage has already sold out. Additional stock will be available in May and we are working with the NRL around the possibility of wearing the jersey in our return local derby clash with the Dragons.
Club exclusive winter items, including the grey marle hoodie and knitted long sleeve jersey are soon to arrive and will be in stock late April, while now available is the new Nicho Hynes tee shirt.
For the NRL team the opening five rounds have seen some good patches of play, a big win in the local derby against the Dragons and three disappointing losses in games where we had every opportunity to win but ultimately fell short.
Craig, his coaching team and the playing group will continue to work hard ahead of our next game against the Roosters on the Friday night following our bye, then for what comes throughout the season after that.
On the player front, it was pleasing to welcome Nicho Hynes back into the team after our Dally M Medallist missed the opening three rounds, while reserving special praise for Braydon Trindall who did an outstanding job in his absence. We re-signed Braydon with a view to having depth in our halves and he has certainly shown how capable he is with his performances this year.
On further recruitment and retention news, last week Sione Katoa re-signed until the end of the 2026 season and we are very close to being able to announce the retention of a couple more from our current team.
When added to the recent re-signings of Jesse Ramien, Ronaldo Mulitalo, Briton Nikora and young outside back Sam Stonestreet and we are pleased with the quality of the players to have committed their immediate futures to our Club. And since the previous CEO Update, one new player has joined us as we welcome promising young front rower Tuku Hau Tapuha to the Sharks.
And in recent player milestones, in round one Oregon Kaufusi became Sharks #556 in making his NRL debut for our Club, while also in the opening rounds of the season Jesse Ramien played his 100th NRL game and Teig Wilton his 50th. Congratulations to those boys and may there be many more games to come.
Still on signing news and following the finalisation of the NRLW contract process, we will soon be making a number of exciting player announcements as we build a squad for our first season in the NRLW competition. The draw is soon to be released and much anticipation surrounds the proposed kick off in late July.
In other football matters, our Matthews Cup under-17 Sharks scored a determined 12-8 win over the Illawarra Steelers in the last round match to qualify for the top six and upcoming competition Finals. After Brad Kelly helped guide the team into the Grand Final in 2022, we have high hopes for a similar finish to the season for our Matts Cup boys this time around.
Unfortunately, our SG Ball and Tarsha Gale Cup teams failed to qualify and have concluded their 2023 seasons, however special mention must be made of our Tarsha girls who scored an outstanding last round win over the fourth-placed Illawarra team despite already being out of Finals contention.
The Harvey Norman Women’s Premiership Sharks in going down to the Steelers on Monday night are now out of the running for the four-team Finals series despite two rounds remaining, with the attention of Casey Bromilow and our Women’s program staff to soon turn to preparing for the upcoming NRLW season.
With their season’s coming to an end, thanks to the staff and players from all our Junior rep, pathways and women’s teams, including the Lisa Fiaola Cup squad in what was the first experience for many in that team playing elite level rugby league, for your commitment and effort throughout the year. We wish you all the best with your footballing endeavours for the rest of 2023, whether that be with us or in junior league competitions.
In the early stages of their season, the Sharks Jersey Flegg team have enjoyed an excellent start with four wins from as many matches, while our partner club the Newtown Jets have somewhat mirrored the NRL team with an up and down beginning to their year, having won three and lost two of their first five games.
