Brian Canavan has seen rugby league up close and personal from both sides of the fence over the past 30 years.
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From highly-placed roles at a powerful club like the Sydney Roosters to consulting to the ARL and NRL over the future of the game to over-seeing a footy staff of more than 200 at the NRL as second-in-charge to CEO Todd Greenberg.
So the new Knights director of football is well-placed to make a qualified judgement on where Newcastle is placed and where it is headed.
“The potential is endless,” Canavan tells the Newcastle Herald on the eve of taking up a five year appointment as the new boss of the club’s football department.
“With Wests on board and with the changes that have already been implemented, there is a really good, strong base here now from which to work from. There is nothing major that needs addressing. It’s just fine-tuning.”
Canavan says his confidence in the club’s future is borne out by his decision to walk away from his job as NRL head of football and relocate to Newcastle.
“I’m genuinely excited by it all,”he said.
“What I see here at the Knights is the backing of this incredible region and it’s rugby league heartland.
“So we need to create something that makes our fans even prouder of the club than they already are.
“Lets make this club bigger, brighter and shinier.
“It’s not about being arrogant but it’s about having that swagger. It’s about having that self-confidence and sense of pride in yourself and your organisation that is the hallmark of the successful clubs.
“As a club, we need to develop that and there is no reason why we can’t.”
Canavan’s experience is extensive.
He spent 18 years at the Roosters, starting out as a strength and conditioning coach before becoming an assistant coach to Mark Murray and Phil Gould in the early 90’s.
He transitioned from that role into the football manager’s job before becoming CEO for almost a decade in two separate stints at the club, separated by a gig as a consultant to the ARL and NRL.
He had a short stint at the Gold Coast Titans a few years back before he took a phone call from Greenberg asking him to move back to Sydney to re-shape and invigorate the NRL’s footy department.
But club land is his passion and the challenge of helping turn the Knights into an NRL powerhouse is now the mission.
“Up until less than a month ago, I had no real, direct connection with the Newcastle Knights but I can actually see the progress the club has made and I’ve got nothing but admiration for those people that have endured a very tough couple of years here,” he said.
“I believe the tough years are behind the club now and it’s a matter of planning for a very bright future.”
