A disturbing undercurrent in the Social Media reaction to Dai leaving.

[Vespula Vulgaris]

http://onceawasp.com/the-social-media-reaction-to-dai-young-leaving/

I suspect I'm going to get told off for this one...

[NellyWellyWaspy]

+1

[NorthYorksWasp]

+1. Spot on VV, thanks for both your items (Dai and Derek). Put my thoughts into words much better than I could have done. So sorry to see Dai leave, he’s been a star for the club, but now apprehensive and excited in equal measure to see where we go from here.

[Neils]

Yep - you put it spectacularly well (far better than I could have by a long chalk). You have shared your story in the past but sometimes something need reinforcing.

I would hope that those referring to "stuffed shirts" etc are using a very broad brush for the higher reaches of our game (RFU etc).

[Mikeuk56]

+1 Totally Agree

[wasps]

I totally agree with the sentiment of your post.

I love Dai (even without knowing him), and I wanted him to continue to be the leader of the club going forwards, but in the same way that I didn't want a lot of our past (and current) players to leave the club, virtually all do eventually.

I feel genuine upset that Dai has gone. Us fans talk about wanting someone with the Wasps DNA to come in, but I feel that we've just lost that DNA.
As we all know, we've had some great highs and some awful lows over the past 10 years and I am completely convinced that Dai would have been capable of bringing those highs back to the Ricoh.


While Dai has overseen the playing side (and presumably more than that) of the club over the last 10 years, I'm well aware that it's Derek who has been making a lot of the magic possible.
I'm forever grateful to Dai for everything he did in the early days as well as since the move to Coventry, however, i'm similarly grateful to Derek for making it all happen.

Derek is really the reason we still have a top level rugby club, and during this period of change, I know that Wasps will continue to be the great club that I love because I know that the man at the top wants the same

[Tervueren]

Well said VV and thanks to Derek. It is all about Dai at the moment whilst the dust settles, but Derek should not be forgotten in all of it. hope the telling off is not too bad.

[mike909]

http://onceawasp.com/the-social-media-reaction-to-dai-young-leaving/

I suspect I'm going to get told off for this one...

Not by me

I agree with what you've written. It's the same "everything is fantastic/rotten" with England and all down to Eddie. Jones has obviously done a reasonable job - but those saying he found all these players like Itoje and forged a new England fail to bother noticing that virtually all those players were either Lancaster's and/or were part of the integrated England age group squads going back over 10 years.

And its the same with Wasps. In the end, its the big money that's allowed our club to survive and as a "bean counter" myself, I find the accusation that all we can see are the numbers is evidence of someone who really doesn't know what an auditor does....

I too am looking forwards to the future

[WickedWasp]

I agree about Derek the guy is amazing. I do think some of the comments are more aimed at some new members of the board. Who understandably have been brought in to tighten the purse strings and have maybe gone about it in a way that some are not happy with. But you cant always please everyone.
The point being I am not certain all the upset is aimed at Derek in particular. It's quite clear Dai and SV didnt see eye to eye on the direction of the club.

[matelot22]

Another excellent piece VV, well thought out and well written.

I'd like to think that all of our fans don't lose sight of what Derek has done for the club. When emotions run high, which they undoubtedly are at the moment, it's human nature to try and find a target for the sadness and anger that initially feel. Hopefully, when the new backroom team is assembled everyone will regain the excitement and enthusiasm we have for supporting the team and realise that there aren't really any bad guys in this scenario, just people with a common aim, but a different approach of how we achieve it.

[Nrgee]

As I posted on the Other site well said VV great articles.

[Raggs]

Another +1 here.

Dai kept the faith with the club when there was very little to have faith in. Derek saved it.

I've not had the pleasure of meeting either of them, but have met Nick Eastwood and his wife, in the hotel lobby the morning after a game. It was clear that both of them had a genuine interest in rugby, beyond that of merely business, and very nice to talk to them.

[baldpaul101]

I don't think anyone is to "blame" for this. However nice a bloke Dai Young is, and I don't dispute he's done fantastic things for Wasps, I don't think anyone can argue that its time for change. Wasps cannot carry on with the current game plan & run of results its caused. We cannot carry on doing the same things week in week out & expecting different results. The existing coaching set up have had the opportunity to turn it around & for what ever reason haven't been able to.
Everyone involved with the board & the club management, coaches & players have to move the club forward and at some point Dai would have to move on, just like anyone else.

[Old Geezer]

VV, there is only one remark I would chalenge in your excellent piece and that is that you are sorry it did not work out with Dai.  IMHO it did work out very well with Dai.  What we achieved under his trewardship was enormous. We could not have hoped for a nicer, more committed DoR for all these years.  Time does not stand still and i went from being a hugely successful lawyer to a man of the past.  It happens with time.  It is art of evolution, renewal and growth.

So, I take my hat off to both of them and the others in the background, and to you for your excellent article.