Dragons premiership winner and former Kangaroos centre Mark Gasnier has been brought into the NRL by executive chairman Peter V’landys, according to a report on Monday.
The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Gasnier, 45, is understood to have been hired in a senior role with a focus on driving participation in the game.
An NRL spokesman said the league did not comment on internal appointments.
Latest change at Moore Park
The move is the latest recruitment of the V’landys era, the Herald reported, following a run of executive departures from the governing body’s head office.
Among them was John Wilson, the NRL’s executive general manager of participation and social impact and a 17-year veteran of the league, who left to become chief executive of Australian OzTag.
Read more: Peter V’landys Leaves Racing NSW After Transforming the Sport
V’landys became the NRL’s full-time executive chairman after Andrew Abdo left in July to become chief executive of Tennis Australia, giving him charge of both the board and the day-to-day running of the sport.
Gasnier’s career off the field
Gasnier retired in 2011, a year after helping St George Illawarra win a drought-breaking premiership in 2010. He later developed Tri Tag Rugby, a non-contact version of rugby union, and licensed it to Rugby Australia.
Read more: V’landys Scraps Big-Name NRL Grand Final Act After Tones and I Standoff
He has also worked for OzTag, and more recently had a small role on Jason Ryles’ coaching staff at Parramatta. According to the Herald, he founded the sports registration app Let’s Play last year before selling it, and he keeps a small stake and a board seat.
After retiring he spent seven years as a commentator with Fox Sports and was briefly registered as an NRL player agent.
A famous rugby league name
The nephew of the late Immortal Reg Gasnier played 15 Tests for Australia and 12 State of Origin games for NSW, in a decade-long career that included two seasons in French rugby with Stade Francais.
The NRL and OzTag already have a partnership in place for programs such as development in schools.
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