Meet Rhys Wolloghan From I.T
For a large organisation like Canterbury the Information Technology (IT) department plays an important role in ensuring a smooth user experience for all Members, guests and staff. In this digitally-connected era, we are constantly surrounded by electronic appliances, the internet, computers and mobile phones – and if it has a circuit board inside it, then it would have most likely passed through Rhys’ hands in the past 12 years of his career at Canterbury.
“I started working in the gaming department, where my first shift was picking up glasses on the gaming floor,” said Rhys.
“I switched to IT three months later after being offered an interview due to my TAFE qualification and I had some IT experience.”
Rhys and the IT team are the tech geniuses to call when something IT-related decides to stop working or shows the Windows’ blue screen of death. He is a whiz on all the computers, laptops, and tablets that staff use, and no task is ever too small.
He also services a multitude of other things including Canterbury’s Wi-Fi access, point of sale tills in the restaurants, telephones connecting the different back offices, and the televisions peppered around the Club just to name a few.
Hardware is only half of the puzzle; Rhys is also across the variety of software programs that keep the Club running smoothly.
“On average, Canterbury and the Bulldogs’ websites will receive around 3,000 spam emails per day. We use a combination of systems to try and combat spam including spam blockers, anti-virus protection, custom firewall internet protocol policies, and custom mail filtering policies,” said Rhys.
When Rhys isn’t in the office, you can find him keeping active playing footy for the Belrose Eagles in the Sydney Shield.
“I’ve played for Manly Sea Eagles in the first year of the Toyota Cup when it was the new Under 20s comp back in 2008. One of my teammates was Kieran Foran who currently plays first grade for the Bulldogs!” said Rhys.
“I support Melbourne Storm, played for Manly and work at the Bulldogs. Even though I love watching Melbourne win, I still have a soft spot for the Bulldogs whenever they win because there’s always a happier vibe around the Club.”
