Chris Connolly - a good man to fill the silence

[monoccular 17,571]

He should never have said what he said, joking or not. After all, it was the only piece of evidence the AFL had as it was the only evidence that showed there may have been a motive to "tank".

If that is the level of "evidence" that is required for a conviction, ie rumour and hearsay about a joke about something that was not illegal the previous years and was never declared to be illegal prior to Moron McLean's utterances and Caro's seeing the opportunity to pursue her petty personal vendetta, then Ned Kelly, Martin Bryant or Julian Knight would never have been found guilty of anything.

EDIT: Apologies for the long rambling sentence.

Edited February 24, 2013 by monoccular

[Vagg 2,439]

Nice article. Well done to Martin for writing it and getting it published.

Everything I have ever seen and heard about Chris Connolly convinces me that he has always been 100% passionate for the Mighty Dees.

Having missed out on getting the Coaching gig a few years back, a lesser mortal would have walked away. Not Chris. They offered him a different role, and he embraced it with both arms.

I, too, am grieved to see him have to take the fall for this farce.

Again, men of lesser stuff would pull up stumps and walk away.

Not Mr Connolly!

I salute you, Sir!

[Longsufferingnomore 1,637]

If you had ever spoken to CC you would know that he bleeds red and blue and now he has shown what a true MFC man that he truly is. Sure he can be a little loose lipped but all that know him know that is the way he is, never short of a word and always happy to speak to all and sundry. It is a pity that all this support did not come out when he was facing the interrogators. Why he was not accompanied to the inquisition by a lawyer is beyond me and in this respect he was let down by the Club for not providing legal representation at the time.

[She Devil 64 21]

MFC have been used by the AFL to take the fall for ALL clubs that have "tanked".

Unfortunately it is Dean Bailey & Chris Connolly that have taken the fall for not only the MFC but for every other club. The AFL will not go after anyone else because "there is no tanking in the AFL".

[nutbean 8,838]

I made a joke about giving Caroline Wilson the No 1 ticketholder at MFC

Can you please hand back in your membership for a year and pay $100K in fines - you may have meant this as a joke but many took that comment seriously and in turn burned their membership tickets. Whilst we cant prove that you actually wanted Caroline Wilson as no 1 ticket holder, you have brought the MFC into disrepute by making such a "horrible statement"

[The Chazz 4,077]

It's comforting to know that CC is such a nice, likeable man.

However, he was basically 3rd in charge of the organisation that is the Melbourne Football Club, and through his error, cost the organisation $500,000. I know I will get the "he's the fall guy" excuse, but the fact is, he has to take some responsibility for this.

I'll put it another way, if he hadn't been so loose-lipped, there is no way the investigation would've gone for as long as it did. The fact that he said what he said, and had people that were willing to testify, meant it gave the AFL a reason to drag it out as long as they did, becuase they knew it was the only "evidence" that they would ever unearth.

Sure, everyone makes mistakes, but this was a $500,000 mistake that left a black cloud hanging over the Club for 6 months longer that what it should've. But if it makes you feel better thinking that he did the team thing, then do what ever makes you happy. In my mind, CC fcuked up big time and cost my Club, and I will never forget that. I don't care if some don't like that!

[daisycutter 29,703]

It's comforting to know that CC is such a nice, likeable man.

However, he was basically 3rd in charge of the organisation that is the Melbourne Football Club, and through his error, cost the organisation $500,000. I know I will get the "he's the fall guy" excuse, but the fact is, he has to take some responsibility for this.

I'll put it another way, if he hadn't been so loose-lipped, there is no way the investigation would've gone for as long as it did. The fact that he said what he said, and had people that were willing to testify, meant it gave the AFL a reason to drag it out as long as they did, becuase they knew it was the only "evidence" that they would ever unearth.

Sure, everyone makes mistakes, but this was a $500,000 mistake that left a black cloud hanging over the Club for 6 months longer that what it should've. But if it makes you feel better thinking that he did the team thing, then do what ever makes you happy. In my mind, CC fcuked up big time and cost my Club, and I will never forget that. I don't care if some don't like that!

well billy, on your logic surely it would be $250k. The other $250k for bailey. Both admitted fault. in fact if bailey hadn't "taken CCs advice" there would be no fine. So maybe bailey is responsible for all the $500k

all this of course presupposes the afl's $500k was "just"

given we get topped up by the afl dividend based on our financial position you could argue the afl pays it which in turn means all the clubs contribute

gets complicated doesn't it when you are looking for someone to hit on?

[Jens Lehmann 75]

Don't agree.

CC's comment just became the most convenient way of penalising the club without finding them guilty.

[rpfc 28,733]

At a base level his words were a pressure valve.

So unless you think the AFL was ever going to meet us with 'nothing to answer' for their troubles, CC gave them (and us) a convenient patsy.

He could have fought this nonsense but he didn't and for taking this bullet we thank him.

With your objections noted, Billy.

[The Chazz 4,077]

well billy, on your logic surely it would be $250k. The other $250k for bailey. Both admitted fault. in fact if bailey hadn't "taken CCs advice" there would be no fine. So maybe bailey is responsible for all the $500k

all this of course presupposes the afl's $500k was "just"

given we get topped up by the afl dividend based on our financial position you could argue the afl pays it which in turn means all the clubs contribute

gets complicated doesn't it when you are looking for someone to hit on?

If you want to get logical DC, it would be argued that DB got a 1/4 of the penalty CC recevied, so you could make that $375k that he is responsible for.

And I'm not sure where you get this theory that if DB hadn't taken CC's advice, there would be no fine. Who said? I'm quietly confident that even if CC were to be the only one charged, we would receive a fine to some degree, in the '000s thousands I'm tipping.

Your last paragraph makes you sound like you work for the Commonwealth Bank. "Sorry sir, I'm increasing your interest rates, but don't worry, due to the increase in our profits, we will be giving sharehlders a record dividend".

At a base level his words were a pressure valve.

So unless you think the AFL was ever going to meet us with 'nothing to answer' for their troubles, CC gave them (and us) a convenient patsy.

He could have fought this nonsense but he didn't and for taking this bullet we thank him.

With your objections noted, Billy.

A bullet that he actually loaded in the chamber and pulled the trigger in the first place.

[The Chazz 4,077]

Don't agree.

CC's comment just became the most convenient way of penalising the club without finding them guilty.

Isn't that what I'm saying?

...

I'll put it another way, if he hadn't been so loose-lipped, there is no way the investigation would've gone for as long as it did. The fact that he said what he said, and had people that were willing to testify, meant it gave the AFL a reason to drag it out as long as they did, becuase they knew it was the only "evidence" that they would ever unearth...

In other words, if CC didn't make the comment, the AFL had nothing and we would've been cleared?

[Jens Lehmann 75]

No, if CC didn't make the comment, they'd have focused on something else, or the fine and penalties coupled with "not guilty" would've just seemed even more implausible.

[daisycutter 29,703]

If you want to get logical DC, it would be argued that DB got a 1/4 of the penalty CC recevied, so you could make that $375k that he is responsible for.

And I'm not sure where you get this theory that if DB hadn't taken CC's advice, there would be no fine. Who said? I'm quietly confident that even if CC were to be the only one charged, we would receive a fine to some degree, in the '000s thousands I'm tipping.

Your last paragraph makes you sound like you work for the Commonwealth Bank. "Sorry sir, I'm increasing your interest rates, but don't worry, due to the increase in our profits, we will be giving sharehlders a record dividend".

my only point billy is that it is not as black and white as you were trying to make out

there are lots of permutations and theories you could apply

but to you it was just CC = $500k which i think is overstating your hand

he took a fall for the club (and incidentally the afl)

[timD 994]

We're not in positions of power within the football club. What we say means nothing, I don't understand where you are going with this.

Where i am going with this is that saying something has to be extraordinary to actually be a problem, and, what Chris may or may not have said, wasn't.

you say plenty of stuff like that - not extraordinary, hindsight-driven stuff. No-one's banned you for a year.

[Straight Sets Simon 23,113]

Where i am going with this is that saying something has to be extraordinary to actually be a problem, and, what Chris may or may not have said, wasn't.

you say plenty of stuff like that - not extraordinary, hindsight-driven stuff. No-one's banned you for a year.

You can't compare what a football fan writes on a forum with what a Football Operations Manager says to coaches and officials in a team meeting.

[Outside fifty 967]

You can't compare what a football fan writes on a forum with what a Football Operations Manager says to coaches and officials in a team meeting.

Actually you can. This is a public record. You are more accountable under the law than a private meeting conducted in a private venue of which the majority who attended recalled that CC told a JOKE. Nothing recorded on a public record, just recollections.

[Straight Sets Simon 23,113]

Actually you can. This is a public record. You are more accountable under the law than a private meeting conducted in a private venue of which the majority who attended recalled that CC told a JOKE. Nothing recorded on a public record, just recollections.

I don't work for the football club, what I say has no impact on "tanking".

[hoopla 418]

You always have to take the bad with the good

CC's 'speak first - think second' persona did make him enemies - some of whom got into Wilson's ear. Whether or not the whole investigation would have petered out if he hadn't made those colorful statements is problematical. Yes - he should have been more careful - but that is the price you pay for deciding you want a big personality as your Operations Manager.

I don't blame him or indeed any other officials for our list management strategies in 2009. The fact is that the AFL encouraged teams to bottom out - and a high percentage of supporters would have been furious if we hadn't got that priority pick.Connolly and Bailey have been damned because they did - but they would have been damned if they didn't as well. The AFL's final ruling may have been farcical - but the real farce was in ignoring LIbba and then jumping all over McLean !

Having decided to make Melbourne a scapegoat , it was inevitable that the AFL would make an individual within Melbourne the scapegoat's scapegoat - and Connolly was the always obvious candidate.

Ironically he'll pick up sympathy through all this ............ and may eventually emerge a more respected figure than he was previously. How ironic would that be?

[dee-luded 2,959]

Can you please hand back in your membership for a year and pay $100K in fines - you may have meant this as a joke but many took that comment seriously and in turn burned their membership tickets. Whilst we cant prove that you actually wanted Caroline Wilson as no 1 ticket holder, you have brought the MFC into disrepute by making such a "horrible statement"

Just like eating hippo-krittes for brekky.

Tasty at the time, but sticks in the gut for a long way along the track.

[The Chazz 4,077]

my only point billy is that it is not as black and white as you were trying to make out

there are lots of permutations and theories you could apply

but to you it was just CC = $500k which i think is overstating your hand

he took a fall for the club (and incidentally the afl)

DC, I am fully aware that there are grey areas in this case, and you would find that in most of my posts since this saga started, I have often used inverted commas around words that definitely have grey areas (ie "evidence"). But I refuse to let CC off scot-free like most on here appear to have done, and moreso, I refuse to treat him like a hero for "taking the fall for the club".

Reality is, he made a mistake. He made comments, regardless of the intent, that he shouldn't have. A man in his position, which requires a certain level of professionalism, made comments about our intentions not to win games of football. Now, the frequent argument I get when I write these sort of words was that "it was a joke". Was it? If you really think about it, was it really? Sure, the threat of people getting sacked may have been, but the reality is, there is no way known that CC was joking when he said we can't win more than "x" amount of games. Everyone knew what was at stake, so it isn't possible that the root of his comments were said in jest, it would've been said with great honesty, just as nearly every Melbourne supporter felt the same way. Ask the Demon "fans" at that Richmond game why they sang the RFC theme song after the game, most would say that it was sang with tounge-in-cheek, but you know damn well that deep down, they knew that there was a serious element to what was happening (ie the reward for our losses).

People asked a number of times on here why ex-employees felt the need to knife the club, and implying that they should've kept their mouth shut. I asked the same question, but looking for reasons that they felt the need to open their mouth. Sure, if you get sacked (or moved on) from your place of employment there is always going to be bitterness toward your ex-employer, but why did so many feel that way? What did they personally have to gain out of doing this? Most of them are currently employed by other clubs/organisations, so it's not like they have lost considerable income. I have no doubt the reason why they felt the need to speak up was because of how disgusting their treatment was by certain sections of the MFC. If it was only one person speaking up, you'd brush it under the carpet, but multiple? C'mon.

Yes, the AFL were always going to give someone a whack for their own incompetence, and in this case, CC, DB and the MFC were the ones that got hit. But I will never forgive CC for his own incompetence that played a part in this investigation.

[Dockett 32 1,239]

well billy, on your logic surely it would be $250k. The other $250k for bailey. Both admitted fault. in fact if bailey hadn't "taken CCs advice" there would be no fine. So maybe bailey is responsible for all the $500k

all this of course presupposes the afl's $500k was "just"

given we get topped up by the afl dividend based on our financial position you could argue the afl pays it which in turn means all the clubs contribute

gets complicated doesn't it when you are looking for someone to hit on?

The $500k was a total w..k! But the door was left adjar for a soft , easy , typical AFL quick fix. We just have to be smarter with this sort of stuff. I can't imagine Neeld finding himself in this predicament.

[The Chazz 4,077]

No, if CC didn't make the comment, they'd have focused on something else, or the fine and penalties coupled with "not guilty" would've just seemed even more implausible.

What else would they have focused on? They had nothing else. The AFL knew it, the MFC knew it.

This case should've been closed in a month. Instead, it turned in to a typical MFC 4 to 6 week injury, just never got better.

[rpfc 28,733]

DC, I am fully aware that there are grey areas in this case, and you would find that in most of my posts since this saga started, I have often used inverted commas around words that definitely have grey areas (ie "evidence"). But I refuse to let CC off scot-free like most on here appear to have done, and moreso, I refuse to treat him like a hero for "taking the fall for the club".

Reality is, he made a mistake. He made comments, regardless of the intent, that he shouldn't have. A man in his position, which requires a certain level of professionalism, made comments about our intentions not to win games of football. Now, the frequent argument I get when I write these sort of words was that "it was a joke". Was it? If you really think about it, was it really? Sure, the threat of people getting sacked may have been, but the reality is, there is no way known that CC was joking when he said we can't win more than "x" amount of games. Everyone knew what was at stake, so it isn't possible that the root of his comments were said in jest, it would've been said with great honesty, just as nearly every Melbourne supporter felt the same way. Ask the Demon "fans" at that Richmond game why they sang the RFC theme song after the game, most would say that it was sang with tounge-in-cheek, but you know damn well that deep down, they knew that there was a serious element to what was happening (ie the reward for our losses).

People asked a number of times on here why ex-employees felt the need to knife the club, and implying that they should've kept their mouth shut. I asked the same question, but looking for reasons that they felt the need to open their mouth. Sure, if you get sacked (or moved on) from your place of employment there is always going to be bitterness toward your ex-employer, but why did so many feel that way? What did they personally have to gain out of doing this? Most of them are currently employed by other clubs/organisations, so it's not like they have lost considerable income. I have no doubt the reason why they felt the need to speak up was because of how disgusting their treatment was by certain sections of the MFC. If it was only one person speaking up, you'd brush it under the carpet, but multiple? C'mon.

Yes, the AFL were always going to give someone a whack for their own incompetence, and in this case, CC, DB and the MFC were the ones that got hit. But I will never forgive CC for his own incompetence that played a part in this investigation.

Noted.

Rejected by many.

Move on.

[The Chazz 4,077]

Noted.

Rejected by many.

Move on.

Well thought out reply RP.

Given the fact that this thread was created 2 days ago, perhaps those that still feel sorry for Cuddles should be the ones that need to "move on".

[rpfc 28,733]

Well thought out reply RP.

Given the fact that this thread was created 2 days ago, perhaps those that still feel sorry for Cuddles should be the ones that need to "move on".

I don't know what to say, Billy - we know how you feel, we don't agree, we are not going to sit here and dwell on it forever.

We move on, with your objections noted.