Half Time address from Peter Jackson Yesterday

[Sir Why You Little 34,771]

The issue is as much about what can an alternative board offer - so far, no one has stood up other than David Schwarz and said they want to be involved.

Not to mention there's been any mention of WHAT they would do...and god knows we've been promised a few things in the last couple of years...

I hate to say it because I'm not a fan, but if ever Melbourne needed Neil Mitchell it is now.

We desperately need someone with a strong and visible public persona in our corner.

Schwarz would be fine I feel as he brings football knowledge and a strong public presence, but Mitchell brings the arrogance, contacts and cache that you need these days to create a real impression and help deliver results.

the ticket will form. Mitchell is a good start. He has clout and networking contacts.

I have heard him say on many occasions that he has a deep love of the club...

[Whispering_Jack 28,049]

You should run Jack. I'd support you. I'm not being facetious. I reckon you have the right mix of a level head and passion for our footy club that seems to be missing from some on our current board.

Thanks for the vote of confidence but I have too much emotion invested in the club to take it on at my age. The job belongs to someone younger, preferably late 30s, early 40s, immense wealth and a bullet proof vest.

[What 18,810]

Neil Mitchell and David Schwarz would be awesome.

[cowboy_from_hell 2,390]

From the sound of things nearly everything involved with the MFC is stuffed. From the footy department to the board. I worry that everyone wants everyone replaced and the quality of the replacements may be overlooked because we want heads to roll now. The best thing to do is seek the AFL's help on finding a new president and board and I hope Don is speaking to them. At the moment Elmo could get enough support to be president with Big bird as the coach.

[Whispering_Jack 28,049]

From the sound of things nearly everything involved with the MFC is stuffed. From the footy department to the board. I worry that everyone wants everyone replaced and the quality of the replacements may be overlooked because we want heads to roll now. The best thing to do is seek the AFL's help on finding a new president and board and I hope Don is speaking to them.

I think you'll find that's exactly what's happening at the moment. Peter Jackson didn't just fall out of the sky.

[McQueen 17,864]

By the sounds of Jackson's interview with Burgs, it would be highly unlikely he could afford enough time to take on a full time CEO job at the club given everything else on his plate. I hope he sticks around.

First impressions indicate a man who's here to make change, leaving no stone un-turned. I hope his influence and smarts rubs off onto the Board and the mass change of its members is ultimately not required.

[Nasher 33,162]

What, we're up to page 2 of the thread and no accusations of agendas yet?

[McQueen 17,864]

Thanks for the vote of confidence but I have too much emotion invested in the club to take it on at my age. The job belongs to someone younger, preferably late 30s, early 40s, immense wealth and a bullet proof vest.

My only hope then lies with winning Powerball.

After that, I will just forward all issues to Demonland for group consensus on what direction the club should take.

[Wormburner 674]

For what it is worth, I believe that every board member has the best interest of the club at heart and it is purely an experience issue. Jackson even said in one of his interviews that there are too many inexperienced people in the club. Throw in as many fiascos as what we've had, there is no wonder we're where we are. Classic example of the boards inadequacy is to give an inexperianced FD (bar Craig) free run, just asks for trouble.

I think we need to keep the board but introduce more experience in every area of our club, and I have no doubt that this is what PJ will be trying to bring in.

[Striker475 696]

So who's putting their hands up for the job?

Any takers?

I'll do it. I know [censored]-all about running a football club, but I damn well have some empathy with those of us in the 'cheap seats' - after all, I sit in one!

EDIT: On that note, I may actually talk to the old man. He's mid-50s, looking to step back from his role in business. He's taken a relatively small gantry crane company and built it into one of the best and biggest companies in the industry over the last 15 years. He left the company in the mid-90s and was headhunted to come back when they were on death's door; resurrected them and they're now expanding overseas. He's also a bloody passionate Melbourne man.

[Nasher 33,162]

What pleases me the most about Jackson being on board is that he is not tied to the board. He is an experienced CEO who can provide a direct line in to the AFL; this means he's not only qualified to identify the issues, he's also qualified to report the problems at board level without fear of implications of his own job. I agree with what Jack said - Jackson's arrival is a signal from the AFL that they have zero confidence in the club to sort out its own mess. From that perspective I'm confident we'll see a way through now.

I wonder how long Jackson needs to remain the caretaker of the club for? At the very least he needs to be involved in the hiring of the permanent CEO, but I think there is a need for him to see in a new board as well. I'd like to see him leaving a well oiled machine in his wake, but I expect that's too big an assignment for his relatively short tenure.

To me this feels like the end of a long, bad relationship. We're emotionally exhausted and financially cactus, but the weight has been lifted and we can start to clean up the bloody mess. I hope so anyway.

[old dee 22,966]

For what it is worth, I believe that every board member has the best interest of the club at heart and it is purely an experience issue. Jackson even said in one of his interviews that there are too many inexperienced people in the club. Throw in as many fiascos as what we've had, there is no wonder we're where we are. Classic example of the boards inadequacy is to give an inexperianced FD (bar Craig) free run, just asks for trouble.

I think we need to keep the board but introduce more experience in every area of our club, and I have no doubt that this is what PJ will be trying to bring in.

I have the best interests of the club at heart.

It does not mean I would be a good board member.

Having your heart in the right place does not mean you can do the job.

[Crompton's the man 635]

What, we're up to page 2 of the thread and no accusations of agendas yet?

Sounds like you have an agenda

And may God have mercy on us

[Wormburner 674]

I have the best interests of the club at heart.

It does not mean I would be a good board member.

Having your heart in the right place does not mean you can do the job.

I agree with what you are saying. But think that if we replace the whole board, FD (which I think there'll be certain changes) then it could be counter productive.

Whereas introducing experience into the board and other areas as required would keep us moving forward being better equipped.

[Clintosaurus 6,621]

I wonder if this might get the AFL (maybe in conjunction with the Australian Institute of Company Directors) to do some kind of course for prospective Board members, if there isn't already one. Even better would be that to be on a club Board one needs to be a member of the AICD. At least then members could have confidence that anyone seeking their vote has the governance aspects etc covered.

[rpfc 27,616]

We have needed an independent voice as CEO ever since 186, and while I appreciate the concern of the board that too many changes can be destabilizing (personally I think they felt it was bad PR :eyeroll:) they should have moved on then.

We get another clean slate. This one is AFL-endorsed and manipulated.

I am sanguine. In both senses of the word.

[titan_uranus 22,725]

I think it's somewhat unfair to call Howcroft out on his perceived lack of football knowledge. I'm sure there are many board members at other clubs whose experience is not in AFL, and I'm sure Howcroft does bring other things to the table.

Having said that, if his response to criticism is 'you can always just vote me out', I do not respect him as a board member. That is a terrible attitude to hold, totally disrespectful of the position.

Change at the board level is imminent, and I'm sure will bring positive change to the club. It is but one of a myriad number of steps that need to be taken, and, in essence, is one of the minor ones with regards to improving our on field position.

[Pates 9,537]

From what I can see on face value the current board was united under Jim but when he passed his responsibilities on after he got sick that was when discord started.

I will always recognise that this board played their part in saving our club the last time, but they have got us out of one hole and dug us into another. I really hope there is someone out there that can create a better ticket and get us back on track permanently.

[Tricky 337]

I'm not sure if it's been referred to here but Russell Howcroft introduced Peter Jackson to a group of members yesterday in the Ryder (?) room. I never expected to attend a MFC meeting where the depth of feeling from the membership base was as ugly, aggressive and in a sense disrespectful to our appointed officers as at the Dallas Brooks Hall in 1996, but in its own way it was even worse. This was not a meeting that was organized with well drawn battle lines but a regular event where a Board member informally addresses the members.

Jackson said nothing different in this meeting to what he'd said all day in his media blitz and while the members welcomed his honesty and common sense they turned on an inept Howcroft. It started with Jackson telling us of a dysfunctional Football Department with no clear lines of responsibility or reporting and an administration which was similar. These comments, while not mentioning Schwab or the Board, were scathing as he outlined that the clear principles of Governance and operations had been ignored, misunderstood and abused.

A member of the audience turned to Howcroft and asked how this Board had allowed all this to happen in the 4 or 5 years of their watch. Howcroft dodged the question saying as a member based organization we could all stand for election. He has an unfortunate manner and his smugness and lack of empathy with the mood of the audience led to interjection and abuse being hurled at him and the rest of the Board.

Jackson clearly understands footy. He immediately engaged the members. He knows what a good footy club looks like. He understands Boards, Administration and corporate structure. He knows this Board is a failure.

In 2008 Jim Stynes and Don McLardy approached the Gardner Board and told them they were out of ideas and needed to move on for the betterment of the MFC. To the Gardner Board's eternal credit they recognized a better Board, read the tea leaves and saved the Club from a battle that would achieve nothing.

It's time for Don and his merry men to look in the mirror, remember history and now identify a better Board and stand aside. They have reduced this club to its lowest ebb in history and made it the most unattractive of propositions. They can do one good thing - find a better alternative and move on.

What makes this absolutely painful is that some of us have recognized the clear failings of Don, Schwabby and his merry men for ages. Anyone with any training or experience in how business work could see this. And yet this Board who have so much individual talent couldn't.

I'll never understand that. There is no doubt their hearts were in the right place but the damage they've done is incalculable.

I was there too BB and you have summed up the atmosphere very well.

I might be wrong but didn't Peter Jackson say that there were no less than 4 lines of reporting all coming back to the CEO from the football dept, and that the CEO shouldn't be so close to football operations. That suggests more a deficiency with CS structures than Neil Craig.

Exactly what he said and was clearly an indictment on CS.

[Tricky 337]

I think it's somewhat unfair to call Howcroft out on his perceived lack of football knowledge. I'm sure there are many board members at other clubs whose experience is not in AFL, and I'm sure Howcroft does bring other things to the table.

Having said that, if his response to criticism is 'you can always just vote me out', I do not respect him as a board member. That is a terrible attitude to hold, totally disrespectful of the position.

Change at the board level is imminent, and I'm sure will bring positive change to the club. It is but one of a myriad number of steps that need to be taken, and, in essence, is one of the minor ones with regards to improving our on field position.

Perhaps it was unfair, a room full of premium members despairing after a first half of football from our team that was reminiscent of your local under 9's side, but he certainly came across very detached and smart ass-like...

Peter Jackson on the other hand addressed the room with respect and even stated that he marveled at the loyalty of the members given the predicament of the club.

[Slartibartfast 15,953]

I've been able to get a transcript of the session. Here it is so you can judge for yourselves.

P Jackson addressed a supporter group at half time yesterday introduced by director R Howcroft.

Comments included:

- My observations? We are a very inexperienced football club, a very inexperienced playing list, a very inexperienced coaching panel, weve got young, inexperienced staff. All of those people have had to deal with some extraordinary pressures over the last 12 months due to external forces.for probably longer than that.

- If I can do anything in the short term for them which is to provide a bit of leadership and experience and wisdom that would be a help. I think we need more than just me thoughwe cant have such an inexperienced level we saw that today in the first half of footy

- I think our structures are not great in the footy department. Ive said that through the media outlets to anyone who has asked me

- What weve got to do as quickly as possible is as a Club earn back respect from the footy world. That is the AFL, its our peer Clubs, its you people. We dont have respect, we dont deserve respect at the moment. We have got to start winning back some respect. Thats not going to come from the scoreboard or the win-loss ratio I dont think. I think its going to be how we do business as a Club. Theres two things I mean by that. One is getting rid of all those external forces that weve had in the last two years. What they are is a matter of public record whether investigations or whatever they have been. Massive massive distractions for the Club and for such young people and young players to have to deal that and with the team they are dealing with and coping with that I just refuse to believe they are able to deal with that and do their best.

- The other thing is how we do business. Footy has got to be our number one objective and our core reason for being. I think as footy clubs we probably think well, thats bloody obviousfootball is our number one reason for being. I think sometimes we have a focus in Melbourne which has been effectively about promoting the Club as being a little bit bigger and better and further advanced than what we want to be and up there with the big Clubs in Melbourne. Certainly we want to aim for that but to do that weve got to get footy right first because everything else will naturally follow. I just get a bit of a sense around the Club that we havent been as good at looking at the footy as we could have been.

- I think the footy structures are wrong. We have too many lines in the footy department coming up through the CEO/to the CEO which means that fundamentally the CEOs position in (sic) running football and I dont think thats right. I think the CEOs job is to run a football club. Its a very demanding job. Its much broader than just footy and you need to get the very best people you can in to the footy department and you need a really good General Manager Footy Ops running football. We need to achieve that.

- Ive been asked numerous times today How will we entice anyone here?. Easy. Its the biggest and best challenge in football at the moment and there are a lot of people out there who like those sort of challenges. Fundamentally thats why I am here. I cant say no to a challenge. So there will be others who will say the same thing.

- It looks lamentable out there. I know how you are feeling. Ive seen another footy team play like that one that I was CEO of. Now were 7-1 on top of the ladder and could have easily beaten Geelong on Friday night. It takes time. I am not going to say to you to be patient. Youve been incredibly patient so far but we havent got it right. Weve got to get that right. Weve got to get football as our main reason for being.

- I think that Melbourne being the centre of the universe for AFL footy. Its a big challenge. Its a founding Club. Its a proud Club. I think that people will want to come here and get it back up where it should be. The whole of the competition want Melbourne up and about. The AFL want Melbourne up and about. No-one wants this footy club down where we are at the moment. So people will get behind it and we will make it work. So all I can say to you guys is Thank you for your supportthank you for your tolerance. Its not going to be easy. The most we can do with the rest of this year with a view of improving at least on the field for 2014.

Q,. With those structural deficiencies that you see in the football department and you mentioned there are too many lines leading to the CEO does that you mean that you suggest that the football department has more autonomy in the way it runs?

A. No no. Im not suggesting that. Im just suggesting you need to get very good people into the footy department and a single point of responsibility for the football department being the General Manager Footy Ops. Weve got a lot of very inexperienced people. A lot of people in the Melbourne Football Club dont really know what it is to be in a great football environment and Im talking great being Geelong, Collingwood, Hawthorn. They are great football environments. Geelongs the greatest but the others are pretty damn good too. We are not structured like them. We dont have.Ill give you a good exampleI dont know if you worry too much about administrators. You probably dont. You probably shouldnt. But Mark Evans who was the General Manager Footy Ops at Hawthorn has come into the AFL to take over that senior role reporting to Andrew Demetriou. Thats how highly thought of he was. We need people in our footy club the players can learn from, be in awe of and get those sort of people right (interjection Mark Evans started at Melbourne Did he well there you go). So weve got to get those sort of people into our footy department I think.

Q. Peter Ive heard what you have said but Ive have been hearing this for over 20 years and I accept you have only been here for about a week but I want to address this to Russell. Our coach when he first came to the club said we would be the hardest team to play against. Were playing like bloody wimps. Its time to get rid of HIM! This is crap. (Loud applause). He keeps telling us about our games experience were sick of hearing about it.

A. Im sure all thats right. I dont know how to answer that. I wont try to answer that so we are just going to have to work our way through that. I want to draw a line in the sand from the 1^st May and say judge us from now on see what we do.

Q. On free agency, how do we keep our players like Frawley and Sylvia when they see where we are heading as a Club at the moment. How are we going to entice like Sylvia at the end of the year Frawley, Watts how are we going to keep our good players when they are all going to want to leave because of the fact that they are getting old?

A. No answer.

Q. Can I direct this question to you sir from the Board. You guys oversaw exactly what Peters just been talking about for a number of years. Im telling you now you blokes are on notice. You will be challenged at the end of the year. Peter you will have to put up with that. But you will be challenged because your performance has been absolutely abysmal. (applause)(interjection this club is where we are because of you guys)

A. (Howcroft) Yep. Yep. Of course as a membership based organisation that is more than fair more than fair that people want to challenge for Board seats thats absolutely more than reasonable.

Q. Can I ask what we are doing aboutso now that weve announced a $1.5million dollar debt (again). We were $5 million in debt. We got out of it by making the members pay, like, we supported the Club. Now we are in debt again. They promised us that this wasnt going to happen. So whats going to happen to prevent us just going under again? Are you going to ask us to put another $1.5 million to the Club. Do you have a plando the Club have a plan?

A. (Jackson) No no. Ive got your point its a fair question. I think were going to have to restructure the administration of the Club. And I think we can do that and get the footy club back on an even keel. With that and the support of the AFL I think we can do that and I dont think well have to go back to the members.

Q. Whats the decision making process from now? How much power do you have to make decisions? Who will you make them to and who will implement them?

A. The CEO should run an organisation, should make the decisions. The Board should be deciding in my view strategy and policy and then delegating responsibility for that strategy and policy to management to make the decisions to implement it. Thats the way Ive always operated and thats the way I would expect to operate.

Howcroft: I just want to say that the Board of the Melbourne Football Club is extremely pleased to have Peter Jackson with us and all lets all give him as much support as we possibly can.

[Slartibartfast 15,953]

So who's putting their hands up for the job?

Any takers?

Which is exactly why I think the current Board should go looking but I take the point that a much more likely outcome is the AFL will have to do it for us.

This Board has made us so bad who would want to be on the Board? We are now back to losing money, the once in a generation chance to go to the membership has been squandered and our product "football" is unsaleable. It's a legacy that no Chairman would want.

It's not surprising people aren't lining up to do the job but the positive is that we are so bad that we perhaps have a chance to restructure the Board to (say) a maximum of 6 who understand their role (the primary failing of this Board - it's governance boys, not operations) and are there for their skills and not because they are "connected".

[MadAsHell 4,089]

At least a partial spill of the board at some point would restore a lot of members faith I think.

IN: Argus, Mitchell, Schwarz, Wells

OUT: McLardy, Howcroft, Grimshaw & Thurin

I don't mind who you made president, but all 4 of those ins are pretty hard nuts and two pretty prominent media personalities that could give the club the shot in the arm it needs.

As I've said elsewhwere I have no doubt the current board have always had the clubs best interests at heart, but change 9at least of some kind) is required.

[Tricky 337]

Which is exactly why I think the current Board should go looking but I take the point that a much more likely outcome is the AFL will have to do it for us.

This Board has made us so bad who would want to be on the Board? We are now back to losing money, the once in a generation chance to go to the membership has been squandered and our product "football" is unsaleable. It's a legacy that no Chairman would want.

It's not surprising people aren't lining up to do the job but the positive is that we are so bad that we perhaps have a chance to restructure the Board to (say) a maximum of 6 who understand their role (the primary failing of this Board - it's governance boys, not operations) and are there for their skills and not because they are "connected".

Sentiments that stuck in my mind after last night that should give us hope:

I’ve been asked numerous times today “How will we entice anyone here?”. Easy. It’s the biggest and best challenge in football at the moment and there are a lot of people out there who like those sort of challenges. Fundamentally that’s why I am here. I can’t say no to a challenge. So there will be others who will say the same thing.

[Nineteen 159]

Regardless of the pending loss, this board did a magnificent job of covering the old debts & giving us a fresh financial start. Tx Guys.

However now we are akin to the long term alcoholic who has to bottom out before the repair process can starts..

Ideally the club will be blown open by this gloom & all seats up for grabs ..... soonest please for me.

Meanwhile WANT TO HELP? Contact the club {1300 DEMONS} & register to take the volunteer reports & information. We dont need you to grab a phone.

Just come on board as a supporter of this project & see where we are going with this membership drive. [email protected]