Another Potential Presidential Candidate

[monoccular 17,702]

No thanks. We don't need someone to run the board because they were once famous. We need quality leaders. When did he lead? He just held Jeffy's bag of cash.

We need to get out of the desperate search for a saviour and think about building a quality board that will take us forward, building a culture and making smart, hard decisions.

Errr...... He was a big wig of some sector of Maquarie Bank, and is Federal President of the Liberal Party........could that be perhaps construed as leadership sans Jeff????????

[Hannibal 5,814]

As what you would term a 'leftie' (ie anyone to the left of Andrew Bolt)

Not at all. Bolt is a conservative. I find his views moderate.

[Earl Hood 6,153]

I hope he has got over his obsession with budget surpluses he had when treasurer for Jeff. In the end I always thought his stinginess, especially the lack of funding for regional Victoria cost Jeff the election in 1999.Jeff never seems to have worked this out.

If he takes over as President he will be unloading players and coaching staff left, right and centre to maintain an operating surplus. Forget the win loss ratio it's the accounting balance sheet that counts in any business.

[Hannibal 5,814]

I hope he has got over his obsession with budget surpluses he had when treasurer for Jeff. In the end I always thought his stinginess, especially the lack of funding for regional Victoria cost Jeff the election in 1999.Jeff never seems to have worked this out.

If he takes over as President he will be unloading players and coaching staff left, right and centre to maintain an operating surplus. Forget the win loss ratio it's the accounting balance sheet that counts in any business.

Blame Labor mismanagement more than the "stinginess" of those charged with cleaning up the mess.

[Sir Why You Little 37,373]

Stockers left when Szondy & co came in

I have no idea whether he would be a good President..he was always one rung below Leadership

His interviews were always dull, but when are treasurer interviews not.

[Earl Hood 6,153]

Blame Labor mismanagement more than the "stinginess" of those charged with cleaning up the mess.

Gee don't know where to start on that comment. Jeff got in in 1992 I think and Alan got the budget back in surplus a year or two later as the economy started to recover from the 1990/91 recession felt more in Victoria than other states by the failure of the Pyramid collapse and the State Bank of Victoria. The so called mess was cleaned up very early on.. My point is Alan did not know when to open the purse strings after getting the budget back in order, he kept the stinginess going right up to 1999 and they alienated rural Victoria. Fact is Jeff and Alan lost an election no thought they could.

[beelzebub 23,390]

could have sworn there was a General Discussion area for subjects like politics.

Here its about footy

[demon3165 2,851]

could have sworn there was a General Discussion area for subjects like politics.

Here its about footy

you are right there.

[Earl Hood 6,153]

could have sworn there was a General Discussion area for subjects like politics.

Here its about footy

Point taken. Still not sold on Alan though.

[Grimes is Great 183]

Am hearing Greg Wells for Pres....

Source: Former Afl player & Player Manager, think StKilda School girl...

[Whispering_Jack 31,318]

If Stockdale gets in as President, I would expect more of these shenanigans and I hope he receives a little more support and loyalty from his board as he gave to Gutnick over a decade ago.

After a week-long, very public,. and very acrimonous war of words, demon president Joseph Gutnick has stepped down from his position. It began several weeks ago when a local businessman was rumoured to be interested in challenging Gutnick, but nothing came of that. Gutnick then lashed out at 3 of his board members whom he perceived to be against him and called for their resignations. All three refused. He then threatened to call an extraordinary meeting to spill the entire board. One of the board members, Alan Stockdale then had his say in the media, criticizing Gutnick's leadership style by saying that the club was not one of Joe's private companies. Stockdale said that Gutnick often acted without consulting the board. Three of these decisions were the sacking of Neil Balme in 1997, reporting the club' s salary breaches to the AFL, and the sacking of football manager Cameron Schwab. Stockdale did acknowledge that Gutnick did have a great deal of support at the club and that the club had prospered since he took over and infused almost $3 million into the ailing coffers. But he said that he and the other two directors Gutnick had targeted, Bill Guest and Ian Johnson, all questioned how he represented the club in public and to the AFL. With hostilities escalating, as of Tuesday, Gutnick had lost the support of 5 of the 11 board members. Stockdale also accused Gutnick of wanting a board which would never question anything he said or did. Gutnick refuted this allegation, saying he and Stockdale had a clash of personalities. But Stockale countered by saying that one of the key disagreements between himself and Gutnick was Gutnick's very public campaign last year against Commissioner Ron Evans. Stockdale also said that he, Guest, and Johnson had, on a number of occassions, spoken to Gutnick about their concerns. Gutnick also accused some of the directors of showing up to meetings intoxicated.

As his support among board members waned, including his staunchest backers Beverley O'Connor and Peter Hayes, an emergency board meeting was held on Friday to vote Gutnick out. However, by that time, he had already quit. He has vowed to call an extraordinary meeting of members for a new vote. While the board was able to strip him of the presidency, he remains on the board, because corporate law dictates that a director cannot be removed except by members' votes. He is already believed to be putting together his own ticket. Gutnick wants the meeting held as soon as possible. But new president Gabriel Szondy has said it is in the best interest of the club to have a full election at the end of the season. All the board members agreed to step down at that time and re-nominate at the 2001 AGM. Guest and Johnson have already resigned as VPs, but remain directors. Board member Beverley O'Connor was elected VP. Guest was extremely critical of Gutnick, saying it was disgraceful to have such a public war during the season.

Gutnick tried to have an injunction halt Friday's meeting, but the judge refused, saying the courts were reluctant to step into the affairs of clubs. Gutnick may still attempt legal action in Supreme Court to overturn the board's decision. The current board will do everything it can to prevent Gutnick from calling an emergency meeting. Should he succeed, it would mean to elections within several months, costing the club several hundred thousand dollars.

To further compound Melbourne's troubles, the AFL has fined the club $10,000 over the violation of the racial villification code. The AFL saw fit to fine the club half the maximum and to fine the club rather than Gutnick as it believes that CEO John Anderson and football manager Danny Corcoran had an obligation to advise Gutnick on the matter. The club says it will not pay the fine, but the AFL could deduct the amount from the club's end of season dividend.

From http://www.afana.com/netpaper/may27-88533.html

[Norm Smith's Curse 2,602]

You guys do realize its likely it was Stockdale that approached Kennett?

[monoccular 17,702]

You guys do realize its likely it was Stockdale that approached Kennett?

Fact or speculation?

[beelzebub 23,390]

You guys do realize its likely it was Stockdale that approached Kennett?

true or otherwise , there are grounds for much logic to this.

The thick plottens

[Go the Biff 3,474]

You guys do realize its likely it was Stockdale that approached Kennett?

That was my first thought when I saw who the thread was about. Or my first speculation

[Norm Smith's Curse 2,602]

Pure speculation but how many 'prominent Melbourne supporters' would Jeff Kennett know better than Alan Stockdale? They are very close.

[Red and Bluebeard 2,101]

One thing I haven't really seen anywhere (though it may be in various threads in small parts) is an articulation of what would make a good Melbourne president. Do we want a human headline like Eddie or Jeff? (ie a high-profile personality whose knack for publicity will rub off onto the club?). A successful business manager, who has a proven track record in leading corporations or clubs? A "people-person" who excels at communication and getting others to do so as well? A passionate Demon ''football person" who mightn't personally know how to get things done, but knows who to ask?

Part of the problem with following in the footsteps of Jimmy Stynes is that he was an exception to so many rules that anyone else who steps up looks one-dimensional ...

[Sir Why You Little 37,373]

You guys do realize its likely it was Stockdale that approached Kennett?

Was my first thought last week....

[beelzebub 23,390]

so would you then extrapolate >>>> who were Stocker's mates at Melbourne, who's still around in the shadows etc

all hypothesis of course

[rjay 25,386]

Business people who run tight ships, hasn't been the downfall of the club over the decades... but maybe the downfall of it.

The decisions have been made to run the club like a business, & thats got us nowhere. Instead of running us like a footy club...

IMO this is why we have no grassroots support base. we've run the club from the Top down, instead of building the Club from the bottom & Up.

we've not kept & grown our own support base, choosing to only look after our members over North, to the clubs demise.

...this is Not to say we can't be business Savvy, we must...

but this is supposed to be a Footy Club, not an Opera Show. we have to run a tight Board but grow our Club support base first & then turn that into members.

We need someone who can relate to the people, & speak their language, & at their level... from memory, Stockdale doesn't...

... & we need a board who'll put into place the decisions, & actions,, to encourage prospective supporters to follow Our Once great club.

I'd like to hear from Freeman, having never met him. I'd like to see how he relates to the supporters.

.

Agree with you here 'dee-luded'. A football club is first and foremost a club, a club with a lot of history and emotion attached...it needs to be treated with respect for that difference and not as just another business.

[deanox 10,059]

If Stockdale gets in as President, I would expect more of these shenanigans and I hope he receives a little more support and loyalty from his board as he gave to Gutnick over a decade ago.

From http://www.afana.com/netpaper/may27-88533.html

Derailing my own thread here WJ, but reading further on that article, some things never change (see below)!

I'd also be interested to know more about the 'racial vilification' we were fined for. Our club has been in the mess for a long time hasn't it? not wonder we are still struggling.

Post-Game Kick-To-Kick Endangered

With its liability premiums increased, the MCG may have to ban spectators from the traditional kick-to-kick sessions at the ground after games. Increased insurance rates and the incerasing propensity for injured parties to take legal action could see another tradition get the chop. MCC Secretary Stephen Gough said that with an estimated 2-3000 fans invading the ground and footballs flying every which way, there have been more reports of minor injuries. The most serious recently was a young girl who broke her arm. Before any firn decision is made, Gough said the MCC would look at ways to increase safety - one idea being to have smaller children confined to one end of the ground and to try to have a more orderly entry to the arena to avoid people tripping, falling over the fence, and getting stepped on.

AFL Orders Guernsey Changes

The league has told clubs they must come up with an alternative design when playing clubs with similar designs to avoid color clashes. The most confusing for spectators, TV audiences, and players are RICH/ESS, MELB/ESS, COL/KANG, COL/GEEL/, and ESS/ADE. To illustrate the problem, an example was taken from last week's Melb/Ess game in which Demon Daniel Ward handballed out of pack straight to a Bomber James Hird.

Some Victorian clubs have rejected the idea, including Richmond and Collingwood. Essendon said it would consider the proposal. The Crows said a possibility for them would be lighter colors.

More $$$ For Poor Clubs?

The AFL Commission has begun a study of how the financial burdens of struggling clubs might be eased. Criteria to determine who is in need will be set down and clubs will be required to have identified their problems, set up long-term strategies, and have people in place to do the job. One idea is a restructuring of the equalisation system, which would see a portion of gate receipts from blockbuster games go into a fund which would provide grant money to ailing clubs.

More Bad News for QLD/NSW TV

The new consortium which promised more TV coverage in the northern states have now said that the Friday night games would not be seen before 11 PM. Foxtel will not be allowed to show the game before Nine's replay. Brisbane, Sydney, AFL QLD, and AFL NSW/ACT have all written to the AFL to address the problem.

[dee-luded 2,959]

I hope he has got over his obsession with budget surpluses he had when treasurer for Jeff. In the end I always thought his stinginess, especially the lack of funding for regional Victoria cost Jeff the election in 1999.Jeff never seems to have worked this out.

If he takes over as President he will be unloading players and coaching staff left, right and centre to maintain an operating surplus. Forget the win loss ratio it's the accounting balance sheet that counts in any business.

being tight doesn't make a leader... & when we underfunded our footy department, well we are still trying to repair things from back over the last 15 years of poor player development.

next...

[dee-luded 2,959]

If Stockdale gets in as President, I would expect more of these shenanigans and I hope he receives a little more support and loyalty from his board as he gave to Gutnick over a decade ago.

From http://www.afana.com/netpaper/may27-88533.html

hmmn, get the Offices & the Boardroom out of the MCG... its like 'Dallas' in there, with Ego's lined up wall to wall.. all about themselves... the Bombers & Pies & Hawks don't have half the politicking pain that that place causes us...

we would do a lot better having our board meetings elsewhere.

[dee-luded 2,959]

Agree with you here 'dee-luded'. A football club is first and foremost a club, a club with a lot of history and emotion attached...it needs to be treated with respect for that difference and not as just another business.

and essentially its about human beings, people, not bloody numbers thru a checkout... & not coal slipping up a conveyor belt.

it's the business of passions, of feelings & emotives, & excitement. quick go get stockdale...

[nicksaidsoyouknowitstrue 19]

http://www.afl.com.au/news/2013-06-13/another-lib-for-demons

Alan Stockdale has arisen as a possible candidate for President or the board. He is a Melbourne supporter, with serious experience. The article indicates he has been approached, but doesn't indicate whether he has been approached by the current board or if he has been approached by disgruntled supporters.

I think it's a Stockdale/Kennett package deal is the way I read it - either way not keen.