24 minutes ago, old dee said:

I don’t like silent chairman and CEO.  That is what we have, you never hear from them.

What do you want them to say, OD?  What are you missing out on?

9 hours ago, Wiseblood said:

Some strong sentiments there, Doc.  I'll address each one as best I can.

As for the first paragraph.  If there are problems, and we have no idea if there are, then of course we should know about it.  The last thing we want is for things to go belly up at board level.  However, there is no indication of this at all, and people are merely trying to connect dots but doing nothing more than putting rumours out there that can't be supported.  The only thing I dislike around posting things they've heard is that it is super easy to do - I can say I've got contacts within the club who tell me that everyone is on the same page and that they are determined to turn things around on field and continue to be stable financially off it.  I can just say that I can't share who I got the info off and boom, I'm covered.  It's not necessarily as harmful if it occurs during trade time - people post all sorts of wacky rumours then - but trying to almost stir up a bit of trouble within the supporter group seems disingenuous.  Of course, there are enough people here who take the info with a grain of salt, but it only takes a few others to start referencing them in other threads all the time and the rumour has legs.

As to the last point, what do you want Bartlett and Pert to do right now?  How are they both treating us with contempt?  That seems such a strong, and strange, comment to me.  I'd much rather they continue to work their backside off behind the scenes to ensure the financial security of our club moving forward.  That is their job.  The job of Mahoney, Goodwin and the players is they are seen far more, talk about the on field stuff, while we might get an update here and there from the others.  I'm just not totally sure what you expect to hear from them on a regular basis.  I feel as though the club have stepped things up, especially during all the COVID stuff, and are giving us as much access as possible.

Let's be honest though, and I feel like SWYL for typing this and it makes me feel dirty, but wins are the thing we should be focusing on.  Right now, we don't have them, and the pressure is beginning to mount.  I'd like to see Goodwin and the team lift their game over the coming weeks, while I'd like Pert and Bartlett to continue to focus their time on ensuring the long term future of our club, especially during such a difficult time.

I don't disagree with a lot of what you've said - my opinion is that it is the job of Bartlett and Pert to be the public spruikers of the club and the face of the club for the members. Of course wins will fix everything but when the supporters are feeling as they have been this week I think it is the duty of the Pres and/or CEO to get on the front foot and assure them that things are on the right track or if not, they have strategies in place to rectify things if they do not improve.

It might be platitudes and it might be immature for lack of a better word but when things are all quiet on the western front when supporters have been up in arms and we are copping scrutiny in the media I'd like them to be the frontline communicators as well as shielding the footy department from that scrutiny to an extent.

Of course they need to work behind the scenes to work on financial stability and all the other off field stuff. But they need to be the public face of the club too, there is no reason they can't do both.

With regards to the first issue, I disagree but thats fine. I can see your point as to why you don't like it but I don't agree that those kinds of posts should be censored. Most people on here are smart enough to recognise a troll when they see one, most long term posters have nothing to gain by making up rumours to stir the pot.

Edited July 10, 20205 yr by Dr. Gonzo

I was under the impression that the concern with Pert was that he would try to micromanage the FD (apparently he did that at Collingwood?) and mess with things he shouldn't.  He doesn't seem to be doing anything like that.  I don't mind him working behind the scenes to try to keep the club functioning. 

9 hours ago, RalphiusMaximus said:

I was under the impression that the concern with Pert was that he would try to micromanage the FD (apparently he did that at Collingwood?) and mess with things he shouldn't.  He doesn't seem to be doing anything like that.  I don't mind him working behind the scenes to try to keep the club functioning. 

I agree Pert appears to be playing the role I’d expect of a CEO, although I don’t know the detail of his goals and whether he is achieving them. If the strategy requires, or the Board has directed Pert, to be a public mouthpiece for the club and in the press all the time then Pert is failing, but I doubt that’s the ask.

You wouldn’t want the standard “Yeah, nah” former players who wind up in footy departments to get their hands on key decisions and appointments around finances, facilities, lobbying governments and the like. It’s precisely why you need the non footy department parts of a footy club, so they can focus on all that stuff and the footy department can focus on winning games and ultimately winning premierships.

The things in the Board’s strategy, and what the CEO tries to drive to deliver the strategy, should definitely enable and support the footy department to win premierships as that’s what the club is all about at the end of the day.

If a footy club CEO is meddling in the footy department that’s a problem, and IF that’s what Pert did at Collingwood but isn’t doing at MFC that is a good sign of self development and being able to stick to his brief. It’s for this reason at footy clubs you see Boards appoint head coaches, even though the head coach is one, maybe two levels below the CEO on the organisation chart, and the head coach appears to be realistically more accountable directly to the Board. That’s very different to other corporate governance structures.

If Pert is delivering on what the Board wants and Pert is happy, and he’s letting the footy department live and die by their own decisions and actions, he should stay. If not, he should go, but it is also easier said than done to find better replacements.

10 hours ago, Wiseblood said:

What do you want them to say, OD?  What are you missing out on?

I will say it again wiseblood I don’t like silent leaders, just me it always feels like nothing is happening. 

This week the fan and media storm is akin to that we rightly got after the shellacking by Hawthorn in early 2018. 

Jackson got on the front foot and said (among other things) 'the players trashed our brand'.   He understood that it is important to control the narrative.

Everyone knew a lot of it was coaching decisions/lack thereof (played no wingmen, players played out of position, let Shiels run amok, a bewildered coaches box) but Jackson's talk put everyone on notice to lift.  We did.  We went on to play in the Prelim.  And it quietened the media somewhat.

Sometimes a carefully worded public 'put-down' or wise words can go a long way to placating fans and settling the media a bit.  Silence can also give a message, often the wrong message such as the performance status quo is acceptable, that mfc bashing is ok, that Oliver bashing is ok, lights on but no-one home etc  

At the moment we are fair game in the media because no one stands up to them.

Edited July 10, 20205 yr by Lucifer's Hero

35 minutes ago, Lucifer's Hero said:

This week the fan and media storm is akin to that we rightly got after the shellacking by Hawthorn in early 2018. 

Jackson got on the front foot and said (among other things) 'the players trashed our brand'.   He understood that it is important to control the narrative.

Everyone knew a lot of it was coaching decisions/lack thereof (played no wingmen, players played out of position, let Shiels run amok, a bewildered coaches box) but Jackson's talk put everyone on notice to lift.  We did.  We went on to play in the Prelim.  And it quietened the media somewhat.

Sometimes a carefully worded public 'put-down' or wise words can go a long way to placating fans and settling the media a bit.  Silence can also give a message, often the wrong message such as the performance status quo is acceptable, that mfc bashing is ok, that Oliver bashing is ok, lights on but no-one home etc  

At the moment we are fair game in the media because no one stands up to them.

Spot on LH that covers my thoughts exactly. Silence is not always golden. 

20 hours ago, Wiseblood said:

Fair point, although you can see why they might have shifted him there.

I've seen others mentioned as well, but outside of Harmes and Gus, I don't think they are valid  Hunt, for example, lost the plot across half back (in fact he has never been the same player since he got knocked out against the Crows) and they have tried to resurrect his career as a forward.  You could argue that the club are trying different things there to see what might work.   

Salem is a strange one - does he have the capacity to play as a mid?  I feel like we haven't found his best position yet.  He doesn't strike me as a wingman, and you can't blame them for wanting his kicking skills to be used across half back.  Not convinced he is a forward either.

Having said that, I'm with @binman - players should always put the team first.  If they coach needs them in a certain position, then they roll with it (unless they stick Max in the back pocket and have Nev rucking).

Or Nev minding a 200cm forward like McKay of Carlton

Pert was asked to do a PD review at Collingwood at the request of the Collingwood board that is how the changes began even Eddie acknowledged this on air at MMM and said at the time because of this he left shortly afterwards so lets get this notion of him going rouge out of the discussion. 

16 hours ago, RalphiusMaximus said:

I was under the impression that the concern with Pert was that he would try to micromanage the FD (apparently he did that at Collingwood?) and mess with things he shouldn't.  He doesn't seem to be doing anything like that.  I don't mind him working behind the scenes to try to keep the club functioning. 

well far be it for any senior management at the filth to micromanage the fd  ?

 

Job will not be done until the first stone of a true Demon home is turned.