Seven weeks after his retirement party, this veteran footy boss is back to help the Demons

Veteran administrator Brian Cook has been hired to mentor novice football chief executive Paul Guerra at the Demons.

Cook, who retired from full-time work at the end of this season after more than three decades in football administration, culminating in his term as chief executive of Carlton, will mentor Guerra for a day a week on football matters.

Cook was one of the longest serving chief executives in the AFL system having spent nine years at the West Coast Eagles before moving to Geelong where he was in charge for 23 years and finally four years at the Blues, the last of which was handing over to his successor Graham Wright.

The Demons are aiming to tap into Cook’s vast experience and, more importantly, his football network to mentor Guerra, who was previously chief executive of the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and had not worked in the AFL industry.

The appointment also comes less than two months after football powerbrokers and politicians gathered for a luncheon in the MCC committee room to honour Cook’s career in what was billed as a farewell to footy.

“The idea [of appointing Cook] was really to provide a mentor for Paul with his lack of football experience,” Melbourne’s new president Steven Smith said.

“Brian is an old teammate of mine - he played with me in the few senior games he played in the late 70s - and he has vast experience in the game that could be really important and helpful to us.

“The timing was right for him and for us. Brian is one of the most highly respected administrators in the comp so he is ideal for Paul. We were lucky with the timing.

“It won’t be full-time, it will be about a day a week, it might be three to four hours a week, we will see how it goes.”

The position will only be advising on football matters and he not a review the executive or business structure.

The Demons want to access Cook’s long relationships in the game, to support Guerra as he delves into the nuances of football industry politics.

The appointment comes after a season of huge change at Melbourne. Aside from Guerra’s appointment, the club changed senior coach with the appointment of Steven King after the premiership coach Simon Goodwin was sacked mid-year.

Smith has just taken over from Brad Green after a planned transition, and most critically the club made hard decisions on the playing list, trading out contracted pair Christian Petracca and Clayton Oliver as the Demons continue a youth-driven list revitalisation using the draft picks from the Petracca trade to once more push into the top end of the draft.

How smart is this move? Like how we are moving forward.

That is a very good move by the club and Guerra.

Excellent appointment.

People who have aspirations of being a club administrator would have Brian Cook's poster on their bedroom wall. (with PJ a close second).

He was one of the key men to turn Geelong around from a mediocre organisation on and off the field in the late 90's to one of the modern day powerhouses.

Not sure how him spending a day week imparting his wisdom to Paul can be considered a negative.

Brilliant.

Shrewd.

Tough upbringing.

Wonder where he finished in the 1977 Grand Final Mile?

smart consultant appointment

Boy, the landscape certainly has altered - in a good way.

4 minutes ago, Rab D Nesbitt said:

Excellent timing Rab, I have already stolen and used that gif.

Edited November 28, 2025Nov 28 by Left Foot Snap
Autocorrect

Smart move. When is Scarlett on board?

Suddenly we are smart....

9 minutes ago, Grr-owl said:

Suddenly we are smart....

Duh wot?

Definitely a smart move

To be the Best, learn from the Best

Edited November 28, 2025Nov 28 by spirit of norm smith
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We might just be getting our💩together

My heart bleeds❤️💙, and I want to see another flag or two!

Clearly we are heading in a new direction. Another great appointment imo.

I like it.

Fascinating framing by the incoming President.

This appointment will definitely win us the flag next year. Bookmark it.

A great get but it also highlights the shortcomings of a CEO without football experience .

4 hours ago, dice said:

Brian is an old teammate of mine - he played with me in the few senior games he played in the late 70s

Nice work from Steven Smith. Makes a smart appointment, and then uses the announcement to remind us he was a better player than Cook. Well played.

1 hour ago, kallangurdemon said:

A great get but it also highlights the shortcomings of a CEO without football experience .

Yes but would much rather a great ceo with limited footy experience than very experienced footy person who is a [censored] ceo....

Strong leadership is admitting your weaknesses.

Great signs that we are changing for the better

Does his accountant come with???