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  1. #1
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    Gillon McLachlan should not be trying to influence Stephen Coniglio in his club choice

    This is spot on. How ridiculous is it to have the CEO commenting about a potential player movement like this?

    Gillon McLachlan should not be trying to influence Stephen Coniglio in his club choice

    AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan is showing bias and he needs to pull his head in, especially when his appalling conflict of interest is on full display.

    COMMENT

    Why is the CEO of the AFL suddenly commenting on where star players should go or stay?

    On Tuesday afternoon, Gillon McLachlan was being interviewed on 3AW by Caroline Wilson when he was asked about off-contract GWS star Stephen Coniglio and he implored the midfielder to stay at GWS.

    McLachlan went as far as saying he would “love” him to stay there.

    This is despite reported overtures by other clubs including long-struggling Carlton, who are apparently a favourite to gain the signature of the 25-year-old.

    McLachlan not only poured cold water all over the reports of Coniglio heading to the Blues, he also then went on to appeal to Coniglio’s character to get him to stay a Giant.

    Wilson asked the league boss on 3AW if he’d be disappointed if Coniglio left the expansion club. “Yeah, I would,” McLachlan said. “Certainly my advice is that it’s not a given (that he’ll leave).

    “I think he’s a star player and I know he’s a leader of the club. I know him a bit personally, I think he’s a fabulous person. I’ll be explicit — I’d love him to stay up there.”

    Sorry Gil, since when do you get to try and influence a player’s business decision? Stay in your lane.

    Not only is any knowledge McLachlan might have on what is happening with Coniglio not for public discussion but he shouldn’t be using his status in the game to try and sway a star player’s decision either.

    Doing so is an absolute abuse of his influence and flies in the face of his policy of staying quiet on other major issues this year, most notably the security crackdown on stadiums and the failure of the 6-6-6 to increase scoring, as it was supposed to.

    Whether Coniglio stays or goes should be no business of McLachlan’s, but perhaps he has a vested interest: The success of GWS as an entity.

    And it is especially for that reason that McLachlan showing clear bias towards them is concerning.

    Not only has the AFL given that club every conceivable opportunity to succeed but they need them to.

    So far despite all GWS’s stars the number of premierships is zero and right now they don’t at all look likely to buck that trend this season.

    Coniglio is rated one of the best players in the AFL and is also regarded as a key figure in developing and maintaining a strong culture at the Giants, he’s also a player fans might want to see and in recent years GWS have lost enough of those — Adam Treloar, Tom Scully, Dylan Shiel, Lachie Plowman and Jack Steele all bailed on the club.

    But despite that talent and the talent they have now, the jury is still very much out on the GWS experiment — they might have made finals for the last four seasons and will do so again this year but more often than not despite the talent they have and efforts to get fans involved often at their home games in a boutique stadium the stands look empty.

    This year their average home crowd is a measly 12,480, and only recently has that gone above cellar-dwellers Gold Coast, who average 11,798 per match at Metricon in 2019. In fact crowd attendance for GWS home games has gone down the last two seasons after peaking in 2017 at an average of 13,196 in a stadium that seats just 24,000.

    No wonder McLachlan is trying to get a major star to stay — but as CEO he should not, it’s an appalling conflict of interest.

  2. #2
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    Re: Gillon McLachlan should not be trying to influence Stephen Coniglio in his club choice

    GWS attendances dropped after the final match at Spotless in 2016. It seems we broke their fans pea hearts too. Sweet.
    Rocket Science: the epitaph for the Beveridge era - whenever it ends - reading 'Here lies a team that could beat anyone on its day, but seldom did when it mattered most'. 15/7/2023

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  4. #3
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    Re: Gillon McLachlan should not be trying to influence Stephen Coniglio in his club choice

    Who wrote that article? Its spot on of course. Gil is far too vocal on these types of things

  5. #4
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    Re: Gillon McLachlan should not be trying to influence Stephen Coniglio in his club choice

    If he's brazen enough to trot that out publicly you can imagine the backroom coercions they'd be driving on this and all matters near and dear to them.

    Those governing a bloody sporting competition shouldn't elicit the sort ire one usually saves for those governing the land, but they're just about there.
    BORDERLINE FLYING

  6. #5
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    Re: Gillon McLachlan should not be trying to influence Stephen Coniglio in his club choice

    Quote Originally Posted by Topdog View Post
    Who wrote that article? Its spot on of course. Gil is far too vocal on these types of things
    Paul Johnson. Can't say I've ever heard of him before.

    Sports Reporter
    Paul has more than a decade of news and sport experience having previously worked in Australia and in London for Australian Associated Press. During that time he's been on the scene for some big events including the Westminster Terror attacks but definitely enjoyed covering the Monaco Grand Prix and Wimbledon - was also cageside for that time Ronda Rousey lost her aura in Melbourne. A big fan of the Boston Celtics and Geelong Cats, he can usually be found on the beach or travelling overseas and hiking in his downtime.

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  8. #6
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    Re: Gillon McLachlan should not be trying to influence Stephen Coniglio in his club choice

    Quote Originally Posted by Rocket Science View Post
    If he's brazen enough to trot that out publicly you can imagine the backroom coercions they'd be driving.
    Spot on

  9. #7
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    Re: Gillon McLachlan should not be trying to influence Stephen Coniglio in his club choice

    Quote Originally Posted by Rocket Science View Post
    If he's brazen enough to trot that out publicly you can imagine the backroom coercions they'd be driving on this and all matters near and dear to them.

    Those governing a bloody sporting competition shouldn't elicit the sort ire one usually saves for those governing the land, but they're just about there.
    It is absolutely staggering that he would even comment on an individual player movement like that, let alone express an opinion that the player should stay at the club.

  10. #8
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    Re: Gillon McLachlan should not be trying to influence Stephen Coniglio in his club choice

    Gilligan is so hopelessly out of his depth and is a symbol of how incompetence can be rewarded if you come from the right bloodlines and have good Kennedy-esque presidential hair.

    He has no business whatsoever entering into list management discussions of the clubs. With any luck this prick will be shown the door by the commission at year's end, and hopefully his arsehole dimwit brother can go with him as a bonus package deal.
    "Look at me mate. Look at me. I'm flyin'"

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  12. #9
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    Re: Gillon McLachlan should not be trying to influence Stephen Coniglio in his club choice

    His brother is going to be hosting the Brownlow! What a team they will make...…...

    These two are prime examples of white male privilege. Completely unremarkable the pair of them.
    Nobody's looking for a puppeteer in today's wintry economic climate.

  13. #10
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    Re: Gillon McLachlan should not be trying to influence Stephen Coniglio in his club choice

    Quote Originally Posted by westdog54 View Post
    It is absolutely staggering that he would even comment on an individual player movement like that, let alone express an opinion that the player should stay at the club.
    I can recall Gill's heartfelt public agitations on our behalf when Ward and Harbrow were toying with leaving the club that raised them too, can't you?

    Pardon my Gallic but f*ck these totally corrupt vandals. The game's a mere vehicle for the personal advancement of themselves and their cronies.
    BORDERLINE FLYING

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