Roast A Public Relations Mess- Aug 24th 2016

[kool kangas]

I'll be going to the game this week , not to protest the decision or boo Brad Scott but to support the team and thank Boomer, Petrie, Firrito and DalSanto for their contribution by playing for North Melbourne. l hope that these decisions that the club has made towards the players will galvanise the team, and supporters, of North, in trying to give them the best possible outcome to farewell them not only for this week but the rest of the season. It would be nothing worse that to have the team run onto the ground and here booing and jeering from supporters as Brad Scott and the rest of the coaches take up their positions. l've been following North for over 40 years and while l don't like what has happened, especially to Boomer, l will accept it as what the management feels it best for the club, for l am North Melbourne....

 

[Viper2Jester]

It is a mystery to me why so many supporters of other clubs have such strong views on this. Although unsurprising that so many then take their complete lack of knowledge about North's list and use it to tell us how we should be feeling.

If we re-signed Boomer we would be told how pathetic we are to still rely on him, that we are dads army, going nowhere with same players etc etc.

Now we've retired him to focus on the future we have now shafted a club legend, have given up on future years, amateurish club etc etc.

Pure stupidity

 

[Holycrap]

PR Disaster??? This is as good as the census bloke saying the system was hacked!!

The whole press conference and the way the 4 were handled was quite amateurish..and if the idea of trying to avoided media scrutiny has somewhat backfired on the club!!
Question should be asked is if fathead and the board thought Spud, Drew, NDS and Boomer had no future in 2017, why play them? You can't say youth policy when you've only debuted 2 players yet consistently showed intent with the above even when out of form?
The word 'reset'...so is it a mini rebuild? Does fathead admit that this group won't contend next year? Who's idea was it to draft older mature age players?Does this mean we've already conceded the 2016 finals?If there is a direction of youth, why even play in the finals?

I could go on and on but, and as many have pointed out, the club could have and should have sat each player down around R17-18 and told them straight and how they want to handle their retirement speech therefore avoiding both the embarrassment of club and player.

 

[shintemaster]

I'm not convinced the Hawthorn decision was the right one. But to me its a non-issue having won a few flags. Who cares if the extra year for the old blokes means we tank in 2017? For North, there seems to be an element of urgency about cleaning out the list to become contenders again asap. But what I can't see is who will replace Harvey in particular-20+ possessions and 1-2 goals a game! I also think Petrie is still a dangerous forward and has some good games left in him. Is North thinking Majak Daw? Sorry- a real athlete but wanders around the ground like he's lost.

I'm on the outside but I think at least one or two of those Hawthorn ones were the wrong ones (from a 2017 performance perspective) - but as you rightly point out. Winning 3 flags in a few years means that you can afford to be a bit more generous.

 

[Kanga1996]

Unfortunately the whole thing appears rushed. Where were the board members during this press conference? Not a huge fan of Brads but gees they hung him out to dry IMO.


By now every AFL player has seen that press conference & like it or not you have to compare how we handled ourselves to the other clubs because isn’t that what the players will be doing when considering a new club?

 

[BlueRoos]

If we re-signed Boomer we would be told how pathetic we are to still rely on him, that we are dads army, going nowhere etc etc.

Now we've retired him to focus on the future we have now shafted a club legend, have given up on future years, amateurish club etc etc.

Pure stupidity

Yeah the Club could not win in the court of public opinion either way it went.

It illustrates the futility in worrying about what other people think. You can't control what they think, and you are damned if you do and damned if you don't. I don't like the Boomer decision at all, but I respect that the Club had made a firm decision and is sticking by what it believes are the best interests of NMFC.

 

[Hearts to hearts]

Apparently Port is not renewing Jay Schulz's contract. I saw it on Twitter. Waiting for outrage.

The kind of protesters preparing for Saturday night would have also been front and centre when Hawks traded Trent Croad for pick 1. Remember the demonstrations and anger? What a PR disaster that was. At the time.

 

[Gasometer]

One thing I learnt about the Goodes booing incident is that as much as we on BF think we are the majority of opinion....we ain't.

If the North crowd carries on like a pork chop Saturday night...or not...we have no say in it on BF.

 

[Orange Peanut]

Apparently Port is not renewing Jay Schulz's contract.

Worth a look?

 

[Gasometer]

Worth a look?

Go the doubleheader...Shulz and Vickery.

 

[BlueRoos]

Worth a look?

 

[Caracas]

Unfortunately the whole thing appears rushed. Where were the board members during this press conference? Not a huge fan of Brads but gees they hung him out to dry IMO.


By now every AFL player has seen that press conference & like it or not you have to compare how we handled ourselves to the other clubs because isn’t that what the players will be doing when considering a new club?

Thankfully, now we have seen that it wasn't at all rushed. Indeed, it has been well handled by all concerned. Unfortunately, some people on the periphery didn't handle things well and managed to compare Brent Harvey to Bambi! What an insult.

 

[brickstobricks]

How many times have gone passed the media manager this year alone? Poor decision makers at the top. He'll be the next out, by waliking.

 

[Roozee]

Apparently Port is not renewing Jay Schulz's contract. I saw it on Twitter.

Worth a look?

 

[Event Horizon]

Apparently Port is not renewing Jay Schulz's contract. I saw it on Twitter. Waiting for outrage.

The kind of protesters preparing for Saturday night would have also been front and centre when Hawks traded Trent Croad for pick 1. Remember the demonstrations and anger? What a PR disaster that was. At the time.

To be fair Port isn't in finals, and Schulz isn't an AFL legend.

The club was put into a difficult position.

 

[danj]

This club that has been in existence for just shy of 150 years will not fade into oblivion because we retired a 4 blokes over 30.

Nicely off topic

 

[T4P]

Don't sign a player based on how well they have gone this year, you do it on how much you think they will be a part of the future. BS made the point yesterday that if 2017 was the last year on earth then he would pick them, but it's not. We have to think about 2017, 2018, 2019, etc. And if keeping Boomer was going to stunt the development of another kid, then it's a bad decision to keep him on.

I think the positive effect of developing a kid is outweighed by the negatives of the implication that club loyalty isn't taken into consideration.

Just my view, but sacrificing the development of one kid by one year (this is assuming that Boomer is taking the position of a kid, and that he does so for the entire year without supporting him or helping him develop) is better than the alternative of sending the message that the club doesn't care about loyalty

 

[Only Forwards]

Nicely off topic

Is it though?

Where people are talking about the culture of the club fracturing and all sorts of nonsense.

 

[danj]

Is it though?

Where people are talking about the culture of the club fracturing and all sorts of nonsense.

This was the topic:

"Whether you agree with the decision or not, the handling of the Scotts Four was a prime example of how not to retire players.

Amateurish.

Rushed.

Embarrassing.

I am off the mark with this?"

This was your response:

"This club that has been in existence for just shy of 150 years will not fade into oblivion because we retired a 4 blokes over 30."

So yeah I reckon you were off topic.

Whats your opinion about the "handling of the Scott's Four"?

 

[Only Forwards]

This was the topic:

"Whether you agree with the decision or not, the handling of the Scotts Four was a prime example of how not to retire players.

Amateurish.

Rushed.

Embarrassing.

I am off the mark with this?"

This was your response:

"This club that has been in existence for just shy of 150 years will not fade into oblivion because we retired a 4 blokes over 30."

So yeah I reckon you were off topic.

Whats your opinion about the "handling of the Scott's Four"?

The email to members aside, Im worried that weve moved on too many at once and damaged the culture of the club.

Destroyed it in a day.

Been saying for the last 6 months that the retirement (NOT "not renewing their contract") of Petrie and Boomer had to be staggered across two years. Petrie this year, Boomer next year.

What's my opinion? it was rushed through circumstances that were outside of our control. I would much prefer receiving notice of this via official email or the twitter account than I would having some ambulance chasing journo who hates us printing it after its leaked t the media.

 

[Horace]

I would have made the call at season's end. Period. Regardless of the player's wishes. Who is in charge here ye? I don't think the backlash from the fans would have been as severe at season's end. Likewise with the player's disappointment. Why? We win the Flag and who gives a shit? We get thumped in a Final and the forced retirements feel somewhat justified because of our failure. As my mate Onip would say " Too Early". :stern look

Absolutely spot on Zondor.

This did not need to happen until after the season is finished, because that is when all clubs conduct their list management reviews and make decisions. Prior to yesterday, our season was more than likely to finish on the second weekend in September. A full three weeks before the GF and plenty of time to get the delistees in, talk through the reasons and then give them a chance to retire in their own way.

I think a lot of supporters might well have felt less angst, had this occurred in two weeks after at least one more very disappointing loss, but probably two; and in the reflection of what has become a very disappointing year, I think a few more supporters might have been better able to cope with all of these departures. (Although I will never ever begin to understand why time was called on Boomer.)

Let's face facts people these four great servants of the club/game in the case of Nicky Dal, have been sacked

It is all very well for those who say these sackings had to happen and those of us who don't like it one bit should harden up. But the reality is we are engineered differently with different emotional reactions. That's how the human race is made. I do not expect others to react the way I do to certain situations any more than they should expect me to react the same way as they do.

And this in my view represents the danger for the club in acting as it did yesterday.

Some people for their own principled reasons will choose not to renew their memberships. Some will say "well let's see how the season starts next year before re-committing" and may be not in the long run re-commit. Some will use this an excuse to simply walk away from the club. In 1991, (I think it was) Gary Pert at Fitzroy suffered a season ending ACL. At that stage he was a champion full back, one of the best in the business. The Roys already in trouble financially told him they couldn't pay him and he left and went to Collingwood. An already struggling membership base lost people because of that. That's why I see the decision on Boomer having the potential for the club to shed members.

I will not judge people if they leave for this reason, if their decision not to re-commit to the club, is because they feel very much betrayed by the sacking of Boomer. Again I contrast that with the actions over at the Hawks. If I was a Hawks supporter, I would be bursting with pride at the way they have handled their old blokes in re-signing them for another year. Are they taklng a risk with those boys? Of course they are but they are also showing great respect to great servants of the club; and in doing so I suspect that many younger players over there will be quietly thinking to themselves, "gee not only have I had the chance to be a part of something special, but also I know our club will look after me if I perform my role like, Hodge, Gibson, Burgoyne and Mitchell.

Will our younger, middle age players have the same thoughts today? I very much doubt it.

 

[Event Horizon]

 

[Zondor]

What's my opinion? it was rushed through circumstances that were outside of our control. I would much prefer receiving notice of this via official email or the twitter account than I would having some ambulance chasing journo who hates us printing it after its leaked t the media.

Mate it was within our control. Bottom Line. The dicks that run our club have handled this very poorly. That is why it is the mess it is. :stern look

 

[Zondor]

Translation "Gobble, Gobble, Gobble". :stern look

 

[Only Forwards]

Mate it was within our control. Bottom Line. The dicks that run our club have handled this very poorly. That is why it is the mess it is. :stern look

The club wanted to wait, the players didn't, should the club have lied and said that no decision had been made?

Been a lot of talk of disrespect, but lying to the Bloke who's played more than anyone else would be pretty up there