News Adelaide Crows Camp Allegations and Rumors

[Gtowncrow]

Is Roo really the problem?
We had issues (see Tippett) before he was around.

Roo was FD when this disaster occured. I think this matter is serious enough to act upon this alone.

 

[Sanders]

But importantly you miss the point that Roo is an unpaid role. The football directors like Balme are paid employees, not a volunteer role
All the people getting paid handsome salaries got sacked as they were paid to sort this stuff out and failed



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Yes, but Balme is a head of football (employee) and not a football director (part time volunteer on board)

His is not the same role as Roo

Balme’s equivalent is Adam Kelly (before then Burton & Noble)

 

[Gtowncrow]

Well I’m sure Caroline would have confirmed her source but if there is any truth those players need to be put back in their place.

Or they were enthusiastic that Tex is going around again.

I think the target here is CW not our indigenous boys.

 

[Sanders]

I love Malcolm too but there's two problems with this: 1) Burton was Ricciuto's 'captain's call', a massively underqualified appointment, a disastrous tenure from start to finish and the camp was his idea, and 2) the problem was always more about the club's response to players' complaints about the camp and Roo and everyone else at the club was more than aware of the nitty gritty by that stage. He has consistently downplayed the concerns right up to the present. It's not and never has been about whether the board knew in advance what was planned for the camp.

I don’t agree. I think they failed to quell the disgruntled who didn’t want to be mollified.

The problem with the idea that certain players weren’t listened to, is that they almost certainly were heard, they just had demands the club wasn’t prepared to meet.

I think these were small complaints, made by big personalities, underestimated by the key senior leaders.

 

[Sanders]

Good post, I thought it was a poor take by Blighty.

I also think it's irrelevant who gets paid and who doesn't. I don't think if you are a volunteer it reduces good ethics and standards.

Let's also not pretend that the volunteers on the Board are doing anyone a great Community Service. They are in demand positions and they are not exactly cleaning the local retirement home for free.

Lastly, the AFL Board members past and present that I know are mainly in it raise their profile.

Malcolm isn’t wrong. He’s pointing out that many people don’t know what role the board plays

 

[6BTS]

Knew this would come back to bite the club when it refused to take full account at the time and once again tried to downplay, deflect and cover up. It's Tippett all over again, the same stink lingers from the Trigg days. There is zero accountability at the highest levels of the club and you're all agitators if you take issue to the way they do things.

The club is there to raise the profiles and access of a select few, nothing has changed, you are still nothing more than customers with money in their eyes. If you want to change things, stop giving them your support and your money, I did, but I'm just one person. Truth is the club will never change because they know they have enough of you wrapped around their little fingers, they are completely abusing your passion for an SA club being in the AFL. When a club has a constitution which avoids fan accountability, this sort of camp-like wrong doing is inevitable and these scandals never stop even when eventually old faces leave and new face arrive.

Strap on in for the next major scandal at the AFC, which will be downplayed, deflected and covered up by their expert PR tactics. It's coming, it's inevitable when a club is run with no proper accountability of the hierarchy. But ignore all that, focus on the football, guys. Gotta support the team or something like that, it's not the player's fault or something like that. Hey, whatever distracts from holding hierarchal figures to account. And the premiership-less cycle continues with periods of reprieve between scandals to restore your shaken faith, over and over again...

 

[feenix67]

I don’t agree. I think they failed to quell the disgruntled who didn’t want to be mollified.

The problem with the idea that certain players weren’t listened to, is that they almost certainly were heard, they just had demands the club wasn’t prepared to meet.

I think these were small complaints, made by big personalities, underestimated by the key senior leaders.

In Eddie's case, demands that included his family be flown to every away match.

 

[Slippery Pete]

I’m not surprised Malcolm thinks this is how boards work as he sat on a board that had the same unaccountable structure as Adelaide’s. Gold Coast’s board doesn’t answer to its members either.

Nobody’s arguing the board should’ve known what flavour of ice cream the players were eating at the camp dessert bar.

Members are incensed because in 2018 the message from the club, from the chairman down to the boot studder, was that there was nothing to see here.

Then they had the infamous “this isn’t about the camp but we’ll take questions about the camp” press conference that admitted the camp failed but persisted with the nothing to see here narrative.

You can go back and look at threads from 2018 to see how mad so many of us were back then. We were mad because the club was in unison on this fraudulent response, from the board downwards, and we KNEW it was bullshit.

Now, as I’ve said before, if there is evidence that some of these board members were as mad as we were, and attempted to get the club to change course on this disgusting sequence of events, I’m more than happy to consider it.

I am almost certain it doesn’t exist, and members know deep down it doesn’t exist, because they know what happened in 2018 was vintage Adelaide Football Club. It was entirely consistent with the board and the club’s pedigree.

 

[Mego Red]

I don’t agree. I think they failed to quell the disgruntled who didn’t want to be mollified.

The problem with the idea that certain players weren’t listened to, is that they almost certainly were heard, they just had demands the club wasn’t prepared to meet.

I think these were small complaints, made by big personalities, underestimated by the key senior leaders.

I think that's 100% true.

The club management (right or wrong) felt that some players were mentally weak and wanted the camp to challenge them. Some players then complained about the what they want through at the camp.

The club's error was hearing that and thinking "well, OF COURSE you would feel that way - this is why we DID the camp."

They weren't ever covering up something they felt was bad - they just genuinely didn't believe the disgruntled players had a right to feel that way. They had a "suck it up, princess" style response to the complaints.

 

[Slippery Pete]

I can’t believe people think it wasn’t covered up. It doesn’t have to be the Watergate scandal. Nobody’s saying Rob Chapman was behind the scenes twisting his moustache trying to figure out how to lie to members.

But in the quest for damage control he did lie to members and his board led a club that produced a public narrative that was such a colossal failure the club is still dealing with the fallout four and a half years later.

The camp was nothing you wouldn’t do at a workplace seminar. We have a happy playing group. There are no lingering issues!

These were abject, provable lies told to members from the top down — a nice glob of mayo on top of the incompetent staff who ran the football department into the ground.

I’m just not sure on what planet people believe those board members shouldn’t be accountable for these outcomes.

 

[Geoffa32]

Yes, but Balme is a head of football (employee) and not a football director (part time volunteer on board)

His is not the same role as Roo

Balme’s equivalent is Adam Kelly (before then Burton & Noble)

Could be a good role for Balme if he wants to come back home to Adelaide in his retirement.

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[Cap]

It still baffles me after all this time all this controversy, it boils down to two players who had their personal information mis used.


Don't get me wrong, that is woeful and should never have happened.

But how it's still going on after all this time is astounding. The cover up is always worse than the crime

 

[jackster83]

I can’t believe people think it wasn’t covered up. It doesn’t have to be the Watergate scandal. Nobody’s saying Rob Chapman was behind the scenes twisting his moustache trying to figure out how to lie to members.

But in the quest for damage control he did lie to members and his board led a club that produced a public narrative that was such a colossal failure the club is still dealing with the fallout four and a half years later.

The camp was nothing you wouldn’t do at a workplace seminar. We have a happy playing group. There are no lingering issues!

These were abject, provable lies told to members from the top down — a nice glob of mayo on top of the incompetent staff who ran the football department into the ground.

I’m just not sure on what planet people believe those board members shouldn’t be accountable for these outcomes.

When you put it like that, Fellows needs to be the first one gone from the board. Integrity my arse.

 

[WaynesWorld19]

The club management (right or wrong) felt that some players were mentally weak and wanted the camp to challenge them. Some players then complained about the what they want through at the camp.

Were they connected ?

 

[kirky]

In Eddie's case, demands that included his family be flown to every away match.

Is this fact or just rumour?

 

[kirky]

I’m not surprised Malcolm thinks this is how boards work as he sat on a board that had the same unaccountable structure as Adelaide’s. Gold Coast’s board doesn’t answer to its members either.

Nobody’s arguing the board should’ve known what flavour of ice cream the players were eating at the camp dessert bar.

Members are incensed because in 2018 the message from the club, from the chairman down to the boot studder, was that there was nothing to see here.

Then they had the infamous “this isn’t about the camp but we’ll take questions about the camp” press conference that admitted the camp failed but persisted with the nothing to see here narrative.

You can go back and look at threads from 2018 to see how mad so many of us were back then. We were mad because the club was in unison on this fraudulent response, from the board downwards, and we KNEW it was bullshit.

Now, as I’ve said before, if there is evidence that some of these board members were as mad as we were, and attempted to get the club to change course on this disgusting sequence of events, I’m more than happy to consider it.

I am almost certain it doesn’t exist, and members know deep down it doesn’t exist, because they know what happened in 2018 was vintage Adelaide Football Club. It was entirely consistent with the board and the club’s pedigree.

Both the clubs are controlled by the AFL.

Until the AFL releases its hold in 2028 as per the Constitution, the board will continue to remain unaccountable to the members other than the two voices on the board who we are able to vote for. The problem with this, is the sheep that is our members will always vote for one of our ex-players, currently Rod Jameson.

 

[kirky]

When you put it like that, Fellows needs to be the first one gone from the board. Integrity my arse.

You do understand the irony with Linda Fellows - Linda being the Assistant Commissioner (Operations Support) SA Police and Board Member Crimestoppers!

Previously held

• Officer in Charge - Ethical & Professional Standards Branch
• Officer in Charge - Drug Investigation Branch

Linda is certainly qualified as Deputy Chairman.

 

[Sanders]

There is zero accountability at the highest levels of the club and you're all agitators if you take issue to the way they do things.

Given the number of sackings at the highest levels of the club, that seems a bit hard to agree with

 

[Sanders]

The club's error was hearing that and thinking "well, OF COURSE you would feel that way - this is why we DID the camp."

Exactly. And I’m not totally sure there wasn’t at least some merit in it too

 

[WaynesWorld19]

It still baffles me after all this time all this controversy, it boils down to two players who had their personal information mis used.

Only 2 ?? ......seems odd

 

[Mr_Moogle]

The club correctly identified that mental weakness was an issue. They just went about remedying that in the worst way possible. There seems to have been absolutely no introspection done by the coaching group either. They put it all on the players.

 

[Geoffa32]

You do understand the irony with Linda Fellows - Linda being the Assistant Commissioner (Operations Support) SA Police and Board Member Crimestoppers!

Previously held

• Officer in Charge - Ethical & Professional Standards Branch
• Officer in Charge - Drug Investigation Branch

Linda is certainly qualified as Deputy Chairman.

And yet a key part of the Pavlich/Dunstall review was Governance issues.

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[Cap]

Only 2 ?? ......seems odd

That we know about

I notice I've moved on Jenkins has now lodged a FOI to get the worksafe report.

Be interesting if he gets it.

 

[LeftyLuke]

The club correctly identified that mental weakness was an issue. They just went about remedying that in the worst way possible. There seems to have been absolutely no introspection done by the coaching group either. They put it all on the players.

Is every grand finalist that loses mentally weak or just the crows? That game was lost at selection and in the coaches box. Pyke sat their in a daze doing nothing making no changes. The players then took all the blame. A decent coach would have got the players in the right frame of mind for the game.

He then has the gall to apologise 4 years later for the camp and the media including that so called journalist Damian Barrett let him off the hook. Pyke shouldn't ever be considered for a head coaching job.

 

[jenny61_99]

Correct. Name a player in the AFL who had a more destructive influence on their club post footy than Roo? I can think of one.

JFC. James Hird ring a bell????