Going out on a limb here, Kennett should step down/be forced to step down as President

[Easy Slips Catch]

...............
I do know that I absolutely can't stand the bloke though.

I can live with that!

I cant live with a Hawthorn person turning on a hard working Hawthorn person for voicing an opinion at a charity evening.

 

[flyby hawk]

The Birch - can you declare that you are a Hawthorn Man (Member/Supporter)????

 

[crawf_legend]

Now have we all lost it because Kennett told the Melbourne FC to reloacte because of the way they are playing?

IMO Kennett made a valid point in saying what he did say. I say Melbourne look at what he said as motivation to rebuild and not say 'Melbourne fans, come to game tomorrow to stick it up Jeff'. They over reacted and were immature and Jeff Kennett should continue being president!

 

[The Birch]

The Birch - can you declare that you are a Hawthorn Man (Member/Supporter)????

Sure can flyby hawk, been a member since 2001 mate, a member through the dark yrs of 2004 - 2007 and reaping the good yrs of 07, 08 and hopefully many more yrs to come.

I realise i do not have hawthorn as my supported team,now that has been pointed out to me, how do I correct that?

 

[Gilbert_Hodge]

Meh. Not a big fan of the bloke..... But his passion for Hawthorn is what I like. Someone just put some tape on his mouth and we will be right.

 

[numchuks]

How can you expect blokes like Mark Williams to behave, when your own President runs his mouth in the media.

Not setting a good example is Jeff.

 

[rdhopkins2]

Melbourne can thank Jeff if he spurs them to save their club. Would rather it not have been Jeff that said it but someone had to.

 

[RustyHawk]

How can you expect blokes like Mark Williams to behave, when your own President runs his mouth in the media.

Not setting a good example is Jeff.

This was an invited panel of the most powerful AFL club Presidents. McGuire, Smorgan and Kennett.

If they needed some comedy relief I suppose they could have ordered up your president but then again he seems to think it is fine to denegrate women.

Your President is a gay icon who wears a mankini, ours doesnt (and thank god for that)

Our President was asked what advice he would give Jim Stynes if he took over as Pres. of Melbourne, yours wasn't.

Your club needs special assistance from the AFL just to survive. Ours doesnt.

Get the picture numnuts.

 

[Goldhawk]

Well said RustyHawk.

 

[Pessimistic]

One point.

Kennet was not in the mix when we appointed clarkson - in fact there have been strong rumours he wanted to lure Lethal back (which is a very 'jeff' thing to do)

Tomorrow HFC members can go to the melbourne home game for free, in liew of one of the games (last week or next) which have been outsourced to tassie.

I dont even think they are on FTA.

Why rub the MFC up the wrong way when they help out ?

In fact if the MFC moved to the gold coast it couldn;t be a designated game so thae deal wiould be less likely ( youd be back to designated games at the dome - it would be one less MCG game at the least

 

[McLean_4_Captain]

This was an invited panel of the most powerful AFL club Presidents. McGuire, Smorgan and Kennett.

If they needed some comedy relief I suppose they could have ordered up your president but then again he seems to think it is fine to denegrate women.

Your President is a gay icon who wears a mankini, ours doesnt (and thank god for that)

Our President was asked what advice he would give Jim Stynes if he took over as Pres. of Melbourne, yours wasn't.

Your club needs special assistance from the AFL just to survive. Ours doesnt.

Get the picture numnuts.

I couldn't read that and not comment.

Hawthorn supporters have lined up to sink the boot into Gardner for being a petty, name-calling Flog(not my word but from another thread).

And then you, a mod on the Hawks board does exactly same thing, but even more directly then Gardner, because a north fan gives his opinion and it differs to yours.

 

[Mojo]

Meh. Not a big fan of the bloke..... But his passion for Hawthorn is what I like. Someone just put some tape on his mouth and we will be right.

A little rough. Sure his comments were over the top, and not many people like him, but Phil is a well respected poster..

 

[GAMBLER]

One point.

Kennet was not in the mix when we appointed clarkson - in fact there have been strong rumours he wanted to lure Lethal back (which is a very 'jeff' thing to do)

Tomorrow HFC members can go to the melbourne home game for free, in liew of one of the games (last week or next) which have been outsourced to tassie.

I dont even think they are on FTA.

Why rub the MFC up the wrong way when they help out ?

In fact if the MFC moved to the gold coast it couldn;t be a designated game so thae deal wiould be less likely ( youd be back to designated games at the dome - it would be one less MCG game at the least

If Melbourne went there'd be 10 open games to play in Melbourne, probably 5 at the MCG. At a guess, we'd probably play 8-9 home games at the MCG and only 2-3 in Tassie due to the availability of grounds in Melbourne.

 

[RustyHawk]

I couldn't read that and not comment.

Hawthorn supporters have lined up to sink the boot into Gardner for being a petty, name-calling Flog(not my word but from another thread).

And then you, a mod on the Hawks board does exactly same thing, but even more directly then Gardner, because a north fan gives his opinion and it differs to yours.

Woot?

He doesnt wear mankini's?

He isnt a gay icon?

I believe these are "labels" that describe a certain club president. Nothing to do with name calling. All to do with how different people are seen in the community. Kennett goes to high powered AFL functions whilst James tries to get a gig at the comedy festival....

As regards "having a go" because a north fan gives an opinion and it differs from mine....What would have me do? Role over and start crying like your President?

Finally on the Hawthorn forum I will express my opinion. Dont like it, a) dont read it, b) Dont post here.

 

[McLean_4_Captain]

As regards "having a go" because a north fan gives an opinion and it differs from mine....What would have me do? Role over and start crying like your President?

I was going to leave it, hawthorn board and all, fair enough points you made.

But i'll have you know that our president didn't role over and start crying, he resorted to petty name-calling and has now made himself the laughing stock of all the club presidents.

They showed him writing his presidents lunch speech on TV, which Kennett is meant to be attending, and from what they showed he was again going to call him the president of the Tasmanian Hawks. I hope that there's no press at the lunch tomorrow, Gardner has embarrassed himself enough already.

 

[Hawkk]

I was going to leave it, hawthorn board and all, fair enough points you made.

But i'll have you know that our president didn't role over and start crying, he resorted to petty name-calling and has now made himself the laughing stock of all the club presidents.

They showed him writing his presidents lunch speech on TV, which Kennett is meant to be attending, and from what they showed he was again going to call him the president of the Tasmanian Hawks. I hope that there's no press at the lunch tomorrow, Gardner has embarrassed himself enough already.

Agree

A Melbourne fan that makes sense, surely an alias?

 

[Gilbert_Hodge]

A little rough. Sure his comments were over the top, and not many people like him, but Phil is a well respected poster..

Hahaha arseh*le.

 

[RustyHawk]

I was going to leave it, hawthorn board and all, fair enough points you made.

But i'll have you know that our president didn't role over and start crying, he resorted to petty name-calling and has now made himself the laughing stock of all the club presidents.

They showed him writing his presidents lunch speech on TV, which Kennett is meant to be attending, and from what they showed he was again going to call him the president of the Tasmanian Hawks. I hope that there's no press at the lunch tomorrow, Gardner has embarrassed himself enough already.

(Now now Hawkk... that would not have been easy to write.)

My view of your President is:
1) He is doing a job that no one else really wants. Nobody is putting their hand up to "save" the MFC except Jimmy Stynes who is a club legend and wisely has acknowledged he had other projects that he needed to complete before taking on the presidency. I just wonder if JS is the answer though? Sadly there is no JK or Eddie Mac or David Smorgon stepping up to take over. Whilst I cannot recall the names I remember being impressed by the list of possibles. It is a true shame for the MFC that these people cannot step up.

2) He is doing a job that is beyond him. He lacks that spark of vision, of leadership that makes people follow them till the ends of the earth. In his defence he did take the job and has kept the Board intact and the club going. A good interim President but has stayed too long.

3) Pressure. He has acknowledged that he has to earn a salary as well as be club president. How he has managed to combine those two for that long suprises and quite frankly impresses me.

4) Financial pressure. Being a club director means he is liable for the debts of the club that cannot be paid by the club. That would be a fairly heavy sword hanging over the top of his head along with everything else.

The reason he started "crying" [my words] is because I think defence is the only form of attack as he has no alternative vision to offer. Yes we know about Casey but the far more immediate problem is the withdrawal of AFL money next season and beyond.

In the end IMHO there is a lot wrong with the Paul Gardiner Presidency. He is the wrong man for the job however for all that he still should not be totally condemmed. At least he tried and for that I admire him.

 

[mollyfud]

Call it an over-reaction if you will, but I really think Jeff should step down as President at the end of the year. He's done a great job as President for us, but I think it's reached the point now where his comments are not only hurting the reputation of the Hawthorn Football Club, but possibly affecting the way could perform against their opposition on the field.

Correct me if i'm wrong, but when he started, didn't he say hoe he would be a 'behind the scenes kind of guy'. He tried to mute all of the clubs public appearances in the media. He even wanted Crawf off the footy show.

Fast forward to today. At the end of 2007, he called for the Kangaroos to move to the Gold Coast. Yesterday, he called for Melbourne to move to the Coast. What purpose do these comments serve? Did he expect the North and Melbourne CEO to sit up and say, "Well, now that Jeff's said it, that's the be all and the end all, let's make the move".

Ofcourse not. Instead, i'd be pretty sure that both the supporters and members of North and Melbourne would hope that these comments come back to bite Jeff.

Hypothetically, say Hawthorn finds itself struggling in 10 years time. Do you think Melbourne, North and other smaller Victorian clubs such as the Bulldogs will be there for us, offering a helping hand in our time of need?

Jeff needs to either shut up for good (I give it 3 months, tops) or leave the Presidency with dignity at the end of the season.

Phil, its an over reaction!
Molly

 

[OneEyedHawk]

LOL, Phil Hawks comments are just laughable ,

I think Phil Hawk needs to make an apology of his ill informed comments, but hey, we all make mistakes.

No, you suggesting Phil needs to make an apology is what's laughable.

 

[play2win]

what is in the water this week? 2 of my most respected posters philhawk with this thread and hawkk with his thread about needing a loss.....and the footy results thus far?? just one of those weeks i guess.

without really thinking about it i once said to a mate that the hawks should look to trade mitchell because he'd be worth a lot in the trade market and we still had great inside mids with hodge, lewis, sewell & co. thinking about it, it was a bludy stupid thought/comment. everyone has a weak moment or two or............

no point in repeating other posters but.......why on earth does melbourne deserve any respect with the current state the club is in?

 

[Flukey!]

Last points I will add:

1. Kennett didnt become President by winning a popularity contest. Guys at this level are not there to be nice guys. They are there to make our club successful. Period!

2. People often say things to get a response.

He knew what he was saying and there will be a reason behind it.

 

[McLean_4_Captain]

(Now now Hawkk... that would not have been easy to write.)

My view of your President is:
1) He is doing a job that no one else really wants. Nobody is putting their hand up to "save" the MFC except Jimmy Stynes who is a club legend and wisely has acknowledged he had other projects that he needed to complete before taking on the presidency. I just wonder if JS is the answer though? Sadly there is no JK or Eddie Mac or David Smorgon stepping up to take over. Whilst I cannot recall the names I remember being impressed by the list of possibles. It is a true shame for the MFC that these people cannot step up.

2) He is doing a job that is beyond him. He lacks that spark of vision, of leadership that makes people follow them till the ends of the earth. In his defence he did take the job and has kept the Board intact and the club going. A good interim President but has stayed too long.

3) Pressure. He has acknowledged that he has to earn a salary as well as be club president. How he has managed to combine those two for that long suprises and quite frankly impresses me.

4) Financial pressure. Being a club director means he is liable for the debts of the club that cannot be paid by the club. That would be a fairly heavy sword hanging over the top of his head along with everything else.

The reason he started "crying" [my words] is because I think defence is the only form of attack as he has no alternative vision to offer. Yes we know about Casey but the far more immediate problem is the withdrawal of AFL money next season and beyond.

In the end IMHO there is a lot wrong with the Paul Gardiner Presidency. He is the wrong man for the job however for all that he still should not be totally condemmed. At least he tried and for that I admire him.

It's a long and impressive list, but none are currently in position to or are willing to step up to he plate. It includes Ron Walker, Don Argus (Chairman BHP Billiton), Graeme Samuel (Chairman ACCC), Ian Johnson (MD Channel 7).

We don't have an eddie and it seems that Jimmy is the only man willing, but i have doubts that he as the business knowledge required to not just run the club, but revive it. I hope he proves me wrong and he may by having the right people around him, but i'm genuinely worried about the long term future of my football club.

Gardner has been a decent president in his time, he was what we needed when he came in and was sucessful in most of his years in the role, but it seems that he has hung on about a year too long, but he cannot be blamed for this. His term is in fact until the end of 2009, but he has long said that when a suitable replacement puts their hand up he'll step aside.

His "crying" as you put it was indeed the sign of a desperate man, with few other options, to not respond is weakness and i did not believe an option, but to respond like this wasn't exactly as i'd hoped. I think the long term future of the MFC may depend on having some sort of north melbourne style crisis to bring everyone out of the wood work, hopefully Kennett's cage rattling can have us all a little better prepared then NM in '08.

 

[Noneedforaname]

Im quite surprised by the apparent double standard that I see here.

First of all, Clarko slams the real Mark Williams for an apparent on feild insult of 'Choko' Mark Williams; then supports Jeffro for an even greater, pre meditated insult of a rival club, and one which we are about to play! Do you think Clarko could have said, "Hey Jeff, wait till after we've played them". I mean, he doesn't want Port Adelaide storing up any ammunition for when they next play us, and apparently thats what an insult would do. On the other hand, insulting Melbourne is no problem. "We are about to play them, they are bottom feeders, so go right ahead Jeff. Clearly they are incapable of rising to the challenge, or the insult". Stinks a little, and has me wondering what Clarkos real issue is with Willo.

Jeffro, is a media player and knew precisely what he was doing, and what the outcome was going to be. Im inclined to agree that he was doing the Dees a favour by stirring the pot (ala. Mundine talking up a fight!).
Off feild - in the media, and to the footballing public though, he makes the Hawks look more arrogant than anything Willo did. Clarko would have done well to have passed the buck on it.

All this aside, Im suprised Jeff has bothered to raise his head on this issue. He kept plenty silent when stooge Tim Lane was questioning our Tassie arrangment, and that more than anything else should have been dealt with by the Pres. These few exceptions aside, I dont have any problem with Jeff. If push comes to shove, he's the president I would want fronting our club, he has the nous, the experience, the contacts etc to lead our club in the right direction.

What I do have a problem with, and is one of my main concerns with the Hawks in the next few years is the limit on terms years in Office. Was some time in the last 6 months (maybe when we released the aim of 50,000 members, after the AGM? (five2Fifty??)) that we announced, but it seemed to have been caught up in the hysteria of the the massive membership aim etc, and slipped most by. I cant find anything mentioning this now so I feel a bit of a Dubbo.
At the peak of our game, and when we will be striving to create a dynasty, the board will be forced into turmoil. OK, so we dont want to create a stangant environment, then a Sheedy like upset to the club, but did we have to set some of these things in stone? If Jeff, and the rest of the board are doing a great job, why would we want to break the winning formula.

I see this potential for turmoil as great a threat as player management in a few years. It worries me that this is something completely within our control, and we've opted for the cop out solution of putting limits on terms in office.

 

[Noneedforaname]

I should have read the post above before posting.

I finally found the post regarding the capping of board members and presidential terms of office. http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showthread.php?t=403130&highlight=five2fifty

Also, I just wanted to add, Jeffs doing fine. Melbourne, and useless media commentators couldnt have asked anything more of Jeff to talk up this weeks game, so they should be patting him on the back.
Now though Jeff, please go back to your corner and concentrate on things Hawthorn.