Esswendon

A cherished upbringing, built around respect, adored my parents, only regret they didn’t live long enough to see their 3 beautiful Grandchildren. Love my family

[Andrew Philippou @AndrewPhilippou]

Disturbing if Mark Robinson's information is true
If the information being reported by Mark Robinson is accurate, then this changes the situation dramatically for me and I suspect, for many other Essendon supporters.

If true, the Essendon board needs to seriously consider whether it has the confidence of its members and supporters, and whether some board members should consider their positions.
This has been my fear throughout the entire coaching process.

From the very beginning, Caroline Wilson was adamant that James Hird would not be appointed Essendon's senior coach. She indicated that she had very strong information from within the Essendon camp that Hird was not going to be seriously considered for the position.
But Hird and his campaign team made it almost impossible for the club to ignore him.

What followed was, in my opinion, one of the strongest campaigns for a senior coaching position I have seen. Hird presented his case, articulated his vision and generated enormous support from the Essendon faithful.
Then something changed.
Halfway through the process, his body language changed. His language became noticeably more uncertain and, at times, despondent. It was as though something had happened behind the scenes.

Then came the media reports.
Tom Morris, who was close to the Hird camp, stated after the interviews had been completed that, in his view, Mark McVeigh was the favourite for the job and that Hird was unlikely to get it.
That was significant.
And the club knew something else: the Essendon supporter base overwhelmingly wanted Hird.
The sentiment I was seeing was around 70–30 in Hird's favour.

If the club had announced McVeigh before the season had finished, it had to know there could have been an enormous backlash, anger, protests, member dissatisfaction and potentially a genuine supporter revolt.
So, the announcement was delayed until after the Port Adelaide game.
Now we come to Mark Robinson.
Robinson is not some outsider looking through the window. He is a lifelong Essendon person and has maintained close connections within the football club.

If what Robinson has now reported is true, then this is no longer simply a disagreement over whether James Hird was the best candidate.
It raises much bigger questions.
Were supporters deliberately kept in the dark?
Was the coaching process genuinely open and transparent?
Had the decision effectively been made before the interviews were conducted?
And if it had, why was the process allowed to continue?
Those are extremely serious questions.
I have supported Essendon all my life. I have been a member since 1980. I don't want another political fight inside our football club. I don't want another civil war between supporters, board members and football department.
I want the best person to coach Essendon.
If that person is Mark McVeigh, then I sincerely hope he succeeds. I will support him because he is now Essendon's coach.
But if the allegations being raised are true, the issue is no longer Mark McVeigh.
The issue becomes the integrity of the process and the accountability of the people who made the decisions.
And if the board has lost the trust of a significant section of its members, then the board cannot simply ignore that.
Essendon supporters deserve answers.
Not spin.
Not carefully prepared statements.
Not silence.
Answers.
Because if Mark Robinson's information is correct, what has happened at Essendon could be far more disturbing than simply getting the coaching appointment wrong.

[Em1r @Em1rzz4]

Regardless of the outcome I hope James Hird knows the Essendon faithful still adore him and would have loved to see him have a chance at redemption!

To go through everything he had to endure and to front up and put your hand up to coach this club again is a true testament to his courage and character!

A true champion on and off the field!

We love ya Hirdy ❤️

#JamesHird #Essendon #AFL #Bombers

[Kris @krsdmn04]

@EthNick_ @essendonfc @Andrew12Welsh Couldn’t have pulled this club any further apart if you tried @Andrew12Welsh

[Richard Hallett @RichardHallett8]

For Essendon to leak their coaching appointment to the media after the final game of the year, and in doing so avoiding having to front up to ‘own’ the announcement is a disgrace. Not even a phone call to the likes of James Hird. It shows all that is wrong with the club. Weak leadership, no standards and no accountability. I was hoping for the return of some backbone and a strong collective vision for the future. Essendon supporters got the opposite…

[Esswendon @Esswendon]

@AnkushGoyal24 The current president who also said that Brad Scott will be our next premiership coach, then turned around and sacked him. What a joke.

[Esswendon @Esswendon]

@SpallieraL @krsdmn04 @essendonfc @Andrew12Welsh Pathetic are the supporters who continually accept mediocrity. Until it hits the hip pocket of the club, nothing will change.

[Esswendon @Esswendon]

@AnkushGoyal24 Nailed it.

[Esswendon @Esswendon]

It needs to be acknowledged by the Essendon board that they are 9 people voting on the best person to coach OUR team. 80% of supporters want Hird, how about they listen to us for once. Recent decisions by them have been disgraceful.

[Ankush Goyal @AnkushGoyal24]

@Esswendon This is what happens when you have more appointed members on the board than the ones elected by members

[Esswendon @Esswendon]

@jdestoop80 Yeah you must have.

[Esswendon @Esswendon]

@Pez96416 Very well said

[Esswendon @Esswendon]

@jdestoop80 Why don’t you contact Matthew Lloyd and ask him where he got his figures from? I’m sure there were many people heard him say it on Footy Classified last week. Various polls conducted by Essendon supporters same result.

[Don D @shhokr]

@Esswendon Don’t forget there were current board members who appointed Scott and current board members who extended his contract on the back of nothing how did that work out for them give the majority of members what they want ffs

[Esswendon @Esswendon]

@jdestoop80 Yes 80%. Recent polls and Matthew Lloyd said it the other night on Footy Classified.

[Esswendon @Esswendon]

@rohan_connolly @_itsme_xo Absolute disgraceful decision, he deserves to be in the side. So many angry supporters over another wrong decision. On the odd occasion that Elijah is in the side, he tries his guts out. So so wrong, why he is the first one omitted. We know who we want omitted-the decision maker

[Esswendon @Esswendon]

@Shi_alma27 @CommBank Fully agree their customer service is atrocious. The countless times they put customer’s on hold, the line drops out and cuts off. They should call the customer back, the customer is inconvenienced by having to call again and go through all the verification procedures again.

[Esswendon @Esswendon]

@BrucePh51819561 We miss Graeme very much.

[Esswendon @Esswendon]

Is there someone out there, who can run the Essendon Football Club like Graeme McMahon did? If there is please stand up. I bet that certain people would not be in the positions they are currently in. Enough of this shit.

[Esswendon @Esswendon]

@3AW693 And that’s why I don’t listen to 3AW anymore.