Update

Just to advise that I posted this on Facebook last night.

Devastated. Just been advised by phone that I have been sacked as West Adelaide Football Club President. Corporatisation seems to be the way they want the club to go.


I’ve had so much support in response and I very much thank those who have expressed that support.

Whether people have agreed with what I have achieved as President or not, I am sure everyone will accept that I have always had the best interests of the Club at heart at all times and I will miss those people who have always supported me.

Reguardless of right or wrong the members voted for the change to a predominately non elected board and the existing board agreed to stand down at the time of the AGM to allow this to occur.

In line with this the club called for expressions of interest from those who wished to be considered for appointment to the board and now is in the process of advising those who were unsuccessfull in line with normal business practice.

What i find absolutely disgracefull is that a club Life Member and a 40 year volunteer of the club was advised via a telephone call rather than being advised in a more appropriate manner. But given that the person making the phone call is more of an SANFL man than a westies man then its not surprising.

I belive that it will shortly be announced that the club will have its third profit in a row with a significant reduction in overall club debt so hard to suggest Lee and the outgoing board was unsuccessfull.

Lee, as a life member i am embarressed in how you were treated and as such at this time i will be withdrawing from contact with westies

At this time i have no knowledge of who will be appointed to the new board and like other members i wait for the announcement.

Having said this i predict that the two existing board members who drove this for the SANFL will be rewarded by being appointed to the new board in the position they request.

No names at this time but two cryptic clues which will allow other posters to verify my prediction after the announcement --- FOOTBALL ---- LEGAL

Lee, As a loyal supporter over 6 decades, I sincerely thank you for all your hard work & hours of dedication that you have given the club over so many years. In my humble opinion you are irreplaceable.
You have been the driving force behind turning us around from the basket case we were not too long ago to an entity that is now trading profitably. This has allowed us to finally do some recruiting.
Your efforts should be acknowledged by the Club & you deserve to be treated so much better. Shame on the Club.
I fear for the future of the Club as it appears to me that we will simply be a puppet of the SANFL.
Once again Lee thanks for all your volunteer (unpaid) work & I wish you all the best.

Wolfman Jack wrote:Lee, As a loyal supporter over 6 decades, I sincerely thank you for all your hard work & hours of dedication that you have given the club over so many years. In my humble opinion you are irreplaceable.
You have been the driving force behind turning us around from the basket case we were not too long ago to an entity that is now trading profitably. This has allowed us to finally do some recruiting.
Your efforts should be acknowledged by the Club & you deserve to be treated so much better. Shame on the Club.
I fear for the future of the Club as it appears to me that we will simply be a puppet of the SANFL.
Once again Lee thanks for all your volunteer (unpaid) work & I wish you all the best.

I agree with everything you have said Wolfman Jack. There are a few people who should be hanging their heads in shame but Lee is not one of them. Good, hard-working loyal volunteers are hard to find. To discard one of the best is unforgiveable. Good luck Lee on your future endeavours.

From WAFC website:

As you are aware, the West Adelaide Football Club is currently undergoing a leadership restructuring process to improve its operations both on and off the field through a best practice board structure.

The Nominations Committee appointed by the Board in 2018 has now completed the process of identifying the five people who will be nominated to the WAFC Board at the Annual General Meeting to be held on February 25. As part of the process, the current Board Members agreed unanimously to step down at the AGM to allow the formation of a new board to lead the Club forward. The process could not have progressed without the support of the current Board who recognised a need for a more progressive and diverse skill set to improve the off-field performance and thrive as a successful Club in the future.

Therefore we are pleased to announce the appointment of the five nominated Directors:

Mr Murray Forbes (President)

Murray has recently retired from his role as the Dealer Principal at City Mazda, a position he held since 2008. During his time at City Mazda, Murray earned several national awards and provided valuable support to West Adelaide Football Club as the naming rights sponsor to the stadium. During his time in the automotive industry, Murray has developed exceptional knowledge and understanding of company finances and corporate governance. Murray is a founding Member of the Wolfpack.

Term: 3 years

Mr Graeme Barton (Football Director)

A past player, former President and Life Member of the Westonians, Graeme has served as a West Adelaide Football Club Director for 10 years. Graeme has been an active contributor to the Club over many years, including the establishment of the History group and acting as the Player Advocate in tribunal hearings. In his role as the Football Director, Graeme has developed strong relationships with the coaching staff and playing group which will play an integral role in the Club’s future success. In his professional life Graeme served as an Assistant Commissioner of Police for ten years. Graeme is a Member of the Wolfpack.

Term: 1 year

Ms Jacqui Rose (People, Culture & Governance Director)

Jacqui has extensive experience as a leader in the mining sector through a variety of roles with BHP at Olympic Dam. With expertise in change management, risk management, governance and project management, Jacqui will no doubt add valuable skills to the West Adelaide Football Club Board. She also has experience in community sporting environment through her involvement with the Roxby Downs Sporting Club.

Term: 2 years

Mr Nick Karasoulos (Marketing and Commercial Sponsorship Director)

As Director of one of the largest Harvey Norman franchises in Australia, Nick has been a fantastic supporter of West Adelaide Football Club over many years. His passion for the Club is without question and his expertise in marketing and sponsorship will be of significant value to the Club during his tenure on the Board. Nick has lead his franchises to many national and global awards whilst also serving in national management and strategy committees. Nick’s extensive business and media connections will be of significant value to West Adelaide during his term on the Board.

Term: 2 years

Mr Mark Goddard (Finance Director)

Mark has a strong banking and finance background developed during a 30 year career leading and managing businesses. As a Founding Director of corporate advisory firm Equity & Advisory Limited, Mark has guided large businesses through period of significant change and growth. More recently working as a private consultant, Mark has gained extensive experience as a member of the Executive Leadership team at the Weeks Group of Companies.

Term: 3 years

The Nominations Committee also appointed John Levy as the Honorary Club Solicitor and Chair of the Governance Committee (a sub-committee of the Board). John has been a loyal servant to the Club as a Director and will continue his support in this non-director role.

These five nominated Directors have been appointed with their terms commencing at the closure of the Annual General Meeting. Candidates who were unsuccessful in the process conducted by the Nominations Committee may still apply for the two Member Elected Director roles. Applications for these roles are open until Monday, February 11.

Again, thank you for your ongoing support of West Adelaide Football Club and we look forward to a successful 2019.

Ben Hopkins, Chief Executive Officer

See my prediction was right

Bad luck Lee, I don’t think just a phone is on at all but unfortunately that’s the world we live in, totally impersonal and lacking gumption.

I am sure you would nominate for one of the two member elected positions available

Why would he nominate for a lip service position mate

Not the first time the club has crapped on him enough is enough

Your his mouthpiece now?

If someone wanted to still be involved why wouldn’t they?



Edited as per oldfellas post

Purely expressing my own thoughts on this situation and several previous issues that i have observed within the club ---- if expressing my own thoughts is seen by you as being a mouthpiece then i think you are interpretating wrong mate.

I presume you meant wouldnt not would in your second sentance --- if correct then i agree there is no reason anyone cannot be involved if they choose but that does not preclude me from expressing my own opinion on the issue on this site

We'll give you a phone-call back on that Brodlach........ maybe. Well said, Oldfella

I stated a phone call was wrong, but if Lee wants to be involved still there is a way and I am sure there are enough people who would vote for him. That was my point. The decision is therefore his to make

Fair enough, brodlach, I am just totally pissed off with the appalling way this was handled by the WAFC to one of their most Loyal long serving volunteers and dedicated Club man. As was the vote where 180 people decided to rescind their voting rights on anything to do with THEIR club. I cannot speak for Lee, but I would never want to be involved with anyone who did this. The SANFL will ruin football in this State, they are grubs. That's my opinion. (The people can't vote for him, this is the point.)

Why can’t they vote for him, last two positions are member voted? That was my impression

SANFL wants the clubs to survive otherwise there is no SANFL.

It’s also not the clubs fault that only 180 voted, it’s purely the members fault

This is not having a crack at you RODH but you are heavily personally invested in the decision not to have Lee on the original panel.

That's OK, but what sort of influence do you think the 2 member elected board members will have?.....I'll tell you, NONE. It's tokenism. The SANFL has never done a thing for the smaller clubs, they have vested interests. The Election process was rushed and tardy at best, that is why only 220 odd people bothered to show up. And to dismiss someone, anyone, with a quick phone call shows you the calibre of those running the show.

Sorry to intrude and I thank all posters for their thoughts. As always in these situations, the truth is not always clear to everyone, but forums are for speculation, of course.

All I will say is that I have no problem with the appointment of a new President and I wish Murray and the new Board well. I suspect our finances will improve sharply and that is good.

I have relayed my thoughts about the process to the Club and will await their reply.

Meanwhile, I'm proud of my brother supporting me and my decades long worker at Westies, oldfella, for also su[pporting me. oldfella has served Westies for decades also, taught me plenty when I started, has always been totally supportive, his father is also in the Hall of Fame and his family and mine have given more service to the Club than just about any others.

I thank all posters for their thoughts and I urge everyone to support the new Board and the Club. If we go top, I'll be proud of our efforts to change our recruiting processes.

I also thank all those who have sent me messages of support. It has been overwhelming and humbling.

I don’t think it was rushed but we can each have a different opinion

Do you think had Lee been sat down and told rather than a phone call you would be as frustrated. I think so

Two votes can still be the difference and I don’t think you could fault the caliber of the board that has been put together. Their credibility looks very good

Well done Lee, a very good post.

I hope you don’t think my posts are having a crack at you as that is not my intention. I am just adding alternate facts

I sit on a number of boards and I do think laterally

Not at all, brodlach.

We sometimes disagree, but you're always fair and your posts on this topic are fine.

Also, Jason Porplycia will be leaving us to join the Adelaide crows soon in their development program, we wish him all the best and thank him for his contribution not only as a player but the work he has done with the juniors at Westies.

I'm sorry to see this happen Lee but I hope you still stay involved with the club.
As a supporter I really appreciate how you have always kept involved with us, especially with the forum boards. I really hope that will continue - it is amazing that us supporters are easily able to chat with a club official and get first hand information on what's happening at the club. I'm sure I'm not the only one that has appreciated the time and effort you have given us.

Thank you so much for that, cuban. I really do appreciate it.

Thank you also to so many who have contacted me this last week. Your thoughts and well-wishes have been a great comfort and I thank those in the wider football world and on Talking Footy SA and SA Footy for their kind words.

I have great confidence in Gavin Colville and our team this year and I hope I have played a small part if we do well.

I can’t add to the excellent words of Cuban above except to say that you have always conducted yourself, both on and off this site, with good grace and dignity.
Thanks for everything you have done for our club.
Time to book that cruise.

The new appointments to the Board look like good appointments if you're running a small business. I'm not sure if they're good appointments if you're running a football club as none of them indicate any prior involvement in the administration of a sporting club. Maybe that's not so important if you then appoint the right people in the football department, fund and resource them properly and then let them do their jobs. We can only hope.
I also hope the new President is prepared for the same amount of hours Lee put in every week.