18-05-2025
‘Floundering' AFL stuck in crisis mode amid AFL Commission leadership vacuum emerges: ‘Nobody wants the job'
A leadership vacuum has emerged at the top of the AFL, with veteran journalist Caroline Wilson declaring it is time for league bosses to 'step up or step down'.
The AFL entered crisis mode last week when football boss Laura Kane issued three separate statements on the handling of a concussion incident.
The second correspondence left umpires privately seething before the AFL accepted in its third and last that it 'failed' in its processes.
AFL Players' Association president Paul Marsh condemned league bosses while Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley spoke out against the 'inconsistencies' and 'lack of confidence' stemming from decisions and their messaging.
Kane and her department recently received support with the appointment of respected administrator and part-time consultant Geoff Walsh to a full-time role.
But Wilson said the problems continue above with CEO Andrew Dillon and AFL Commission chairman Richard Goyder.
'The first thing that has to happen is there has to be a change at the top,' The Agenda Setters expert said on 3AW.
'Most people agree, and the chorus has become deafening, that Richard Goyder needs a replacement.
'For the first time in memory, in the history of the commission, there is no succession plan — just as (former AFL CEO) Gillon McLachlan had no succession plan, which started a lot of this problem.
'There is no succession plan on the commission. Nobody on the commission wants the job, apparently, and Richard Goyder was saying there was no one on the commission he believes can do the job.'
Football legend Leigh Matthews said: 'You've got to laugh at that, Caro.'
Wilson replied: 'Don't shoot the messenger.'
The commission is made up of Goyder, Dillon, Paul Bassat, Robin Bishop, Denise Bowden, ex-AFL player Matt De Boer, former Sydney Swans CEO Andrew Ireland, ex-Hawthorn president Andrew Newbold, former GWS director Gabrielle Trainor and Simone Wilkie.
A recruiting firm has been hired to find candidates, Wilson said, adding 'in the meantime the (club) presidents are circling'.
Sydney Swans president Andrew Pridham is seen as a 'strong choice', with Port Adelaide's David Koch and former Collingwood chairman Jeff Browne also candidates.
Wilson said she was unsure if Goyder planned to step down when his term expires at the end of the year, or stick around during the transition to a new chair.
'That has to change. Andrew Dillon needs a strong chairman,' Wilson said.
'Andrew Dillon then needs to make (sure), and people internally are saying this, not just one person but several — never waste a crisis. Everybody admits there is a crisis.
'The communication department is floundering, the footy department is floundering.
'The legal counsel, in my view, is floundering. There's no structure. The AFL has become a regime of crime and punishment.
'The umpiring is floundering. Never have I seen the players and umpires more at odds with each other.
'Never have I seen players so disgruntled with head office over fines and the refusal to listen.
'Never have I seen the coaches more unhappy about the lack of respect they're being shown on every level.'
Wilson also said she was 'disappointed' to say the communication from the AFL to the fans has been lacking like never before.
'Every interview they do is sort of manufactured,' she said.
'Someone commented about Laura Kane's recent interviews — it was like reading in an AI interview, artificial intelligence.
'These are smart, good people, but none of them are showing leadership and none of them seem to be in the right roles.
'And everyone is saying they need a deputy or they need another strong person.
'Well, no, you step up and do the job or step down.'
The AFL has yet to recruit a chief operating officer to work alongside Dillon, who wants an experienced club boss to take on the role.
Simon Garlick (Fremantle) has been considered the frontrunner with Tom Harley (Sydney) and Ameet Bains (Bulldogs) appearing less likely to swap clubland for AFL House.
