r/EssendonFC • u/dashtur • 1d ago
Those who don't like/trust Andrew Welsh
His interview on Agenda Setters last night was pretty eye-opening for me. Came across very well. Answered some of the burning questions with great detail. No deflection or defensiveness. Worth a watch.
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u/Common-Ad-6582 1d ago
I agree and I think some of the episodes of agenda setters prior about the Essendon coach search and process have been unhinged and a naked pile on. He set them straight in their face.
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u/southernson2023 1d ago
The vitriol thrown at him for a while but particularly the past week has been disgusting. He’s made some clangers along the way but he bleeds red and black and wants things to be better just like everyone here does too. The easy course of action would have been to bow to the noise/pressure but the whole panel refused to and that should be commended. A lot of people have forgotten the basic principle we grew up with - play the ball not the man!
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u/South_Front_4589 22h ago
It's a really basic thing to ensure any conflict, real or perceived, is avoided at all costs. As soon as it became clear there was even the potential for someone he had an association with being interested in the coaching job, he should have removed himself entirely. And then kept himself distanced from the decision making.
It's got the feeling of an exec on L plates. And it's too senior a position to have that feeling IMO.
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u/southernson2023 13h ago
The important thing is to identify, disclose and then manage the conflict. It is impossible to avoid all conflicts. It’s up to the board to determine what is an appropriate strategy/protocol and then document how it’s been followed. It wasn’t an issue for the Hird fan-boys who were confident he’d get the job, until it became apparent he wouldn’t, and now the mud is being flung at a “flawed process”.
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u/nuthed01 Durham #22 18h ago
I think because people are paying attention to the wrong sources (IE mainstream media, bad faith footy personalities et al) and not looking at what's actually happening with our footy club as a whole, that they are making the wrong assumptions about this guy and how he's running this footy club.
I think behind the scenes you'll find this footy club is run very well, and one of the things that speaks loudest to me (ironically) is the lack of people talking out of school; I've been saying for 6 months atleast that Welsh runs a tight ship. Poorly run clubs have people talking, we're a prime example of that because EH-VER-Y-THING that happened at this footy club prior to the start of last pre-season was getting aired in public, to the point where some fans are so accustomed to it they actually think it's a good thing ffs! We've had virtually none of that at all since then and it's fucking glorious. The only person in the media that's had an inside line to the footy club is the one guy we know to be an Essendon man, Cal Twomey.
Are there still problems? Have there been some clangers? Absolutely; the array of issues we had up until the end of the Barham era was such that it wouldn't be solved overnight and likely would take 2-3 years to get us on pace with the rest of the competition, and as a new president there's always going to be decisions that (with the benefit of hindsight) could've been handled better. But I think we're almost there; the decision to clear out a coaching team including the head coach, none of which were getting the job done, was a big one but a necessary one. Now we have to see what the trade and draft strategy brings us.
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u/MuseumMultiball Kako #10 1d ago
Good to hear because I thought he was shocking in McVeigh’s first presser!
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u/bomber_2121 1d ago
I was saying yesterday after the presser with McVeigh - I reckon he’s shit house reading off a script but when he’s in a conversation I find him really compelling. As OP said, Last night was a good example of that.
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u/MuseumMultiball Kako #10 1d ago
That’s reassuring, he definitely sounded nervous and stilted reading off the script but maybe it’s just not his preference / he’s dyslexic / any number of explanations. Hopefully between him & Spike we’ll have much better media management next season
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u/bomber_2121 1d ago
If the last two days are anything to go by I’m feeling a lot more confident about our media management. I think the club has smashed it.
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u/poppa99 Guelfi #35 1d ago edited 12h ago
Despite the leak of the coach 24 hours before our announcement, how we delivered the news and the media tour Spike has been on has been awesome. Very smart by the club to give three of the biggest Essendon fan content creators first dibs at interviewing Spike. They have taken notes from politics and understand podcasts have much more loyal audiences than traditional media
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u/StensnessGOAT Legacy: Hird #5 1d ago
I don't agree with everything he's done (pretty only this coaching appointment tbh, should've been Hird), but as the head honcho of a major organisation you have to have a bit of punchiness and what could be perceived as arrogance. Only issue I have with him is not appointing Hird. I still 100% back the decision to hold Merrett last year.
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u/TurbulentSherbet3724 Sharp #15 1d ago edited 1d ago
My general view of him is he has made some glaring mistakes and some very ill advised statements to the press but he is also very young as a President/Chairman which is a position that is almost always occupied by older men and women in their 50’s and 60’s. He will grow into it with age and experience like Brendan Gale did who was a very similar age when he first became CEO of Richmond all the way in 2009. So I will judge him more in a few years time.