Andrew Demetriou’s rollercoaster ride comes to an end

Date: March 4, 2014 / Posted by Glenn Mitchell

Two days before the official launch of the 2014 AFL season and 11 days before the premiership season gets underway the AFL’s CEO has announced this season will be his last.

At a media conference convened at AFL House, commission chairman Mike Fitzpatrick announced that Demetriou’s tenure as the code’s day-to-day supremo will end after this year’s AFL grand final, bringing the curtain down on a roller coaster 11 years in the job.

A former player himself – he played 106 games for North Melbourne and Hawthorn in the 1980s – he came to the AFL from the code’s Players’ Association where he was the CEO.

During his time as the head of the AFL his public persona often carried the forthright, and at times, abrasive nature of the one-time union leader.

Fifty-two-year Demetriou told the assembled media that he had informed AFL chairman Mike Fitzpatrick of his intention to announce his resignation in early March whilst the pair was attending last month’s Superbowl.

He notified the commission at their last meeting on 17 February in Sydney.

Demetriou’s time in the top job has featured significant highs and lows.

Many of the lows have come towards the end of his reign.

At the head of that list is the nadir which is the ongoing saga surrounding the Essendon drug scandal.

Demetriou’s announcement comes amid a public war between the AFL Players’ Association and the Herald Sun newspaper that published the names on Saturday of 14 Bombers players who allegedly told the ASADA enquiry that they believed they had been administered banned substances.

Demetriou was at pains to say that the recent flurry of issues surrounding the Essendon situation did not influence his decision.

Throughout the protracted investigation Demetriou was the target of persistent angst from Essendon with respect to his involvement in the process.

Many not aligned to the club also raised concerns over Demetriou’s handling of the issue.

He said that the AFL “takes no responsibility” at all with respect to the Essendon situation.

Demetriou stated during his address to the media that he “had no regrets” from his time in the job although he has admitted in the past year that he did err in some matters surrounding the Essendon saga.

In February last year the AFL fined the Melbourne Football Club $500,000 over allegations of tanking at the end of the 2009 season.

It handed lengthy suspensions to then coach Dean Bailey and football manager Chris Connolly despite stating that the club itself was actually found not guilty of tanking during the 2009 season.

The outcome of the investigation and the associated penalties left many feeling confused.

The other major issue towards the end of Demetriou’s tenure was the salary cap breach surrounding Kurt Tippett of the Adelaide Crows who was fined $50,000 and suspended for the first half of the 2013 season while the club was handed a $300,000 fine.

On the positive side Demetriou oversaw a period of enormous growth in the sport with club memberships, attendances and revenue all trending significantly upward.

The crowning glory has been the exponential growth in the broadcast rights agreement.

The current deal, covering 2012-2016, brought $1.25 billion to the league’s coffers, and with it, allowed fans to access live coverage of every match – a first for the code.

In the past decade the AFL has been involved in the development and upgrade of various stadia around the country.

Demetriou cited the move of AFL football to the Adelaide Oval this season as one of his proudest achievements.

Under his watch, one of the most contentious issues was the expansion of the competition to 18 clubs with the introduction of the Gold Coast Suns (2011) and Greater Western Sydney (2012).

Many of the existing clubs argued against the move and aired their concerns over the financial impost to the sport, something that was also argued by many fans and media outlets.

Demetriou maintained at his media conference that he believed that the introduction of both new clubs was the right thing to do and that their respective futures are rosy.

The timing of the announcement allows the AFL Commission ample time to appoint a successor.

The favourite to take the job is Demetriou’s current number two, Gillon McLachlan, who has been groomed for the position in recent years and has tremendous support from the incumbent.

Fitzpatrick stated however that Demetriou will play no role at all in the appointment of his successor.

Two other strong candidates are Jeff Browne and Brian Cook.

Browne, at one time the AFL’s chief lawyer, is currently CEO of the Nine Network.

Cook is regarded as the league’s best club CEO.

He came to the helm at the West Coast Eagles in 1990 when the club was struggling financially.

He turned the it into one of the league’s financial powerhouses and helped deliver it two premierships before moving to Geelong in 1999 where he has overseen a major overhaul at the club, returned it to financial viability and seen it win three premierships.

Demetriou will be hoping for a smooth final season at the helm but with the Essendon saga still to be concluded he may not receive that wish.

As Fitzpatrick noted, Demetriou has been “a significant force in our competition” and “one of the most influential CEOs in our history”.

It is now history’s chance to write his professional epitaph.

First published on The Roar – theroar.com.au – on 3 March 2014