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[Horaceg]

If Pettyfor really wasn’t up to the job, Wrighty would have let her go before he left for sabbatical.

Why do we need to get all defensive about this?

Our club is better for having the transparency on these things rather than sweeping them under the carpet. Especially under the current regime.

I don’t think Caro made it up, I think she was choosing her words carefully.

I don’t know what happened but Caro has form, she likes to spin the narrative and in this example suggests it is a woman thing and then says she doesn’t know if it is, why say it if you don’t know. She says it to get it out there and try to cook up a story.

Who knows what Melbourne offered and it may just be as Collingwood said, she was simply poached, that happens all the time.

 

[Horaceg]

You say it's a "good idea" to have someone oversee communication.

What would this role actually do during a game to bring the good idea to fruition?

(Don't think there's much of a role for runners these days).

efa

Maybe she is there to make sure they don’t use SMS to communicate things, like that Sniffy guy who got suspended for alleged game day substance concerns.

 

[76woodenspooners]

You say it's a "good idea" to have someone oversee communication.

What would this role actually do during a game to bring the good idea to fruition?

(Don't think there's much of a role for runners these days).

efa

Here’s how it happens …

Step 1: we lost / we need to get better

Step 2: why did we lose? / how can we get better?

Step 3: Coach “I told player to X to do Y and they didn’t, it’s the player’s fault” Player “I did exactly what I was told, it’s the coaches fault”.

Step 4: “Right Pettyfor, it’s your job to oversee gameday communications between the coaches and the players to ensure that the messaging is received.”

Step 5: Pettyfor “Oi coaches, stop giving our players a Nuclear science lecture in the 3/4 time break, the players are gassed and have NFI what you’re saying - you need to keep it simple” (for example)

Of course the coaches are professionals, and the players are professionals - but in the real world there are governance, management and oversight processes for good reason.

It’s a good idea we have this.

 

[76woodenspooners]

I don’t know what happened but Caro has form, she likes to spin the narrative and in this example suggests it is a woman thing and then says she doesn’t know if it is, why say it if you don’t know. She says it to get it out there and try to cook up a story.

Who knows what Melbourne offered and it may just be as Collingwood said, she was simply poached, that happens all the time.

Sure, that’s what you want to believe, and that’s cool.

From Caro’s reporting she’s saying it was something different. I don’t think Caro just makes stuff up out of thin air. Some people do think she does make stuff up. Some people think she does when it’s about their team, but not about other teams.

We’ll have to agree to disagree.

 

[NMBB]

Here’s how it happens …

Step 1: we lost / we need to get better

Step 2: why did we lose? / how can we get better?

Step 3: Coach “I told player to X to do Y and they didn’t, it’s the player’s fault” Player “I did exactly what I was told, it’s the coaches fault”.

Step 4: “Right Pettyfor, it’s your job to oversee gameday communications between the coaches and the players to ensure that the messaging is received.”

Step 5: Pettyfor “Oi coaches, stop giving our players a Nuclear science lecture in the 3/4 time break, the players are gassed and have NFI what you’re saying - you need to keep it simple” (for example)

Of course the coaches are professionals, and the players are professionals - but in the real world there are governance, management and oversight processes for good reason.

It’s a good idea we have this.

Hope it's not overkill creating confusion instead of clarity

 

[NMBB]

...... and pressuring IT when something isn't working

So a 24/7 job?

 

[PowerfulPies2023]

Leading AFL journalist Caroline Wilson believes there is more to the story after Collingwood lost a female employee from a senior position at the club.

It was revealed on Monday Clare Pettyfor will leave her role as general manager of football operations at the Magpies this month.


Pettyfor will return to the Demons where she previously worked as general manager of media and communications.



Pettyfor was hired by the Magpies at the end of 2022 to join football manager Graham Wright's team.

After winning last year's AFL premiership, Wright announced he would take extended leave from March to September this year.

Collingwood coach Craig McRae

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stands with his team for the national anthem.© Getty
"Collingwood are framing this as Clare has been poached by Melbourne, to go back in a senior media relations role, a senior executive role. I'm not sure that that is exactly what's happened here," Wilson said on Nine's Footy Classified.

"Clare Pettyfor went to work with Graham Wright, they proudly announced her joining the club. Less than 18 months later Clare's ambition to work in a footy department has ended.



"I don't think it has ended as well as it could have, and in fact I don't think Clare's relationship with everyone in the footy department was as good and productive as it could have been.

Footy Classified is now available as a podcast! Subscribe/follow via Apple, Spotify or Google Podcasts

"And I think there is a level of disappointment in the way that, maybe, Clare was not encouraged as well as she could have been."

With Wright taking extended leave, Collingwood announced in December it would need to decide on who would fill his duties for six months.

While Pettyfor was high up in his team already, Wilson says the Magpies opted for Brendon Bolton and Justin Leppitsch

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to share Wright's role.


She believes that decision may have flared tensions within the club.

"I don't know if everything is united as it could be within the football department," Wilson said.


"Certainly the departure of Clare has seen a level of disappointment in some women staff at the club.

"I'm not going to say there's a woman problem at Collingwood, I can't say that by any means.

"But last year (club CEO) Craig Kelly we know had trouble with his AFLW players, and there was a bit of a tense moment where he had a crack at them.

"I don't think everything has been hunky dory."

Collingwood was contacted by Wide World of Sports for comment but had not responded by time of publishing.

 

[The Magnificent Seven]

Mumble grumble something vague perhaps... all very speculative and un-newsworthy imo

 

[danielnajdek]

Accusing people in the club of being sexist. She'd wanna have proof of this. This is why Australian media suck they can say whatever they like and they get away with it.

 

[Markfs]

I love the quotes. "It could rain tomorrow" "Next year we might have an earthquake"....is there ONE definite statement in all her quoted allegations? One?

 

[jathanas]

Caroline Wilson's focus on backroom politics and implied drama cheapens the football experience.

In the last decade, she has not written an article that has made me feel positive about the game and its direction.

That she still gets airtime defies belief.

Her angle is stale. She ought to be put out to pasture (along w' Robbo).

 

[Chameleon75]

If caro has a sniff of something she goes in hard, the fact she’s dancing around softly on this looks like she’s shaking the tree hoping something will fall out

 

[sr36]

A footy department would be a tough gig for a lot of women.

44 male players - no way of changing that
6-8 male coaches - who's going to hire coaches who haven't played at the top level
the boss likely to have risen up through that - a male

It's only the fitness and recruiting staff where you could realistically expect to have anything like equal numbers - but they're fields that are also male dominated.

Pretty hard for the department to not be really bloody blokey, particularly as it is such a testosterone laden pursuit - it's not going to be everyone's cup of tea

 

[PIEWITHSAUCE]

Accusing people in the club of being sexist.

She was very clear that she could never suggest such a thing

 

[Kirby]

Caroline desperately needs the help of Time Sniper.

 

[Markfs]

If caro has a sniff of something she goes in hard, the fact she’s dancing around softly on this looks like she’s shaking the tree hoping something will fall out

shake and sniff...

or shake and beg for some ratings early in the year

 

[The Phantom]

Custard Pants at it again.

The AFLW team were probably upset their netball mates got deleted. Nothing story.

 

[ThePhantom777]

Didn't get to act in Wright's job while he was on leave so decided to depart? Seems like a normal workplace scenario.

No doubt being a female staff member in a male professional sports team where the majority of off field staff are also male would be difficult to navigate. Most of the players are young men, it would be an interesting environment

 

[Robroy22]

I'm pretty sure Dane Swan

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had something to do with it Caro....this has "rat pack" written all over it.

Can't write about whats happening at the Tiges?? Jack and Trent and Dimma all gone, now Benny Gale's heading south and Balmy is being put out to pasture for his own health.....Cmon Caro, surely there's SOMETHING you could write about em?

 

[anshell]

It’s definitely the latter.Carro always has a scatter gun approach to her stories.She sprays as many bullets as possible against a wall,hoping that some of them will hit their target.But in this case they didn’t.It was all speculation and innuendo on her part.She didn’t have any real facts to back up her claims that Collingwood has a ‘woman’ problem.And in the end she basically backed off and said she wasn’t suggesting that Collingwood had a woman problem after all.So much ado about nothing,really.

 

[No SPIN]

So Clare is aggrieved to have been overlooked for the GW, role and leaves.
But Caro needs to create headlines by fabricating that more sinister issues are at play.

Let’s hope someone holds her accountable.

 

[Babylove]

It sounds like Caroline’s usual muckraking.

Question though, does anyone know what the issue was between Craig Kelly and the AFLW was?

 

[PIEWITHSAUCE]

It sounds like Caroline’s usual muckraking.

Question though, does anyone know what the issue was between Craig Kelly and the AFLW was?

I can't remember the exact context but Caro wrote a big article about Kelly and our senior AFLW players being at loggerheads after he made a comment (around the time of diputes around wages and extending the season) that there were financial realities at play but our girls were enjoying themselves and have music going during training etc........It was seen as patronising etc...

 

[Markfs]

Thank god for social media. It has really improved things

 

[Scodog10]

My take, as completely uneducated as it is, is that a very well credentialed and capable female reached the ceiling of her career within the football department of an AFL men’s program. Upon coming to that realisation she had two options:

1. Work for the person who got the job she was likely in on.
2. Seek alternate opportunities.

End of story.

There might be a story there around the blokiness Sr was getting into, but I personally want a GM of football to have a strong football brain and I don’t have the confidence in someone that hasn’t spent years or decades in those football roles. Laura Kane is a fantastic trailblazer and someone women can aspire to emulate, but clubland and football departments in a men’s program are a different beast, for now at least.