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Akermanis - Biggest Mistake

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Deefolt said:
kudos to brisbane they made the right choice on what i saw
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What did you see? People make guesswork and assumption on very little information about the situation. Let the clubs and player sort it out for themselves and leave the judging for those in the know.
 
The Dogs have lost the plot!

Our great game allows for drug takers, players who play up on the drink, players who cut corners with their preparation, players who don't commit on the footy field and players with gambling problems.

Acker does none of these things. I don't know where trust is most important at the Doggies but for me when i played i needed to know i could trust my footballing brothers on the field. I am sure everyone of those dogs players would say that the way acker prepares himself for footy and the way he plays would result in 100 percent trust on the footy field.

Now before people say he started the season in poor form, i can assure you all that many dogs players started the season terribly.

Acker is a champion footballer, i once would have rated Peter Matera as the best running/wing type midfielder i had ever seen, but Acker passed him in my opinion.

Acker went back to the 2s and shot his mouth off, but for God's sake how many times do we see a player with a Brownlow, 3 premierships, 4 All Australian and a couple of best and fairest run around in the 2's. The next week he backs it up with 5 goals.


As for the article Acker wrote about staying in the closet, i support that notion that any homosexual AFL player should think carefully before coming out. Football isn't a game that is only played by thoughtful, intelligent, modern thinking young men. There are a lot of tossers out there. I also think Acker was right in talking about the fish bowl of the AFL environment and the pressure and spotlight that would be put on the first AFL player to come out of the closet. Anyone who thinks it would be easy can't empathise with the mental and emotional trauma that such a personal secret can have upon a person.


What annoys me about the modern game most though is this belief that single minded team rules, club only focus and everyone must be on the same page style is the only way to win premierships. In the end TALENT wins premierships.

If you were asking me who i believed i could trust to give everything come September, i would have definitely pointed at Acker.
 

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I do not believe that the Dogs have lost the plot.

This is going to be a long post/ rant: so apologies for that. Footy players are always harping on about how playing for a club is a job, so therefore the contractual arrangement between a player and a club should be seen as nothing more than an employment relationship.

Jason's primary employer was the Western Bulldogs; his secondary employers were the various media outlets for whom he wrote and spoke on occasion.

Any organisation is entitled to say to an employee in their full time employ that any and all additional commercial activities must be vetted by them; and it is at the sole discretion of the primary employer whether the arrangements are acceptable or not. Whenever an employer considers whether a "second job" undertaken by an employee is acceptable, the question is not only whether or not the second job affects the employee, but the employer's main business and the effect on other employees in the organisation.

Jason was repeatedly asked to tone down his media roles. He was repeatedly guilty of shooting his mouth off and saying things that brought unwarranted attention and scrutiny to the club and, regardless of how capable Jason was of putting those distractions to one side, the same cannot be said of the rest of his team-mates.

Jason, on more than one occasion, committed to toning things down but was never far from controversy. His "I am in their best 22" and "I am not far from senior selection" comments would have riled a lot of people, including the coach. His lack of remorse and total lack of understanding of how his antics affected others would have shown him up as somoeone who does not consider others in his decision making.

And just when things seemed to be getting better, more rumours about a tell-all book surface and start to rock the boat again.

Jason does not bring unity to the team; he polarises.
Jason does not consider the wider ramifications og his actions before he opens his big mouth.
Jason does not have an accurate understanding of his importance or lack thereof to the Bulldogs or the AFL or the media and it has bitten him in the arse.
Jason does not stay on the straight and narrow for nearly long enough to earn the trust of his primary employer.
Jason does not understand the nature of an employment relationship, nor does he understand the entitlements that being a primary employer gives the Bulldogs.

Trust is not only whether or not you can perform in September. It is whether or not you can always be trusted to put the interests of the team first. It is whether you can be trusted at your word. The club allowed Jason to continue his media roles and trusted Jason to understand the fine line between being the media personality and entertainer we all loved; and his obligations to keep private the confidential information to which he was privvy as a senior player in the club. The Western Bulldogs could never have trusted Jason to do the right thing and the instability that such a person brings to a workplace cannot be underestimated.

Jason is his own worst enemy and, despite how genuinely sad it is that he has been consigned to the scrap-heap in such an ignominious manner, he has only himself to blame.
 
MacMum said:
You know, this is exactly how I feel.....I also realise you and others don't...but..

I just feel it would be so nice to bury the hatchet and feel the love again...we have our reunions coming up, and the thought that Aker won't be part of that is sad IMO..

Relationships sour, faults equal or more one-sided, like in a marriage or families who have a rebellious child who goes off without a word, or causes unwarranted dramas for the family.....but over the years people mellow, and I really hope one day, our boys do kiss and make up..

He will always be a Lion to me..

I feel so sad right now. and yes, you have all said why you don't like him, and thats fair enough...

....I just wanted to say how I feel though......no agro intended, just bearing my soul, so to speak....cheers
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Well said MacMum.

I think that Brad Scott summed it up nicely on the wireless last night. Akermanis has had a remarkable career, having played over 300 game's, won 3 Premierships and a Browlnlow medal. As Scott said, he will be remembered as one of the games greats.

Of course people will be pissed off with his media antics and Lions supporters have every right to feel aggrieved about the way he treated and then left the club. That said, time heals all wounds and as a supporter, I am prepared to continue to move on and forgive and forget. I know that will take some people longer than others and perhaps some will never be able to warm to Akermanis again. So be it. Each to their own.

From my perspective though, the people who have the greatest right to be pissed with Akermanis are his former teammates at the Lions and as these blokes start to mellow in their attitude and if and when Aker starts to mend his relationships with his Lions teammates, then who am I to still hold a grudge?

Next year will be the tenth anniversary of our 2001 Grand Final win and if Akermanis is invited to and attends the celebrations that will commemorate that memorable victory, I think that we should all look to his teammates and take a lead from them.
 
acuguy said:
The Dogs have lost the plot!

...
What annoys me about the modern game most though is this belief that single minded team rules, club only focus and everyone must be on the same page style is the only way to win premierships. In the end TALENT wins premierships.

...
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I couldn't disagree more. All successful teams are those that work towards one goal. Talent comes into it but isn't everything. Our threepeat happened because everyone worked together like a machine. The amount of planning and management that went into those finals campaigns is incredible and it would make a great case study. Aker nearly derailed the last one but thankfully by then the team was too great.

What he has done at the Doggies (and obviously there is a lot that the general public do not know) has clearly been incredibly destabilising. This is a club without the very strong leadership of Voss and Matthews. It would not have been easy to come to the decision that they have. Considering our experience I think we should support that club in this difficult time. They are trying to build a successful culture (like we had).
 
I just want to know when are we going to get an apology from Bulldogs posters who have said over the last three years we handled Aka poorly and look what happens when he has a good club around him?;)
 
Deefolt said:
kudos to brisbane they made the right choice on what i saw
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Leigh Matthews said that at the beginning of the year Akermanis left, it was simply that Aker had made up his mind that he wanted to move, and that was that. It was nothing like "the club gave him the boot".

Having seen nothing to contradict this analysis, it would appear that Aker had decided his long-term future lay in the media, that the biggest media puddle was in Melbourne, and this underpinned his decision to leave the Lions. The rest- coach this, Aker that, simply added fuel to the Aker media fire.

Aker, quite rightly, pays close attention to his earnings situation- my daughter would see him weekly when he visited his financial adviser who worked in the same building in Brisbane. Pretty obviously, this approach also dictates his recent actions. At best, he would have been at the Dogs only until the end of the season. He logically sees the media as his future employer. As with the Lions, the rest- players' forum, relationships with the coach etc etc- is simply building the profile frippery. Given this, why is anyone surprised when his pattern of behaviour repeats?

The fly in this strategy, I as a mere observer, sees it is that Aker's major scoops have come from dishing the "inside" dirt, criticising the coach, dumping on fellow players etc. This is not a plan for the long-term once his playing days end.
 
He totally lost me when he did that handstand at the Gabba. That was equal to saying I shit on the Lions and all their supporters. But somehow, a lot of, ummm, supporters applauded him for that act.:rolleyes:
 
The cynic in my says he saw the possibility of one last premiership as the triumphant finale to his autobio, but upon learning that it wasn't to be has decided to
make it all one big shitstorm. It's a shame I think that way, but that what past experience has taught.
 
seanc1971 said:
I do not believe that the Dogs have lost the plot.


His lack of remorse and total lack of understanding of how his antics affected others would have shown him up as somoeone who does not consider others in his decision making.

....

Jason does not bring unity to the team; he polarises.
Jason does not consider the wider ramifications og his actions before he opens his big mouth.
Jason does not have an accurate understanding of his importance or lack thereof to the Bulldogs or the AFL or the media and it has bitten him in the arse.
Jason does not stay on the straight and narrow for nearly long enough to earn the trust of his primary employer.
Jason does not understand the nature of an employment relationship, nor does he understand the entitlements that being a primary employer gives the Bulldogs.

...

Jason is his own worst enemy and, despite how genuinely sad it is that he has been consigned to the scrap-heap in such an ignominious manner, he has only himself to blame.
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Great post Seanc. These things are the crux of it for me too.
 

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It wasn't Browny's finest hour on TFS last night. He refused to shake Aka's hand when he offered it at first which was childish. The Aka bust up with the Lions is water under the bridge and I, for one, would like to see Brown, as aleader of men, behave a bit more magnanimously.

Aka was a far more important cog in the great Lions team than Brown was as an 18,19 and 20 year old talent playing second fiddle to Lynch. Brown in his prime (i.e. our best player), for whatever reason, has not played in successful football teams. It is obvious that Brown still harbours resentment and bitterness towards Akermanis of which he is happy to make public. In the future, I would hope that Aka would be made to feel welcome back at the Lions as, like it or not, he is a club legend and arguably the greatest player the Lions have produced. Black and Power are almost at the end and Brown won't be far behind. I would hate to see acrimony overshadow their collective achievements.

Brad Scott was generous in his praise of Akermanis' career, Brown should take a leaf out of his book. There is absolutely nothing to be gained by continuing a fued. Bury the hatchet boys.
 
JB75 said:
It wasn't Browny's finest hour on TFS last night. He refused to shake Aka's hand when he offered it at first which was childish.
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That is not how I saw it at all! I think you put some mayo on this.

I may be mistaken but Aker didn't offer his hand to Brown at all, he come and and went straight over to Sam.

Sam asked why they didn't shake hands, Browny said "we already did out the back didn't we mate" but then they went and shook hands again anyway.

As for his comments he was controlled, measured and simply answered the questions he was asked. If they asked Brown to refelct on Aker's on-field career, I have no doubt he would have praised it, as he has done so repeatedly in the past.

The impressions from all angles seem to think he handled himself with aplomb.

Trying to say that Brown is the one keeping the feud going is so far off the mark. Aker is the one who has repoeatedly fired shots over the bow in the last 3 years. The lengths people go to to defend this man astounds me.
 
The body language on TFS was compelling - going to make for an interesting reunion next year ! You'd have to say that Brad Scott's profile has gone thru' the roof in Melbourne - considered, cool, self-deprecating and decisive. And the team's going OK.
 

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luthor said:
You know , I feel really pissed off with Aker.

After the unseemly bust up with the Lions, a part of me still wanted to feel some empathy with his point of view. A divorce is not 100% one party's fault and 0% the others fault.

Well at least that's what I kept telling myself, even up to a couple of days ago!

Always felt that it was such a waste and that surely something could have been done by the club back in '06 to have somehow kept him at Brisbane.

But now.......meh.......he's done it again and with almost the identical result.

So now I have to admit that, that part of me that still felt some "love" for Aker has totally withered and died.

And I feel cheated.....maybe I'm an old sentimental fool but for the last 3-4 years, I had this kinda romantic notion that the Lions and Aka would one day kiss and make up, that Aker would admit some culpability for what happened and that he maybe would be brought back into the fold (in some capacity) like a prodigal son.

Not ever gonna happen now!

Aker is a total train wreck, the really sad part being that he lacks the insight to realize that HE is the train wreck!

As I said...really pissed off with him.

Empathy factor now ZERO.
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This absolutely hits it on the head. The guy seems so totally self absorbed that everything is everyone elses fault. He seems to totally believe this. Absolutely magnificent player but probably not cut out for team sport really. Its pretty hard to get sacked from 2 AFL clubs if you are a gun player like he has been, these decisions are not taken lightly and the persons making the decisions have serious credibility - Matthews, Voss, Brown, etc and then Smorgon, Eade, Johnson at the Bulldogs. Its sad but he only has himself to blame really.
 
JA27 said:
with aker gone is bradshaw the last of the bears?
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Correct.

Regrettable that the last Bear will play his final game for another club, but that's footy. :/
 
TheBrownDog said:
That is not how I saw it at all! I think you put some mayo on this.

I may be mistaken but Aker didn't offer his hand to Brown at all, he come and and went straight over to Sam.

Sam asked why they didn't shake hands, Browny said "we already did out the back didn't we mate" but then they went and shook hands again anyway.

As for his comments he was controlled, measured and simply answered the questions he was asked. If they asked Brown to refelct on Aker's on-field career, I have no doubt he would have praised it, as he has done so repeatedly in the past.

The impressions from all angles seem to think he handled himself with aplomb.

Trying to say that Brown is the one keeping the feud going is so far off the mark. Aker is the one who has repoeatedly fired shots over the bow in the last 3 years. The lengths people go to to defend this man astounds me.
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I agree. I'm gobsmacked at the support he has. He obviously plays the victim role well enough to suck people in.

JB75, I couldn't disagree with your post anymore. I can't believe you could possibly fire a shot at Brown's leadership, a man who has put his body on the line 100's of times over for this Footy club. A man that just about every other club would want leading their team into battle.

To even consider knocking him for his performance in our winning Grand Final teams is totally off the mark. In every one of those winning Grand Finals, he stood up at important times, especially in 2002, and that was as a 20 year old no less.

As good as Aker was on field, he was as bad off it with his ridiculous comments and opinions. I hope he is remembered for his achievements on field, but I wouldn't want him welcomed back to the club for anything else other than for that.

I admired his ability, but let's leave it at.
 
The die hard Aker Backers remind me of a newspaper cartoon I saw long ago.

Two mature ladies were watching a group of soldiers marching down the street....One said "Look Mabel,Johnny is the only one marching in step".

Interesting how Eade and Johnson have replaced Matthews and Voss as the current villains of the piece.
 
The quote of the drama for me is some one saying that the Bulldogs CEO is only 'toeing the club line' and that really he supports Aker. I mean, seriously.
 

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