Universal Love Paul Little

[Bunk Moreland]

Little's reign as EFC Chairman comes to an end.

He's a man who who divided opinions of both Essendon and non-Essendon people.

I'd like to pay tribute to him, because I'm of the view he did just about the absolute best job that anybody could have done. Looking back, I think he was superb.

Came into the role in the most difficult and unexpected circumstances, after taking a seat on the Board in professional retirement.

What he's steered the club through over the past couple of years was completely unprecedented, and quite possibly the most difficult period any AFL club has ever faced.

His shining legacy, I think, is a united Essendon. That's almost staggering given what we've been through.

It's my belief that many other clubs not only could have, but absolutely WOULD have totally disintegrated in the same circumstances.

We didn't. There were no coups. No extraordinary challenges. We didn't lose a sponsor. We're still in remarkable financial shape. We have record membership. Our brand new facility pushed on unaffected. FFS, in two of the three seasons completed under the cloud of this god forsaken horseshit, we qualified for the finals. He somehow kept all the club, board, coteries, supporters and everybody else from civil war.

He secured Bomber as by far the best placed to take the reins for a year in extraordinary circumstances, then returned Hird to the seat as promised.

Obviously what he gets the most flak for is "caving to the AFL". It's my belief that he held out against all the forces and backed the club and Hird for as long as he possibly could. The AFL are filthy operators at the best of times and only when threatened with the very existence of the club did he relent. I think the fact that the AFL had to call an impromptu gang-up of 17 club presidents - something never done - and threaten him with deregistration of the club - something else never done - probably tells the story in terms of how much he was willing to hold the Essendon line. Love the way he snubbed the dirty pricks at that meeting too, just incidentally.

Hird was obviously filthy at the AFL - he held a press conference to rip through City Hall and launch legal action. That simply. isn't. done.

How many presidents would be strong enough to stand there next to him - and then join in?

I think he always made what he thought was the best decision by the EFC, including removing Hird which was still a very tough and unpopular decision in many quarters of the club. Right or wrong (right IMO), he was strong enough to do it.

A metric ton of steaming shit was thrown in his lap in 2013 and he's seen us through it. There's no enjoyable time in the role for him as he vacates quietly and orderly for a fresh, well qualified replacement.

It's my opinion that anybody who doesn't appreciate Little is naive to just how bad things could have gotten for us. He stopped it happening.

Club owes him an enormous debt for mine. A great Essendon person.

Cheers, Paul.

 

[Doss]

My main beef with Little always was, and always will be, his lack of PR acumen. His rather unique ability to add fuel to fire. To play the big expansive reverse sweep when a simple dead bat would have sufficed.

Did that hurt the club, really? Maybe not in truth, because most of Essendon's actions which are still damaging us to this day were decisions before his chairmanship. But it did create a lot of fodder for certain lecherous types in the media and in turn, that created a lot of unnecessary consternation for fans and members. Which, as much anything, perhaps reflects the sad media-driven climate we live and breathe in, where every word is hung off and consumed and dissected from every possible angle.

Having said that, the guy took on an absolute pig of a job, at the most piggish of times, and his staying power was better than I anticipated; I thought he'd have burnt out long before now. I do genuinely think he attempted to act with what he perceived to be the best interests of the club at heart at all times. I don't think Hird's exit was handled overly well, but I do think it was the right call to make.

So yes, thank you Paul. I don't think you got everything right, in fact I think you got quite a few things wrong, but you were handed an absolutely charred goose and did the best you could in terrible circumstances. The club owes you.

 

[IggypopsTshirt]

Much like Bolton taking the Carlton job, Little inherited a dog turd that was always destined to be a largely thankless and extremely difficult task.

He wasn't perfect, but who is? At the end of the day, Little did what was best for the club while readily accepting the damage to his personal reputation that came from the detractors. If only we could say the same for the rodent he inherited the job from.

 

[blitzer]

There was never going to be any great victories during the very dark times which he presided over but he did his best to limit the damage. It was definitely a tough and painful task. He wasn't the one that caused our problems but he was willing to stay around and try his best to fix them - if nothing else you have to respect him for that.

Given the circumstances we could have been in a far worse situation and i think he deserves some credit for that.

 

[Old Campaigner]

He had his ups and downs, and there were a number of occasions that he seriously pissed me off. But looking at the state of the club now at the end of his tenure even his biggest detractors would have to admit he did a decent job given the circumstances.

The ASADA stuff would have eaten many other clubs alive but we were able to endure, and frankly the club is in better shape now than it was in 2012 which is remarkable given what took place in between times. I'm sure there are a lot of pretty talented people at the club who played a role in that but a lot of it would be due to the efforts of Little.

Something that isn't talked about much but rumours arise every now and then is the money he put in to help keep the club's head above water. No idea if it is true or how much he gave, but if it is true then he should be commended for that too.

 

[Falcon27]

Little's reign as EFC Chairman comes to an end.

He's a man who who divided opinions of both Essendon and non-Essendon people.

I'd like to pay tribute to him, because I'm of the view he did just about the absolute best job that anybody could have done. Looking back, I think he was superb.

Came into the role in the most difficult and unexpected circumstances, after taking a seat on the Board in professional retirement.

What he's steered the club through over the past couple of years was completely unprecedented, and quite possibly the most difficult period any AFL club has ever faced.

His shining legacy, I think, is a united Essendon. That's almost staggering given what we've been through.

It's my belief that many other clubs not only could have, but absolutely WOULD have totally disintegrated in the same circumstances.

We didn't. There were no coups. No extraordinary challenges. We didn't lose a sponsor. We're still in remarkable financial shape. We have record membership. Our brand new facility pushed on unaffected. FFS, in two of the three seasons completed under the cloud of this god forsaken horseshit, we qualified for the finals. He somehow kept all the club, board, coteries, supporters and everybody else from civil war.

He secured Bomber as by far the best placed to take the reins for a year in extraordinary circumstances, then returned Hird to the seat as promised.

Obviously what he gets the most flak for is "caving to the AFL". It's my belief that he held out against all the forces and backed the club and Hird for as long as he possibly could. The AFL are filthy operators at the best of times and only when threatened with the very existence of the club did he relent. I think the fact that the AFL had to call an impromptu gang-up of 17 club presidents - something never done - and threaten him with deregistration of the club - something else never done - probably tells the story in terms of how much he was willing to hold the Essendon line. Love the way he snubbed the dirty pricks at that meeting too, just incidentally.

Hird was obviously filthy at the AFL - he held a press conference to rip through City Hall and launch legal action. That simply. isn't. done.

How many presidents would be strong enough to stand there next to him - and then join in?

I think he always made what he thought was the best decision by the EFC, including removing Hird which was still a very tough and unpopular decision in many quarters of the club. Right or wrong (right IMO), he was strong enough to do it.

A metric ton of steaming shit was thrown in his lap in 2013 and he's seen us through it. There's no enjoyable time in the role for him as he vacates quietly and orderly for a fresh, well qualified replacement.

It's my opinion that anybody who doesn't appreciate Little is naive to just how bad things could have gotten for us. He stopped it happening.

Club owes him an enormous debt for mine. A great Essendon person.

Cheers, Paul.

Great post, and agree with every point. His tough management style is exactly why he has been so successful. He was no sycophant to the powers at HQ.

Only thing to add is that he also presided over the appointment of John Worsfold, whcih can only be good for the club going forward. And this was done despite more relentless media innuendo about a so called 'process'.

 

[Bombermania]

I agree, Paul Little has handled a tricky situation well, with the club in surprisingly strong condition, depending on the outcome of WADA ruling we are well placed both on field with a pretty good list and the off-field including the financials are pretty stable.

 

[ant555]

Took over what was always going to be a shit fight. It was not smooth sailing but the waters have been navigated. I agree with the opening post, he copped
a lot of crap he did not deserve for cleaning up the mess others created.

 

[LongoDongo]

Woosha is high quality. Kudos for EFC making an inspired choice in their new coach.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

He had his ups and downs, and there were a number of occasions that he seriously pissed me off. But looking at the state of the club now at the end of his tenure even his biggest detractors would have to admit he did a decent job given the circumstances.

The ASADA stuff would have eaten many other clubs alive but we were able to endure, and frankly the club is in better shape now than it was in 2012 which is remarkable given what took place in between times. I'm sure there are a lot of pretty talented people at the club who played a role in that but a lot of it would be due to the efforts of Little.

Something that isn't talked about much but rumours arise every now and then is the money he put in to help keep the club's head above water. No idea if it is true or how much he gave, but if it is true then he should be commended for that too.

The other way he did that – which purposefully won’t be uncovered – is some of the legal bills which he had invoiced directly to him (and he wasn’t the only one). Some of the stuff we were never going to be able to claim on insurance.

Never even went through the club’s books, no “donation” to the club, just a bloke paying somebody for his services.

Extraordinarily generous. Not to mention being a quasi-CEO for a couple of years and being the target of many ****wits that comment on footy.

If you’re in a war, get a warrior.

Christ we’re lucky we had him.

 

[Jade]

Overall, I think Paul did an admirable job in what was, undoubtedly, the toughest environment any President/Chairman of a club has had to face.

I have three major problems:

1) His adversarial approach when he took the Chair with the AFL. Little is a damn good businessman, and I have the utmost respect for him in this regard. But he took his attitude towards business, which happens in the 'real' world with the rule of law, to the corrupt as sin AFL who answer to no one.

2) The re-signing of Hird. Yes, I'm aware it was the only way Hird was going to accept the proposed penalties. But if you genuinely believed that poor performance of the team was going to be enough to ditch him in the first year of his 'new' contract - you should not have done it. If that means cutting him loose and letting him lose his ****ing mind at the AFL in the courts so be it.

3) The interview with Caroline Wilson. What the **** were you thinking. Such an idiot thing to do.

 

[Pweter]

Overall, I think Paul did an admirable job in what was, undoubtedly, the toughest environment any President/Chairman of a club has had to face.

I have three major problems:

1) His adversarial approach when he took the Chair with the AFL. Little is a damn good businessman, and I have the utmost respect for him in this regard. But he took his attitude towards business, which happens in the 'real' world with the rule of law, to the corrupt as sin AFL who answer to no one.

2) The re-signing of Hird. Yes, I'm aware it was the only way Hird was going to accept the proposed penalties. But if you genuinely believed that poor performance of the team was going to be enough to ditch him in the first year of his 'new' contract - you should not have done it. If that means cutting him loose and letting him lose his ******* mind at the AFL in the courts so be it.

3) The interview with Caroline Wilson. What the **** were you thinking. Such an idiot thing to do.

I think points 1 and 3 can be put down to being naive about not only the AFL and also about how it controls the media. Point 2 was a bit messy, no doubt.

When you look at what he's achieved for the club whilst steering us through all of this is actually quite unbelievable and I think we're nit picking somewhat when pointing out a few things he could've done better. I doubt many would've done better in such circumstances.

 

[kelvin_sheedy]

Took over, huffed and puffed initially then crumpled.

Alienated two of our greats in Hird and Thompson.

Invited Caro to do an interview. Constant leaks that destabilised the club and allowed our champions to get battered from pillar to post.

Apart from that at least he showed up to work.

 

[Jade]

I think points 1 and 3 can be put down to being naive about not only the AFL and also about how it controls the media. Point 2 was a bit messy, no doubt.

When you look at what he's achieved for the club whilst steering us through all of this is actually quite unbelievable and I think we're nit picking somewhat when pointing out a few things he could've done better. I doubt many would've done better in such circumstances.

Agreed, which is why my opening statement was:

Overall, I think Paul did an admirable job in what was, undoubtedly, the toughest environment any President/Chairman of a club has had to face.

 

[Doss]

Overall, I think Paul did an admirable job in what was, undoubtedly, the toughest environment any President/Chairman of a club has had to face.

I have three major problems:

1) His adversarial approach when he took the Chair with the AFL. Little is a damn good businessman, and I have the utmost respect for him in this regard. But he took his attitude towards business, which happens in the 'real' world with the rule of law, to the corrupt as sin AFL who answer to no one.

2) The re-signing of Hird. Yes, I'm aware it was the only way Hird was going to accept the proposed penalties. But if you genuinely believed that poor performance of the team was going to be enough to ditch him in the first year of his 'new' contract - you should not have done it. If that means cutting him loose and letting him lose his ******* mind at the AFL in the courts so be it.

3) The interview with Caroline Wilson. What the **** were you thinking. Such an idiot thing to do.

The 4) I'd add is the mismanagement of the situation with Bomber at the end of 2014.

I know Bomber said in that interview recently that he wasn't interested in the job post 2014 but I'm not really sure I believe him; I think he was.

Now, there's an argument there to say he shouldn't have been because Hird was contracted, but he is an ambitious man. Now, do I think Little got in his ear to say Hird was likely to be terminated and therefore, "make your pitch, Bomber"?

Yes, absolutely I do. There is no solid proof of this, of course, but putting the pieces together and as yaco is fond of saying, reading the tea leaves, this is the overwhelming conclusion I come to.

It was very poorly managed by the club, it needlessly alienated two friends and alienated one of them from the club altogether.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

Hird was contracted and coming back. Bomber decided he wanted the job permanently but didn't wanna be the bad guy to shaft Hird. So the only option was what he did - make the right noises, then go away and hope the club didn't bring Hird back, then ride back into town the reluctant hero.

Didn't work out, Bomber was never going to be assistant after that, even though the club told him he could have basically any other job he wanted.

Not too sure what the club could have done. Bomber purposefully went away and made himself uncontactable. Then came back when Hird was entrenched and refused to do any other job assisting him (which was his right, of course).

Like it or not the club made a commitment to Hird to bring him back post suspension.

 

[Doss]

Hird was contracted and coming back. Bomber decided he wanted the job permanently but didn't wanna be the bad guy to shaft Hird. So the only option was what he did - make the right noises, then go away and hope the club didn't bring Hird back, then ride back into town the reluctant hero.

Didn't work out, Bomber was never going to be assistant after that, even though the club told him he could have basically any other job he wanted.

Not too sure what the club could have done. Bomber purposefully went away and made himself uncontactable. Then came back when Hird was entrenched and refused to do any other job assisting him (which was his right, of course).

Like it or not the club made a commitment to Hird to bring him back post suspension.

Yes but how does that compute against the fact the club (and let's face it, that meant Little) basically tried to sack Hird around that time?

For me the timing of that and Bomber's speech is not a coincidence.

 

[table tennis]

I liked his money

 

[Corleone]

I think given the circumstances we were/still are involved, there was never going to be any victories, but Paul Little helped mitigate the losses. That's all anyone could expect from the man.

One day I hope to read a tell all book from the major players in our corner of this whole drama. I believe that if that happens a lot of people will be seen in a very different and more positive light. Paul Little included.

Thanks Paul.

 

[theboxmike]

I really can't think of somebody who would have done a better job. He has copped a large whack to his reputation for things that were out of his control.

 

[pazza]

Had arguably the toughest job in footy over the last 5 years.

The biggest problem was his failure as Chairman, supported by the board, kept on failing to accept the umpire's decision. It's one thing to keep up the fight, it's entirely another to fight a losing battle and exacerbate the club's shaky financial position. It almost got the point of being embarrassing.

That only made the other decisions like Hird and Thompson even worse.

 

[Doss]

I just wish he'd played his cards close to his chest and been more savvy with the media. We were being hung, drawn and quartered for everything, the club should've shut up shop and just given the fans occasional updates through the website.

There is an argument that Evans did exactly that, though, and look where that got us...

It was more that sometimes he said too much, or put it the wrong way. He didn't have to be silent but sometimes a tad more consideration of how to phrase something would not have gone astray.

 

[Darealrath]

Have a massive amount of respect for him. Went way out of his (very comfortable) comfort zone to stand up for the club and do everything he thought he could to keep the club afloat. He didn't do everything perfectly but I'd never question his motives. If all goes well at CAS he will have left us in a great place and then hopefully get the recognition he deserves.

 

[efcboy]

There is an argument that Evans did exactly that, though, and look where that got us...

It was more that sometimes he said too much, or put it the wrong way. He didn't have to be silent but sometimes a tad more consideration of how to phrase something would not have gone astray.

Evans orchestrated a review by Ziggy that was written as damning and released that publicly hurting any chance of a favourable outcome. Idiocy at its highest. And Paul little was part of the board that must have backed this move.

I can't cop Paul Little - huffed and puffed then caved to afl. Extended Hird's contract, then didn't allow him back into fold when suspension was over, then didn't allow him to attend Crichton medal when officially senior coach, then continued with him throughout season with "little" support. I'd prefer a decisive leader who makes a decision and stands by it. Not one who makes a bold statement and then bends overs on that statement/decision. I don't think Paul Little could have done a worse job really.

And it is ludicrous Little was heavily involved in hiring Worsfold - Little had decided he was leaving so should not have been involved in the decision. The person making the decision should have been involved throughout and cop the responsibility of getting it right. If Worsfold is a bust Little should be around to face the music for a poor choice etc.

 

[Summer Nights]

Well he was a damn sight better than that pussy Evans.