Andrew Demetriou, the AFL’s sheriff, leaves his post wounded but proud

ANDREW Demetriou leaves the AFL wounded by events in recent years, but they will not define him.

ANDREW Demetriou leaves the AFL wounded by events in recent years, but they will not define him.

Without question, the brightness far outweighs the blemishes, and even most Essendon folk would admit that.

Exiled coach James Hird would be one who might need convincing, but, hand on heart, he would agree the sport is in terrific shape.

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That’s not to say Hird would attend farewell drinks on the terrace — they both love Italian red — or that Demetriou would extend him an invitation in the first place.

But Demetriou’s legacy as AFL chief executive is strong after 10 years.

The past three years, however, presented him and the AFL with a series of situations that were largely unprecedented.

The tanking debacle at Melbourne, which he emphatically denied existed against a nation of disbelievers, and the penalties given to Adelaide over salary cap cheating, were messy affairs.

With the Demons, Demetriou dug in his heels despite the club being fined and former senior officials Dean Bailey and Chris Connolly suspended.

For a man known to be resolute in belief, earning himself the label of dictator, this stance was seen as remarkable.

News_Rich_Media: AFL Chief Executive Andrew Demetriou has announced at a press conference that he will stand down at the end of the 2014 season after 11 year in the sport's top job.

The Bombers supplement saga was 100 times worse.

He didn’t accept any responsibility it for in his farewell press conference — ‘’I didn’t inject anyone,’’ he said — despite admitting his major regret was that perhaps the AFL did not act quicker upon suspicions the sports science field was running rampant throughout the AFL.

There are accusations he corrupted the inquiry, which he emphatically dismisses, and he has admitted the month of December was not ideal for him or the competition.

He denied the Essendon business played a role in his departure, revealing he first raised it with AFL Commission chairman Mike Fitzpatrick in 2012 and then confirming his departure at the Super Bowl in February, which at the time was considered part of a farewell tour.

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One of his pet hates is people not believing what he says, especially journalists.

So he will bristle at learning that people around town, in the political world more than the AFL, have suggested he was pushed out the door.

I don’t believe it, but do subscribe to the belief his time had come, and that the AFL’s front office needed a renovation.

The Demons and Crows stuff chipped away public confidence, and the Bombers saga is so convoluted that the public’s faith in all parties has taken a hit.

The timing of the announcement was a surprise, but the fact he’s leaving is not.

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As departure speeches go, Demetriou was all class.

He teared up when he spoke of his wife Symone and their four kids, just moments after touching on the death of his first wife. “Symone and my children are my sunshine, my light and my hope and I love them with all my heart,” he said. And he said his dad Tony, a diminutive figure as opposed to his son, had been a keen supporter. “I know he is proud of me,’’ Demetriou said.

His mum died in 2006, he said.

At times such at this, Demetriou the dictator is forgotten. He is a man who has suffered great hardship, found great love, all the time trying to instil a “conscience’’ in a code that will always find a way to shoot itself in the foot.

He told of incredible relationships he had forged, and although a touch self-indulgent, it should be noted Demetriou created discussion as much as Kevin Sheedy and Brendan Fevola.

News_Rich_Media: Outgoing AFL Chief Executive Andrew Demetriou has dismissed suggestions that the scrutiny over his role in the ASADA investigation impacted his decision to leave, saying 'I'll tell you what I didn't do — I never injected anyone.'

In some ways, he was the Mick Malthouse of headquarters, the man you love to hate but who has earned your respect.

AFL chairman Mike Fitzpatrick said Demetriou had a “determination to give our game an ethical underpinning ... a conscience”, and who was a man of terrific values.

It was as though he was the AFL’s sheriff.

He could forgive and forget, and even put an arm around a player. Demetriou welcomed Ben Cousins back with open arms, despite knowing there was every chance Cousins could relapse.

The game could help him, Demetriou said, and you get the feeling that was his overriding emotion above any fallout if Cousins indeed, crashed landed.

At the same time Demetriou could be critical of players hurting the image of the game. He would like Fev but think he was a bloody idiot, that Barry Hall hurt the game and himself, and would’ve positively hated learning of Alan Didak riding with gun-toting bikies on the Bolte Bridge.

But always he argued the game would have them back after they did their penance.

People aside, the sport is infinitely better under his watch.

The business side — stadiums, equalisation, respect and responsibility, expansion, media rights — is booming, and if only he could correct the price of a pie and beer at the footy, his legacy would be more enhanced with those in the outer.

As it is, the punter would probably describe him as hard but fair, and that’s acceptable for anyone in a position like his.

Follow Mark Robinson on Twitter: @Robbo_heraldsun