AFL chief Gillon McLachlan’s departure clouds SA Gather Round’s long-term future

Gillon McLachlan’s departure leaves the AFL’s top brass without any South Australian influence, imperilling the long-term future of the highly prized Gather Round in SA.

Springing from what passes for the state’s landed gentry, outgoing AFL chief Gillon McLachlan might not be a typical, average South Australian.

He enjoyed a privileged upbringing, growing up on the family estate, Rosebank, near Mount Pleasant, and boarding at St Peter’s College.

Uncle Ian McLachlan is a former federal defence minister and South Australian Cricket Association president, in whose honour an Adelaide Oval event room is named.

Even if he moved to Melbourne to study law in the mid-1990s, Gillon McLachlan can, at least, be claimed as a South Australian.

A young polo player Gillon McLachlan, 14, of Mount Pleasant, and horse Julie pictured on January 27, 1988. The horse is being prepared for its new rider, Prince Charles, when he plays in a polo match during a royal visit to Adelaide. Picture: Advertiser library.

But after his departure from the AFL’s top job following Saturday’s Grand Final, there will be no one in the top tier of the AFL brass with any SA connection.

There are still no South Australians on the AFL Commission. There are now three from Western Australia.

The two appointed on Monday, long-serving club administrator Andrew Ireland and former GWS and Fremantle tagger Matt de Boer, can claim nearly every state except SA in their resume.

Ireland played 110 games for Collingwood and was chief executive of the Brisbane Bears before moving to Sydney and having football general manager, chief executive and director roles at the Swans.

De Boer retired at the end of last season after 223 AFL games with Fremantle and GWS.

So, why does it matter that there are no South Australians in the AFL’s highest echelons?

Footy fans will rightly complain about the Victorian-centric nature of the AFL, which changed name in 1990 from the Victorian Football League (VFL).

There have been innumerable examples of the VFL’s lingering influence, coupled with an ignorant determination to ignore the proud footy history of states like SA, WA and Tasmania.

One stupendous example is the appalling 2018 deal to lock the Grand Final in at the MCG until at least 2057.

The AFL grabbed a $225m golden handshake from the Victorian government, spearheaded by former premier Daniel Andrews.

Even Geelong coach Chris Scott, a Brisbane premiership player, condemned this as “a travesty”.

There is another reason, more pertinent to public policy in SA, that Mr McLachlan’s departure is a loss for his one-time home state.

South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas and AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan at the official Gather Round business lunch. Picture: Paul Starick

The bromance struck up between Mr McLachlan and Premier Peter Malinauskas during the inaugural AFL Gather Round in SA in April resulted in a three-year deal to keep the event.

The pair’s announcement of this success at Adelaide Oval before the round’s final game, Collingwood versus St Kilda, rightly triggered a resounding cheer from the crowd.

At the time, The Advertiser reported that Mr McLachlan and Mr Malinauskas were hopeful of building stadiums in one or both of the Barossa Valley and McLaren Vale wine regions from next year.

Mr McLachlan’s dream, my colleague Jon Ralph reported, was for an early weekend game at a Barossa venue that has a vast pavilion adjoining the stadium showcasing the best of the area’s 150 winemakers.

At the time, he did not disclose the terms of the Gather Round deal but SA was widely believed to have paid $15m for the 2023 event.

Gather Round was hailed as an incredible success.

It delivered a buzz around Adelaide and an estimated $85m economic windfall, so the event more than washed its face.

But its future in SA is not guaranteed, even if it is locked in until 2026. Mr McLachlan made it clear NSW and WA would eventually have a turn as the AFL “will be taking this on the road”.

Prominent AFL voices including Alastair Clarkson, Jimmy Bartel, John Longmire and Leigh Matthews all argued for the concept rotating between the states.

With the loss of SA influence at the top levels of the AFL, this push will be harder to resist. SA is already too often sidelined by the AFL, in a supposed national competition.

This imperils the long-term SA future of Gather Round, the most decent recognition of the state’s loyal footy fans in some years.