‘200 steps too far’: McGuire slams Koch attack on Malthouse

Collingwood president Eddie McGuire has hit back at David Koch after he delivered a scathing swipe at an AFL legend.

Eddie McGuire has slammed David Koch for his comments about Mick Malthouse.

Collingwood president Eddie McGuire has slammed David Koch’s attack on former coach Mick Malthouse.

On Saturday, Koch bristled at Malthouse’s belief Port Adelaide’s AFL games in China should be scrapped, the Port Adelaide president telling Fox Footy Live: “If it was up to Mick Malthouse, he’d bring back the White Australia policy in the 50s.”

McGuire responded to Koch’s comments this morning.

“One of the things I deplore is as soon as anyone’s got a different point of view is to be called racist, misogynistic, boys’ club, anything like that,” he said on Triple M.

“All the sort of stuff that goes on now, if you’ve got a different point of view or even if you've got a slightly different point of view the pile on just comes straight up.

“I can tell you straight up that Mick Malthouse, there’s not a racist bone in Mick Malthouse’s body and he’s a broad-thinking man.

“He has done so much to look after indigenous Australians and indigenous footballers and players from all walks of life.

“He’s very generous man when it comes to people who come from lower socio-economic backgrounds from all sorts of areas who come into the club whether they could read or write or they were geniuses, all those types of things.

“I think to be slated back to White Australia was a step not too far, but about 200 steps too far from David and I hope that Kochie sort of looks back on that sand says you know what, I might’ve just acted a little bit irrationally on that one and I retract.

“I hope that he does that in the next couple of days because that was way over the odds.”

I couldn’t care less whether @PAFC plays in China or not. Good luck to them if they make a few bucks. But Chairman David Koch’s comments about Mick Malthouse were unedifying.

— Stephen Quartermain (@Quartermain10) May 9, 2020

McGuire said Koch was entirely within his rights to defend the club’s forays into China, but the attack on Malthouse went too far.

“David’s absolutely entitled to argue for the benefits that come from that,” he said.

“Yes, China is a major power that we have to deal with and that’s what our governments are trying to deal with, he’s looking at that, Mick’s looking at it from a football point of view.

“I think if everyone just had their time again, you’d be able to put your point of view on it and then count it, but we didn't need to get so personal on that one.

“When you’re actually nationally aligned with promulgating the worst racist regime, I mean that’s apartheid what Australia was, that’s a big big call and one that’s too far.”

Originally published as ‘200 steps too far’: McGuire slams Koch attack on Malthouse