Adelaide confirms player angst was behind Collective Mind split but no pressure from AFL or AFL Players’ Association

ADELAIDE’S decision to end its partnership with Collective Mind came after weeks of internal discussion but the football department was not forced to act by the club’s board, the AFL or Players’ Association.

Adelaide Crows football manager Brett Burton and coach Don Pyke.

ADELAIDE’S decision to end its partnership with Collective Mind came after weeks of internal discussion but the football department was not forced to act by the club’s board, the AFL or Players’ Association.

A week after admitting it had made mistakes on the pre-season mind training camp on the Gold Coast in January, Adelaide announced on Saturday that it had mutually agreed to part ways with the consultancy group behind it.

The club consulted its players regarding ongoing mind training but said captain Taylor Walker had not presented specific concerns on behalf of the team.

The AFL Players’ Association spoke with some Crows players when news of the training camp broke in March, but the players’ union was not involved in the club’s decision on the weekend.

Crows players leave the ground after the loss to Hawthorn.

Nor was the AFL ,which on Sunday confirmed it had not had any discussions with the club or played any role in ending the agreement with Collective Mind.

Collective Mind founder Amon Woulfe released a statement which confirmed the decision to split from the Crows was mutual.

“While there have been many positives in 2018, we acknowledge and have acted upon some concerns around the pre-season camp.

“However, the ongoing focus on this has been distracting for the club and the players, and was a key factor in this decision for us.

“To allow the players and the club as a whole to move on, we won’t be making any further comment. We’re very proud to have worked with this fantastic club and we wish them all the best.”

It is understood Collective Mind is poised to release a book on its program but it’s not known whether it will reference its work with the Crows.

Crows players and football staff were called to a meeting at West Lakes on Saturday where they were told the partnership with Collective Mind was over.

Pyke said the football department had listened to player feedback on the issue and decided to act.

“From a coaching and management viewpoint we’re managing that issue, they (players) have input into that and it’s wise to listen to your players. They’re the ones out there doing it, so they have a say, certainly,” he said.

Asked whether the mind training camp had caused a split in the playing group, Pyke said: “We want to make sure we’ve got programs inside our club that have got complete buy-in from everyone.

“Players, coaches, high-performance staff, management,” he said.

“There were enough concerns in this space to take the action we have.”