Gillon McLachlan has had to satisfy agendas from numerous parties to restart season

AFL boss Gillon McLachlan has been dealing with the same problems every day to get football started – akin to Adam Sandler in 50 First Dates – which is new territory for a man who is used to getting his own way.

Gillon McLachlan has had to satisfy numerous parties. Picture: Getty

Gillon McLachlan must feel like Adam Sandler in 50 First Dates.

For those who aren’t across the Hollywood rom-com, Sandler’s character is forced to win over Drew Barrymore every single day because she can’t remember the previous night’s date.

Barrymore’s character Lucy suffers from a form of amnesia which inhibits her ability to form new memories.

When McLachlan has tucked into his Weetbix and flicked on his computer over the last couple of weeks, he’s been faced with a Sandler-like dilemma when it comes to getting football started again.

The only difference is the AFL boss doesn’t just have one person he has to romance, there are dozens with the list, and circumstances around each, changing by the hour.

So no matter what good lines he’s spun or deals he’s done the previous evening, they’re all forgotten Lucy-style when a curveball (ie. South Australian government) comes hurtling into his Zoom screen.

And so he starts again.

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There have been daily obstacles for Gillon McLachlan to work his way through. Picture: AAP

The schmoozing and “you-scratch-my-back and I’ll scratch yours” conversations begin as the CEO desperately tries to find the “greater good”.

There’s only one major problem for McLachlan here – and he knows it better than anyone – the “greater good” in the AFL doesn’t exist.

With agendas flying all over the place like Dustin Martin fend-offs, there is not one solution which fits all.

While there may be unity in the fact everyone wants football back, the how, when and in what form is a whole different scenario.

Those who need some loving from McLachlan include the players, coaches, umpires, club presidents, club CEOs, club football departments, broadcasters, state government, federal government, medical experts, sponsors, media and fans.

Getting them all in line, or least in the same suburb of being in line, has so far been unworkable.

This is new territory for McLachlan who is used to generally getting his own way.

The AFL is normally the biggest dog in the room who arrogantly flashes around all sorts of juicy incentives to get their way.

But they’ve either misread or misunderstood the play over the latest setback.

Getting all the states in line was always going to be the biggest challenge especially when the Federal Government handballed the decision on professional sport to them.

This quickly became an issue with players allowed to train in groups of 10 in one state, weren’t allowed to do it in another.

Then the AFL was forced to rule that clubs couldn’t train in groups until every state was operating under the same set of rules so there would be no competitive advantage.

When Victorian premier Daniel Andrews, who had the most hard line approach to coronavirus restrictions, gave the AFL clubs special exemption to begin training on Monday the celebrations were short-lived.

Across the border in South Australia, the state’s health authority had a very different view and dropped a bomb on Wednesday by ruling that the Crows and Power wouldn’t be allowed to do contact training until June.

The AFL had been receiving very positive vibes from the SA government but when push came to shove, health won over sport in a move which rocked McLachlan’s world.

And throw in the fact that WA and SA refused to bend on the 14-day quarantine rules, this meant the AFL announcement of a June 11 restart had to be canned.

This brought back the controversial hub idea which the players had initially run a million miles from a couple of weeks earlier when they were told they could be stuck there for 20 weeks without seeing their families.

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews gave the AFL clubs special exemption to begin training Picture: AAP

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That whole hub debate was a PR nightmare from both sides but it appears now that the West Coast Eagles, Fremantle, Port Adelaide and Adelaide have no alternative but to leave their respective states for hub-life somewhere else.

The MCG precinct had been floated early doors, Darwin and Tasmania had thrown their hats into the ring but the latest had Gold Coast being the preferred hub destination.

So while the AFL runs around and around in circles, adding to McLachlan’s frustration is the fact rugby league is set to pull off what was initially deemed impossible.

NRL chairman Peter V’landys was ridiculed by AFL types when he boldly declared he would bring his sport back on May 28.

Despite facing a lot of similar hurdles – he even had one team in another country – V’Landys looks set to deliver whereas the AFL looks likely to be at least three weeks behind.

That’s a hit to the ego, not just of McLachlan but the industry as a whole.

At least Gill can take some solace when he flicks off the computer after another day of romancing without an official announcement that Sandler eventually found a way to get his girl.

Originally published as Gillon McLachlan has had to satisfy agendas from numerous parties to restart season