Chances of full inquiry into the sacking of Matildas coach Alen Stajcic set to increase
The chances of a full inquiry into the sacking of Alen Stajcic could increase, with key state federations believed to be frustrated by FFA’s renewed lack of clarity over the process. EMMA KEMP explains how the drama will play out.
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The chances of a full inquiry into the sacking of Matildas coach Alen Stajcic could soon increase, with some key state federations believed to be frustrated by Football Federation Australia’s renewed lack of clarity over the process.
FFA chairman Chris Nikou has responded to a letter sent to the board by the federations last month seeking an “understanding” of events leading to the decision to sack Stajcic over an alleged “unacceptable team environment”.
However the correspondence is likely to offer little in the way of appeasement to key stakeholders in search of answers, with Nikou writing that “the constraints, including potential litigation, that have applied to the board continue to apply”.
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What Nikou did reveal in the letter, on behalf of the board and dated February 13, is that the former FFA women’s committee recommended the gender-equality survey that was ultimately undertaken by Our Watch and used in part as justification for Stajcic’s sacking.
Nikou said FFA had “identified potential issues … of concern” within the Matildas team environment back at last July’s Tournament of Nations, and head of national performance Luke Casserly had formally raised these with Stajcic in late August.
That, he said, led to Professional Footballers Australia’s planned 2019 national teams-wide wellbeing audit being “fast-tracked” for the Matildas to 2018, a process in which Stajcic was involved.
He said the alleged issues were also raised at a meeting on August 1 of the former FFA women’s committee, which was then chaired by Nikou and also featured chief executive David Gallop, head of women’s football Emma Highwood, current directors Heather Reid and Kelly Bayer Rosmarin, former director Danny Moulis, company secretary Jo Setright, former Matilda Sarah Walsh and Mia Garlick.
That committee “recommended a suitable organisation be employed to undertake a culture/gender equality survey”.
“Discussion was held with both Sport Australia and Our Watch as FFA was already in the process of developing a partnership with Our Watch who had approached FFA as part of work it was doing on gender equality across sport involving a number of major sporting codes (AFL, NRL, Rugby Australia),” the letter read.
“The FFA Women’s Committee was provided an update at the start of October. Our Watch was then engaged, and the Gender Equality Culture Survey was developed and distributed to all FFA staff, including the Matildas, in November 2018.
“Our understanding is that the same form of survey has been conducted with the other sports that Our Watch has partnered with.”
The letter comes days after an emotional Stajcic broke his silence in attempt to redeem a coaching reputation he says has been “ruined” by speculation and innuendo since he was “terminated without cause” on January 19.
As board members set about embarking on a review in senior management’s performance throughout the saga, Stajcic continues to collate material in preparation for any potential legal action.
On top of that the board, now grappling to control the narrative, face the prospect — drastic though it would be — of federations escalating their concerns in the form of an emergency general meeting.
Under the terms of the constitution passed in October, only five per cent of the 100 congress votes available to members of FFA’s Congress are needed to call an emergency general meeting.
With the nine state federations sharing 55 votes on a pro-rata basis, any one of them could call an EGM with the view to putting forward a motion for an independent inquiry that would then have to be voted on by congress.
Ros Moriarty, the head of FFA’s new women’s council which replaced the women’s committee and has 10 votes on congress, on Thursday called for answers “around governance, due diligence and due process” on the decision to axe Stajcic, one on which the council was not consulted.
“The FFA Board’s announcement this week, to review the circumstances of Mr Stajcic’s dismissal, will raise more questions from the football community about the independence and rigour of that exercise,” Moriarty wrote on LinkedIn.
“As the new Council’s independent Chair, it is clear to me the work of the Council, and indeed the progress of women’s football in Australia, has little chance of traction unless such a review brings the change necessary for good governance, transparency and professionalism.”
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