Marcus Ashcroft appointed CEO of VFL Zebras
A triple premiership player with Brisbane has taken over as chief executive officer of the VFL mainstay after the departure of David Cannizzo.
Victorian Football
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Sandringham president Nick Johnstone has hailed the appointment of former Brisbane star Marcus Ashcroft as the new club CEO as “one of the best days’’ in the Zebras’ history.
Ashcroft will start at Sandy on Monday after being locked in to replace David Cannizzo.
Former Southern league chief executive Cannizzo resigned last week after almost three years with the VFL club.
Ashcroft, who lives close to Sandy’s Trevor Barker Oval, played 318 games and in three premierships for Brisbane.
He moved to Victoria three years ago to take up a role in the AFL’s talent division.
Ashcroft also worked at the Gold Coast Suns, first as an assistant coach and then football manager.
“No doubt it’s one of the best days in the club’s history, one of the most significant, when you’re able to recruit someone of the calibre of Marcus, a 300-game AFL player with such a strong background in administration,’’ Johnstone said.
“We just couldn’t be happier.
“After David resigned I was contacted by a couple of people in the industry who suggested I should be giving Marcus a call. We did, and we were blown away in an interview with him, his talent, his enthusiasm for the club.
“He’s living in the bayside area with his family – he’s got children at local schools and he’s a local now. With all his expertise and his contacts he’s going to be a wonderful asset for our football club.’’
He said Ashcroft would bring a “high level of professionalism’’ to the club, which will be part of the 22-team VFL/East Coast competition next year.
The Zebras have maintained their alignment with St Kilda and appointed former Tiger Jake Batchelor as senior coach.
Johnstone said Sandy needed to act quickly to replace Cannizzo with the new league taking shape.
“We want to hit the ground running, and we were really keen for Marcus to put his feet under the desk as soon as possible,’’ he said.
Ashcroft said this afternoon he was thrilled to be back in “club land’’ and attached to a traditional Victorian state league club.
“A lot of good people have been involved with the footy club over the journey and continue to be, so it’s a privilege to be given an opportunity to be part of it going forward,’’ he said.
Ashcroft was involved in the VFL in 2010 when Gold Coast entered a team ahead of its inaugural season in the AFL.
But he said a lot had changed since then.
“Twenty-two teams … there are a lot of teams now,’’ he said.
“But it’s going to be an exciting competition.’’
Ashcroft has two sons attending Brighton Grammar and a daughter who goes to Firbank College.
Cannizzo has accepted another role in sporting administration.