Jeff Kennett’s stupid comments will only pour fuel on fan angst, writes Mark Robinson

Just when it couldn’t get any worse for Hawthorn, president Jeff Kennett had to open his mouth with some senseless comments. What was he thinking?

Jeff Kennett’s comments were unproductive. Picture: AAP

A miserable weekend for Hawthorn on the field was eclipsed by utter stupidity off it.

The Hawks lost to Essendon, their season is teetering and their short-term future appears bleak.

The captain Ben Stratton will face the tribunal on Tuesday night and plead guilty to pinching and stomping.

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The club has already condemned Stratton’s actions, the footy world jumped on, and on Tuesday night will be more about what Stratton says to explain himself rather than what the penalty is.

The frustration of being a first-year captain in a struggling team might be just too heavy for him. Or he’s a bully. Or he’s both.

It was stupid from the skipper, but arguably not the most stupid action to come out of Hawthorn after the loss to the Bombers.

That prize goes to the club president, Jeff Kennett.

Supporter angst is real and can’t be ignored, so much so AFL boss Gillon McLachlan and Marvel Stadium chief executive Michael Green met at AFL headquarters on Monday.

A balance has to be found between what the orange coats believe to be unruly behaviour and what supporters believe to be barracking.

It’s agreed that the use of Fs and Cs is unacceptable, but at the same time, we can’t have a fan told to sit down and stopping barracking, which one woman claimed happened to her at the weekend.

That is ridiculous to the point of harassment.

Enter Kennett.

Ben Stratton will face the tribunal for pinching Essendon’s Orazio Fantasia. Picture: AAP

Whenever anyone starts a sentence with, “I’m not being racist when I say this, but ....’’, well, it’s always going to get interesting.

The president described the security staff at Marvel Stadium as “new arrivals’’ and said those patrolling the crowds and judging behavior had a poor knowledge of AFL.

“I’m not being racist when I say this, but when I saw some of the footage, the people who are making judgements while they wear these authoritative coats are not people who appear to have a great knowledge of our game,’’ Kennett told 3AW.

“And yet they make judgments about what’s correct and what’s not correct.

“They are new arrivals to Australia, it appears. We don’t know that and they could be born here.”

How does that in anyway help the current combustible situation, a club president using race to attack the security and by extension the AFL?

The mob is already up in arms about being told what to do and how to act, and Kennett has only added fuel.

Just imagine if it was Eddie McGuire and not Kennett who offered such provoking commentary.

Ed would be front-page news.

Jeff Kennett’s comments were unproductive. Picture: AAP

The AFL would be bewildered by Kennett’s comments.

Maybe even the Hawks.

After the Stratton incidents, Hawks chief executive Justin Reeves issued a statement which said, in effect, the behaviour of the skipper didn’t align with the values of the Family Club.

Reeves should issue the same statement, swapping Stratton’s name for Kennett’s.

“Jeff is a very respected figure at our football club, but his actions on Monday let himself and the club down,’’ it should read.

“His behaviour was certainly not reflective of how Hawthorn play and as our president we expect more from him.

“We will work with Jeff to ensure that this sort of behaviour is not repeated.

“This is not the sort of thing he or we want to be known for and he understands the need to adjust his behaviour moving forward.”

It won’t happen, of course, but maybe it should.