Was the bullet which took out Graeme Allan really aimed at Eddie McGuire?

WAS the bullet which took out Graeme Allan really aimed at Collingwood president Eddie McGuire? Mark Robinson asks if there’s a rat in the ranks.

Eddie McGuire and Graeme Allan. Picture: Wayne Ludbey

YOU have to ask: Was the bullet which took out Graeme Allan really aimed at Eddie McGuire?

The story which cost “Gubby’’ his job on Tuesday, which had been sitting in a drawer at AFL House for 12 months, only emerged just hours after Allan had been appointed football boss of Collingwood.

Someone leaked it to selected members of the media.

Someone with an axe to grind.

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One of the journo recipients wrote this week the timing was a “coincidence’’

This was no coincidence. The leak was a deliberate and intended assassination of Gubby (tick).

But was the real target Eddie McGuire?

All clubs involved - Collingwood, Greater Western Sydney, Brisbane and Richmond - have asked themselves who dunnit?

Collingwood president Eddie McGuire, Graham Allan and CEO Gary Pert. Picture: Michael Klein

The Tigers are in the mix because they missed out on Adam Treloar.

They believed they had Treloar after Treloar had given key personnel at the club a positive indication he was heading to Punt Rd - only for Collingwood to win the race for the key playmaker in the trade period.

The person who did the deal was Allan and scuttlebutt had it that Treloar and Allan came as a package deal and the Tigers - and other clubs - remain sceptical about the whole arrangement.

However, the problem linking the Tigers to the Lachie Whitfield affair, which was the subject of the initial leak, was: How did the Tigers know Allan was being investigated?

GWS is an unlikely candidate. By throwing Allan under the bus, they would’ve known Whitfield would soon join him and no club would do that to one of their young players on the eve of a finals campaign. In fact, at any time.

The AFL? Highly unlikely. They had been sitting on the story anyway and had nothing to gain and it hijacked Gillon’s finals bye round.

Brisbane? Only one person at the Lions, football manager Matthew Francis, was aware of Lambert’s involvement because he sat in on the Lambert interview with AFL investigators.

The overwhelming likelihood is the shooter came from within Collingwood.

Lachie Whitfield will serve a six-month ban. Picture: Phil Hillyard

Craig Lambert will serve a 12-month ban. Picture: Jono Searle

It must be noted the arrival of Allan to shake up the place caused distress for some staffers and when Allan replaced Neil Balme as head of football, when staff earlier had been told it wouldn’t be happening, the same staff were mightily unimpressed.

Coach Nathan Buckley didn’t even know it was happening.

Gubby’s agenda was to fix a football department McGuire described as needing fixing and with that imprimatur Gubby went a-fixing.

The decision to hire Allan was made by chief executive Garry Pert , but absolutely no-one believes McGuire, a long-time friend of Allan’s, wasn’t up to his ears in the deal.

As expected, Gubby Allan resigns from Collingwood. What a massive balls-up from all involved...

— Mark Robinson (@Robbo_heraldsun) November 15, 2016

On Wednesday, McGuire blamed the media for what he says is a witch-hunt on his football club.

“The story they’re (the media) all trying to rev up is Collingwood and disarray and I’m (McGuire) under pressure, etc,” McGuire said.

“It is not happening. It is a made up attack on the football club and me, and it’s as simple as that.’’

McGuire also said his club wasn’t in crisis. Others would disagree.

Whoever orchestrated the assassination of Allan was also aware he would be undermining McGuire and Pert and questions would be asked.

The fallout has put McGuire in probably his most awkward and challenging position since becoming president in 1999, apart from the Adam Goodes affair and his uncouth jibes to drown a female journalist.

Because surely you’d have to think McGuire’s board members, strong individuals such as Christine Holgate, and other influential types such as Foundation chairman Peter Murphy, have asked for a detailed explanation about how an appointment in September was terminated in November.

The fact is key people at Collingwood knew about the investigation into Gubby - Gubby even supplied a stat dec - and still Pert and McGuire took the risk of employing him.

Hindsight tells us it was a bad judgment call.

It would be interesting to know if the whole board knew of the investigation. If yes, then it was bad governance from all of them. If no, then why not before such a critical appointment.

Eddie McGuire has been Collingwood president since 1999. Picture: Ian Currie

McGuire will survived this because he’s McGuire and has been a monstrously successful and popular president.

And unless there’s a vote of no confidence from his board members, which can’t be confirmed, you can’t see anyone in the Collingwood community actually challenging Ed for the presidency at an EGM.

Still, it has to be uncomfortable period for McGuire despite his assurances it was business as usual.

But he is street-fighter and he knows he probably has a rat in the ranks and he would hate that.

As for the assassin, credit for his coolness and patience. He could’ve pulled the trigger in May when Allan defected from the Giants to head-up Collingwood’s new netball division, but instead, he waited until late August when Allan was elevated above Balme.

Then he pulled the trigger.

And Gubby’s AFL career came to an end.

And McGuire is left to fix a broken a club.

Clearly, Whitfield and Lambert were collateral damage.