Fremantle have quashed ‘inaccurate reports’ linking Simon Garlick to AFL GM of football operations role
Laura Kane is among the front runners for coveted general manager of football operations role at the AFL, writes MARK DUFFIELD.
AFL
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Fremantle has moved to end “erroneous” speculation that chief executive Simon Garlick was a contender for the AFL’s general manager of football operations role as the possibility looms that the key post could go to a woman for the first time.
The AFL’s general manager of competition management Laura Kane is said to be “in the mix” for the role, which is currently being carried out on a caretaker basis by Andrew Dillon who, in turn, is among the frontrunners to replace Gillon McLachlan as the league’s CEO.
Kane has held her current position at league headquarters for 18 months.
She built a strong football pedigree at club level prior to that in a six-year stint at North Melbourne where she started as the manager of women’s football and talent pathways, became head of football operations and then general manager of Strategy and Football Operations.
She had worked as a solicitor at Waller Legal prior to joining the Kangaroos.
Garlick had been linked to roles at AFL headquarters earlier in the year but had privately told media who asked him that he was happy at the Dockers and expected to be in Western Australia for the next five years.
It is believed he had been asked to be part of the field for the CEO role soon to be vacated by McLachlan, but was eliminated from the running for that position after the second round of interviews.
It is not known how many contenders were left in the process at that time but Garlick was never considered a frontrunner for the position.
Fremantle made a statement on Thursday after former West Coast forward and Eagles and Dockers assistant coach Peter Sumich wrote a newspaper column claiming Fremantle was headed for “mid-season turbulence on and off the field with expectation raging” that Garlick was leaving, labelling him a “hot favourite” to take the job left by Brad Scott when Scott left to resume his coaching career at Essendon.
The Dockers, currently 1-3 for the season despite high pre-season expectations, opted to address the issue via a statement on Thursday afternoon.
“As a Club we don’t make a habit of responding to erroneous media articles, however on this occasion I feel it is important to our people to provide absolute clarity,” club president Dale Alcock said.
“Simon has been transparent with me, the board and the executive in recent months about discussions he had with the AFL about the CEO role, which are no longer continuing.
“Given the high level of interest surrounding other potential appointments at AFL House, the Club has fielded a number of queries from credible journalists wanting to cross check facts prior to running a story, and as a result, have come to the conclusion there is no story surrounding Simon Garlick leaving the Club.
“Unfortunately, this particular commentator has chosen not to follow such journalistic methods.”
“Simon is highly regarded within the AFL industry. Our Board see first-hand the impact he and his management team continue to have on our Club.
“We understand as part of our Club’s ongoing improvement and build toward sustained success, our people may be targeted for other roles and opportunities. However inaccurate reports can potentially cause uncertainty and need to be called out.
“Simon has worked hard to embed himself in the Freo community and, alongside his management team, has established strong foundations and set ambitious strategic goals for our Club’s future.”
President Dale Alcock would like to provide transparency to members and supporters following an inaccurate report implying CEO Simon Garlick could potentially depart the Club for a role at the AFL.#foreverfreo
— Fremantle Dockers (@freodockers) April 13, 2023
Garlick told 3AW this week he and his family “love it in Perth and we are in love with the footy club”.
“I understand there might be links made due to my history as a former Victorian but I am a happy Sandgroper as it stands and we have a lot of work to do and a lot of opportunity in front of us,” he said.
Originally published as Fremantle have quashed ‘inaccurate reports’ linking Simon Garlick to AFL GM of football operations role
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