Nathan Buckley says AFL boss Gillon McLachlan needs to be more objective after Stephen Coniglio comments

AFL boss Gillon McLachlan drew the ire of fans after he called on in-demand free agent Stephen Coniglio to stay with the Giants and Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley believes, in his position, he needs to be impartial.

Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley says he’d have preferred AFL boss Gillon McLachlan to be “more neutral” when discussing Giant Stephen Coniglio’s future.

McLachlan, yesterday, drew the ire of fans after urging the league’s most sought-after free agent Stephen Coniglio to stay with GWS.

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McLachlan said he hoped the Giants’ vice-captain resisted reported overtures from Victorian clubs including Carlton and Hawthorn to stay in western Sydney.

While Buckley said he didn’t have an issue with McLachlan’s comments, he believed the chief executive needed to take his position into consideration.

“Does it bother me? I think in his position you’d want to remain a little more neutral, to be honest,” Buckley said on SEN.

Gillon McLachlan says he’d like Stephen Coniglio to stay with GWS.

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“But I can understand he’s probably ... taking a step out of his CEO’s role and saying ‘well, this is where I would stand, personally’, so I don’t have an issue with it.

“In the end, the person who has to live his life the way that he chooses to live it and make the decisions and then live or die by them is Stephen Coniglio.

“We all understand what that’s like.”

Should the boss of the AFL be discussing and making strong comments about where he wants free agents to be playing?

— Sam Edmund (@SammyHeraldSun) August 13, 2019

McLachlan told Sportsday he’d “love him” to stay at the Giants.

“Certainly my advice is (Coniglio moving is) not a given,” McLachlan said on Sportsday.

“I think he’s a star player and I know he’s a leader of that club.

“I know him a bit personally and I think he’s a fabulous person. I’ll be explicit, I’d love him to stay up there.”

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Asked if he would personally ask Coniglio to re-sign, McLachlan said: “I just told him”.

Fans were quick to question the comments on Twitter, questioning why the AFL chief executive was weighing into a player’s contract decision.

Jayden O’Halloran said “the AFL CEO shouldn’t be giving directives”, while another fan said it was “not something the AFL CEO should be weighing in on”.

O’Halloran said: “It’s like the NBA commissioner telling a player to go to a club.”

Dean Castleman added: “Why is the CEO (even) commenting on club trades or players”, while Matthew Coad said it was “beyond inappropriate”.

After reports football boss Wayne Campbell would depart the Giants at season’s end, which coach Leon Cameron angrily denied, McLachlan said he was confident in GWS’ football department.

“They’ve lost an extraordinary amount of players,” he said.

“It looks like they’ll finish top six at a minimum. They have won three of the last four missing 7-8 potential All-Australians.”

Beyond inappropriate. Should not have an opinion on trades

— Matthew Coad (@coady82) August 13, 2019

It’s his choice FFS.
The AFL CEO shouldn’t be giving directives... it be like the NBA Commisioner telling a player to go to a club

— Jayden O'Halloran ♊️ (@thediamondduck) August 13, 2019

Why is the CEO evening commenting on club trades or players! Amateur hour at AFL rolls on

— Dean Castleman (@DeanCastleman) August 13, 2019

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Stephen Coniglio has a big decision to make. Picture: AFL Photos