Former coach Grant Thomas to meet with St Kilda president Andrew Bassat
Grant Thomas will speak with Andrew Bassat after passionately outlining his reasons for supporting Larry Benge’s bid to join the Saints board.
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Former St Kilda coach Grant Thomas will speak with president Andrew Bassat on Tuesday after passionately outlining his reasons for supporting dental surgeon Larry Benge’s bid to join the Saints board.
The Saints now own the unwanted tag of the AFL’s longest premiership drought of the establishment clubs and have made finals just once since 2011.
Benge, who has provided dental services to the club for 20-plus years, has confirmed he’d sought support for a shake-up at St Kilda from several influential Saints figures.
They include Gerry Ryan and Thomas, who said he was sick of seeing other clubs such as Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs streaking past the Saints.
“Andrew has made contact with me, which is great and we’re going to have a chat today sometime and I’ll hear where he’s coming from and he’ll hear where I’m coming from,” Thomas said on SEN on Tuesday.
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“They’ve got a lot of challenges at the moment.
“I don’t know what their debt is, it was $12 million last year and I only assume it’s gone backwards again this year, so it’s somewhere between $12 and $15 million.
“It’s incredible, that’s the worst in the competition and our performances aren’t mirroring where I think we need to be.
“The game’s about winning premierships…St Kilda fans want to taste that and it’s been too long.
“It’s 55 years ago, for God’s sake.”
Thomas, who recently sold his digital bank for $116 million, won’t nominate for the board himself but said change was needed at Moorabbin.
“I had a chat to him (Bassat) a few years ago when he started,” he said.
“He doesn’t have to prove anything to me, I’m just a footy fan and I just love the Saints.
“I see Melbourne and the Bulldogs have gone past us in recent years, so if they can do it there’s no reason why we can’t.
“But we’re not going to do it doing what we’re doing.
“We need to do something significantly different and we really need to enter the premiership business race and I think there’s probably only six or eight teams regularly that are having a crack at that, and I just think we have to do something quite significant to achieve it.”
Thomas said every decision made at Moorabbin had to be in the pursuit of a drought-breaking premiership.
“I can’t see us winning a premiership in the next year or two, and if we don’t win it in the next year or two, that list… well where is it?” he said.
“That means we’re another decade away and that doesn’t sit well with me.
“It’s achievable and you can do it, but you’ve got to make hard decisions.
“This is just me supporting Larry Benge to get on the board to try and make some changes and put St Kilda on the right trajectory for success.”
Thomas said he believed there was a power struggle at the club between chief executive Matt Finnis and former AFL football operations boss Simon Lethlean, the club’s chief operating officer.
“It seems to me that Simon Lethlean is very keen for the CEO role and Matt Finnis is struggling in trying to keep his head above water,” Thomas said.
“I don’t know who the direct line of communication with the president is, whether it’s Lethlean or Finnis or whether there’s competition between those two, but that’s not healthy.
“Matt Finnis has been there nine or 10 years and it’s been a pretty bleak decade…so people need to be held accountable for these things.”
GERRY RYAN, GRANT THOMAS BACK SAINTS’ BOARD SHAKE-UP
Michael Warner
Business giant and influential St Kilda figure Gerry Ryan has endorsed a bid by dental surgeon Larry Benge to join the club’s board.
The Saints now own the unwanted tag of the AFL’s longest premiership drought of the establishment clubs and have made finals just once since 2011.
Benge, who has provided dental services to the club for 20-plus years, confirmed he had sought support for a shake-up at St Kilda from several influential Saints figures.
“Larry has been a long-time supporter, he’s given a lot to the club over many years and would add some value,” Ryan said.
“Every sporting club and every business should keep bringing new people and new ideas to the table.
“They (St Kilda) are a couple of years into a program and hopefully next year it comes to reality.”
Benge also has the support of former coach and director Grant Thomas.
Thomas, who recently sold his digital bank for $116 million, told the Herald Sun he was keeping a close eye on proceedings at Moorabbin.
“Larry Benge is a highly successful business person with great character and integrity. I’m certain (president) Andrew Bassat as a highly successful business person would respect and appreciate his input,” he said.
“I’ll be very interested to see how they treat his approach. If he is not taken seriously or respected I will definitely think deeply about my next steps.”
Thomas played 72 games for the Saints between 1978-83, then served on the board and as football director before coaching the club from 2001-06.
“I only have one good fight left in me and — as always — I’m very happy to use it for the cause of St Kilda,” he said.
“In my view there are two types of teams in this competition: those in the premiership business and those simply playing AFL.
“From my observation over the last decade, St Kilda is just playing AFL. It’s time. We want to see a dramatic change in leadership, organisational connectedness and performance.”
St Kilda has won one premiership in its history in 1966.
Those pushing for change at St Kilda have raised concerns about the club’s football program, recruiting strategy, list construct and governance structure.
One view is that St Kilda effectively has two chief executive officers in Matt Finnis and former AFL football operations boss Simon Lethlean, the club’s chief operating officer.
Questions have also been raised about the commitment of at least one of the club’s eight directors.
“You can’t keep blaming coaches and players. It’s a culture that the board sets. They are definitely on notice,” one observer said.
The Saints finished 10th this season with 10 wins and 12 losses.
Benge said “St Kilda’s decade of performance warranted change”.
“My view is it needs fresh input into the board. It feels like it is very static and needs to be more dynamic and innovative,” he said.
“I have experienced the club first hand for 22 years whilst assisting with all their dental treatment and emergencies – through seven administrations – I believe I’m qualified to say that things need to change.
“I would like the opportunity to represent the members on the board to help instigate change and set the strategic direction for success.
“Some processes of the club’s and accountability are questionable.
“This isn’t a new thing. Collingwood, Carlton and Hawthorn have addressed their issues and St Kilda needs to do the same to ensure we don’t get the same outcomes.
“Boards need refreshing and accountability and it is frustrating where the club has been and is going.”
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