AFL 2022: St Kilda CEO Simon Lethlean and president Andrew Bassat explain why the Saints sacked coach Brett Ratten

St Kilda sacked former coach Brett Ratten despite re-signing him for two more years less than 100 days ago. CEO Simon Lethlean and president Andrew Bassat explained their backflip.

Brett Ratten was sensationally sacked as St Kilda coach on Thursday night. Picture: Getty Images

St Kilda’s collapse in the second half of the season cost Brett Ratten his job as new chief executive and ex-football boss Simon Lethlean concedes they made the call to re-sign him too early.

The Saints sacked a “blindsided” Ratten after a board meeting on Thursday night in an extraordinary development, less than 100 days after they extended his tenure in July until the end of 2024.

Lethlean let Ratten know on Sunday night his job was on the line, with president Andrew Bassat telling the 51-year-old the next day “the decision was likely to go against him”.

Ratten pleaded his case across the past five days but failed to change St Kilda powerbrokers’ mind, Bassat said, after “troubling” levels of confidence on the club’s hopes of becoming a flag threat.

The Saints’ coaching call follows a wide-ranging football review, led by Bassat and including Lethlean, board member Jason Blake and ex-North Melbourne coach David Noble, that began the same month Ratten was reappointed.

St Kilda CEO Simon Lethlean and president Andrew Bassat addressed the media on Friday about the club’s decision to sack Brett Ratten. Picture: Getty Images

“This has been a very tough few weeks, and the decision to part ways with Brett Ratten has been a very painful one for the club and, of course, incredibly disappointing for Brett and his family,” Bassat said.

“At the end of the day, our duty to members, in the pursuit of success, requires us to make the best decision for the club and for the members, and not the individual.

“As you know, we began a full review of the football program in July ... we had no predetermined outcome when we started this review...

“In summary, we’ve made big improvements across all areas of the club, but there’s a big gap between where we are now and where we want to be.

“We don’t yet have the winning culture or ruthless commitment to football excellence that we need.”

Ratten finishes his stint as St Kilda coach with 33 wins from 66 games but just one finals appearance in four seasons, and the decision follows his sacking from Carlton at the end of 2012.

St Kilda president Andrew Bassat (far right) congratulates Brett Ratten after the Saints’ elimination final win over the Western Bulldogs two years ago. Picture: AFL Photos

He had the Saints in the top four with an 8-3 record through 11 rounds but they won only three of their last 11 matches to tumble to 10th.

Lethlean said they had not spoken to any coaching candidates yet, including former St Kilda coach Ross Lyon, but would find Ratten’s replacement in “weeks, not months”.

The Saints committed to making a decision on Ratten’s future by mid-year and their strong record at that stage prompted Bassat and co to re-sign him.

“We wanted to give him every chance to be the best; to show he could be our long-term coach and give our side every chance we could to make the finals,” Bassat said.

“(The thought process was) if we ended up, at the end of the year, making a different decision, we’ll cop the payout, and I think that was a humane decision rather than necessarily a terrible decision.

Saints CEO Simon Lethlean admitted, in hindsight, they re-signed former coach Brett Ratten too early. Picture: Getty Images

“Secondly, even if it was a mistake ... I’ve made more mistakes than anyone in this room ... if you’re doing something ambitious, you will make mistakes, if you’re trying to do something hard.”

Bassat could not say on Friday that St Kilda had given Ratten every chance to succeed, because there is “a bunch of things that we need to get better in our program”.

But the Saints’ doubts about Ratten overrode any perceived disadvantages he may have had, the president said.

“The review has already delivered a new GM of football in Geoff Walsh and it became clear that we needed to have a new senior coach, with a new style of leadership, and a new voice,” Bassat said.

“If we, as a club, have regrets about (the decision to re-sign him) in hindsight, we cannot let those regrets get in the way of making the right decision for the future.”