New Essendon CEO Andrew Thorburn lashed for the views of his church

The appointment of Essendon’s new CEO has come under fire after revelations of his links to a church and its views on abortion and homosexuality.

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews labelled the views of new Essendon chief executive Andrew Thorburn’s church as “absolutely appalling” as the new Bombers boss defended his faith.

Andrews, an Essendon supporter, said the decision to appoint a chief executive ultimately rested with the club’s board and he would continue to be a club member.

But he also said there were “many reasons to be a somewhat disappointed Essendon supporter” in the wake of Thorburn’s appointment after revelations his City on the Hill church, of which he’s chairman, has expressed strong views on abortion and homosexuality.

“Those views are absolutely appalling. I don’t support those views, that kind of intolerance, that kind of hatred, bigotry. It is just wrong,” Andrews said.

“To dress that up as anything other than bigotry is just obviously false.”

In response to the revelations, Thorburn said it was “very important” his church’s strong views on abortion and homosexuality were allowed to be expressed in Australian society but called for the Bombers to judge him solely on his leadership and not his faith.

The 57-year-old former NAB chief executive defended the church on Tuesday, adamant “different views” should be respected in the community while also pointing out he didn’t share all of his church’s beliefs.

“I understand that some of these views – and I’ll come to them – are offensive to people and upset people and I really respect that,” Thorburn told SEN radio.

While the decision to appoint Brad Scott as coach was, in my view, a good one, the decision to appoint Andrew Thorburn as CEO is spitting in the face of every queer Essendon member, as well as any member or supporter who supports womens rights to reproductive healthcare.

— Deputy Mayor Tim Baxter 🏳️‍🌈 (@BaxterTim) October 3, 2022

“Firstly, my faith is a very personal thing. I think my faith has helped me become a better leader because at the centre of my faith is the belief you should create a community and care for people and help people be safe and respect them as humans. That’s actually helped me become a better leader.

“Second is, I’ve been a CEO for 13 years, this is my third CEO job. I was CEO of a bank that had 5000 people, I was a CEO of a bank that had 35,000 people, now I’m going to a different organisation, but in all those, there’s a diversity of people.

“I haven’t been a perfect CEO, but I think my respect for people, my care, my love, my welcoming style, I welcome all those people, everybody is welcome. That’s really what I want people to look at, look at my actions, look at my words as a leader and the organisations I’ve created to enable safe, diverse, inclusive workplaces. That’s my record I want people to look at and have confidence in.”

Thorburn said he would welcome any gay footballer at Essendon who came to him to express their concerns over his position in his church.

“I would say (to a gay player) thank you and I respect and care about you and you’re welcome in this organisation, and I want to hear what you think and ensure that you feel safe and can speak out,” Thorburn said.

“So I want people to know that who I am and how I lead and how I engage, that’s what they should rely on.”

"Andrew’s focus will be on running Essendon like a club, with a renewed focus on our members and the core reason which we exist – football."

- President, Dave Barham.

— Essendon FC (@essendonfc) October 3, 2022