Journo helps avert Demon disaster on Melbourne’s pre-season Mount Buffalo hike by finding CEO Paul Guerra

A Code Sports journo reached a fork in a path when he was hiking Mount Buffalo with Melbourne players and staff. By luck, he spotted one of the club’s bosses who was lost with no water.

Code Sports may have averted a Melbourne Football Club leadership crisis by locating missing chief executive Paul Guerra deep in a Victorian alpine forest on Thursday.

Sports reporter Ed Bourke and Demons rookie Oscar Berry were bringing up the rear of a group of Melbourne players and staff as they hiked up Mount Buffalo when they approached a fork in the path.

As they turned left to follow the trail towards the peak, Bourke spotted Guerra in the distance. Guerra had turned right at the fork.

The Demons’ new CEO had begun the hike earlier in the afternoon with chief commercial officer Chris Kearon and board member Chris Barlow, but a toilet break meant the trio became separated just before the fork.

Ed Bourke and Melbourne CEO Paul Guerra hike Mount Buffalo. Picture: Michael Klein

Kearon and Barlow left a stick on the path to indicate the correct direction, but Guerra missed it and walked the wrong way for more than a kilometre before he turned around.

It was a long day on foot for the widely respected business leader, who continued a grand tradition of Melbourne officials becoming lost in the wilderness after then-president Brad Green took a wrong turn on the same hike in 2024.

Guerra was carrying a large Demons backpack but was out of water.

Tim Lamb, List Manager, Former Demons player, Hassa Mann, Paul Guerra, Demons CEO, Alan Richardson and Steven King during this year’s draft.

While his reputation as a bushman has been brought into question, Guerra has already made a considerable impact in his short time at the Demons.

The former Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry boss oversaw the appointment of Steven King as coach and an influx of new assistant coaches including Jared Rivers, Matthew Scarlett and Rory Atkins.

He is also understood to be behind the creation of a new senior strategy role in the football department who would slot in between football boss Alan Richardson and the executive team.

Originally published as Journo helps avert Demon disaster on Melbourne’s pre-season Mount Buffalo hike by finding CEO Paul Guerra