Stuart Dew sacked: Inside the Gold Coast board meeting which decided coach’s fate

Gold Coast chairman Bob East told media on Tuesday the vote to sack Stuart Dew was “unanimous”, but a fiery Monday night meeting suggests otherwise. See the details here.

Stuart Dew.

The decision to immediately terminate Stuart Dew’s coaching contract overnight did not sit right with some on the Gold Coast Suns Board of Directors.

The board convened on Monday night and voted to remove Dew from his role with a year still to run on his contract.

Gold Coast chairman Bob East told media on Tuesday the vote to dismiss Dew with seven games still to play this season was “unanimous”.

However this masthead understands multiple board members were not fully in support of the decision and it made for a fiery Monday night meeting.

While they were happy for the decision to be made, some preferred the club wait until the end of the season for it to play out.

Gold Coast Chairman Bob East speaks to the media after Stuart Dew’s sacking. (Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)

Ultimately, the call was made to cut the cord immediately and Steven King appointed as interim coach for the remainder of the 2023 season.

East said it would have been “disingenuous” to continue with Dew as coach once the board had decided not to continue with him in 2024.

“Once you make a decision I do believe that it cuts to the culture of a business,” the Suns chairman said.

“You cannot be disingenuous in any organisation, let alone a high performance organisation. Once that decision is made, it is incumbent on the leaders of the club to act on those decisions.”

Mark Evans speaks to the media.

It is understood Dew’s relationship with key senior figures at the club had become strained in recent weeks.

What ultimately led to his downfall was not the wins and losses necessarily, but rather the inability to stem the bleeding when rival teams got on a run of goals.

The Suns conceded nine goals to one in the third quarter against Port Adelaide on Saturday night, which ultimately proved the difference in a 33-point loss.

Collingwood took a 10-goal lead into halftime at Heritage Bank Stadium a week earlier, while it was a nine-goals to nil second quarter against Carlton that ultimately cost the Suns in a 59-point loss.

That issue fuelled the feeling of the board that Dew was not the man to lead the club moving forward.

Stuart Dew walks off with his team after the loss to Port Adelaide on Saturday night. (Photo by Sarah Reed/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

Gold Coast must win six of its final seven games to be a chance of playing finals this season.

The club is yet to feature in the post-season across its 13 years in the AFL.

Evans explained this season’s results had shown the team had not progressed enough from 2022.

“This time last year we were better placed in wins and particularly in percentage, so it feels like there is a gap between us and the best in the competition,” he said.

Once the vote had passed and the decision to dismiss Dew was decided, the board discussed possible coaching replacements.

Damien Hardwick’s name was among those mentioned.

Evans maintains the club has not made contact with Hardwick or his management.

The CEO has been tasked by the board with delivering a plan to interview and appoint the club’s next senior coach.