Unidentified Matildas ‘insiders’ savage Alen Stajcic

An unidentified Matildas insider has claimed sacked coach Alen Stajcic confronted players who had spoken out against him

Sacked Matildas coach Alen Stajcic speaks at a press conference last week

An unidentified Matildas insider has claimed sacked coach Alen Stajcic had previously confronted players who had spoken out against him and that “50 or 60 per cent” of the team had been impacted by his behaviour and the environment he created.

Two male voices and one female voice were used to hide the identity of three “insiders” during an interview with journalist Tracey Holmes on The Ticket on ABC Radio yesterday.

The first male voice claimed he never confronted Stajcic, who was dumped a month ago over claims of a toxic culture within the Matildas camp.

“Initially he was quite good, a new coach, a fresh start, a new vision and new style of play, but slowly, slowly over time there was a deterioration in the group,” the male voice said. “There was inconsistent behaviour, inconsistent rulings and the word ‘toxic’ that has been used heavily in the public is the best way to describe it.

“He allowed the environment to become toxic because there was no leadership, no guidance. That happened openly and in front of the players.

“He was referring to previous and current board members who have recently stepped down, and other national team coaches and a number of FFA staff who he believes were working against him which is clearly not the case. You’d hear it in the meal room, on the bus.”

The Australian does not suggest the allegations against Stajcic are true, only that they have been made. The FFA has offered no explanation for the sacking of Stajcic other than a vague suggestion of a toxic Matildas team environment.

Yesterday, one of the male “insiders” said there were a lot of concerns raised with team management, FFA board members and FFA management.

A female voice said that Stajcic had “one rule for one set of players and another rule for others”.

“This caused a massive split in team building over the last 18 months, it caused a lot of division in the playing group,” she said. “A lot of players felt relief when the decision (to sack him) came out.

“They felt pressure to support Staj when this news came out.”

The third voice, a male, said that off-field demands “have become the norm”.

“The players respond differently; they drop weight and there are massive double standards in the group. The toxicity travels very quickly. Staj runs it and he has full control. He had the opportunity to fix it and it is potentially cancerous, but it needed to be rectified at the time.”

In a statement last night, a spokesman for Stajcic said it was “deeply disappointing that certain persons want to continue to damage Alen’s reputation and hurt his family”.

“Alen has been very open and honest, opened himself up to scrutiny by all and called for clarity, transparency and a just resolution,” the statement said.

“Alen at this stage has nothing to add in the public discourse and hopes this matter comes to a head soon in the best interests of all parties, but particularly our wonderful game and especially women’s football at such an important moment for the Matildas.”

After he was sacked, 18 Matildas came out publicly to show their support of Stajcic, including superstar Sam Kerr and Chloe Logarzo.