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A few things ..
Cost of memberships - I don't know where you've been parking your butt at games over the last few years, but we have had (tolerable) small increases practically every year. Same again and all would have been sweet, but I'll repeat, our family ticket went up by 32% (and would have been 67% if not for the cave in on the "golden" concourse). You may be in a position to suck up a rise of those proportions, but clearly a lot of people aren't. And it is just really dumb policy to have the burden of cost fall mostly on kids tickets. We genuinely believed it had to be some kind of mistake when the prospectus first came, but the club quite bluntly set us to rights. We were told we would be able to spend roughly the same money as last year, but we would just have to move to one of the two cynically designated bronze bays. Their attitude towards us was one of tough luck, suck it up or don't, it is up to you what you do and we don't give a rats either way. Subsequently, this attitude has been re-validated - after ten years membership, we have not had one follow up call to find out why we didn't renew, or to even lay a guilt trip on us to try and re-sign us. Someone, somewhere at the club is badly dropping the ball on this stuff, and ultimately the boss needs to take responsibility, or at least know what the heck is going on. Yet according to Colless, the fall away in memberships is an inscrutable mystery. Well - it shouldn't be, and if anyone at the club is tuning in here, then pass the message up the line hey!
I still cannot see how they justified cutting costs for anyone (regardless of the amount) in light of what they knew about last year's finances and what they reasonably should have expected for this year. That is straight up and down incompetent. Or maybe it is some crazy plan to shove down the AFL's throat what the Sydney market is all about (which will prove a complete waste of time - there is only one opinion that counts to the AFL and that is its own - West Sydney will happen no matter what because Demetriou says it will). Even if the West Sydney Wombats only play before six clowns and dog! At least that magnificent seven will be guaranteed to turn up, not having had much to do since 2002!
Competitive tension in selecting the coach - what revisionist claptrap. Everyone knew what was supposed to go down re Wallace and it was only in the face of a mass revolt that Colless caved and put Roos in the job. It sure as heck wasn't your six clowns and a dog who made their point very very clear at the Richmond game at Homebush that closed out the 2002 season. Colless knew loud and clear that whatever he had cooked up with Wallace was headed for the dustbin, and if he didn't put Roos in the job, then Colless might as well have thrown himself in it too.
As for sending the club broke - the question is not whether he is doing things deliberately or not, but it is fair to wonder what the grand plan is, AND to be a bit critical of recent developments. All recent evidence is that they have been ineffectual at achieving their own stated aim (which is to make the club less dependent on on-field performance). Apparently all the efforts in that direction (whatever they are beyond Club Swans - who would know?!?!) have amounted to zilch - Colless himself says exactly that in the "oh my heavens what is happening to us" article.
I am happy to offer Colless congratulations for his efforts over the years, but that doesn't qualify him to stick around forever on reputation. Recent evidence is that management are not doing so hot, so perhaps it is time to move on. The best job in the world will always become a bit of chore when you've been in it too long, and there are signs that Colless himself is running out of steam (musing that he has no idea about why the swans are a hard sell at the moment is a huge signal that he's getting over it all). And why wouldn't he? If we believe his press, (and yours) he has been fighting a tough fight for a long time, so he has probably earned a breather!
Cost of memberships - I don't know where you've been parking your butt at games over the last few years, but we have had (tolerable) small increases practically every year. Same again and all would have been sweet, but I'll repeat, our family ticket went up by 32% (and would have been 67% if not for the cave in on the "golden" concourse). You may be in a position to suck up a rise of those proportions, but clearly a lot of people aren't. And it is just really dumb policy to have the burden of cost fall mostly on kids tickets. We genuinely believed it had to be some kind of mistake when the prospectus first came, but the club quite bluntly set us to rights. We were told we would be able to spend roughly the same money as last year, but we would just have to move to one of the two cynically designated bronze bays. Their attitude towards us was one of tough luck, suck it up or don't, it is up to you what you do and we don't give a rats either way. Subsequently, this attitude has been re-validated - after ten years membership, we have not had one follow up call to find out why we didn't renew, or to even lay a guilt trip on us to try and re-sign us. Someone, somewhere at the club is badly dropping the ball on this stuff, and ultimately the boss needs to take responsibility, or at least know what the heck is going on. Yet according to Colless, the fall away in memberships is an inscrutable mystery. Well - it shouldn't be, and if anyone at the club is tuning in here, then pass the message up the line hey!
I still cannot see how they justified cutting costs for anyone (regardless of the amount) in light of what they knew about last year's finances and what they reasonably should have expected for this year. That is straight up and down incompetent. Or maybe it is some crazy plan to shove down the AFL's throat what the Sydney market is all about (which will prove a complete waste of time - there is only one opinion that counts to the AFL and that is its own - West Sydney will happen no matter what because Demetriou says it will). Even if the West Sydney Wombats only play before six clowns and dog! At least that magnificent seven will be guaranteed to turn up, not having had much to do since 2002!
Competitive tension in selecting the coach - what revisionist claptrap. Everyone knew what was supposed to go down re Wallace and it was only in the face of a mass revolt that Colless caved and put Roos in the job. It sure as heck wasn't your six clowns and a dog who made their point very very clear at the Richmond game at Homebush that closed out the 2002 season. Colless knew loud and clear that whatever he had cooked up with Wallace was headed for the dustbin, and if he didn't put Roos in the job, then Colless might as well have thrown himself in it too.
As for sending the club broke - the question is not whether he is doing things deliberately or not, but it is fair to wonder what the grand plan is, AND to be a bit critical of recent developments. All recent evidence is that they have been ineffectual at achieving their own stated aim (which is to make the club less dependent on on-field performance). Apparently all the efforts in that direction (whatever they are beyond Club Swans - who would know?!?!) have amounted to zilch - Colless himself says exactly that in the "oh my heavens what is happening to us" article.
I am happy to offer Colless congratulations for his efforts over the years, but that doesn't qualify him to stick around forever on reputation. Recent evidence is that management are not doing so hot, so perhaps it is time to move on. The best job in the world will always become a bit of chore when you've been in it too long, and there are signs that Colless himself is running out of steam (musing that he has no idea about why the swans are a hard sell at the moment is a huge signal that he's getting over it all). And why wouldn't he? If we believe his press, (and yours) he has been fighting a tough fight for a long time, so he has probably earned a breather!
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