Wealthy St Kilda figure Gerry Ryan and former coach Grant Thomas endorse Larry Benge to join Saints board

[Scollop]

Most dyed in the wool Saints fans love GT. Every time you hear talkback radio when Grant is doing an interview, you get a feel from the listeners and those calling in to provide feedback that the overwhelming majority of Saints fans (ordinary people and supporters …without a vested interest) are complimentary toward GT

Anyhow…We don’t necessarily need to listen to the conflicted opinions of people. Just have a look at the legacy of what happened at St Kilda after Grant left. The club was healthy. The players were driven and were loyal to their team mates and to our club.

The leadership and coaching during his tenure created a pathway and a foundation that was strong; that was profound; that was long lasting and that others should have capitalised on

[Devilhead]

Seems the only vested interest here is GT in GT

I didnt mind GT but he had his time ..... and ultimately he failed

Larry Benge might be a bang on guy but he shouldn't be relying on or need GTs endorsement ..... in fact it is likely hurting his chances given GTs outspoken nature

[Teflon]

Grant Thomas for CEO/Chairman.... at least he cares for the club.

How many other Saint "luminaries" are willing to put their name to their views on the club.

Everyone has a media gig and shies away from speaking the blunt honest truth.

St Kilda has really stuffed it up post Ross Lyon (and some recruitment during his time) and needs to make a statement.

If he truly cared for the club he would keep his big mouth shut or join the board himself if he wants to see changes. The guy is a megalomaniac and loves the sound of his own voice.

He was fortunate that when he coached the club we had one of the best lists in the competition, apart from a ruckman. I have personally heard ex-players suggest if the coaching staff had any tactical nous at all, we would have won a flag over that time.

Plus let's not even discuss how poorly resourced the Strength & Conditioning team were while he was personally paid a fortune.

The guy is a parasite and always has been in my books and there could be no worse result than him becoming CEO or Chairman of our club.

You’re bang on IS
I too have spoken to ex assistants who know and knew Thomas well and in their words “he farked your club” QUOTE
To suggest this is anything other than a fraud is misleading
And if “dentist Larry” needs to get into bed with this parasite to get on the Board .....the put your teeth back in Larry we don’t need you...,
I just love how Thomas knows nothing has zero facts of “St Kilda problems..” but is happy to peddle and stir up that cr@p via the media
We have moved back to Moorabin
We won our first final in years after a stellar 2020
We finally have the core (after years in the wilderness) of a great young group
We “might” have the best forward line in the league once Bing nominates us....
We FINALLY have someone like Lethlean (no not perfect but who is?) with AFL house connections (as opposed to always trying to fight AFL ....like Grant who thought he should be running the whole thing....what did that get us??
)
And now this dead Shyte crawls out from the skirting boards like the cockroach he is cause he smells opportunities at our clubs expense???????
No thanks
F@rk off Grant.

[Scollop]

It boils to down to this

You have people in various jobs who are paid very good money at St Kilda Footy Club and who have been there for differing periods of time. They need to be accountable and there needs to be limits on how much time you allow someone to retain their job.

Should they still be there after 9 years if their job is to strive to get St Kilda playing finals and we have only played one finals series in the last ten years?

Should they still be there after 5 or 6 years if their job was as a development coach and we weren’t seeing progress being made with our young draftees?

Do we want to hear the same story every 5 years and seeing other clubs go past us and the CEO and the President telling us that our window is still 2-3 years away?

[Teflon]

Seems the only vested interest here is GT in GT

I didnt mind GT but he had his time ..... and ultimately he failed

Larry Benge might be a bang on guy but he shouldn't be relying on or need GTs endorsement ..... in fact it is likely hurting his chances given GTs outspoken nature

Great post
I truly don’t think people realise that we finally put the years of “we are a rabble ....always play our problems out in the media” (and the media love to laugh at us thanks to rent a quote Grant) finally stop the leaks ....only for this absolute gutter crawler to drag us back down
I genuinely hope Bassat and the Board stand firm and don’t give this clown any oxygen

[Teflon]

Most dyed in the wool Saints fans love GT. Every time you hear talkback radio when Grant is doing an interview, you get a feel from the listeners and those calling in to provide feedback that the overwhelming majority of Saints fans (ordinary people and supporters …without a vested interest) are complimentary toward GT

Anyhow…We don’t necessarily need to listen to the conflicted opinions of people. Just have a look at the legacy of what happened at St Kilda after Grant left. The club was healthy. The players were driven and were loyal to their team mates and to our club.

The leadership and coaching during his tenure created a pathway and a foundation that was strong; that was profound; that was long lasting and that others should have capitalised on

Utter garbage.

[Teflon]

Also, we've moved back to Moorabbin, we're building the Danny Frawley Centre, we have the women's team, and we have our highest membership figures during a pandemic!

To say we're not in the business of premierships is nonsense. This current list revamp started in earnest in 2018. It's still in progress and has another 18 months to run. Apart from finding a replacement for Ryder, I think we will be be in even better shape in 12 months from now

So so true and if that’s correct you have to ask: why now?????
I know why
Thomas knows we are building and he wants to own that success ...again not for the club ...for Grant
Don’t need ass clowns

[Scollop]

If you are competent enough with running your footy club; if you are good enough at your recruiting and development and list management and coaching, then who gives a flying f@rck about AFL house?

Whether you have a coach or an administrator who wants to lick asses of AFL directors or not does not matter

[Teflon]

Quite remarkable how Grant Thomas generates so much spirited comment when he expresses thoughts and opinions about his old club.

I'm on record as saying that I considered GT's overall record when he coached St Kilda (and the manner in which he was appointed in 2001) as a failure, despite some really impressive winning streaks during his tenure.

Nonetheless I am happy to acknowledge that he is a very smart and successful businessman and respect his right to cast judgment on the way the club is managed when the team languishes, as it has in 2021. Like it or not, Thomas is very much a St Kilda person

His and Gerry Ryan's endorsement of Larry Benge to run for a place on the St Kilda Board is not a big deal, in fact it is quite a good thing for Boards in all fields of enterprise to have pressure applied to ensure success, and I would be surprised if Andrew Bassat considers that a malicious threat.

During my experience in a previous life as CEO of a large NGO, answerable to a board of directors, I have witnessed the dysfunctionality resulting from boards that become dormant and lazy when they fail to embrace renewal and fresh blood that can inject much needed energy, new ideas and benchmarks to achieve greater success.

It is incumbent on the Board of St Kilda FC to do everything in its power to acquire that evasive and long awaited 2nd premiership cup to Moorabbin.

One of the burning questions has to be: is the working relationship between current CEO Matt Finis and Chief Operating Officer Simon Lethlean successful, as I have sometimes wondered if it might be time for Finis to move on and be replaced by Lethlean, who clearly has ambitions to progress his career beyond the current level.

Sorry supposition and innuendo don’t equal facts
Where is the proof we have a problem at Board level?
Where is the CEO/Lethlean meltdown (unlike the fiasco of Grant and Butters..,,after GT milked him for a cool mill)

Record membership
Finals win in 2020 first time in 10 years
Moved back to Moorabbin
Women’s tram up and running
Danny Frawley Centre u der construction
Superb core of a young list coming through
Development now prioritised with an excellent appointment
NGA starting to bear fruit

....and cause Grant says “I just feel there’s something not right...,” we have to Shyte the bed????

Nonsense.

And if you’re a professionally run organisation you don’t do Board renewal via the media - that just drags the club down into the gutter and we’ve moved on from those days.

[Teflon]

If you are competent enough with running your footy club; if you are good enough at your recruiting and development and list management and coaching, then who gives a flying f@rck about AFL house?

Whether you have a coach or an administrator who wants to lick asses of AFL directors or not does not matter

Yeah that’s it do what Grant did....,kick em in the balls every chance you get ....cause that gets you far..,
What muppet believed the AFL and AFL House hasn’t and doesn’t play favourites with decisions over previous years clearly benefiting some clubs over others??
Only a brain dead moron would believe it’s a “level playing field” and you don’t need to worry about AFL House..,
Mind numbing ignorance.

[Teflon]

It boils to down to this

You have people in various jobs who are paid very good money at St Kilda Footy Club and who have been there for differing periods of time. They need to be accountable and there needs to be limits on how much time you allow someone to retain their job.

Should they still be there after 9 years if their job is to strive to get St Kilda playing finals and we have only played one finals series in the last ten years?

Should they still be there after 5 or 6 years if their job was as a development coach and we weren’t seeing progress being made with our young draftees?

Do we want to hear the same story every 5 years and seeing other clubs go past us and the CEO and the President telling us that our window is still 2-3 years away?

It boils down to this
You don’t run to the media with rumour and innuendo to poor Shyte on the club when you have no facts at a time when it’s clear to all the club onfield success is building
Thomas knows this that’s why he wants in now.

[Teflon]

Good fodder for the media, especially given not much has happened draft/trade wise.

So, Gerry Ryan has quietly endorsed Benge, saying he would add value to the Board. Fair enough, he may be right.

Contrast this to the "endorsement" of GT, where he is "very interested in how the club treat this approach, if Benge is not taken seriously or respected I will definitely think seriously about my next steps", and "I only have one good fight left in me and - as always - I'm very happy to use it for the cause of St Kilda". What an arrogant tw*t.

Can we trade pick 9 and Thomas and his "support" to Nth Melbourne for a mars bar? Maybe not, North wouldn't take him. What about Gold Coast? I'd do it.

Spot on TA
Arrogant tw*t says it all
It’s like the guys keeps force feeding us the line ....”you all need saving....,and I’m the only man who can do it..”
And some just lap it up...,
He doesn’t even present a coherent alternative more of the same “there’s problems again at Saints..”
Conveniently fed to the media...
We truly are his plaything ...
Time to tell him where to go

[Scollop]

If you are competent enough with running your footy club; if you are good enough at your recruiting and development and list management and coaching, then who gives a flying f@rck about AFL house?

Whether you have a coach or an administrator who wants to lick asses of AFL directors or not does not matter

Yeah that’s it do what Grant did....,kick em in the balls every chance you get ....cause that gets you far..,
What muppet believed the AFL and AFL House hasn’t and doesn’t play favourites with decisions over previous years clearly benefiting some clubs over others??
Only a brain dead moron would believe it’s a “level playing field” and you don’t need to worry about AFL House..,
Mind numbing ignorance.

Your words as usual. Not mine. You just make stuff up or interpret whatever you want to suit your narrative

Does Hardwick or Clarko bend over every time the AFL feels frisky?

You can a have a very good working relationship with the AFL without licking arse. If we are successful on field and if we get our act together and can maintain some sort of success for a sustained period then that gains respect and your voice becomes louder

[Teflon]

If you are competent enough with running your footy club; if you are good enough at your recruiting and development and list management and coaching, then who gives a flying f@rck about AFL house?

Whether you have a coach or an administrator who wants to lick asses of AFL directors or not does not matter

Yeah that’s it do what Grant did....,kick em in the balls every chance you get ....cause that gets you far..,
What muppet believed the AFL and AFL House hasn’t and doesn’t play favourites with decisions over previous years clearly benefiting some clubs over others??
Only a brain dead moron would believe it’s a “level playing field” and you don’t need to worry about AFL House..,
Mind numbing ignorance.

Your words as usual. Not mine. You just make stuff up or interpret whatever you want to suit your narrative

Does Hardwick or Clarko bend over every time the AFL feels frisky?

You can a have a very good working relationship with the AFL without licking arse. If we are successful on field and if we get our act together and can maintain some sort of success for a sustained period then that gains respect and your voice becomes louder

Oh you mean like GT did ???????????????????????
Riddle me that FACT Batman??

[Scollop]

The St Kilda team and the St Kilda FC won the right to play in prelims in 2004/5 despite whatever words were spoken between GT and the AFL

The AFL didn’t stop GT’s team from getting into a prelim in 2004 or 2005

The AFL didn’t win the game for Port in 2004. It was Burgoyne and Wanganeen that won it

The AFL didn’t crash us out against the Swans in 2005. Our injuries inevitably cost us.

[ausfatcat]

Most dyed in the wool Saints fans love GT.

Well thats BS most fans see through Grant BS towards the club is totally self interested and about Grant getting himself in the spot light and lining his pockets not about the saints. I would take Gerry's word over Grant's anytime, at board level we are the most stable we have been for decades.

[Scollop]

Most dyed in the wool Saints fans love GT.

Well thats BS most fans see through Grant BS towards the club is totally self interested and about Grant getting himself in the spot light and lining his pockets not about the saints.

Did you do your own personal survey did you?

Or… get that straight off the presses from newspoll….Or do you listen to a lot of talkback radio do you?

[ausfatcat]

Did you do your own personal survey did you?

Or… get that straight off the presses from newspoll….Or do you listen to a lot of talkback radio do you?

Did you? before stating most dyed in wool fans love GT ? He is easily the most divisive personality going around for the saints just look at this thread amongst many.

Grant Thomas has always been and always will be a self interested person doesn't mean he can't do good but always has angle that benefits himself more than anyone else.

[Devilhead]

Question we need to be asking is what's the pay off for GT endorsing Benge?

Not many people would publicly go around endorsing another if there wasn't something in it for themselves

[Scollop]

Did you do your own personal survey did you?

Or… get that straight off the presses from newspoll….Or do you listen to a lot of talkback radio do you?

Did you? before stating most dyed in wool fans love GT ? He is easily the most divisive personality going around for the saints just look at this thread amongst many.

Grant Thomas has always been and always will be a self interested person doesn't mean he can't do good but always has angle that benefits himself more than anyone else.

This thread and this whole forum is a microcosm of the real world. It doesn't represent the real world

[Scollop]

Question we need to be asking is what's the pay off for GT endorsing Benge?

Not many people would publicly go around endorsing another if there wasn't something in it for themselves

So everyone (every human on earth) does things out of self interest do they. No one does things for the love of it, or for the greater good?

We all paid for memberships during the last two years of this pandemic out of self interest did we?

I just renewed my memberships and paid my annual fees upfront because of self interest

[asiu]

yep

i just did the same on memberships x6

thats also , ALL about self interest ... obviously

[Yorkeys]

Seems GT's contribution is at least 8 years too late and more than a little disingenuous; a smart man must see its possibly the last type of endorsement the dentist needs, possibly fatally counterproductive to the nomination.

Not sure who votes for our Board but if asked/given the chance I won't be voting for a person that suggests our current position and direction are poor. I am quietly optimistic about '22. The main thing we need is a reasonable go with injuries.

I even wonder if GT would be genuinely happy about a premiership if he wasn't directly involved someway. Just rocking the boat stuff.

[Vortex]

Question we need to be asking is what's the pay off for GT endorsing Benge?

Not many people would publicly go around endorsing another if there wasn't something in it for themselves

So everyone (every human on earth) does things out of self interest do they. No one does things for the love of it, or for the greater good?

We all paid for memberships during the last two years of this pandemic out of self interest did we?

I just renewed my memberships and paid my annual fees upfront because of self interest

Would it depend on where you fit in Maslows hierarchy of needs be one way of answering that?

Grant chose to threaten the club via the media rather than just pay his membership. Ego is not a dirty word however I would have thought threatening the club via the media would be step 2 or 3 or even maybe 4 if you were trying to convince the board they should adopt some of your suggestions to improve. Then maybe after becoming frustrated at rejection you would possibly go the media route, maybe.

If Thomas hasn't skipped the early steps of respect and manners then it would be appropriate for him to be transparent about why he felt it necessary to threaten the club via the media and provide details on how his process of dealing with the board escalated to threats in the media.

Afterall Thomas is all about the process and so if it's not about ego and self interest then I'm guessing he has put his ideas for success through a rigorous process rather than just listen to the ideas of a dentist. Meat on the bone please.

These are all the details I want to know before I decide if Thomas is being an egotistc self serving grub or if he has a cracking plan that can't fail.

[saynta]

He did challenge conventions

That’s why the establishment didn’t like him and more to the point he didn’t like them!

I liked the fact he questioned what’s always been done and why we do it

I think some traditions are stupid , so did Grant

Not often I agree with you 100%!

This is one of those rare occasions!

What an absolute cop out. Please explain & commit to what it is that GT did for the St Kilda football club.

What? You mean apart from leading the club as senior coach for 4 years? He was the coach who oversaw the development of our young talent. He was mentor to a bunch of young recruits who would later be great leaders and captains of AFL footy clubs.

He was a huge factor in St Kilda being taken seriously and we enjoyed a winning a culture. GT helped set up the foundations for a team to grow and gell together and play deep into September during his time as senior coach. Did you think our success under Thommo was accidental was it?

Apart from being the leader and apart from providing a legacy that would see the club go on to continue to play deep into September, he was a mentor to the talent that the club brought into the club. Nick Riewoldt was just 24 when GT was sacked. The rest of the young stars were 22-23…in other words, their best footy was just ahead of them

This.