Akermanis remains defiant until the bitter end
Roar Guru By Justin Rodski, 23 Jul 2010 Justin Rodski is a Roar Guru
- Tagged:
- AFL, AFL Footy Show, Jason Akermanis, Rodney Eade, Western Bulldogs
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Last night on the Footy Show, it became clear that there are no winners in Jason Akermanis’ sacking. The often controversial and always outspoken Akermanis came out swinging and certainly landed a couple decent blows along the way.
In the end, though, it wasn’t the Bulldogs or Gary Lyon, or anyone else for that matter, that delivered the knock out punch.
It was Jason himself.
Ironically, his pride and self-belief has taken him to great heights as an AFL footballer. But now we’ve seen how quickly they’ve again been his biggest downfall, as well.
It still baffles me how he didn’t see writing on the wall. A club doesn’t sack a player out of the blue without good reason.
But when he almost condescendingly scoffed at the Bulldogs’ team process and said “I shouldn’t have to come in and put up with that bullshit,” to me, that showed the club has made the right call.
Herein lies the problem for Jason.
He seems almost delusional about the circumstances happening around him, as if he only listens when people are saying what he wants to hear.
Now, by his own admission, he said “this is the life you live sometimes and if you run to close to the edge…” And in the end, he did, and he fell off.
Just like in Brisbane when Leigh Matthews described his exit as Russian roulette, eventually the bullet is going to hit.
Maybe this time it was in the back, but ultimately he left the Bulldogs with no other reasonable choice and the club is now bracing for the continued backlash.
He says he ate ‘humble pie’ playing in the VFL, as if he’s too good for that league. Therein lies another mistake: every player must at some stage do his time in the lower ranks, not complain and call an opposition player a “dribbler.”
Akermanis took aim at Captain Brad Johnson and alleges he alluded that the players had completely lost trust in him by listening to player feedback about a ‘tell all book’ in an open forum at Whitten Oval, and then raising those concerns with the football department and the club’s board.
For the third time in the space of a couple of weeks, Aker claims he had been subjected to this form of ‘workplace bullying’ in an environment he believes is unfair and actually incited even greater division amongst the players.
If the political worm had been implemented at this stage of the night, I think Akermanis would have been slightly in front, winning audience approval and sentiment for the fleeting moment he appeared to be the victim.
And maybe he is.
But for me, by the end of the one-on-one stoush with Bulldogs CEO Campbell Rose, he showed exactly why he is in fact the villain.
Now Sam Newman described it as a ‘disgraceful vendetta’ as well as intimidating, belittling and degrading. However, it was clear from the outset that Sam had a guilty conscience from his own part in Akermanis’ demise.
After all, the idea of a leadership group must be a hard concept to grasp for someone from a bygone era like Sam. Jonathan Brown agreed, telling Sam: “you’re that far removed from the inner sanctum of a football club, you’ve got no idea.”
In relation to this point, Akermanis then hit back at coach Rodney Eade, explaining that one of the specific legal reasons the Bulldogs gave him for his sacking was that “he gave private and confidential information to Sam Newman and Steve Price”
But he claims the information must have been leaked through another source to the press the following day, and the only other person at the club with access to that information was coach Rodney Eade.
His legacy in football has also been a much debated topic over the last few days and many football pundits including former Bulldog and now Fox Sports commentator Rohan Smith believe he won’t be remembered for his three premierships or his Brownlow Medal, but rather the embarrassing way he left two separate clubs amid acrimony and before the end of his contract.
To that he fired back “well Rohan, at least I’ll be remembered.” And Aker there’s no doubt you will, but could there be one last chapter for Jason Akermanis?
One thing is for sure, it will be a darn good read.
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- AFL, AFL Footy Show, Jason Akermanis, Rodney Eade, Western Bulldogs
July 23rd 2010 @ 11:10am
Tanya said | July 23rd 2010 @ 11:10am | Report comment
JP I think you would have a very strong case. I was surprised to hear that it is a common practice for many AFL Teams to place their members out the front of their team players to be belittled, I thought this went out in the 80′s, is this practice for the slagging that goes on, on the field, . The interview showed major flaws in the Bulldogs, a CEO who has been there for 9 years and is at a CEO meeting at the time, knows nothing about what is happening in the club and wasn’t even privy to the sacking of a player of Akermanis’s standard. What greater advertising could you get, hurry up with the book Aka.
July 23rd 2010 @ 11:10am
Brad Whyte said | July 23rd 2010 @ 11:10am | Report comment
I don’t agree with people who say that Jason Ackermanis has no ability to reflect upon himself or his deeds. I’m a Brisbane Lions supporter, and I still hate them (The Lions) for giving Jason the ass.
The Lions thought he was a liability, and that the team would be better without him, so much for that!
I’m saddened that this great player has be given the bullet again, this time by the Bulldogs.
I truly hope to see that both these clubs will be cellar dwellers for many years to come!
July 23rd 2010 @ 1:55pm
LK said | July 23rd 2010 @ 1:55pm | Report comment
Are you serious? You’re a Lions supporter and you want them to be cellar dwellers?!?
July 23rd 2010 @ 2:14pm
Graham Smith said | July 23rd 2010 @ 2:14pm | Report comment
Tanking has attracted a new breed of supporters to the game.
July 23rd 2010 @ 4:08pm
Richard said | July 23rd 2010 @ 4:08pm | Report comment
I thought they’d given him the arse. If they’ve given him an ass, he should stop whingeing and trade it in.
July 23rd 2010 @ 11:17am
Brad Whyte said | July 23rd 2010 @ 11:17am | Report comment
To Redb. What kind of person thisnks that Jonathan Brown is a good guy. In my opinion it was this guys that started to say that Jason was causing trouble for the Lions.
July 23rd 2010 @ 12:53pm
Redb said | July 23rd 2010 @ 12:53pm | Report comment
So everyone else is wrong, Aker is right?
July 23rd 2010 @ 5:54pm
elocin said | July 23rd 2010 @ 5:54pm | Report comment
Oh and REDD, lets not forget the great jonathan brown and the charming Fevola of all idiots found themselves in the papers apparently getting into a fist fight at a party, tell me did a person at a party leak the story or did someone at the club, like a player, coach, someone in admin or PR leak that to the papers, who do you trust, is it them, or those or others. Of the controversial players still playing like Ben Cousins who tarnished the code, Barry Hall who did the same, Fev who also did the same and lets not forget the Lions signed him, a man that plays for himself (the same club that dismissed Aker for his individualism), how ironic, and finally Milne from the Saints accused of rape and now again in hot water again, because now even the law covers for these men, then you have Jason Akermanis, no drugs, no sexual assaults and no alcohol issues, just a man that tells it how it is. CaN YOU honestly say thats a man deserving of being sacked in such a humiliating manner, for some so called trust issues in which the CEO refused to even name, Come on man, lets be real here, its wrong on so many levels
July 23rd 2010 @ 2:33pm
Republican said | July 23rd 2010 @ 2:33pm | Report comment
Graham Smith
Yes and it has alienated many an old supporter.
Tanking is a blight on the Indigenous code – to be sure.
July 23rd 2010 @ 5:12pm
elocin said | July 23rd 2010 @ 5:12pm | Report comment
I am absolutely appalled by the disgraceful way this footballer has been treated by a football club. I am not the biggest fan of Aker after he accused a player at my club of using drugs, (unfortunately we did have a massive drug problem that after many chances and real issues that could bring a club down, which utimately it has, as we now sit on the bottom of the ladder), we endured enormous probing and scrutiny until he was finally shipped out, but not before the loss of our captain and a flurry of senior players retiring shortly after. The Bulldogs Football Club need to have a hard look at it self and harden up, I think that Jason Akermanis has a real understanding on what goes on with players on and off the field and because he has the guts to speak out and speak what appears th be true and correct he is villified for doing so. It is completely idiotic and childish how the CEO justified himself and the moans of a bunch of kids, that had spat their dummies out . This is not a kindergarden, its a football club, if grown men can not handle a man that is brutally honest about his sport and how he plays it, then they are in the wrong game. The bulldogs need to be grateful it hasnt had to deal with drug addicts, alcoholics, accused rapists or men having affairs with other players wives as other clubs have and continue to deal with, and let me add that most of those that are guilty of such things continue to play today. For a club that signed Barry Hall after his on field behaviour throughout his career and then sack a bloke because of trust issues is a contradiction beyond reason. You have completely embarrassed yourself as a club and your a bunch of hypocrites, grow up and have a little respect for the sport and what a player has done for your club rather then your fragile ego’s…..
July 24th 2010 @ 10:41am
Brendon said | July 24th 2010 @ 10:41am | Report comment
Got something that is bugging me:
A few facts about this story scattered about the place has recently has been gathering together and drilling a hole in the back of my head. One of those parts of a jigsaw that doesn’t quite look right.
This, straight from the Western Bulldogsat the time of the gay article:
“The version of Jason’s recent article which went to press did not follow this process. The Club never saw the final version of this article until it was published.
We wish to make it clear that had we seen this article, it would never have been approved.”
http://www.westernbulldogs.com.au/tabid/4112/default.aspx?newsid=95485
Is it starting to bother you too? Or maybe you don’t know that recently it has come out that in fact the original article was “harder”, and was toned down by the Herald Sun! Steve Vizard put this to David Smorgon in an interview, and he was all over the shop trying to give an explanation.
Clearly, the only explanation is that at the time the Western Bulldogs were caught offguard by the PC backlash and positioned themselves so that only Aker was going to get the spray, not them.
I can only deduce that Aker went along with that at the time, and took a hit for the team.