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Along with coach Damien Hardwick, star players Dustin Martin, Trent Cotchin, Jack Riewoldt and Alex Rance, and president Peggy O’Neal, he was instrumental in dragging the club off the bottom of the ladder to once again become a powerhouse.
His departure marks the end of that era, with Hardwick resigning midway through last season following O’Neal’s departure at the end of 2022. The trio famously stuck together after a disastrous 2016 and the Tigers delivered their first premiership in 37 years when they won the drought-breaking 2017 flag over Adelaide.
“I have spent half my life at this club as an administrator and player. It is time for me to embark on a new challenge, and for the club to write the next chapter,” Gale said on Friday. “I’ll remain absolutely focused on the job at hand for the coming months. It is an exciting and challenging period for us on and off the field.
“The breadth and depth of our leadership is a real feature of our club, and we are all getting on with the job at hand and that is where my energies will be focused.”
Richmond president John O’Rourke said Gale had made an outstanding contribution, and they would contract a search firm to find his successor.
AFL CEO Andrew Dillon said Gale’s proven experience made him a perfect fit as the first CEO for the Tasmania Devils and will see the club set up for success.
Elliott out, Howe to go forward
AAP
Injury-hit Collingwood will be without Jamie Elliott against West Coast after the forward failed to overcome a back issue.
Athletic defender Jeremy Howe will swing forward in Sunday’s match at Marvel Stadium to cover for the loss of Elliott, who failed to train with his teammates on Friday.
“We tried to give Jamie every chance to play. It’s why we named him in the squad,” coach Craig McRae said.
Magpies forward Jamie Elliott has been ruled out of the match against West Coast.Credit: Getty Images
“He woke up this morning, he’s got a bit of a sore back. It didn’t settle enough to get him out there.
“We’ll just see how that goes from here.”
The Magpies were already without key forwards Dan McStay (knee) and Brody Mihocek (hamstring) plus speedster Beau McCreery and goal-kicking midfielder Jordan De Goey (groin).
Howe broke through as a forward at Melbourne and, despite establishing himself as one of the AFL’s top intercept defenders, has remained a handy option in attack.
“Jeremy will play forward. We don’t have a cast of thousands lined up to play as key forwards for us,” McRae said.
“His experience will be something we really want to lean into and he’s got a lot of class as a forward, he’s got a history there, he’s a good mover, and we’re hoping he can play a really good role for us.
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“[We’ll] let Howie do his thing, play to his strengths, as we want all our forwards to express themselves in different ways.
“It’ll be a different forward-line mix – you take out three or four of your starting forward line from last week, it’s a different mix, but we’ll move the ball the same. It’s just a matter of playing a role within that.”
De Goey remains sidelined as the Magpies attempt to get to the bottom of his groin issue, with concerns over a potential case of the debilitating condition osteitis pubis.
Asked if Collingwood had learned more about De Goey’s situation, McRae said: “Yeah, somewhat. That’s a scary word, OP, but it’s leading towards something if we don’t manage it, it could get as bad as that.
“It’s not that now, but [we] grab things certainly here and deload a little bit and then see where we go, and early signs are that’s progressed towards that.”
McRae also confirmed fringe midfielder Finlay Macrae would return and start the game.
‘Pretty embarrassed’: Gawn says AFL players must learn lesson
AAP
Melbourne captain Max Gawn is embarrassed to be an AFL player amid three reported incidents of homophobia in the league this year.
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“This is three [incidents] in a year. It’s embarrassing to call yourself an AFL player at the moment. You’re sort of getting slapped with this brand.
“I know our group, we talk about this. So hopefully, we’ve learnt the lesson and we can go forward.”
Gawn wouldn’t buy the excuse that players let such slurs slip out in the heat of games.
“That’s what we’ve got to get away from,” he said. “I think all three of these people and anyone who’s done it in the past would have run with that excuse straight up – that it was the heat of battle – but that’s just not an excuse.”
Powell’s ban was longer than Finlayson’s due to the proximity of the two incidents and the AFL wanting to deter such conduct. Gawn indicated it made sense for punishments to escalate.
The AFL said Powell’s slur “demeans and denigrates any person regardless of their sexuality”. Powell said he “instantly regretted” his comment and vowed to better educate himself.
Lions coach Chris Fagan wouldn’t be drawn on whether the club was happy with Powell’s punishment. “I think that’s for the AFL to talk about,” he told reporters on Friday.
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