Dean Laidley!!!!!!!!!
Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2007 2:38 pmTHE AFL has intervened in the embarrassing stand-off at the Kangaroos between the board and coach Dean Laidley.
AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou phoned Laidley's manager Ricky Nixon yesterday to find out for himself why the club and coach can't agree on terms for a new contract.
Laidley continues to carry out coaching duties, including representing the club at trade week, but remains unsigned 12 weeks after talks started.
Demetriou was coy last night, but did admit to ringing Nixon. "Yes, I've spoken to Ricky," he said, quickly adding: "I speak to Ricky regularly about all sorts of things."
Was the coaching position one of them, he was asked.
"All sorts of things," he said.
Demetriou did admit he was an interested bystander in the bizarre impasse at Arden St.
"If there's anything we can do to help the club, we'll help," he said.
Demetriou said he had not contacted the club.
Nixon was tight-lipped, as he was late last week when contacted by the Herald Sun about the situation.
He said he did not want to say anything that might inflame a sensitive situation.
Kangaroos chief executive Rick Aylett said earlier in the day contracts were with lawyers and ready to be exchanged, consistent with his "no-worries" line of recent weeks.
It emerged yesterday another Victorian club, believed to be Carlton, had advised Nixon that Laidley would be invited to join its coaching panel -- as an assistant -- in the event of any walkout from the Roos.
A non-Victorian club is understood to have been alerted to Laidley's possible availability last week.
The Herald Sun wrote about a Roos crisis last Thursday, but the situation was expected to be resolved with an announcement at the best-and-fairest the following night.
Nothing happened, and still nothing has happened.
Laidley has been offered a three-year contract conditional on him taking the club into the finals in the first two years.
He says he is more interested in the funds available to the football department.
The Roos are reported to pay 89 per cent of the Total Player Payments ($6.94 million this year) and have had an under-resourced football department.
The club is believed to have indicated an increase in spending, but reportedly baulked at committing the increase to writing.
AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou phoned Laidley's manager Ricky Nixon yesterday to find out for himself why the club and coach can't agree on terms for a new contract.
Laidley continues to carry out coaching duties, including representing the club at trade week, but remains unsigned 12 weeks after talks started.
Demetriou was coy last night, but did admit to ringing Nixon. "Yes, I've spoken to Ricky," he said, quickly adding: "I speak to Ricky regularly about all sorts of things."
Was the coaching position one of them, he was asked.
"All sorts of things," he said.
Demetriou did admit he was an interested bystander in the bizarre impasse at Arden St.
"If there's anything we can do to help the club, we'll help," he said.
Demetriou said he had not contacted the club.
Nixon was tight-lipped, as he was late last week when contacted by the Herald Sun about the situation.
He said he did not want to say anything that might inflame a sensitive situation.
Kangaroos chief executive Rick Aylett said earlier in the day contracts were with lawyers and ready to be exchanged, consistent with his "no-worries" line of recent weeks.
It emerged yesterday another Victorian club, believed to be Carlton, had advised Nixon that Laidley would be invited to join its coaching panel -- as an assistant -- in the event of any walkout from the Roos.
A non-Victorian club is understood to have been alerted to Laidley's possible availability last week.
The Herald Sun wrote about a Roos crisis last Thursday, but the situation was expected to be resolved with an announcement at the best-and-fairest the following night.
Nothing happened, and still nothing has happened.
Laidley has been offered a three-year contract conditional on him taking the club into the finals in the first two years.
He says he is more interested in the funds available to the football department.
The Roos are reported to pay 89 per cent of the Total Player Payments ($6.94 million this year) and have had an under-resourced football department.
The club is believed to have indicated an increase in spending, but reportedly baulked at committing the increase to writing.
