Dear members,

When I took on the role as your President, I said that I did not intend to send you regular letters, but would instead focus on whole-of-club updates. However, given all that has happened over the past few weeks, I felt it was important to communicate directly with you all today.

You would have read and heard many stories over the past week about our football club, our past coaches and First Nations players and the AFL independent panel review. This has only added to the anguish experienced by all.

To see the pain that people are going through as a result of this review is incredibly difficult. No one is happy with the way this has unfolded, including the Hawthorn Football Club.

Personally, I feel deep compassion and sadness for all involved, but I remain hopeful that, with the right spirit and heart, we can all work our way through this challenging time and emerge a stronger, wiser and better club.

I think it is important to look back over how we arrived at where we are today.

Last year, following a complaint made by a former First Nations player, our club made a decision to conduct a welfare check on all of our past and present First Nations players and staff. The allegations that arose from that check-in required a thorough and formal investigation.

A question I am often asked is: “why did those who did the welfare check not put those allegations to the coaches and staff involved?” 

It is important for you to know that the initial report was a welfare check only; at that point, it was not an investigation.

Those who conducted the welfare check were not an investigative body – that, quite rightly, would and should be done via AFL Integrity. 

We provided the information to AFL Integrity, as we are required to do, to carry out that investigation. Before those allegations could be tested, and before those accused were afforded the opportunity to respond to them, media reports surfaced that published the allegations. This included information we became aware of during the welfare check, but further details as well.    

This was deeply unfair to all involved.

The AFL appointed an independent panel to investigate the matter - a decision we felt was important because it would give everyone an opportunity to have their say.

You may ask whether we regret conducting the welfare check in the first place, and it is a fair question. But our club will never shy away from asking necessary questions of our past players and staff, however difficult or confronting they might be.

Now we sit here, many months later, without the answers we all seek. For you as members, I acknowledge that must be hard.

I hear and share your frustrations; it is an issue that tears at all of us. It has always been my belief that dialogue between all parties will go some way to helping the matter. My hope is that this opportunity is still possible.

My commitment to you all is that we will do whatever we can to support each and every person involved in this.

Separate to the review, we are committed to listening and learning so we can continue to build a safe, inclusive, and positive environment for First Nations people to thrive in.

We want everyone who is part of our Hawthorn family to feel proud to wear the brown and gold.

It’s our job to make that happen.

As we celebrate Sir Doug Nicholls Round this weekend and next, I want to assure you we are working tirelessly to come to a fair and just resolution, and I thank you for your patience and trust.Sincerely, 

Andy Gowers
President