Gowers wants to steer
Hawk president battle
HAWTHORN presidential candidate Andy Gowers says he is the man to navigate the club out of the First Nations racism allegations, believing the club has lost respect across the competition.
The 1991 premiership wingman told News Corp he had decided to run after vicepresident Peter Nankevill emerged as the president-elect despite heading the club’s nominations committee’s bid to find Jeff Kennett’s successor.
The pair are friends but Gowers, also on that nominations committee, said the board’s decision “doesn’t sit right with me”.
The former board director said the potential merger with Melbourne so soon after the 1991 flag was a reminder of the “slippery slope” a club could slide down.
Members will vote at the club’s December 13 AGM and Gowers says with the AFL investigation into First Nations racism to be returned in that month he is the man to help the club chart its course out of that controversy.
“When the outcomes of that independent panel come to be, that is going to need a compassionate and appropriate response from the club. I would like to play a role in ensuring that happens,” he said.
“I wonder whether as a former player and a former director I could help. It’s a question I ask and I would like to think the answer is yes. I have had some people close to me saying, ‘Do you want to get involved now?’ My answer is absolutely. My heart goes out to everyone involved.”
Gowers played 89 games at Hawthorn over seven seasons then 51 with the Brisbane Bears and Lions.
He tried to nominate to return to the board but was convinced he should instead be the head of the nominations committee that would secure Kennett’s successor.
Instead Nankevill became that chair, with the board deciding there was no suitable candidate and the commercial lawyer should replace Kennett.
“I am a good friend of Peter and our boys were at the same school in the same year,” Gowers said.
“I sat on the nominations committee and the end result of that process was the board nominated the chair of the nomination committee.
“Regardless of who it is, that doesn’t sit right and I made it known at the time. Then I decided the right thing was for me to volunteer to return and help guide the ship.”
Gowers said he believed standards had slipped and seen the club lose respect.
“The other thing is that I played in one flag in 1991 and only five years later we were facing a possible merger with another club in Melbourne. If I look at our situation it is seven years since we played in a flag and I don’t want to stand around watching and hoping we don’t fall down the slippery slope. So I decided to do something about it,” he said.