Dear members and supporters,
I wanted to take a moment to write to you all to reflect on what has been an amazing 18 months for the Melbourne Football Club, full of success and Demon Spirit; and to thank each of you as members for your amazing ongoing support.
Off the back of a history-making 2021 AFL Men’s premiership campaign, 2022 delivered our first Casey Demons VFL Men’s premiership, a VFL Women’s preliminary finals appearance, not one but two AFL Women’s Grand Finals appearances; and last week our long-awaited and much-celebrated first AFL Women’s premiership.
After seven seasons of hard work, tight tussles and near misses, our AFL Women’s program created history by becoming the first AFLW team to win a premiership in the fully formed 18-club competition, and the first club to win both a Men’s and Women’s AFL Premiership since the AFLW started in 2017.
As you know, premierships are extremely hard to come by and it filled me with great pride, as I know it would all of you; to witness our inaugural senior coach Mick Stinear and captain Daisy Pearce hold the AFLW premiership cup aloft, on behalf of the whole Club.
This year has been one to remember, as the AFL industry cautiously welcomed back supporters to games. It has been great to watch our players and supporters embrace what, in effect, was five seasons played over 12 months. With an AFL, VFL, VFLW and two AFLW seasons all scheduled over a 12-month period, this resulted in forty-six weekends of footy, and forty-six weekends of our supporters rolling up in record numbers. Whether it was from the stands of the MCG, from the hill at Casey Fields or cheering from home, your support of this wonderful Club has been unwavering throughout 2022. I can wholeheartedly say I have never been prouder to be part of the Melbourne Football Club.
The amazing on-field success, delivered by our four teams, has lifted our off-field performance to record levels that culminated in our announcement yesterday of a club operating profit of $3.5m. This is an increase of $1.4m on 2021, and takes our total profit over the last two years to $5.6m. This success is your success and I hope it makes you feel proud to belong. The unprecedented growth that the Club is experiencing is being driven on the back of you - our supporters - who are showing up to games and signing up as members in record number: 66,484 members to be exact. To download a copy of the Financial Report please click here.
During the year we also asked our members to take the time to help us undertake a review of, and update, our Constitution. To every member who provided feedback as part of the consultation process and to every member who voted – thank you.
One of the key changes voted in by members was the introduction of Director terms, and as part of our commitment to best governance practice, I take this opportunity to let you all know that John Trotter has stepped down from the Board after 12 years of incredible service to our Club. John has been the long-term head of our Audit, Risk and Integrity Committee and is no doubt a key reason for why the Club is in such a strong financial position now; a club that is debt-free, with a strong balance sheet and a substantial Future Fund. Not only has John worked closely with the Executive team and Board on all financial, risk and integrity matters during his time as a Director, he also ensured the smooth transitioning of the Audit, Risk and Integrity Committee Chair role to Sally Freeman. On behalf of the Club, I would like to thank John for his outstanding contribution and wish him and his family all the best for future endeavours.
With John’s departure, I am pleased to advise that Janette Kendall, whom many of you will know from her role as part of our Constitution Review Working Group; has joined the Board. Janette has a broad range of experiences in the digital innovation, operations and marketing spaces which were identified as a skills gap area; and is also an experienced ASX Listed Company director. The skills Janette brings to the table will add great value in supporting the Board, our Club CEO Gary Pert and our Executive group and ensuring we continue to thrive on and off the field.
As we sign off on season 2022, I think it’s important that you know there is no rest for a Demon - and season 2023 has already started at full speed. Our AFL men are back at training, and by all reports, including time-trial results, they are the fittest they’ve ever been. On top of what I believe to be (and I am sure you will agree); was the most talented list of players in the AFL competition, it’s exciting to see Brodie Grundy, Lachie Hunter and Josh Schache joining the Dees and fitting into the group like they’ve been here for years. Combine that with the excitement and anticipation of our new draftees and the desire of our women to go back-to-back, and our footy program has got a great buzz about it as we set ourselves for a big 2023.
To each and every one of you - thank you for showing your Demon Spirit this year, and for your ongoing support of the red and blue. On behalf of the Club, a very safe and happy Christmas and New Year to you and your families and friends. We can’t wait to see what’s in store for 2023.
Let’s Go Demons!
Kate Roffey
