…or should that be “a new beginning draws near”?

As you may have heard, the Board of the Brisbane Lions today announced that an Extraordinary General Meeting of the club will be held on 13 November. This update (link) from Chairman Angus Johnson gives some information about the process and the resolutions to be proposed. 

The shorthand summary is that members will be asked to vote on three key issues: the make-up of the Board, whether Life Members should be given the same rights as Full Members, and a proposed change to the club jumper.

The Lion’s Roar considers this to be a momentous occasion in our club’s history. While it took some time, eventually the Board has heard the plea from all of you that this matter should be put to a member’s vote if the Board could not find a long lasting resolution. Now, the responsibility to find a way forward rests with you. This is how it should be.

You will see that the resolutions will call for the removal of 5 directors: Angus Johnson, Cameron Milner, Linda Nash, Mick Power and Paul Williams. The latter two are the challenging directors who are aligned with Leigh Matthews. We think this amendment is entirely appropriate – you should be given the right to have your say on the future of all 5 directors.

We are incredibly excited that the issue of the club jumper will be voted on! We’ve always maintained that whether you like the current jumper or the old one, as members and supporters, you deserve to be properly consulted on any change. That didn’t happen with the last jumper change but you will get your say this time. Well done to the Board for making this call. It is long overdue.

Over the course of the past several weeks, we’ve been in contact with both Mr Johnson and Mr Williams. Indeed, our representatives have met with both parties for several hours. We firmly believe that all directors are acting in what they consider to be the best interests of the club. If nothing else, this dispute has shown that we still have a lot of people who are passionate about the Brisbane Lions. That can only be a good thing for the future. Whatever the outcome of the elections, all directors should be congratulated for the time and effort they have put into the Lions.

Where to from here?

Members with voting rights will receive formal notice from the club of the EGM and the resolutions which will be voted on. It also appears that each director will be given the opportunity to communicate with you via the club. We urge you to become engaged in this process – be informed about what each director stands for and where they intend to take the club in the future. This EGM is critical to our club’s future, and your vote will decide the direction of the club.

If you can, we strongly recommend you attend the EGM to cast your vote. We think it will send a strong signal to the footballing world if we can get a full house for the meeting. You will be saying “this is our club and we will fight for it.”

We see our role as keeping you informed. We will provide you with as much information as possible about the EGM, the voting process, proxies etc. It may be that we’ll take a proactive role in ensuring your vote can be lodged, even if you are unable to attend. Stay tuned.

We will also continue to extend the opportunity to all directors and prospective directors to speak to you via our forums.

We won’t be taking sides. We think it is up to each individual to decide on how to cast their votes. To us, the success is in the fact that the club is listening when you speak. We intend to remain neutral because this is your call.

Finally, we would just like to say that we are over the moon that we’re nearing a resolution to this disunity! We thank you for your efforts in ensuring that members and supporters have a voice at the Brisbane Lions. This has been an trying time to be a supporter of the Brisbane Lions, but we will get through these struggles and our club will be stronger for it. 

Bring on the EGM!

Adam, James, Michael, Andrew, Nathan, Craig & the rest of The Lion’s Roar crew.