Caroline Wilson says Chris Scott’s response to bringing AFL staffer to tears was ‘poor’
Caroline Wilson has slammed Geelong coach Chris Scott for a “poor” response to his altercation with the AFL staffer he left in tears after his qualifying final.
It emerged in the aftermath of the Cats’ win over Brisbane in the first week of the finals that Scott had blown up at a media representative from the league after his post-match press conference.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Chris Scott’s ‘poor’ response to press conference altercation.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.Wilson said Scott’s record is unquestionable, but that he let himself down in the incident, and with his public response to it.
“Well his record is extraordinary. I mean, what, has he missed finals twice since he took over at the Cats? And won a flag in his first year in 2011,” she said on The Agenda Setters.
“He’s coached them to two premierships. This is his fourth grand final. They seem to be in a preliminary final every year.
“What he has done at that football club is extraordinary. The culture, the players who go there who are problematic, they thrive under Chris Scott — but he had a bad week last week or two weeks ago.
“We can’t let this just go through to the keeper without referring to the presser he finally held last Thursday over his altercation with an AFL staffer that left her in tears.”
Speaking at his weekly presser last week, Scott acknowledged his mistake, but stopped short of an unconditional apology.
“I should have handled that situation better,” he said.
“But I also acknowledge that it was a private conversation and sometimes private conversations become public and it would become a lot easier if you actually did litigate all those issues in an attempt to help people understand why those frustrations were so acute.”
Wilson wasn’t impressed with it from the veteran coach — who, it must be said, has rarely courted controversy like this during his 15 years in charge of the Cats.
“Now there are massive changes taking place over the summer in Geelong’s media and promotional department, media and marketing department,” Wilson said.
“And there needs to be, because as much as Chris is running that club, with Steve Hocking overlooking him, that was a poor answer.
“I just don’t think he should have mitigated the apology.
“You don’t say that it’s unfortunate, it was a private conversation, when others witnessed it, when it left a staffer in tears, it is this weird sort of insistence by Chris Scott that the AFL should have a representative at every media conference during the year as well as in finals, which would be impossible to police. Nine games a week, nine different AFL media representatives.
“I don’t know why he was so angry that night; they’d just beaten Brisbane and I thought it was unnecessary and as much as I love what Chris Scott has done and I love, generally, his public performances, I thought an apology without mitigation would have been the right way to go there.
“And after what Bailey Smith did (with the photographer at training), I felt that sort of the apple didn’t really fall far from the Geelong tree that week.
“But they come out and do what they did against Hawthorn (in the preliminary final) and they’re just brilliant, it’s hard to criticise them.”
Smith privately apologised to News Corp photographer Alison Wynd for his expletive-laden outburst directed towards her just under a fortnight ago.
Cats CEO Steve Hocking also called Wynd personally to express his remorse on behalf of the club.
Originally published on 7NEWS Sport
