No sooner had news filtered that Brenton Sanderson was sacked than players at the Adelaide Football Club telephoned him and became emotional while expressing their disbelief.
It tells a contrasting story to the reason delivered earlier by club chairman Rob Chapman as to why Sanderson's contract was severed with two years remaining.
And, incredibly, amid the murky claims and denials that have festered for six weeks after newly appointed board member and club great Mark Ricciuto publicly criticised Sanderson's coaching ability during his local morning radio show, a shattered Sanderson confronted the media and admitted he "fell in love with this playing group" and no one would be happier if it went on to win a premiership.
When asked why he was sacked, after Chapman had earlier described him as a good coach strategically and tactically, Sanderson gave a wry grin. He refuted a suggestion he didn't have the support of his players, and that his views and that of the club's board on the direction of the team was going were far apart.
Sanderson, who within 24 hours received calls from other AFL clubs about returning to his previous role as an assistant coach, may have tried to be the upbeat character he was during his three-year tenure despite constant team failures and pressures, but he could not conceal his bitterness at being sacked – a move he admitted he didn't see coming .
"I have loved my time here; I have become very passionate about this footy club," Sanderson said. "I spoke to a lot of players today and there will be no one happier than me if these boys move forward and win a premiership. I will be cheering as loud as anybody.
"I don't think I lost the players. My relationship with the players has been really strong. I am happy with the support I have got from the players within the last 24 hours. The phone has been ringing off the hook.
"There have been some emotional players who are disappointed, but as I said to them I did fall in love with the group. They are a fantastic group and I enjoyed working with them. I certainly wish them all the best for the future."
Sanderson said he was unsure whether there was an ultimatum by some senior players to the board that either he left or the players would go.
"They (the club board) thought they would be better heading off in a different direct at this stage," he said. "I respect the decision. I don't necessarily agree with it; I have got to live with it and move on.
"I have always had full support from the football club, the CEO and the board. There has always been open discussion.
"It is a feeling of disappointment, obviously. I was notified yesterday and I had to go down and tell the coaches and then go home and tell my family. We were aware that there was a review underway from June this year and everything was looked at.
"Unfortunately I lost my job. That's the way this industry is; it is ruthless. It is very much results-driven and I have got to now look at opportunities which I am very excited about."
In a remarkable chain of events, Ricciuto contacted his close friend and former teammate and business partner Simon Goodwin on Wednesday night and asked him if he would be interested in the coaching job, only to be told he had already committed to becoming the heir-apparent to Paul Roos at Melbourne.
Mark Thompson, fresh from filling in at Essendon, was also considered in hot contention – until he reminded everyone he was a close mate of Sanderson's. "No, I'm not interested," he told The Age, adding: "I wouldn't go there – especially now."
Ricciuto, who was a key member of the review process that determined Sanderson's fate, said on Triple M the Crows would have gone from bad to worse had they not sacked Sanderson. Ricciuto also confirmed senior Crows players were a major factor in the decision, as players were when Graham Cornes and Robert Shaw were sacked by Adelaide at the end of the 1994 and '96 seasons respectively.
"We spoke to all the key people that you need to speak to that the coach has got to have relationships with if it's going to be a successful football club," Ricciuto said on radio. "The players were one of those groups and obviously form part of the reason why he's not there from next year onwards."
The club great said Sanderson had his contract extended by two years late last year only because the club wanted to avoid speculation about the role.
"He (Sanderson) is a good coach in some ways, I feel," Ricciuto said. "He is a good bloke. But to be a good coach you have to be good at a lot of things."
Chapman delivered the bullet to Sanderson. "It was not easy," he told reporters. "I genuinely feel for Brenton. This is never easy. You have to do it with all the empathy you can muster."
He acknowledged Sanderson had been "dealt some poor hands ... things that were outside of his control" but added there were also things that coaches could control.
There were no apologies, and in a frank admission Chapman added that it had been Port Adelaide's outstanding revival and season success that had also prompted the decision. "It has made us step up to the plate even harder," Chapman said.
Chapman said he could not guarantee that Patrick Dangerfield and Taylor Walker would now resist free agency offers and remain at the club. "I think Patrick is in a good frame of mind," Chapman said.
Cornes said on SEN that Sanderson didn't survive because, this year, he failed to bond with his charges. "He didn't have that ability ... to build the necessary relationships and build respect within the group," adding "… the easiest thing for the club would have been to do nothing."
Former Port Adelaide and Hawthorn forward Stuart Dew, currently an assistant to John Longmire at Sydney, is a frontrunner to coach Adelaide along with Scott Burns, who is an assistant to Nathan Buckley at Collingwood.
