Dave Cormack’s empty words

“We have been doing local pilots on mental health and wellbeing in Aberdeen which are working.

“The days of booze and betting sponsorships doesn’t really tie in with healthy living and being at the heart of our communities.

“Football can be a magnet for people, healthy living and mental health, so we need to be at the centre of the community.”

The words of Aberdeen chairman, Dave Cormack, spoken less than two weeks ago.  Yesterday, we discovered two of his players tested positive for Covid and a further six have been isolated as all eight attended the pub at the centre of the Aberdeen outbreak.

Mr Cormack, those are empty words.  Today, you are a poster boy for poor governance in healthy living, booze and the caring for the heart of your community.  Your primary task as a director of a football club is to direct the actions of those you control.  What happened?

His interview, in the Daily Record, was full of empty management speech:

“Something I think we have to explore at the centre to drive an agenda.

“What do we want to be? What is our vision? I don’t know what the vision is. We don’t have a branding strategy.

“At the centre, it’s not run like a real company that would have a vision, a branding strategy or goals to drive income.

“The cup is half full, how can we drive things?”

It’s like he had just finished watching a very poor Ted Talk on business growth by an entrepreneur who sold for millions and has no idea how it happened.  Or maybe that’s really him.

Scottish football is the great grounder of egos.  Think your business background gives you better insight and decision making than those in an industry you’ve never worked in?  Buy Hearts or Aberdeen and find out.  Think that your experience as on the Conservative Party – Scottish executive while Tony Blair earned a landslide prepared you for anything?  Maybe you should become chief exec at Partick Thistle?

Football players have been granted ‘sports bubble’ special status, when they abuse that privilege by hitting busy pubs, they have let us all down.