Jeff Browne became president of Collingwood after campaigning on the need for strong leadership at the club.

At the time, Craig McRae had already been appointed coach and Graham Wright was the general manager of football.

Collingwood president Jeff Browne is stepping down.Credit: AFL Photos

Browne will stand down at next month’s annual general meeting after three years with no publicly declared successor and his club unable to sign an experienced general manager of football. In fact, the Pies have not had a permanent head of football for almost a year. They unsuccessfully attempted to lure both Port Adelaide’s Chris Davies and the Brisbane Lions’ Danny Daly in a field where there are few obvious candidates.

Respected financier Barry Carp will doubtless be the next president, with five senior club sources all confirming the plan for him to be president if and when he is re-elected to the board. But, to date, there has been no public comment from Carp or the club about this.

In 2024, the Pies’ men’s team finished outside the finals for just the second time in seven years and a year after winning the flag under McRae’s fresh direction from the 2021 dip. Meanwhile, their AFLW team – a perennial poor performer – finished the season with one win and the wooden spoon. Collingwood also shut down their netball team at the end of the 2023 Super Netball season.

Browne presided over a flag. His presidency thus is unimpeachable. He was non-interventionist in allowing football people to do their jobs when they won the flag in 2023 and he remained true to that this year.

Browne’s key appointment during his tenure has been Craig Kelly as chief executive. As it transpired, Kelly was the primary reason Wright did not return to the club after the former general manager of football resigned but was then persuaded by Browne, Kelly and other board members........

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