The "tumultuous leadership" of Australian Football League side Western Bulldogs President Peter Gordon "has appeared to have claimed another scalp" with the club appointing a third CEO since Gordon resumed the head role at the club in '13, according to Denham & Smith of THE AUSTRALIAN. The "highly regarded" David Stevenson, CEO for less than a year, was replaced by Gary Kent, head of the club’s finance committee. Stevenson, recruited by Gordon from Nike "and well thought of in AFL headquarters, handed in his resignation last week." There reportedly had been a "critical breakdown in the relationship between the president and his CEO." The club had been in discussion with Stevenson "for some time." However, the latest AFL figures show the Bulldogs, who are heavily funded by the league’s equalization scheme, carry a debt of almost A$13M ($9.7M). The "shock departure of Stevenson comes on top of a disastrous weekend loss" to St. Kilda, when the club slipped from third to seventh and lost players Mitch Wallis and Jack Redpath to season-ending injuries. Stevenson, 39, "was appointed last year after 17 years in numerous executive roles with Nike and relocated back to Australia." He "was popular at the AFL and in most quarters within the Bulldogs, where he attempted to engage the community with the club" (THE AUSTRALIAN, 7/26).
