Former Adelaide Crows coach Don Pyke has been unveiled as the new CEO of West Coast.
Pyke will take over from the club’s long-serving chief Trevor Nisbett who announced he was standing down from the role in September.
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Nisbett is expected to officially depart before Christmas while Pyke’s start date is January 15.
Pyke was a premiership player for the Eagles in 1992 and ‘94 and was inducted to the club’s Hall of Fame before becoming the coach of the Crows in 2016.
His time at Adelaide ended in controversy, however, leaving in 2019 while engulfed in a pre-season camp scandal.
Pyke left the Crows in controversy after taking them to a grand final in 2019. Credit: Getty Images
The controversial boot camp – that resulted in stars such as Eddie Betts leaving – followed a heavy grand final defeat to Richmond in 2017.
Since then Pyke has been a highly respected assistant coach at Sydney.
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He was in part credited with the Swans’ meteoric rise in 2022 which saw them reach a grand final.
Pyke is also a successful businessman and was a talented junior cricketer.
West Coast has been under siege over the past two seasons, finishing bottom this year and second last in 2022.
It has been a rapid fall from grace after playing finals in 2020.
Coach Adam Simpson has been under enormous pressure to keep his job but is under a “watertight” contract until the end of 2025.
7NEWS reported in June that if the Eagles were to cut ties with Simpson it could cost them $2.5 million in a payout to Simpson and they would owe the AFL $4.5 million in luxury tax.
“If they were to part company with Simpson, (it) would be up to $7 million plus the cost of a new coach,” former 7NEWS reporter Tom Browne said in June.
“Not even West Coast, the richest club in the competition, would do that.”
Drama has followed the club’s AFLW team, with coach Michael Prior quitting before the end of this season.
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West Coast is third bottom in the AFLW and Prior’s departure came less than two weeks after making a comment about “unacceptable” fixturing.
Prior was blasting the league’s decision to pit the struggling Eagles against defending premiers Melbourne, after the Demons thumped his team by 70 points.
“How we play that team is beyond me. That is what you get when you get fixturing like that,” Prior said.
But he was widely ridiculed for the comments, and later backtracked on his criticism of HQ.
Since taking the reins of the women’s team in 2022, Prior’s Eagles have won just five of 28 games.
With Pyke leaving the Swans, there is now hole in their assistant ranks.
Before being sacked as Gold Coast coach, Stuart Dew worked at Sydney and remains close to their long-time senior coach John Longmire.
– With AAP
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