Coach Chris Scott recently sat down with Mark Howard on the Howie Games podcast and opened up on his decision to sacrifice his full wage.
Scott informed Geelong's executive in March that he would relinquish his salary while the club's assistant coaches and development coaches were stood down as a result of covid-19.
“For me, it was a pretty easy decision and it just wasn’t complicated,” Scott said.
“The Monday after the shutdown was announced - we were in crisis mode, and when you’re in that mode there’s a couple of things that need to happen.
“You need to acknowledge that the situation is really serious, which we did, clearly.
“The second thing is that your leaders need to stand up.
“And the third thing is you’ve got to overcorrect a little bit to make sure that the first two parts are front and centre, but also the detail that needs to be worked through has to be prioritised.”
Not one for being in the spotlight, Scott said he felt uncomfortable at being singled out for praise.
"I (did) find it a little bit embarrassing that I was singled out when really the attitude of all our people is where all in this together."
"We were in a situation where we were standing down all of our coaches and to be honest, I actually thought that included me anyway, but when it became clear it didn’t, it was a no brainer to say ‘well, no, no' - We’ve just got to work through this, the finances and my situation can be worked through when the crisis has been averted.
"Until then we’ve just got to take the attitude of whatever it takes to get through it.
“And I guess it’s an easy thing to say at the time, and it’s going to bite in the next couple of months, that’s for sure, but one thing I do know is we’ve got a really united footy club.”
#OnThisDay we booted 10 straight against the Suns in a 120-point demolition ?? Presented by @RymanAustralia. pic.twitter.com/LWG11VnmaD
— Geelong Cats (@GeelongCats) April 30, 2020
Since joining Geelong as senior coach at the end 2010, Scott has gone on to win 69% of 216 games in charge, making the finals in eight of nine seasons and winning the 2011 premiership.
"I do love the Cats," he said.
"I will always be indebted to the footy club for the opportunity that they’ve given me."
