{"id":814257,"date":"2026-07-21T11:30:11","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T11:30:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/814257\/"},"modified":"2026-07-21T11:30:11","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T11:30:11","slug":"outgoing-gws-chief-executive-dave-matthews-walks-back-controversial-comments-about-tasmania-light-hearted","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/814257\/","title":{"rendered":"Outgoing GWS chief executive Dave Matthews walks back controversial comments about Tasmania: \u2018Light hearted\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Outgoing GWS<\/a> chief executive Dave Matthews has walked back his comments regarding player acquisition and retention in Tasmania.<\/p>\n

Speaking from Hong Kong on Tuesday, Matthews declared his remarks were \u201clight hearted\u201d. <\/p>\n

WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Dave Matthews under fire for Tasmania comments<\/p>\n

Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today Arrow<\/a><\/p>\n

On Saturday\u2019s 3AW coverage, Matthews said Tasmania \u201cis a nice place to visit, but I don\u2019t think it\u2019s an unbelievable place to have a career and live\u201d.<\/p>\n

His quip came as the Giants attempt to re-sign Tom Green, who has drawn interest from the Devils as a free agent at the end of next year.<\/p>\n

Speaking in Hobart on Monday, Ken Hinkley labelled Matthews\u2019 comments \u201cuneducated\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"BrendonBrendon Gale and Ken Hinkley weren\u2019t thrilled with Matthews\u2019 comments about Tasmania. Credit: Getty<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat was Dave doing? Is he unemployed?\u201d Hinkley said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re uneducated, you don\u2019t know. That\u2019s really important, you\u2019ve got to know what you\u2019re talking about when it comes to the lifestyle.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve seen Geelong do pretty well as a community football club and this is very much a Geelong-type feel about it. It\u2019s got a community feel. There\u2019s a great opportunity for people to grow their families.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not just a football place, it\u2019s a family place. There\u2019s a lot of people who will love the lifestyle of Tasmania.\u201d<\/p>\n

But the most stinging response to Matthews came from Devils boss Brendon Gale, who labelled his GWS counterpart \u201cthe prince of Balmoral\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a bit rich of Dave to lean in given he\u2019s never lived there,\u201d Gale said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn fact, he\u2019s never lived in west Sydney either. The prince of Balmoral, Dave Matthews. I\u2019ll leave it at that. I love Dave and I think he\u2019s done a great job. No offence taken.\u201d<\/p>\n

When contacted, Dave Matthews sought to clarify his weekend comments.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cRight now I am CEO of the Giants so we are competing,\u201d Matthews told SEN and 7NEWS on Tuesday afternoon.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the reality. Brendon knows it was light hearted because I have been on record repeatedly supporting the Devils.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have discussed the difficulty of building a club with him. He knows how hard it will be to attract players. And more to the point retain them. That\u2019s the challenge.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd I do hope it works for the sake of the competition.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s understood Matthews and Gale have also communicated via text message in the last 24 hours.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

Gale also worked alongside Matthews\u2019 brother, Simon, at Richmond for several years.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Outgoing club boss raises eyebrows with Tassie comment<\/p>\n

2 min read<\/p>\n

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Caroline Wilson fires back over James Hird \u2018hate\u2019 accusation<\/p>\n

3 min read<\/p>\n

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