The South West Voice in Macarthur can exclusively reveal what happened inside the Macarthur FC dressing room in Adelaide that led to the termination of the services of coach Dwight Yorke.
A club source, who was present in the room, and who has asked for anonymity, said Yorke had “crossed the line’’ in a brutally honest assessment of the Bulls, the A-League and Australian soccer in general.
The coach was addressing the players after the match, a 1-0 defeat to Adelaide United, when he was interrupted and informed there were about 16 Bulls fans outside.
Dwight was told that the group included a family of four who had driven 16 hours to support Macarthur FC.
Present in the room at the time, along with the playing squad and training staff, were club heavyweights Sam Krslovic, the chief executive officer, and chairman Gino Marra.
Our source says it was at this point when Yorke, a first time coach at this level, exploded, calling the Bulls a pub team, and rubbishing the A-League and Australian soccer.
He also criticised one of the Bulls’ younger players before saying he’d wished he had never come to coach in Australia.
The South West Voice in Macarthur has offered Dwight Yorke the opportunity to put his side of the story, but he did not respond to our efforts to make contact.
Following Yorke’s outburst, meetings were held between the coach and the club, which made it clear there was no turning back because Yorke had “crossed the line’’.
The media statement issued next day, Saturday, said:
“Macarthur FC and head coach Dwight Yorke have mutually agreed to part ways, effective immediately.
“The club and Yorke reached an agreement on Saturday to terminate the remainder of his contract, allowing Yorke to pursue other opportunities.
“Yorke’s assistant, Russell Latapy, has also agreed to leave the club as part of the agreement.
“I would like to thank Dwight Yorke and his assistant Russell Latapy for their contribution towards our club and, in particular, Dwight leading Macarthur to our first silverware with our 2022 Australia Cup triumph,” Gino Marra said.
Yorke thanked the club for providing him with his first position as a professional head coach.
“I want to thank the chairman Gino Marra, CEO Sam Krslovic, all the ownership group as well as all the staff, fans of Macarthur FC,” Yorke said.
“I leave the football club with a great team that will continue to challenge for more silverware.’’
Macarthur FC assistant coach Mile Sterjovski, a former Socceroo, will now step up as caretaker coach for the rest of the season.
