‘Targeted and unlawful’: Former technical boss to take Football Australia to court

3 months ago 10

Former A-League championship coach Ernie Merrick is taking Football Australia to court, claiming his dismissal from a high-ranking technical role earlier this year was “targeted and unlawful”.

Merrick was appointed FA’s inaugural chief football officer in mid-2022, a powerful new position from which he was to oversee the “transformation” of Australia’s on-field direction and act as a “disruptor” in the football development space, in the words of former chief executive James Johnson.

Ernie Merrick was hired by Football Australia to be a ‘disruptor’ in his role of chief football officer.

But the former Melbourne Victory, Wellington Phoenix and Newcastle Jets coach was shown the door in acrimonious circumstances by FA in July, with his position made redundant – a decision that a spokesperson for FA previously told this masthead was made because it wanted to pursue a more “collaborative and modern approach” following a review of the federation’s technical leadership.

Merrick’s exit came just weeks after Johnson quit after five and a half years as CEO, with Heather Garriock stepping down from FA’s board to serve as his replacement in an interim capacity.

FA’s interim chief executive Heather Garriock.

The matter will now be played out in court, after an initial hearing before the Fair Work Commission on Wednesday involving Merrick and FA failed to bring a resolution.

“I am currently engaged in a dispute with Football Australia concerning the termination of my employment in early July 2025, which I believe to have been targeted and unlawful,” Merrick told this masthead in a statement.

“I am deeply dissatisfied with the manner in which I have been treated by Football Australia, particularly following the departure of the previous CEO James Johnson in May 2025 and his replacement with an interim CEO, Heather Garriock.

“In view of these circumstances, I intend to commence legal proceedings in the federal courts within the next two weeks seeking redress for my unlawful termination.”

Football Australia declined to comment.

Specific details about Merrick’s case are not known, but according to the listing of Wednesday’s hearing, his wrongful dismissal claim falls under section 365 of the Fair Work act, which covers “contraventions involving dismissal”. This legal route is not a standard unfair dismissal application, but a “general protections” claim asserting that his termination was unlawful.

The general protections prevent employers from sacking an employee because either they exercised a workplace right (including making a complaint or inquiry against a colleague), engaged in industrial activity, have a protected attribute (such as race, sex, sexual orientation), or were temporarily absent from work, usually through illness or injury.

It means that FA will have to prove their decision to part ways with Merrick was not related to one of those reasons, and that his redundancy was genuine.

Merrick is one of over a dozen key executives to have left FA in the last 12 months. The latest is Caroline Veitch, the chief financial officer who joined the federation in June last year, who will depart at the end of the year. Her replacement, the former Sydney FC chief executive Adam Santo, has begun work in recent days.

FA reported a loss of $8.55 million in its last annual report, and is projecting another loss of between $2-3 million for the next financial year, board member Joseph Carrozzi said on the Green and Gold FC podcast this week.

“Yes, there have been changes at FA,” Carrozzi said. “It’s not unusual when the organisation is looking to refresh its strategy, refresh its approach. Change happens. But the good thing is that the people who have left have left after a distinguished career ... five years, 10 years or more.

“When you worry is when people leave after five minutes. That’s not good.”