Facilities Manager Mark White has been named the first nominee of the inaugural Dean Moore Award – a Sydney Swans staff equivalent of the team’s Best Clubman.
The news was announced by CEO Tom Harley last Friday, May 31 in a club-wide meeting, after White was nominated by his peers for his tireless work ethic and genuine passion for helping everyone at the club.
Speaking to Sydney Swans Media, White shared his deep gratitude for receiving the nomination.
“I couldn’t believe it, firstly, I was honoured,” White said. “I try to work hard and set an example and I think I do that. I was thrilled to be acknowledged.”
White joined the Sydney Swans just 12 months ago following the opening of the Basil Sellers Richard Colless Centre in January. The nomination is a testament to his immediate impact at the club across all departments.
The facilities team works with all facets of the business, including operations, membership and the high-performance football programs. Senior coach John Longmire shared his praise for White following the news.
White brings 23 years of experience to the club after an extensive tenure with Saint Ignatius’ College Riverview, in Sydney’s lower North Shore. As operations manager, White oversaw a maintenance and facilities team handling day-to-day logistics and operations of events and school needs. This included boarding, sport and education.
“It's a school with 1,560 students, Year 5 to 12, and 110 acres of grounds,” White recalled.
“I’d been there a long time and living on site had been wonderful, but it had become more difficult. We wanted to have the challenge where we would live off-site.”
White added he’d applied for several roles but had his heart set on the Swans.
“Look, everyone says this, but I’ve always loved sport and for the chance to be in a professional environment, it’s next level.
“I just knew what a great organisation and what a successful team [the Swans] were and how successful the move from South Melbourne had become.”
To be presented annually at the Sydney Swans’ AFLW Club Champion Dinner, the Dean Moore Award is a peer nominated award that will recognise a Sydney Swans staff member who has best embodied the club’s values of respect, discipline, courage, and conviction.
From our staff:
“Mark was an instant club ambassador when he joined the Sydney Swans almost a year ago. He has lived the values of the club from day one and supports everyone to do their best work. Mark has brought so much experience to our facility team, I’m not sure where we would be without him. It is a pleasure to work with him every day.” - Liz Pontika, Head of Facility
“It’s an absolute honour to work alongside Mark. His dedication and tireless commitment to his job is admirable. He is the definition of a team player with an incredible work ethic, a positive attitude and is reliable. Beyond being an incredible worker Mark is an even better person. We are all very lucky to have Mark as part of our Swans family.” – Emily Chandler, Operations Specialist
“The selfless manner in which Mark goes about his role, pushing through tasks without any fuss, is exactly what we’re about. Mark is a natural relationship builder – from a first-year player to a 40-year member - he genuinely cares about the club. It’s difficult to think of anybody who better embodies the club’s values.” – Scott Dalby, Executive General Manager – People
