Rory Vassallo: Perth WAFL club defends appointing convicted DV offender to club patron

A Perth footy club is standing by its decision to appoint a domestic violence offender to its executive ranks despite outrage from the state’s AFL watchdog. South Fremantle Football Club appointed Rory Vassallo — the founder of Great Beginnings childcare and former owner of Perth Heat — as a club patron for the next three seasons until 2028. A father-of-two, Vassallo was convicted in 2024 of the aggravated assault of his ex-partner during an argument outside their family home. WA Football which runs the WAFL league — of which South Fremantle is one of its most successful clubs — has “strongly condemned” Vassallo’s appointment and said the club needed to reconsider its decision. “WA Football strongly condemns the appointment of a businessman who has admitted to assaulting a woman to the position of Club Patron,” a spokesperson said. “Under current governance rules, we do not have jurisdiction over Club Patron appointments. We expect all clubs to uphold community values and have asked the Club to reconsider their decision. “WA Football is actively working to provide a safe, inclusive and supportive environment for all competitions across our State and this decision does not reflect our values.” Despite the request to reconsider the appointment, South Fremantle Football Club said it was “proud” of Mr Vassallo’s appointment and described the domestic violence assault as “regrettable”. “Rory’s connection with the Bulldogs runs deep and this prestigious role recognises his considerable passion for the Club and standing in the community,” the club said in a statement. “The South Fremantle Football Club does not condone violence in any form and recognises its responsibility to demonstrate strong leadership within the community. “The 2022 incident reported was extremely disappointing and regrettable. Rory Vassallo has taken full responsibility for his actions.” When Mr Vassallo was convicted over the attack, the court was told the argument erupted when he thought his ex-partner had run off with his mobile phone. He had picked the woman up from a hens party before dropping her off in the underground carpark of her apartment complex. As the woman got out of the car, Vassallo chased her, grabbing her shoulder and ripping her handbag from her arm, causing her middle finger to catch on the bag and bend back. He then took her phone out of her bag and threw the bag onto the floor. As the woman tried to retrieve it, Vassallo pushed her away, prompting her to jump into his car — refusing to get out until he returned the phone. Vassallo’s lawyer, Mark Andrews, said his client never intended to hurt his former partner and that the offence was “not indicative of how he treated her or all women”. He was fined $1500 and granted a spent conviction. Hi appointment at the South Fremantle club comes just days after The West Australian revealed family and domestic rates had hit an all time high across WA, with cases soaring by 20 per cent in the past year. Latest figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics found WA had recorded 11,908 family and domestic violence offenders in 2024-25 — up 20 per cent from 2023-24, 51 per cent from 2022-23 and 71 per cent from 2021-22. Of the 11,908 offenders, nearly 80 per cent (9371) were men. WA had the biggest surge in offenders per State, compared to South Australia (10.6 per cent), New South Wales (7 per cent), Victoria (4.62 per cent), Tasmania (0.19 per cent) and Queensland (-2.33 per cent).