Don Cherry and Ron MacLean spent over three decades working together on Sportsnet as the co-hosts of Hockey Night in Canada. But nowadays, the two seemingly don’t have much of a friendship to speak of after a back-and-forth spat ensued between the two over the controversial ending of their working relationship.
Cherry was let go by Sportsnet in 2019 after an infamous anti-immigrant rant that is now called “Poppygate,” referring to Cherry saying that he believed immigrants were less likely to wear poppies to honor fallen Canadian soldiers.
Last week, MacLean shared his opinion on what ultimately led to this rant, saying that be believed that Cherry did speak his mind, but did so knowing that he would likely be fired, calling it his “exit strategy.”
“It was a bit clumsy, but it was the right outcome,” MacLean said in a recent conversation with Gare Joyce of The Kingston Whig Standard. “Ultimately, that’s what needed to happen. It was liberating. Don needed out and the time was right. (Remembrance Day) was his last swing, taking a stance that’s unpopular, but that feels good in his world. For Don, it’s all a fight. It’s all a battle. So he was happy and I’m happy for him.
“I was doing the honorable thing by making it look whole. The attack on immigrants was improper and I was not happy with it — it goes against my ethics. I was able to take my stand and he was able to take his, but I was also playing the game and that card allowed Don to gracefully get out — he could go out on what was for him a high, (saying stuff) that would get you elected President of the U.S. now.”
As to why MacLean thought Cherry was okay with being fired, he claimed that Cherry’s past bout with pneumonia played a role, suggesting that life on the road was unsustainable with his struggling health.
“I think that pneumonia scare was it,” MacLean added. “The pneumonia said to Don, ‘It’s time.’ He had to think, ‘Why is this grind suddenly so hard?’ He was ready to have an exit strategy. From that moment on, he was plotting a way out. The first opportunity (to end Coach’s Corner) was going to be a happy one for Don. And I thought he did it well.”
MacLean’s comments seemingly got back to Cherry, declaring that he did not intentionally get himself fired for any health reason, or any other reason.
“No, I wasn’t looking for a way out,” said Cherry in a conversation with Joe Warmington of the Toronto Sun about MacLean’s comments. “I never even thought of that. I’m very disappointed in Ron that he would bring this up. I’m very disappointed that he would reach back five years and do this. He should let it go. He can say what he wants, but it never happened.”
Additionally, Cherry made it incredibly clear that he and MacLean are not friends and will not be talking anytime soon to clear up the disagreement with how they each saw the end of the on-air run together.
“I don’t have any feelings toward Ron,” Cherry added. “No, I don’t want to talk to him about it.”
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.