Major development after Triple M radio host Marty Sheargold was sacked - as secrets from top-level meeting are exposed

EXCLUSIVE

A female Southern Cross Austereo director was so incensed by Triple M host Marty Sheargold's disparaging comments about the Matildas she threatened to quit the company if he wasn't sacked.

Daily Mail Australia can reveal respected media veteran Marina Go issued the extraordinary ultimatum on Thursday after the SCA board - which oversees 86 radio stations including the Triple M network - convened a special meeting in response to the growing scandal.

Sources said Go - one of two female directors on the SCA board - told her colleagues she was outraged by Sheargold's ill-founded criticisms of Australia's national women's soccer team - and bizarre claims endometriosis was a 'made up' disease' - and demanded immediate and decisive action be taken.

'There was an SCA board meeting and Marina was absolutely going off her head about it,' one insider with intimate knowledge of the meeting told Daily Mail Australia.

'She was so offended by what he (Sheargold) had said, she threatened to resign unless he was given the boot.'

While Daily Mail Australia is not suggesting the ultimatum was the only factor that spurred the radio outfit into action, by the time the marathon five-hour meeting had concluded, Sheargold's fate at the Triple M network had been sealed.

Within hours, SCA announced the shock jock had indeed been fired.

The revelations come as opinion remains fiercely divided over whether Sheargold's comments were wildly inappropriate or just a series of misguided jokes that failed to hit the mark - and whether he should have lost his job for making them.

Marina Go threaten to quit Southern Austereo's board unless Marty Sheargold was sacked for making a string of disparaging comments about the Matildas and endometriosis

SCA, which owns the Triple M station where Sheargold worked, sacked him on Thursday

The actor and comedian sparked the controversy in a pre-recorded segment for his radio show on Monday reacting to the Matildas' 2-1 loss to the USA at the SheBelieves Cup, which came on the heels of their 4-0 loss to Japan to open the tournament.

Sheargold told listeners 'there's something wrong with the Matildas' before comparing the team to 'Year 10 girls' and asking if superstar striker Sam Kerr and her fiancee Kristie Mewis 'play the same position'.

When the conversation then moved to Australia hosting the women's Asian Cup next year, Sheargold went one step further.

'Oh god. The Asian Cup,' Sheargold said.

'I'd rather hammer a nail through the head of my penis than watch that. Got any men's sport?'

Triple M released a statement on Wednesday evening confirming the host had been axed after they 'mutually agreed to part ways'.

In the same statement, Sheargold said: 'Having mutually agreed to part ways with the Triple M Network, I fully understand the gravity of my comments.

'I'd like to sincerely apologise to the Matildas and the broader organisation. I would also like to thank my immediate team for their hard work and apologise for the situation they now find themselves in.'

Go declined to comment about her threat to resign when approached by Daily Mail Australia.

SCA has also been contacted and asked whether Go's threat had any impact on the decision to fire Sheargold.

Meshel Laurie, who co-hosted a national drive-time show with Sheargold and Tim Blackwell for four years, applauded the decision to axe the comedian

One of Sheargold's former radio co-hosts Meshel Laurie - who starred alongside him and Tim Blackwell on their Nova 106.9 national drive for about four years from May 2010 - applauded SCA for axing the comedian.

'Congratulations Triple M Melbourne and Southern Cross Austereo,' the podcaster wrote on Instragram.

'An Australian commercial radio network has actually 'parted ways' with a male presenter over his toxic attitude towards women.

'I honestly never thought I'd live to see the day.'

She then went on to commend former Olympian and fellow Triple M presenter Leisel Jones who publicly called out Sheargold's comments on her own program on Wednesday.

'I must admit, I wouldn't have advised Leisel Jones to speak out about this, because I went to my radio bosses many times over many years about the men I worked with, and in the end, I became unemployable in the industry, while they just kept doling out formal warnings to the offenders, and kept employing them,' Laurie wrote.

'Is it possible the industry is actually changing? Well done Leisel Jones and well done Triple M. This is huge.

'Love to all the talented and hard working women working in radio. Keep pushing! Time for a female-led national drive show? Dare we dream?'

Sheargold worked alongside Blackwell and Kate Ritchie for six years before reportedly falling out with his former Home and Away star co-host

After Laurie departed the show she shared with Sheargold and Blackwell in 2014, she was replaced by former Home and Away childhood star Kate Ritchie.

Sheargold ended up leaving the drive program in September 2021 after allegedly falling out with Ritchie before picking up a gig as Triple M's breakfast radio host in 2021. He then shifted gears and moved to a pre-recorded show in the afternoon and drivetime last November.

Ritchie was forced to take her own leave of absence from her Nova breakfast show with Ryan 'Fitzy' Fitzgerald and Michael 'Wippa' Wipfli after suffering a dramatic public meltdown in a Sydney park.

Media industry insiders said the fact that Sheargold's strange statements managed to find their way onto the airwaves despite the fact it was a pre-recorded program and he had time to review and reflect on his comments demonstrated just how out of touch he was with his audience.

It's not the first time the 53-year-old entertainer has courted controversy at the network.

Sheargold was forced to apologise and take personal leave of absence from all media commitments in October 2023 after a 'drunken and offensive' episode in a Triple M corporate box at the AFL Grand Final.

The breakfast radio presenter had been sitting with SCA management and key advising sponsors at the MGC when he began making derogatory comments after warning 'I won't be apologising for being an absolute c*** today'.

The high-profile host allegedly went on to lambast two advertising executives with 'homophobic slurs' for eating salads at half-time instead of meat pies, suggesting 'only f***ots eat salad at the footy'.

Triple M reportedly apologies to its guest for Sheargold's behaviour while he issued a public statement explaining he was 'exhausted' and dealing with unspecified mental health issues.

'I just wanted to let people know that I'll be taking an extended break from work, with the very kind and compassionate permission of my employers, who have been generous in their understanding of my need for a break,' he said at the time.

'I think it's important for people like myself who have a public voice to admit that I am exhausted mentally from my range of commitments across TV, radio and live shows, in an attempt to continue to remove some of the roadblocks and stigma around mental health.

'I need to set aside some time to get my work/life balance back into something that feels better than it has over the last couple of years. Thank you to everyone who has reached out, your support has been welcome and enriching.'

In announcing Sheargold's exit on Wednesday, SCA acknowledged 'Marty's contribution over the past four years, and we wish him well for the future' and said a new drive-time host would be announced 'in due course'.

Sheargold's comments were branded 'outrageous' by interim Matildas coach Tom Sermanni (pictured second from left with his team earlier this week)

Sheargold's axing from Triple M had been foreshadowed earlier in the day when the broadcaster did not air his show in the usual time slot.

The radio star's co-hosts Troy Ellis and Will Ralston were also absent as the broadcaster filled the airtime with music and commercials when the program was meant to air at 3pm in NSW and Queensland.

Sheargold apologised for the rant on social media on Wednesday morning, writing: 'Any comedy, including mine, can miss the mark sometimes, and I can see why people may have taken offence to my comments regarding the Matildas. I sincerely apologise.'

However, opinion has been divided over his comments and his brutal sacking.

Sheargold's take attracted a wave of condemnation from sports fans, past and present Matildas players and the team's interim coach.

Sheargold was also slammed by Federal Sports Minister Anika Wells branded his comments 'boorish, boring and wrong' while former Matildas star Alex Chidiak wrote that she was 'so sick of this s**t' and Wheeler said, 'Sport is for everyone and these views are for no one.'

PFA chief executive Beau Busch described the remarks as 'disgusting, pathetic and deeply misogynistic', while Football Australia lashed out at Sheargold's comments in a statement on Wednesday.

On Thursday, Anthony Albanese added his voice to the criticism of Sheargold.

'They were just shocking comments that anyone could think it, let alone say it,' the Prime Minister said on Nova radio.

The Triple M host was axed after comparing Matildas players like Mary Fowler (pictured) to 'Year 10 girls'

'Completely unacceptable. The Tillies are just legends. They excited and brought together the whole country. The whole country was united in cheering for them.'

Olympic swimmer Cate Campbell also revealed that she's been disturbed by the relative lack of men who have publicly slammed the comedian over his comments.

'My question here is where are the men? There were two other men in that studio while Marty was making those comments... However, it took a woman, it took Rosie Malone, an Olympian in her own right, to call these comments out [in a TikTok post],' Campbell told the Today show on Thursday.

'Why is it women who are calling out the poor behaviour of men and not men stepping up? We don't want to be in this trope. We don't want to be the people who are saying, 'Oh, you can't take a joke, stop it.' That's not acceptable.'

However, Sydney talkback radio king Ben Fordham said Sheargold's spray was clearly just a misguided joke that failed to hit the target.

'He knows that the joke didn't land, he knows that many people viewed it as him punching down, but look, there's something that you need to know about Marty Sheargold's style of comedy, and I know this because I've listened to his podcasts for a long time: he says things all the time that he does not mean,' Fordham began.

'That's not me defending him, he knows that he's made a mistake, he's acknowledged it, he did the wrong thing.

'You know, jokes are funny when they land. And if they don't land, I think it's Jerry Seinfeld who said at one stage it's a bit like a soccer goal, if you get it in the goal it's a goal, if you miss, you miss - and this one missed.

'But that's what Marty Sheargold does all the time.

2GB host Ben Fordham (pictured) told his listeners that Marty Sheargold's comments on the Matildas were only made for shock value and aren't what the comedian really believes

'So I think to listeners, regular listeners to Marty Sheargold, they'll say 'but he does this all the time' because he rips into his colleagues, his bosses, his fellow comedians who are mates of his, even his own family. He says really extreme things about them.

'He doesn't say these things because he truly believes them. He says them for shock value and he says them to get a laugh.

'And I suppose - and Marty knows this better than anyone - in 2025 comedians have to walk the tightrope between getting laughs and not getting cancelled.'

Sheargold has also found plenty of supporters online amid claims he was within his rights to make the remarks because the Matildas shouldn't be immune from criticism given their poor form.

'The amount of people denouncing Marty Sheargold for what was essentially 30 seconds of a riff is absolutely baffling. Get the actual f**k off this app if you don't approve of free speech. Cancel culture has no place here,' one wrote on X.

'You're a loser if you're trying to cancel a genuinely funny dude for something he said wrong live on air. I don't have any time for such wimps. S**t take, Marty.'

'No matter what Marty Sheargold said the fact remains that the Matildas are the most over hyped, over marketed and most importantly under performing team we have seen for decades. No silver ware in sight,' said another.

'Women's sports is pushed down our throats relentlessly. And the hype for the Matildas is never ending. Regardless of them losing more games than they win,' wrote a third.

While lots of Australians slammed the comedian, plenty also stuck up for him online, saying he didn't deserve to be sacked

'Marty Sheargold didn't say anything different to what the majority of men with normal testosterone levels think. These things are 1. The Matildas are the most divisive team in Australian sport. 2. Sam Kerr sucks. 3. No red-blooded males are going to watch the women's Asian Cup,' another added.

'The Matildas feel like a combination [of] social justice, government grants and media spin. People don't want to fall in love with something that will take a side in the next election.

'I've heard Marty Sheargold say how much he hates soccer hundred of time. He rips everyone. Why are the Matilda's so untouchable in this country? If he had said he'd rather put a nail in his head than watch Gold Coast why is there no issue? Genuinely asking here?' another commenter wrote.

'So what did Marty Sheargold say that was incorrect? He was absolutely spot on! The hysteria over a side that missed the quarters in the world cup was stupid! The rating outside of Australia were abysmal. Triple M were weak for not supporting Marty,' another said.

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